CHAPTER FOUR

*Ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding...*

'Would someone shut that dang alarm off? It's giving me a headache and I don't like it... Why is it on anyway?'

I open my eyes, ignoring the protest my body is giving me as I stand up, exhausted and rubbing my eyes. My heart seems to come to a stop as I see the time; twelve minutes before I'm supposed to be at my first class.

"No, no, no... This can't be happening-" I groan and brush my hair as quickly as I can, putting on a swipe of mascara before tugging on some jeans and a hoodie.

My head pounding, I rush down the stairs and grab one of the smoothies that I'd bought at the store yesterday before I jog back up the stairs and into the bathroom, rushing to brush my teeth. When I finish, I run back down, shoving the smoothie into my backpack and shoving on my shoes with one hand while using the other to put my backpack over my shoulders. I don't see any sign that Mom's come home, so that's not good.

'Ollie can't stay home alone... But I need to get to school... So does Ollie though... AUGH... Life would be so much easier if Mom was a better person. '

Once again, I run up the stairs and knock on Ollie's door. After a moment of waiting, there are soft footsteps and the door is opened, revealing a sleepy looking boy.

"Ollie, can you go get your stuff together? I'm going to be late for my first class, but I promise I'll get you to school on time," I make the promise and then look down at my backpack, which has my flip-phone in it. I regret the promise immediately, because I remember I need to help Scott out with his studies for math, but I know that I have to follow through with this.

He runs off and collects his stuff, somehow downstairs and ready within ten minutes. By then, I have a smoothie for him, and I've drank mine. I usher him into the car and allow him to drink his smoothie while I grab my keys and open the garage. Eventually, the garage door closes and I'm driving down the street, my windshield wipers going at full speed because of how much rain there is. Ollie's silent the entire way.

After a short period of time, I pull up at one of my friend, Emma's house. She's getting into her car just as I park on the curb.

"Stay here." I order and run out, jogging against the rain.

"Everett? What are you-" she asks, pausing at her door and closing it, meeting me halfway up the driveway.

"Can you do me a favor?" I interrupt, panting, "My brother needs to get to school, but I do too. Do you think your mom could drive him? I just figured because your sister is als-"

"Yeah, yeah, no problem! Bring him over! I'll just tell my mom!" she nods.

"Oh, well I have money and I can pay her to-"

"No way! I trust that something's going on! It's all good!" Emma answers and beckons Ollie to come over, so he gets out of the car and awkwardly runs over, his backpack bouncing on his back.

"Thanks Emma." I give her a wet hug, smiling thankfully as she rushes Ollie inside and speaks to her mother at the door for a moment.

Her mom waves to me and I wave back gratefully, running back to my car and getting my seatbelt on as Emma pulls out of her driveway. As soon as she starts down the street, I follow her, feeling bad that I've made her late.

"Miss Fernsby!"

My head snaps up from my desk.

"Would you like a detention slip?" the teacher asks, and I rub my eyes, waking up.

'I've dozed off in class? That's not good. What time is it? What period is this again?'

I look at the clock and grimace.

'Only second period. I'll have to survive until third, then I have study hall and I can help Scott.'

"Everett, you have ten seconds to tell me the answer to this question: how is water scientifically written?" she asks, and I think hard, my eyebrows pulling together in concentration.

'What does she mean by that? Does she mean she wants me to tell her what's in it? Or... What?'

"H2O?" I answer, crossing my fingers that I'm correct. If I'm not, I don't know what I'll tell Scott.

The teacher sends me a glare of a look and I freeze, staring back.

'I got it wrong. She knows I haven't been paying attention in class.'

I wait for her to tell me I'm wrong. To tell me that I've got detention, or that she's lowering my grade as soon as she gets the chance. Maybe she'll even tell me to go to the principal's office for falling asleep in class.

"Correct. Moving on." She responds and turns back to the white board, writing some formulas down before droning on again about science.

After what seemed like three hours, but was only one, the bell for our last period rang. I packed up my stuff as quickly as possible and swung my backpack over my shoulder, walking out of the classroom and avoiding my teacher's gaze. The last thing I needed was to have a talk with her when I could be helping Scott.

He's already in the library by the time I get there and he's sitting at a table with Emma, in deep conversation with her. I pull my hair into a ponytail and make my way over to him, pulling my math books out of my bag in the meantime. They look up, and Emma grabs her stuff before looking at me sympathetically, then moving five tables away.

'What's going on? Normally Emma sits with us if she's here in the first place. Why is she moving?'

Scott looks more and more anxious by the minute as soon as I sit down. He looks like he's going to throw up. It's bothering me that I don't know why he's so nervous.

"Hey... Um, I brought my math work, so we can work together and get you studied so you can retake the test..." I hate how my voice comes out sort of singsong as I sit down next to him.

Scott shuffles his feet under the table and shakes his head but doesn't say anything.

'I know him, and I know something isn't right. What's wrong with him? Is he sick?'

"You, okay?" I ask and he grunts slightly in response, "Scott?"

"I don't want to do this, okay?" he says finally with a deep sigh and runs a hand through his hair, looking frustrated.

"Well, you asked- but fine, we don't have to do the math. You could've just said so." I roll my eyes and purse my lips, shoving the books back into my backpack.

"No, not that. I don't need help, Everett. I aced the quiz," for proof, he holds up his quiz as he talks, 'he even has extra credit', "I just... I have to break up with you. It's not because I hate you or anything, it's just- I feel like you aren't good for me. I mean, your mom ran off to get drunk at parties, your dad doesn't even exist in your home, and you block people out. You push them away. And I can't deal with it anymore. Think! When is the last time you've sent me a text message?"

"Well to be fair it's hard to text on a flip ph-" I begin, but he interrupts.

"Excuses. Always with your excuses. It's tiring. You can't even handle your own life, so why should I let you mess with mine? Plus, I've just lost interest in you and what we've had. You're cool I suppose, but I just don't want to continue with us." he asks.

"Let me interrupt. If you wanted to break up with me, you didn't have to prepare a whole speech. You could've just said, "well, I think we're done," and called it good. Thanks for pointing out all my flaws out, though. I'm sorry I don't have a dad who cares about me. And I'm sorry that my life is hard. But that's no excuse to be a jerk about it, because it isn't my fault. And my mom does not get drunk by the way. She's on vacation. And for your information, I think you're boring too. I'm glad you told me, because I lost inters myself." I bitterly lie and grab my backpack, storming off to Emma's table.

"Hey, are you oka-"

"So that's why you agreed to take in my brother this morning, huh? You knew this whole time? You're a jerk! Why wouldn't you have told me? I thought you were my friend." I don't bother letting her finish as I make eye contact with her, and then walk away.

'Don't cry. It's not a big deal.'

I tell myself not to cry, but it's pointless. I wasn't going to anyway. If that was how he felt, then he wasn't worth my time, especially when I had so little of it. So, in one sitting, I'd ruined two relationships! Great! Just what I was aiming for!

I storm off, and am walking down the hall, prepared to call my distant friend (who was over eighteen, and qualified as a guardian of mine) to have her check me out, when I teacher shows up, stopping me and standing in the middle of the hall. I freeze and frown, wondering why she looks annoyed.

"What's your name?" she asks, a tint of something in her voice that made her sound rude, though she was merely asking a question.

"Everett Fernsby." I answer easily, not thinking much about it. I'm too occupied with thinking about what I'd just done.

"Your jeans are too tight for this school's dress code. Please go to the office and call a parent." she says, and I lose it. Tears begin to spill down my cheeks.

I nod to her silently and let out a quiet sob, hurrying past and heading toward the office, my legs feeling wobbly and weak. Though I'm alone in the hall, I imagine invisible eyes watching me, judging me. I feel like such a liar. Telling him I had 'lost interest'.

I'm alone. Ollie's the only one left who's here for me. I was expecting a fairy tale, like Cinderella. She has a hard life, then meets the true love of her life, and somehow, everything gets better. That's not how it's going through, though. It's destroying me and the small shreds of dignity that were left for me to clutch onto.

I feel like screaming, but I don't. I just let the darkness of my thoughts envelop me, taking away the tears.

My eyes are no longer blurry as I get to the office, shoving the door open and looking around. A receptionist looks up, but I don't quite meet her eyes as I explain my situation through my cloud of gloom. She nods and gestures to a phone on the desk, but I shake my head and walk to a chair, sit down and pull my flip-phone out.

This was so stupid. I didn't deserve to be dress coded for 'too-tight' jeans. I'd seen plenty of people with much more revealing outfits.

The pain of losing Scott eats me up inside, but I try to pretend like it doesn't bother me. Like it never happened. Because it didn't. It never happened. We never happened. I didn't have to remember him... I didn't even have to know him in fact, if I didn't want to.

Who was Scott anyway?

I look through my contacts, and find my mom, and though I doubt that she'll respond, I call.