Melodies

I woke up in a bad mood to begin with, which was not a great way to start the first day back to school. I just didn't want to go back to more testing and more junk being shoved down my throat that I would never really need to think about.

Kell met me in Trig, looking tired, but I guess that was normal. He took his usual seat next to me just before the bell went off, leaning against my arm for a minute.

"I hate school."

"You and me both."

"I don't want to do the stupid duet Saturday. I don't want to do homework. I don't want to study. I just want to go away and hibernate."

"That would be nice."

Ms. Love walked in, carrying a stack of papers and a pen, looking rushed and pissy. "Get out your notebooks, we're starting a new chapter."

I took notes, for once. Kell seemed a little surprised, but he didn't say anything. He paid attention to the lesson, like the perfect little student he is.

All we did in English was watch Macbeth, because Ms. Smith had given up on having us read it aloud. I couldn't help but notice Kell in the desk right next to me, sound asleep, but propped up strategically to make it seem like he was awake.

Even though I was kind of irritated with everything, I still appreciated how cute he was when he was asleep. His eyelashes brushed his cheeks gently, and his lips were just slightly parted. He looked like a kid, honestly.

Government was a waste of time, and then AE was dull, mostly. Kell and the other 'responsible kids' went off to their ACT/SAT prep class, and the rest of us just hung out in the library. Elizabeth had taken to using a practice room during AE, something I'm sure Kell would have loved for me to do, but she stayed behind this time.

"Practice rooms full?"

She shook her head. "I just don't really feel like doing anything."

"It's way too Monday. And November."

"Yeah."

She sighed. "I can't believe Kell and Kim are still managing to care about schoolwork. I'm so over it."

"Really? You seem pretty dedicated in class."

"Pft. I only really work when it comes to cello and dance. And you see how enthusiastic I am about that right now."

I shrugged. "Actually, Kell's been kind of moody today. He was going on about hating school and shit."

She rested her chin in her hand, looking at the bookshelf beside us. "I understand where he's coming from. I would do just about anything to get out of here for a while."

Her phone buzzed, and she pulled it out and started texting a reply. I was quiet, pretending to read, but really thinking about what she'd said.

I knew it would have to wait until the next break, Christmas break, but I sort of had an idea. My dad owned a big cabin in pretty much the middle of nowhere in the woods near his house. He never used it, but I bet he'd be willing to let me use it for a few days, a week, maybe. We could all go there for a while just after we got out and then come back for Christmas and everything.

It was probably a stupid idea, but I decided to ask about it anyway, later. And I decided not to tell Kell about it. It could have been a nice surprise for him, maybe, if he got too stressed near the end of the semester.