"i just want to keep calling your name until you come back home."
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how does one ever stop the guilt? do you just continue your life in a vicious cycle of deliberations?
wondering what could've happened if you stayed home that nigh...
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"Hey, hey! Alison!"
Nancy Wheeler's soft voice called behind her, and Alison slowed her pace. She looked over her shoulder to find the younger girl weaving through the crowd of students headed to lunch.
She fell into step with the older girl when she finally caught up.
"Hey, what's up?" Alison was friendly with Nancy, but they weren't friends. Their interactions were solely caused by their brothers being best friends, which led to many polite interactions whenever they had to drop their brothers off at their houses or the arcade.
"Sorry, but you have English with Barb, uh, Barbara Holland, right?" Nancy asked hesitantly. She hugged her books closer to her chest when Alison glanced over at her, "She'd be the only sophomore in the class."
Alison was silent for a moment. She knew why Nancy had phrased it that way. Barb was a shy individual who didn't socialise outside of her friendship with Nancy. But Alison had English with her, and they'd partnered up a few times on various projects because no one wanted to partner up with a 'nerd in the grade below them' or 'Asshole Ali' unless forced.
"Uh, yeah. Barb sits in front of me." Alison finally spoke, "Why? Does she need my notes or something?"
Nancy seemed to deflate at her line of question.
"So, she wasn't in class today?" She asked urgently, face falling further when Alison shook her head with a frown. It was definitely like her to skip a class, but she had never once seen Barbara Holland skive off her studies.
"No, sorry." She answered before she reached into her bag. She pulled out a few sheets of loose paper and held them to the younger girl, "I did get some notes for her if you want to pass them along for me."
"Oh, yeah." Nancy grabbed the notes and smiled faintly, eyes still alight with worry, "That's really nice of you."
"Not really." Alison shrugged, "Barbara always does it for me when I miss a class. I figured I might as well return the favour. It's the decent thing."
"Yeah." Nancy folded the papers and placed them into a page of the textbook she was holding in her hands, "Well, if you see her, can you tell her I'm looking for her."
"No problem."
Nancy offered her a quick thanks. When they reached the cafeteria, she quickly walked away from her to the table that Steve, Carol, and Tommy occupied. Alison averted her attention away from them (before they could see her) and rushed to the table where Thea was already waiting, mumbling a quick apology to a boy in a white shirt with black sleeves after she nearly bumped into him.
When she sat at the table across from her friend, Thea beamed at her. Her smile was contagious as she slid the paper in front of her across the table. Alison glanced down at it, now seeing that it was Thea's history paper. A large D+ in bold red marker, and beneath the glaring letter was a small note from Mrs Click. One that was surprisingly positive and let the reader know she was very impressed with the paper's author.
