Friend-Zoned

[65]

"Your voice is really hot."

Signe laughed, pushing Jack with an eye roll. "But you're Irish! Irish definitely overrules all accents."

Jack shrugged, still looking at the girl's schedule with a grin. "No way. I sound like a moron when I go full on Irish. I hung around Matthias, Bob and Wade, Jonathan, and all of those guys a lot. My Irish has really mellowed out."

Signe hummed, tearing her gaze away from him to look around the halls. "Still yet, you're a lot more attractive than me."

Jack stopped, pointing at a locker to signal it was her's. "Girl, I will knock all of that negativity out of you if you don't shush!" Signe giggled, opening the locker door after Jack showed her the combination.

"So," she started after a while, feeling a bit awkward under Jack's blue eyed gaze, said boy leaned against the door next to her. "I guess it makes me happy to know your first impression will always be 'Hi, I'm Jack McLoughlin, probably considered the fuckboy of Swellsberry High, thanks to my fucking abusive ex, but I'm gay as hell and I'm Irish. Now you won't have to ask questions later.'"

Jack snorted, throwing his hands out in a palm up position. "What can I say? Words spread fast, especially to the new kids. Might as well go ahead and get it outta the way incase you change your mind about being around me."

The Danish girl shook her head, loudly popping the 'p' in her answer of "Nope!" She shut the door, turning to him. "You're far to lovely to hate. So, my little gay compadre, what classes do we have together?"

°•°•°•°

Jack sighed, trying his best to hide the grin that was just waiting to break his frown. "No, Signe, I'm not doing this. I'll just take a zero for it. I've already a project in Science to do with someone else."

Signe scoffed, "That's Science. This is a photography class. You can be my partner in this one."

Jack sighed again, giving up. He was sort of hoping he'd be able to partner with Mark in this one, too. It would mean more time to be with Mark. All he had to do was snap some pictures of things and try to redraw them. The drawing part was his extra assignment. Mark wasn't even in this class when he caught Felix and Jack in the hall. He was in it now. How'd he know the teacher wanted to give him extra credit?

But if Mark wasn't his partner, who would he be with?

There was still Yami. Jack might've forgotten about Yami... and he might also be slightly jealous at how Yami always acted as if they were friends for years.

"Jack? You okay?"

Jack turned his focus to Signe, grinning. "Yeah. Sorry." She frowned. "You zoned out there for a minute..."

"I'm okay... So, since we're partnered, how about you take all of the pictures since I have to draw them, yeah?"

°•°•°•°

"You've been giving that Fishback kid weird looks all day. You two sworn enemies or something?"

Jack turned around in his desk, his eyes disconnecting with Mark's. Mark was at the back of the room, so talking was difficult in Science. It didn't mean they wouldn't try though.

"Huh?" Jack blinked at her for a moment before frowning. "It's Fischbach. Mark Fischbach. And you'd think we are. But no, we're actually really good friends. Tied to the hip, if you will."

Signe glanced at the door, as if she expected the teacher to return any minute. He'd just left. They had a good ten minutes of talk time. "Oh... I've noticed him looking at you strangely though... like-like I would some cute boy." Jack chuckled at her example.

"Has he talked to you about it?" Jack shook his head. "We're just friends, Signe. He doesn't have feelings for me, I don't him. That's how friendship works." Lies. So many lies. Well, at least him not having an ounce of feeling for Mark was. And that one hurt even more because Mark didn't actually love him just as.

"He's been giving me dirty looks as if you choosing to show me around was awful. He knows you're gay right?" Jack mischievously giggled, grinning and looking to the front of the room. "Oh, he totally knows I'm gay."

Signe didn't catch on but she sighed. "I think you should talk to him. You two act like you're dating. Are you, and you're just not telling me? Because if you're dating him, gosh, you've got good taste, and you'd be perfect together."

Jack frowned, a small wave of sadness hitting him. "I don't want to talk about it anymore..."

"Come on, look at you two. If he's straight, you're his exception. He looks at you as if you're the last boy on earth. The only thing that matters. I bet he's sweet, isn't he? I guarantee he's the romantic type too. He would totally be a good boyfriend for you."

Jack shifted in his seat. Like he didn't know those things already. "He is... a-and he actually does anything he can to make me happy. I know he doesn't like to upset me, but he doesn't realize that what he's doing is upsetting me the most..."

"So you are a thing? What does he do?"

Jack pressed his face into his palms, whining. "It's complicated, alright? Dang it, Signe, I don't know! One minute he's all over me, then he acts like we can't even be friends outside of our houses... I'm so confused." He shook his head, rubbing his tired eyes. "Then he acts jealous over the smallest things, but he's so good at hiding his emotions, I think my mind is just seeing what it wants..."

Signe frowned, patting his back. She glanced back at Mark, he wasn't even paying any attention, instead calmly-but obviously boredly-conversing with a very hyper and excited Aaron.

She looked back at her exasperated friend. Jack lost in his own world with his eyes pressed into the palms of his hands, frowning and deep in thought.

Signe took her hand away from his back, facing frontward in her chair with the final decision that she would be having a long conversation with Mark Fischbach since Jack McLoughlin wouldn't do it himself.