Bathroom

They aren't inlove, that can't be, he didn't answer to Piper's confession right? Or was that not a confession like Tulip had thought?

Why doesn't she understand anything?

Were those praises of her intelligence a lie?

Why, why, why-

A hand goes over Tulip eyes, and her immobile body is dragged back behind the wall.

The hands then come off, and her vision comes back. There stands Lincoln with his usual composed gaze. It never bothered Tulip, Lincoln is Lincoln. Yet for some reason she feels tears cloud her eyes, then drip down. She wanted to be comforted.

'Please comfort me, even though I slapped your hand away. Please comfort me, even though I continues to reject you in whatever way.'

In the midst of her thoughts, arms blanket her. Arms shield her away from the anxiety that enclose her. His arms console her, stroking her back like he would with his pet that Tulip has seen, hugging her head against his shoulder. Lincoln fingers go through her hair, like how Noah did with Piper during their perverted act, except it doesn't have Tulip flinch. It wasn't repulsive, she didn't get deja-vu of Noah going through Piper's hair.

That's it, Tulip gives in. An intensity held back the hope it's all a misunderstanding crumbles. Not because she doesn't think it isn't a misunderstanding, but because of the arms that soothe her, that encourage her to let it out.

Even then her sobs are restricted. Tulip still doesn't want Noah to know she is here, that she saw him, like it would mean anything to Noah who clearly felt some way towards Piper that he doesn't towards Tulip.

The two are silent, at a public bathroom. Lincoln sneaked in the girls bathroom, after Tulip gave him the clear that there is no other girl. The bathroom is at a public park that no one really goes to, sometimes homeless people stayed but they were soon shooed off by guards during the day.

Girls go first, so Lincoln accommodatingly goes with being the creep in the other gender bathroom.

Tulip didn't want to go home with swollen red eyes, not knowing what to do Lincoln suggested to use the school's bathroom, but to their luck it was already locked. So they went to this park the three of them, Tulip, Lincoln and Noah, would go to for their picnics.

Closing her eyes as Lincoln dabbed her smudged handmade mascara. His hands were clumsy, troubled when he started wiping her eyes and black came off. When he dabs, it wouldn't come off, if he drags the wet cloth, it'd smudge.

"Is everything fake about you?"

Lincoln would say, complaining and grumbling but when Tulip say she can do it herself, he'd hold her face tight and go silent.

Tulip sticks her tongue out with closed eyes, and Lincoln would grab and pull on it making Tulip regret doing so.

"It's a girls thing, a boy like you won't understand."

"Hah, a boy like me? What kind of boy am I?"

"Deviant."

"Says you."

They quarrel like this until too long have passed and Tulip started to hear voices nearby. Tapping Lincoln arm and signalling they need to go. Lincoln not wanting to be known as a weirdo, went out readily.