First Day (01)

The way Cris talks about volunteering actually fulfilling him makes me feel a little bad about the way I spent my summer. The touch of Red's foot keeps me from spiraling too far down the feeling-bad road, though. I reach my hand down to subtly take hold of her foot, holding it against my hip and hopefully out of Cris's sight. It's kind of fun, being sneaky, a little thrill. Still, I don't do more than hold her foot there, like I'm stilling an antsy child who needs to wait until the adults are done talking.

"Well, I can't say that I saved the city or anything..." Except for last year, when I did. "But it was a good summer. I got to work on painting and, uh, spend some time with my family. I didn't see you at the end-of-summer party. Did you miss it or did I miss you?"

I might like the idea of showing my paintings to Cris a little more than I realized. When he proposes the idea, my stomach does a little flip, almost like it thinks we're flirting. And maybe...I can't tell...but then suddenly my right hand is twisting the ends of one of my curls around it as I smile at him. "I did have fun. Vincent and I had a blast on the dance floor. I, uh, might've partied a little too hard, actually." I drop my hand from my hair and push my smile away, looking down, playing the shy damsel to give Cris someone to rescue...if he wants to.

I give Cris a shy, pleased smile at his encouragement before Mr. Cooper starts class. I listen to the work laid out, looking over all the reading and tests and quizzes with a growing sense of dread. How am I going to have time for my actual life with all these classes? High school is so dumb. I wish Medora was around still.

At least with Red here, I'll have someone who will let me cheat off them. It'll be fine. I turn around to look at her and whisper, "This looks like a lot."

I raise an interested eyebrow at her question. "Oh, are you offering?"

I glance back at the syllabus, looking at all those endless assignments and forum posts and mini-essays. I look back at her, holding her gaze as I nod, once, slowly. "Yes. Very much."

Red sighs softly and you know she'll knock this out for you. Mr. Cooper continues his lecture, but you can't pay attention when Jonathan Martin starts his pencil tapping. It feels like he's doing it right in front of you, just to drive you mad. In the back, Chloe is on her phone, again.

I actually try to listen to Mr. Cooper, but after a while all I can hear is Jonathan Martin's pencil. It's impossibly annoying. It feels like it's echoing in my head. It feels like I'll be hearing it while I try to fall asleep tonight.

Eventually, I can't take it anymore. I kick the leg of his chair, hissing, "Hey, knock it off!"

I study him for a beat, trying to figure out if he genuinely doesn't realize what he's doing. "Tapping your pencil," I answer finally, annoyed. "It's making me crazy."

Your outburst makes you look a little like a psycho, so take that condition.

"Thanks," I say softly, still a little annoyed, as he puts his pencil down. I lean back in my chair and pick up my own pen to take a few notes on what Mr. Cooper is talking about. It's hard to pay attention for too long, though, and before long, I find myself zoning out. Eventually, like Chloe, I'm drawn back to my phone and I text Kastor.

I have art with Annika. She's all pissy that I sided with you over her being a total cheating hazmot.

Kastor texts back:
You didn't have to throw yourself in the middle of it. I'm sure you've got lots of other problems going on. I can handle her. Just ignore Annika.

Followed by:
But thanks for sticking up for me. That was sweet.