Chapters On A Page

The next day at school was much the same as the day before. I actually got to attend my first class this time around which was art, but the teacher let us sit at the tables to talk and just turned the radio on. This I was thankful for since my artistic hand had clearly been cut off in a previous life and I had simply picked the elective because it had been at the top of the list. I sat with Jill and Art -who I learned was actually named Arthur but I enjoyed the coincidence of his nickname and the class we shared- and we talked the whole fifty minutes. It was nice to have someone to talk to in every period since I was used to only a few periods at best with my best friends. I didn't even mind that I didn't know any of them that well besides James. It didn't really seem to matter how well I knew any one of them because I had at least one thing in common with each and it allowed us to get along just fine. The only class that one of James' group wasn't in with me was my third period health class that I shared with Alex. I sat in the same seat, mostly to hide from the teacher, and slipped both my leather-bound notebook and a small container out of my purse and onto the desktop. I had my head ducked down close to the cool surface and was writing something in the book as the room filled up.

"What's this?" I heard after a minute or two. I looked up as the second bell rang, seeing Alex sitting in his seat from the day before and holding the container I'd placed further up on the desk so it almost sat on the edge. Before I could even respond, he had taken the lid off and brightened instantly at what was inside. "Cupcakes. Oh, I think I like you, Zack's cousin," he grinned at me. This finally convinced me that he remembered who I was. He never forgot my name during any other occasion, but he often simply called me Zack's cousin -I think because he just liked to fuck with me.

"Now, not all of those are for you," I told him as he set the lid on his desk and reached into the container. His face fell then, and he pointed a pout in my direction. "One's for Rian and the other for Jack. You'll see them at lunch before I have a chance to deliver those to them," I informed him like it should be obvious. I had promised to bring them to practice, so I only found it logical to give each of them one if I wouldn't be following through.

He nodded in understanding and then continued to pick one of the cakes inside. He set it off to the side once he pulled it out and pushed the lid back on to shield the other two from the eyes wandering his way. "What flavor?" he inquired after he had slid the plastic box up on his desk. He was already peeling the brightly colored paper off, so I guessed it didn't really matter that much what flavor it was.

"Just a vanilla cake and lemon cream cheese frosting," I answered, barely looking up from my pen on paper to see that he had taken a bite while I told him what to expect. When I saw that he appeared to be pleased with it, I flipped back a couple pages in my notebook.

"These are delicious," he expressed with his mouth full, turning his head to face me again. He licked the thumb of his free hand clean before taking another bite. I looked up again briefly to smile modestly at him, simultaneously leaving a small checkmark on the page I'd turned to. The flavors of the cakes really were simple, maybe just amped up some. "What're you writing there?" he asked after a minute.

I lifted my head and saw that he was a lot closer than I had thought, leaning over my desk to see the words on the pages I flipped back to. Instinctively, I pulled it toward me, shutting it to shield what was inside from him. "Nothing," I replied instantly, the word coming out much faster than I had intended. "I mean, it's nothing important. The front is my recipes and how well they go over," I said more slowly and truthfully. "The rest is just… stuff that comes to me and I feel the need to write down. Stupid shit," I assured him so he would hopefully become uninterested. To make sure he wouldn't get a chance to see anything in the book, I shoved it back into my purse, sandwiched between my wallet and the larger container of cupcakes for James and his friends. Alex seemed to realize that the book was something I kept only to myself because he didn't question it any further. "Hey, can I ask you something?" I asked, suddenly remembering something from the day before.

"Did I really not recognize who you were yesterday?" he guessed at what I was going to question him on. "Well, yeah, I did. I forget shit more than an average human. That's what my mom says anyway. And to see you in my everyday environment rather than in Rian's basement or at a show threw me. I am sorry though, because it made me feel like an asshole," he explained, sounding slightly flustered that he may have hurt my feelings or something of the sort. His fingers were folding the cupcake paper over and over, working it into a thick but small square that he pushed down onto his desktop under his palm.

I snorted lightly, shaking my head. "That's not what was on my mind. But seriously, don't worry about it," I responded, hoping he would realize that it wasn't a big deal and was already in the past. "No, I was wondering if you could tell your girlfriend that I'm not trying to sleep with you or anything. I don't really care if people glare at me, but it gets uncomfortable when it's continuous," I told him, and immediately wondered if he had noticed that she had been angry at my presence yesterday.

"Lisa?" he said, confused so that it sounded like a question. Since I could only assume that was her name, I just nodded. He looked as if he wanted to question what I was saying, to make sure I had the right person. "Yeah, I'll tell her to chill out. She's probably just wondering who you are," he tried to convince me instead.

I took it for what it was, and believed that he would tell her to ease off. The air hadn't been tense between us to begin with, but it was a lot lighter than it had been the day before. We had already spent the first fifteen minutes of class talking, having completely disregarded Ms. Sheffield if she had even said anything at the beginning of class. Everyone else was talking, the room buzzing with conversations again as I suspected it would be until the school year was over. So we kept up our own conversation, avoiding topics that led back to baking or his girlfriend. Regardless, we were both excited when the bell rang and we could run off to lunch to find our separate groups.

I sat in the same seat, once again, at lunch and waited for the others to filter in. Lunch was simply another half hour of talking and laughing. I knew the week here -my first week- was going to throw me off for the beginning of next year when I had to actually do work. But I was determined to enjoy what wasn't destroying me. The only one of my classes later in the day that wasn't just all of the students doing what they wanted was gym. The teacher was even making us wear uniforms for a couple more days. Thankfully, I didn't have a uniform yet and couldn't get in trouble for it. They had combined the few classes that had gym the same period and there were several options spread out across the gymnasium with its folding walls now hidden. I didn't plan on playing anything, though encouraged, but I found myself hanging around Jack. Well, not so much finding myself as it was him pulling me to sit underneath a volleyball net while a group of others played.

"Are you trying to get me concussed with a stray ball? 'Cause if you are, I'm pretty sure I don't appreciate it," I joked as he lifted his skinny arms over his head to hold onto the bottom of the net. The poles on either end tipped some, causing the players to yell obscenities at him. But he just ignored them as he chuckled at me and shook his head. He then convinced me to attempt to grab the ball even though it was soaring far above our heads, simply to interfere with the game in someway. Another period spent laughing over some of the stupidest things. I could have went straight to english when the bell rang, but I waited for Jack to change so we could walk together since he wanted to talk to Alex.

"How's Dulaney treating you?" he asked as we made our way through the crowded halls. Like me, his arms were empty of any books, but I was sure this was something that was a voluntary choice rather than because he didn't have any. "It's better than Towson, right?" he asked, raising his eyebrows a few times as if it might persuade me to agree.

I snorted with a shake of my head. I was leading the way though we were walking side-by-side and I had to constantly grab his shirt sleeve to pull him out of other people's paths. He didn't pay much attention. "Maybe get my friends and Zack here, then we can talk," I answered honestly. "Other than that, it's a lot better than I thought it would be. No one's looked at me like I'm from the circus yet, so I'd say you guys are pretty hospitable," I continued with a shrug, stopping as we finally came to the doorway to my english class.

"Give me the summer to plan it out, and I might just be able to pull it off," he replied, referring to my first statement. "But it would be a lot easier if you could focus only on how great we are because I'm terrible at actually thinking of something like that," he added with a chuckle.

I laughed as well, inching backwards into the room. "I guess I'll learn to live with how it is next year," I promised which made him put his thumb and forefinger together to form a circle and held his other three fingers up to let me know that this was a perfect idea. I gave a thumbs-up right back and then turned to find an empty seat. As I made my way to a desk, Alex brushed passed me so he could get to the door to speak to his friend.

By the time the second bell went off, I was already seated with my legs crossed on the seat and reading the book I'd had with me the day before. I wasn't sure if Alex had even come back in, but I could feel glares at the back of my head. So I hoped he would soon if he hadn't. The longer and harder I attempted to focus on the words, the tougher it became to understand any of it. I had stuck it out most of the period, but I decided that I couldn't simply sit there anymore after reading the same sentence six times and still not understanding what it said. When I spun in my seat, I saw that Alex was sitting with Lisa and the dark-haired girl again in the same spot as the previous day. None of them were exactly paying attention, but Lisa kept subconsciously glancing my way with that cold stare.

"Hey, Alex," I called, grabbing his attention easily from only a few chairs away. If anything, this made Lisa's glare intensify since she finally acknowledged that she was doing it. Alex looked up, a questioning expression pointed my way in wonder at what I may want. When his eyes met mine, I jerked my gaze to his girlfriend in a gesture to remind him of what I had asked during third period.

This seemed to be enough to bring it back to mind because realization dawned on his face. He looked over at her as she tried her best to hide the fact that she was shooting me dirty looks now that others were looking at her. "Hey, did you guys know Zack's cousin transferred here yesterday?" he inquired of the other two suddenly, interrupting the brunette in the middle of her sentence. He smiled when they looked at him, trying to act like he wasn't implying anything and failing. He nodded his head toward me, causing them both to look my way.

I smiled a little, nervously, back at them, wondering if this was going to work out the way I wanted it to. I was pleased when they grinned back. "I thought you looked familiar!" the dark-haired one exclaimed. She waved me over then, insisting I go sit with them for the remainder of class. I tentatively stood and made my way back to them, still unsure if it was a good thing she remembered me or not. She was clearly a nice person but she was also obviously close with Lisa. Where would she stand if the latter still hated me? I wasn't looking to make enemies so quickly. "I'm Rian's girlfriend, Kara. We've met before," she stated as I sat down in the seat across from her.

It was also the seat directly in front of Lisa, but I tried not to notice where her expression lie while I was speaking to her friend. "That's right! It's good to see you," I responded truthfully, knowing now that she really was the nice person she looked to be. She and Rian were almost made for each other since they were surely the two sweetest beings that ever existed. I turned to face Lisa then. I saw now that she appeared much happier to know that I was -the relative of- a friend and not a slutty enemy after what was hers. "And your Alex's girlfriend, right?" I asked, acting as if I didn't recall simply to give her a chance to confirm it and let it be known that he was taken.

She grinned widely at me and nodded. "Yeah, that's me," she replied, and reached across the aisle to meet Alex's hand, letting their fingers lace. They looked utterly pleased to be together, and it almost made my stomach churn to see a couple glad to be what looked like completely attached to each other at our age.

I was afraid she might go on about just how happy they were and I was kicking myself for letting it come to that, but thankfully Kara spoke up to ask how I liked the school. I didn't even care if I would have to answer this question continuously until October. I was just glad that I was no longer being glared at and that I also didn't have to hear about the relationship unless I asked. I answered the same as I had answered Jack, adding in that I wished my friends were here again since it wasn't leaving my mind. Kara nodded in understanding, but told me I could easily make friends here even if they weren't my best friends and then began listing off clubs I could join next year to make that happen. The two of us discussed the variety until the bell rang, never once being interrupted by the couple. I didn't think anything of it though, and bid all three of them goodbye as we headed out the door.

Since I didn't have to make a stop at the office today, the bustle outside the building wasn't as bad. I passed a few kids running for their bus or car, but most still seemed to be inside, stuffing books into their lockers and meeting up with friends. Neither of those things were something I had to worry about so early in my time here, so I hit the sidewalk and started on my way home. It took me maybe a full sixty seconds to realize that a car was beside me, going almost the exact speed I was. Even then, I didn't want to turn to see who my apparent stalker was. So it was maybe another sixty seconds or so before I decided to stop and turn. If this really was a stalker, I certainly didn't want to lead him to my house where he could hide in the bushes and wait for me at all hours. Who I saw though probably could be counted on never to watch me creepily from afar.

"What are you doing?" I asked Alex who was sitting in the driver's seat of his car. He had stopped when I had, leaving his car idling near the curb. I stepped off the sidewalk, standing in the small space between the metal and the concrete. Crossing my arms, I placed them atop the open passenger side window. Eyebrows raised, head titled to the side, I waited for his answer.

"Want a ride?" he countered, clearly enjoying the anxiety that was running across my face. He didn't even try to hide his smirk.

I was no longer flustered over someone following me or who it was though. "Don't you have a girlfriend that you should be driving home? Or to your home? Or to someplace else you can be completely in love together?" I answered. The questioning back-and-forth was becoming amusing, I'd have to admit. I straightened my head again and shifted my weight to my other foot, pulling slightly out of the window.

He shrugged, looking forward out the windshield. "Lisa has her own car," he informed me with a shrug. "And don't let what she says get to you in any way. Whether she's trying to make you jealous or make you believe something wonderful. She made it sound like we're happy and sappy, but trust me, it's not like we can't get enough of each other and it's not always a blissful affair between us. We're seventeen. I think it'd be crazy to be absolutely in love right now before we've lived," he ranted, continuing to stare at some point in front of the car.

I looked that way as well, wondering if maybe a run-over squirrel or something held his interest. But all that was there was a sheet of bright yellow paper advertising something, and even that was far off on the other side of the road. "That's a lot of explaining for just one simple question," I pointed out. "My house isn't too far from here, anyway," I added before he could throw out a comment or another explanation.

He shrugged once more, but finally turned back to me. "I don't have anything else to do; it's Tuesday afternoon. Just hop in," he insisted, and leaned across the center console to open the door I was still leaning against.

It smacked into my stomach lightly, but I ignored it and stepped away as I opened the door wider. If he was going to insist so much, then I wasn't going to turn down a ride. I gave him the short, simple directions while I closed the door again and then settled into the seat. "You know, this isn't an invitation to come in and make yourself at home," I told him after a moment of silence. "On some other day, maybe. But I have to get ready for work and then get there, and it's like a thirty minute bike ride," I said, making sure he knew I wasn't blowing him off. I really did have things to do that would prevent me from just sitting around.

"Bike ride?" he snorted. "If it aids you in not having to put yourself through that torture, then I can bring you to work, too. Actually, don't put up an argument, 'cause you're not gonna win," he promised. He sounded pretty confident, so I didn't even bother disobeying his demand to not put up a fight.