We're Almost There

10. I Expected A Shoddy Dance Club.

Ten

Erin

While Kenzie was in science, Erin walked the halls of John Kennedy High. Technically, she wasn't a real student, but Erin could work a little magic to make people believe she'd always been there if she ever wanted to sit in on a class.

As Erin roamed aimlessly, she passed a few students who had a free period, were rushing to get to class, and countless other reasons.

But then she came face to face with the boy who had black hair.

"Golden Girl!" Tristan exclaimed when he saw her, voice filled with fake enthusiasm.

"Yes?"

Tristan gasped and put his hands over his heart. "No hello? You can be so hurtful sometimes. Did you know that?"

Erin sighed and shook her head. "Where are your friends? Shouldn't you be ditching with them?"

Tristan's smile fell and he adjusted his leather jacket. "They're around here somewhere. Probably filling some kid's locker with shaving cream." He pushed his hair out of his insanely blue eyes, showing off the two dark blue sphere piercings in his right eyebrow.

Erin could sense the lie, almost see it once it curled off of the devil's tongue. Around Tristan, Erin always tried to be as tough as stone, but at that moment, she could see something in his eyes. A little pain beneath the icy exterior. "Tristan... are you alright?" She asked, not quite looking at him.

Tristan narrowed his eyes at her and Erin looked up at him. "Why do you ask?" He said the words slowly.

Erin shrugged, suddenly feeling belittled just from the sneer of his tone. "You don't seem alright."

Crossing his arms, Tristan started on a rant. "Look just because you don't like me and I'm supposed to be oh so bad, does not mean I need to tell you anything that's going on in my personal life. I don't need to answer to you just because it's my birthday and you have some absurd need to help people-"

"Wait," she interrupted him, marking the date January 25th in her mind. "It's your birthday?"

"Shit," Tristan mumbled before rolling his eyes. He met her gaze and sucked in his bottom lip, the two silver rings pierced there barely visible. "Yeah, yeah it is. Please don't care."

Erin shook her head. "I do, though. You're obviously not happy and it's your birthday. That's unfair. How old are you?"

Tristan sighed, as if making the decision to really talk to her. "Eighteen. Here, anyway."

"How old are you really?" Erin didn't have the slightest clue what era he was from. He could've died just a few years ago, or a few hundred.

He shrugged. "165."

Erin quickly did the math, figuring out he was born in the 1850's. "Wow," she muttered, marvelling at how different their past lives were. Tristan had passed long before she was born. Technically, Erin was only 96. Yet here she was sixteen.

Tristan put his hands up in defence. "I know, I know. I'm old. Believe me I am very aware."

Without thinking, she said, "We should do something to celebrate."

He grinned mischievously and put his warm hand on her arm. "I've got something in mind."

Disgusted, Erin stepped away from his grasp. "I guess I spoke too soon, Diablo." She turned and started to walk back down the hall.

"Hey, wait," Tristan said halfheartedly. Reluctantly, Erin stopped, not turning to face him, but ready to listen to whatever he had to say. "Maybe we could do something. After all, we were assigned to the same person and we might as well know each other. God that sounds so stupid. Anyway, we could go get something to eat?"