‹ Prequel: Calm Before the Storm
You're Kind of Gangster
Shailene
"There's no way I can be assigned someone else?" I plead to the school counselor in charge of student tutoring.
Mrs. Brown looks up from her computer. "Tutoring assignments are final, Shailene. No swapping, no switching, no changes."
I sigh and thank her politely, walking out of the counseling office and out into the school's senior hallway to my locker. I see Matt already leaning against the locker next to mine with Jo close by, waiting for me. Once she sees me come up to them, she looks up and stuffs her phone into her pocket. "So, who are you going to be tutoring, Lene?" she asks, trying to get the piece of paper with the tutoring information out of my hands.
I snatch it away and cram it into the top shelf of my locker as I pull it open, quickly slamming it shut. "Ean Gallagher," I mumble, not caring if they heard me or not as I rush off to first period.
-
After school Wednesday, I go to the media center for the first tutoring session with the rest of the people who had signed up. I pick an empty table when I see Ean isn't here yet and pull out my phone while I wait. About an hour passes before he finally does show up.
Mrs. Brown comes over to my table with him in tow and instructs him to sit. No matter how much of a badass Ean may be, there isn't one student in school that isn't terrified of Mrs. Brown. He begrudgingly sits down in the seat across from me. A scowl matches his usually light brown eyes to his dark chocolate hair as he grabs various textbooks out of his backpack.
Each book bangs against the wooden table as he slams them down. Ean doesn't seem happy about wasting time studying. It's clear he's upset about not being able to spend his time with his friends getting high under the dock at the wharf downtown.
He's been friends with two guys, Will and Max, for a couple years, and they seem to be the ones who started whatever exactly is going on. Ever since he got into their group, he's been in trouble non stop with not only the school but with Livonia's city police. And he can't even technically call himself an official member of their "gang" until he graduates at the end of the school year. There's a sort of initiation that comes with turning eighteen in the group. From what I've heard, when a member turns eighteen, there becomes something they need to prove to stay in the group.
I don't usually hang around with anyone besides Matt and Jo. Anything that I know is only things that I've heard around school- but nothing I've heard has been good. And especially after what happened with my older brother, Beau, a year ago, I don't go around looking for that information.
"What do you want to start with?" I ask, putting my phone back in my pocket. He only looks at me to shoot daggers, not even moving to grab a book and put it in front of him.
The silence continues for a few minutes before I finally huff and reach over the table. I grab a textbook and open it on a random page towards the front. It's his calculus textbook. "Where are you in this?" I ask, skimming a few pages before looking back up at his still scowling face.
He shrugs like he legitimately does not know, which I wouldn't doubt, and he leans to the side to pull his buzzing cell phone out of his pocket. "Ean-" I start, but he cuts me off by holding a hand up as he answers the phone.
He talks briefly to the person on the other side of the line, telling him simply that he'll be there late. The librarian comes over to our table, furious, whisper yelling at Ean that this is still a library and he needs to hang up immediately. He rolls his eyes and tells the person he needs to go, hanging up the phone and then smiling dismissively at the librarian.
After she leaves, Ean turns back to me, slumping down in his seat and crossing his arms. "Ean we need to-"
But he cuts me off once again, finally speaking, his voice deep and intimidating, "No, no we don't need to do anything here. I don't want to be here and you're only here because you're little miss princess with your perfectly blonde hair and perfectly green eyes who enjoys showing off how goddamn smart you are."
I sit there, stunned at his outburst, and I struggle to find a response. He laughs, genuinely amused at my situation. Then, he shoves the books back into his backpack and then walks out of the media center, ignoring Mrs. Brown calling after him.
Mrs. Brown looks up from her computer. "Tutoring assignments are final, Shailene. No swapping, no switching, no changes."
I sigh and thank her politely, walking out of the counseling office and out into the school's senior hallway to my locker. I see Matt already leaning against the locker next to mine with Jo close by, waiting for me. Once she sees me come up to them, she looks up and stuffs her phone into her pocket. "So, who are you going to be tutoring, Lene?" she asks, trying to get the piece of paper with the tutoring information out of my hands.
I snatch it away and cram it into the top shelf of my locker as I pull it open, quickly slamming it shut. "Ean Gallagher," I mumble, not caring if they heard me or not as I rush off to first period.
-
After school Wednesday, I go to the media center for the first tutoring session with the rest of the people who had signed up. I pick an empty table when I see Ean isn't here yet and pull out my phone while I wait. About an hour passes before he finally does show up.
Mrs. Brown comes over to my table with him in tow and instructs him to sit. No matter how much of a badass Ean may be, there isn't one student in school that isn't terrified of Mrs. Brown. He begrudgingly sits down in the seat across from me. A scowl matches his usually light brown eyes to his dark chocolate hair as he grabs various textbooks out of his backpack.
Each book bangs against the wooden table as he slams them down. Ean doesn't seem happy about wasting time studying. It's clear he's upset about not being able to spend his time with his friends getting high under the dock at the wharf downtown.
He's been friends with two guys, Will and Max, for a couple years, and they seem to be the ones who started whatever exactly is going on. Ever since he got into their group, he's been in trouble non stop with not only the school but with Livonia's city police. And he can't even technically call himself an official member of their "gang" until he graduates at the end of the school year. There's a sort of initiation that comes with turning eighteen in the group. From what I've heard, when a member turns eighteen, there becomes something they need to prove to stay in the group.
I don't usually hang around with anyone besides Matt and Jo. Anything that I know is only things that I've heard around school- but nothing I've heard has been good. And especially after what happened with my older brother, Beau, a year ago, I don't go around looking for that information.
"What do you want to start with?" I ask, putting my phone back in my pocket. He only looks at me to shoot daggers, not even moving to grab a book and put it in front of him.
The silence continues for a few minutes before I finally huff and reach over the table. I grab a textbook and open it on a random page towards the front. It's his calculus textbook. "Where are you in this?" I ask, skimming a few pages before looking back up at his still scowling face.
He shrugs like he legitimately does not know, which I wouldn't doubt, and he leans to the side to pull his buzzing cell phone out of his pocket. "Ean-" I start, but he cuts me off by holding a hand up as he answers the phone.
He talks briefly to the person on the other side of the line, telling him simply that he'll be there late. The librarian comes over to our table, furious, whisper yelling at Ean that this is still a library and he needs to hang up immediately. He rolls his eyes and tells the person he needs to go, hanging up the phone and then smiling dismissively at the librarian.
After she leaves, Ean turns back to me, slumping down in his seat and crossing his arms. "Ean we need to-"
But he cuts me off once again, finally speaking, his voice deep and intimidating, "No, no we don't need to do anything here. I don't want to be here and you're only here because you're little miss princess with your perfectly blonde hair and perfectly green eyes who enjoys showing off how goddamn smart you are."
I sit there, stunned at his outburst, and I struggle to find a response. He laughs, genuinely amused at my situation. Then, he shoves the books back into his backpack and then walks out of the media center, ignoring Mrs. Brown calling after him.