Helpless (Book 1)

Chapter Five

I FEEL A hand on my shoulder, shaking me harshly. I jolt up, my eyes snapping open, letting out a strained gasp. I blink rapidly, blinking out the brightness out of my eyes and groaning, pressing a hand onto the side of my temple. When my blurred vision clears, I see Peggy standing above me, shaking my shoulder. Did I fall asleep? I must have. 

 "What—" I begin, but Peggy cuts me off. 

 "Come on, Alex!" she says breathlessly. "The bell's ringing!"

 I groan, huffing out a breath with my palm still pressed against my temple as I slowly sit up. It's then that I notice black dots swim around in my vision. I blink them away, groaning again. Peggy extends her hand out toward me and I clasp my small hand around hers and she yanks me up from the spot where I was sleeping on the floor. Peggy hesitantly opens the janitor's closet door with myself standing close behind her. 

I peek over her shoulder, arching an eyebrow as Peggy scans the hall up and down, checking to see if The Big Three are still there. Thankfully, they're not. I follow Peggy out of the closet and close the door behind me gently. We blend ourselves together in the crowded hallways as the student's head toward their classes. About fifteen minutes of walking later, Peggy's eyes lit up when she sees a familiar girl in a sky-blue blouse standing at a locker. Peggy grins as she grabs my elbow again and jogs down the hallway, dragging me behind her toward her elder sister. 

 "Liza!" Peggy shouts, her hand shooting up in the air in a desperate wave. Eliza pokes her head around the open locker door, confused and then she beams when she sees her younger sister dragging me down the hall after her toward her. 

 "Peggy!" Eliza squeals, wrapping her thin arms around her sister in a tight embrace. I stay a few inches back, feeling awkward and more like a third-wheel around them. "Where've you been?! Angie's been looking for you and she nearly called the police! You're lucky I was there to stop her!" 

 Peggy giggles, rolling her eyes. "I'm fine, Liza!" She frowns when she meets Eliza's eyes again. "Alex and I...well...we were trying to escape The Big Three." 

 Eliza gasps, a hand hovering above her mouth, her dark chocolate brown eyes widening slightly. "Oh my God...did you...did you?"

 "No, we didn't get caught," I interrupt. "We found a janitor's closet nearby and hid there until the bell rang and they had no choice but to go to their classes." I point at Peggy. "That was all her idea." 

 "Oh," Eliza gasps, embracing us both. "I'm glad you two are alright. Are you alright, Alex?" 

 "Yeah," I assure her. "I'm fine. Thank you." 

 "Come on," Eliza says. "We should head to class, before Angelica kills both of you for scaring her half to death."

***

I find myself sitting next to John Laurens himself in Biology. He doesn't question me much, just mind his own business as he jots down notes from the white board in front of the classroom or answering worksheet questions while flipping through his textbook for references. I don't mind at all whatsoever. It's about halfway through class, when Laurens turns to me with those sparkling sapphire blue eyes of his and whispers, "So, how was English? How'd it go?" 

 I eye him sideways, my eyes flickering toward his and landing on his blue ones while my face is still facing toward the front of the class, my chin resting in my palm. I shrug.