#WHATEVER

NARRATIVE CHAPTER: FORT

FORT — jail booth scene

"Here she comes, bro."

"Chillax."

"I'm chill," I hissed.

"You're sweating," Aldo remarked, glancing at me while he stood right outside the tent with ropes separating us.

"It's hot out today," I replied, as I leaned back on my chair.

Roche snorted. "Sure."

"Why are you here again?" I asked her. "Your org's booth is over there," I added, nodding the tent on the other side of the football field.

"I wanna spend time with my boyfriend," she said, kissing Aldo on the cheek.

I looked away.

They had been going out for more than two years. I was used to them already. Still, it sucked 'cause they served as a constant reminder of what I could have if only I had the balls to pursue the girl I liked.

"I wish the teachers allowed us to wear casual clothes today," Roche muttered. "They won't even let us wear our PE uniforms."

For once, I agreed with her.

I watched the students walking in the sun, faintly wondering how they haven't passed out yet. They looked like they were enjoying themselves. Then again, it wasn't all the time we got to skip class and just play around with permission.

"We got a prisoner!" Julio sang, as he arrived at the jail booth with a girl.

I almost grinned at the sight of my friend. He looked like he was halfway from giving up wearing our uniform. He had his polo shirt unbuttoned, revealing his white tank top underneath. It was only a matter of time before he'd be told off.

My eyes then settled on the girl he was dragging behind him.

I noticed she had her long straight black hair in a ponytail, tied up with a white scarf with some cherry blossom pattern on it. Her cheeks were slightly flushed from the heat, and I fought the urge to wipe the sweat off her forehead.

I should get a grip.

Julio turned to the girl, and said, "So, you need to stay here for at least an hour before any one of your friends can bail you out."

Kevin, Julio's org-mate who was sitting behind the table right at the front of the tent, frowned. "Hey, you got it wrong. It's only for thirty min—"

Julio covered his mouth. "Shhh, I got this." He faced the girl and gestured for her to sit on one of the chairs. "Go ahead, Sab."

She nodded and sat on the chair on the other side of the tent. She glanced at me, and when she saw me looking, she quickly averted her eyes.

"Hello," she mumbled, without looking at me.

I only nodded in greeting before turning my eyes to the ground. Awesome, we were both talking to the grass. Maybe we were both looking for my lost balls.

"Good luck," Aldo whispered, patting my shoulder.

"Don't be torpe, Fort!" Roche mouthed, giggling as the couple walked away to explore the variety of booths on the school grounds.

"I'll look for more prisoners," Julio declared, before skipping out of the tent.

Cautiously, my eyes traveled to the girl in front of me.

I'd known Sabrina Avaceda since freshman year. In all four years, I never had the luck to be put in the same class as her. To think, our high school only had three block classes per year. But still, I knew her.