Growing Pains

Chapter 41 - I was having a bad day

J A C O B

Kylie sat next to me in class. I was having a bad day, and a bad week, and a bad month really, so this was good. Finally. Something good. She was wearing leather and dark red lipstick that matched her nail polish. I had only had the energy to put on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt, but I showed her my best smirk.

"What gives me the pleasure?"

She smirked back, "Your audacity."

"What did I do this time?"

She opened her notebook to show her multicolored notes. I had forgotten to get mine from my locker. I didn't care.

She said, "Skylar Clark."

"I didn't know who that is." I really didn't.

"Your partner for the Spanish presentation next week."

"Oh," I remembered. "Well, I didn't do that yet. Why? Are you jealous?"

"Not at all," she said. "She's very pretty."

"I don't believe you," I said. Girls like Kylie made everything a competition. Of course she was jealous. "But don't worry. She's not my type."

"Then what's the angle?"

"What makes you think there's an angle?"

"There's always an angle with you," she said, and she was right.

"Careful, you're gonna hurt my feelings." She just looked at me. I pointed at the quiz she had folded in half and stuck between the pages of the Precalculus textbook. "What did you get?"

"You're changing the conversation."

"I'm not," I said. "I had an F. I had an F on that Spanish quiz we took the other week too. I can't have another F."

"So you're gonna use her to get an A?"

The teacher walked in. I smiled at her. She smiled back at me. Would these exchanges give me some extra credit in the end? I had no idea, but it was worth a try. I turned to Kylie again.

"Of course I'm gonna use her. Isn't she the school's valedictorian? Who wouldn't?" I said, like it was obvious. "You know, the twins had a group project with her once, and they said she did the whole thing herself, and left their names out. They've been spray painting her locker ever since. I need my name on that fucking project, so if I have to call her pretty a couple of times, I will."

"So you're a slut?" she said, a smile on her lips.

I laughed. When the teacher turned around from the board to look at me, I showed her an apologetic smile, and pretended I was copying whatever it was she was writing on the board down to my notebook. Next to me, Kylie was actually doing it, her lips still a tease. The teacher opened her mouth to say something but closed it again when Tristan walked into the classroom.

"I know I'm late," he said without apologizing, instead walking to the seats by the window to take the one next to a girl in an ugly sweater. She seemed surprised he was sitting next to her.

"Next time don't be," the teacher said, closing the door he had left wide open. I lost interest in whatever he said next and turned to Kylie again.

"What are you doing after school?"

She looked up from her notes, "Not you."

"You're breaking my heart."

"What happened between you and Edward?"

"I broke our friendship bracelet. It was an accident. He thinks I did it on purpose. Who cares? Come to mine after school. My parents aren't home." My parents were never home.