Displacement // Shawn Mendes

Nine: Once Again

When Reyna Alvarez hadn't showed up to class after two days, I asked Mrs. Alderman if she knew anything about her whereabouts. She only looked at me with tired eyes, before shrugging and muttering something that sounded like the word "suspension". I shrugged it off and walked back to my desk, avoiding asking anymore questions to the woman who now most likely hated me.

And Camryn.
And Oliver.
And Rey.
Especially Rey.

I sat at the desk next to Camryn, greeting her with a peck on the cheek. She smiled, blushing from the contact and throwing a quick glance at me before continuing to do her work.

After Reyna's sudden disappearance (and, apparently, suspension) my desperation and foolishness led me into a path I was doing perfectly fine straying from – Camryn's. Little did I know, being on her path once again is exactly what I needed. The feeling of loneliness I had become accustomed to slowly diminished whenever I was with her, although, I wasn't exactly sure of our relationship status.

The second bell rang, which was basically Ms. Alderman's cue to begin teaching. She groggily stood up from her desk and rubbed her hands over her face, clapping her hands together as she began to speak.

"So, class, first off I would like to start off with the fact that the End of Year tests or 'EOY's as they're called, are right around the corner!" She said it too excitedly, but then again, she always said everything a little bit more enthusiastically than she should have. She began to mumble on about how we should study, but I ignored her. My entire life, I never lifted a finger toward a textbook when it came to tests. I was indifferent to the entire thing; with a memory like mine, there was hardly any need for a refresher. As a junior in high school, I had managed to maintain a perfect GPA, except for those three weeks in freshman year.

Ms. Alderman continued rambling on, then going about her usual schedule which consisted of her going over something like the periodic table, then handing us a worksheet to work on for the rest of the class period while she sat at her desk grading papers or something of that sort. Completing my work almost immediately, I waited for Camryn to catch up on her English homework, passing the time by scribbling a few drawings on my wooden desk.

"So, Shawn, how have you been?" She asked the question almost as if we were strangers who hadn't seen each other in decades; which, in a sense, might be correct.

I smiled awkwardly, genuinely just excited about the fact that she resumed our communication. But, then again, how could she have continued ignoring me after what I did for her? After what I did to Reyna?

"Good," I think that might have been a lie. "I missed you. How have you been?"

She answered with a scoff, followed by a light chuckle. "Definitely much better after you saved my ass." She closed her book and put her bookbag on her desk, shoving "How to Kill a Mockingbird" inside it, and leaning her head on her palm. She gave me the smile that was almost especially designed for me- a loving and crooked smile, mostly meant for the times I said a stupid joke and she could only smile at my foolishness.

God, how I loved that smile.

I tilted my head, not entirely sure if she was talking about the chemistry project incident or something entirely different. To be sure, I asked her, "What do you mean?"

"You know," she lowered her voice into a whisper, almost mouthing the words. "The whole Reyna thing?"

A look of realization must have crossed my face, because she began to snicker and shake her head. Whenever it came to common sense, she was always the smarter one in our relationship. I joined in on the laughter, even though I still wasn't entirely sure where the humor of the situation came from.