To whoever is reading this, I advise you to read the first part or the plot will be unclear. Very strange, in fact. Again, sorry Stellz I got carried away. I get carried away far too easily. So, have fun reading! I'll be posting the last part and the epilogue before the 29th (deadline xD)!
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I sighed once again. My neck was starting to ache, from being turned to my right for so long. Why couldn’t I just face that Mason kid face up? I decided to look straight forward for the next few minutes, but staring at a bunch of heads in front of the empty white board was boring. Why was the classroom silent? And why was the teacher sitting? Were we supposed to be doing something? Oh wow. I glanced at Joana. “What to do?” I whispered, after catching her attention. She looked at me, slightly disapproval, and pointed at the end of her manual’s page.
I opened mine so quickly; the book almost fell off the table. The soccer person laughed again. I stared at him for the first time in the half an hour that had passed since the bell rang, my eyes piercing.
“If looks killed…” He looked down, as if defeated.
“Do you just enjoy laughing at my misery?” I asked him, my voice could be compared to ‘cold as ice’ or ‘fierce like a sharpened knife’.
“Actually, it’s quite entertaining.” And there was that stupid playful smile I just felt like tearing off his face.
“Argh!” I complained, completely furious and frustrated. How could he?! I turned around, to avoid doing something preposterous and found the curious look of Joana, her head slightly cocked. I lowered my head, straight up. I was condemned on this class. Did God hate me this much? That damn condition, and now this stupid jerk to make things a lot more difficult. I ran my hands through my hair, and closed my eyes.
I knew I shouldn’t have done it. I knew I shouldn’t, but I was really tired. A second later I tried to open them, I really tried. But I remained in the same position, and I felt it: the sleepy feeling, the numbness filling my limbs. I knew I was slipping away, and I couldn’t stop it.
My thoughts scanned through what would happen if I would fall asleep right there: social suicide, glanced looks and whispered things. How could I stand it all over again? No way, I wasn’t going to do this again. Something, hit my head, and a paper airplane fell onto my lap. I searched around, staring from person to person. No one looked particularly suspicious, and even the jock who was sitting next to me was focused on the white board, that now had some things written on it; or so it appeared. Oh my gosh! Someone had woken me up! Well, I wasn’t exactly asleep, more like in some sort of trance, but thank God someone had made me open my eyes. Or something dreadful could have happened. I needed to be more careful. Far more careful, than what I had thought to be just enough.
I turned my face down to my book, and started reading the text again. It was some kind of narrative text, and the teacher was writing post-read exercises on the board. Just what I wanted. The text, incredibly, I found to be… curious. It was an extract from a book, and just be those paragraphs I kind of felt like reading the whole thing. Which means, great applause to the writer!
And then, another paper airplane hit me again. This time, I grabbed it, ready to point it and send it back to the one that had bombarded me in the first place. I found Jake Mason, with his head supported on his closed fist, smiling as if he was suppressing a laugh. I did not hesitate. I aimed it right at his face, and even though I knew it wouldn’t do him any damage, I tried to send it with as much impulse and strength possible. He grabbed the paper airplane before it hit him, and chuckled at my useless efforts.
“Really mature,” I whispered. I was secretly hiding it was kind of fun to do it. Rebellion in the middle of English class. I used to do it, in middle school, but mostly in Geography class. I had a really dorky teacher that never saw anything. It was hilarious! I started scribbling down the questions on my notebook, decided to ignore him and rise above. But the next paper airplane brought me down. I tore it into down, and sent the pieces at him. “Happy?” I smiled sarcastically, and sighed. He was making it impossible. And then I got slightly mad at myself, for not being able to be resentful and stuff. Sighing, at my personality mostly, I looked over at Joana, who was once again staring at me and the half human person on my left. By this time, I had already developed a theory for the Mason kid. He was only half human, but I hadn’t decided on what the other half was, yet. Not half God, no way, nor werewolf, nor vampire. Maybe half ninja! Nah, that was too cool for him. Well, I’d figure something out later. And yet another airplane, but this one missed me, falling on the top of my table. I picked it up, and threw it at him, only to fail as he did. I smiled, mostly unconsciously, because that was a really fun thing to do. And then the teacher got into my view, her glare not even slender amused.
“We already got detention at five,” I informed her. She nodded, of course she was going to send us to detention.
“Good. You’ll be repeating it tomorrow,” Mrs. Longman sentenced me. I felt like screaming! Two afternoons going to waste because of some stupid jokes or whatever. I wasn’t even directly involved in it – the Mason kid was the one that had done it. I rested my elbows on the table, and closing my hands into fists I banged my hand against them. Stupid, stupid me. My parents would kill me, not would, will. I bet they already knew.
The bell soon rang, and I packed my things quickly. Walking out the door, Joana followed me. We stopped at the entrance of another Hall, seeing Caroline talking with Sean, while walking out of a classroom. So she was making progress! Great! That was good, really good.
We went to the same spot we were in the last break, but instead of talking cheerfully we just stared at Sean and Caroline, who were sitting by the jocks table, talking enthusiastically.
“Oh wow.” Catherine said. “She actually did it.”
“Did what?” I asked. Probably talked to Sean or something, but I felt obliged to ask.
“She caught him. Can’t you see?” She motioned at the table. Caroline laughed, and Sean flashed her a drop-dead-gorgeous smile. “He’s under her finger.”
“Oh. Wow.” He really was. I noticed how he was sending all sort of body language, smiling often, meeting her eyes, and the ultimate shyness sign: he ran his fingers through his light blonde hair. I squeaked, in happiness, and the girls all giggled. We spent our entire break staring at them, and the future-to-be couple, trapped in their own world, didn’t even remotely notice our glares. That was so cute!
The bell rang, it was dreadful time. Physical Education. Eck.
I walked over to the double door that led to the recess of the school, where we would have our out on the outdoors P.E class. Out of a building, raining. Oh man, that would just make my day. And it did! One of the functionaries of the school came to warn us that there wouldn’t be any P.E class. Instead, we would be playing table tennis inside the school, on the Students Lounge Room, a big spacey room that had ping pong tables stored at a corner for these kinds of situations. I jumped, and clapped my hands, happy and satisfied. It was the up side of living on a rainy country. The only good point.
I sat with Joana at one of the benches around the room, chatting, mostly about Caroline and Sean or some other gossip that was flying around the school. Comfortably waiting for our turn on a tennis table, I heard the soccer coach/my P.E teacher call,
“Jones!”
“Yes, sir?” I said, most surprised and startled.
“Go check for Mister Mason, he’s been running.”
Running? In the rain? “Where-“ The coaches’ glare burnt through me; he was not a man to be meddled with. “On it!” I declared, running away from the room. That man was creepy, and harsh. He reminded me of an army captain or whatever. My pace slowed down, passing the hall that led to the outdoors. Everything was silent, and the endless white walled hall seemed not to end; these were ghostly walls. Finally, I started hearing the rain pouring down. Wow, he was running with this weather? Guess the captain gotta keep in shape.
I stayed in the threshold, keeping me half save from the rain. Should I go and ask for an umbrella or go quickly to check around? I crossed my arms on my chest, for the weather had become also windy, and I was now cold. I didn’t have to sort out my options for long; I saw a silhouette in the distance, its shape deformed by the raindrops. As it got closer, a panting breathing, and a pair of soul reading chocolate eyes. My lips parted, and one of my arms dropped to the side of my body: Jake Manson literary took my breath away. He stopped, a few feet away from me, stabbing me with his eyes. I couldn’t move; it was if the sole of my sneakers melted and glued to the floor. I had the urge to reach closer to him. I turned my left hand, that was pending, into a fist to keep the urge away. Sharp, small pain: my nails had pierced the skin, and a small drop of blood was now falling.
“The coach… he…” I managed to blurt out. My voice faded with all reason and the surrounding world. Jake took a step in my direction, and my body relaxed. Why, I did not know. My knees were able to move, but instead of turning around and go report to coach, I stepped forwards, my eyes never leaving his face. He was wearing a grin, now. I stepped out into the rain, in silence. I closed my eyes for a second, and I found it, that piece of conscious that was buried underneath his image. I held on to it, and managed to make it overcome everything else. “You okay?” I asked, between gritted teeth.
His smile grew wider, and even his eyes brightened a bit. “Yeah, I’ll just go and take a shower. Tell coach I’ll be there in a bit.” He swiftly turned around, and I returned to the dryness of the inside of the building, watching him off to the locker rooms, his body turning into a blur under the rain. What had just happened?
