The Pairing ( TweakxCraig) /Kenny, Clyde

Chapter 8 pairing day

"Everyone! Quiet down! Line up if you can't get a seat! Hurry up now!"

Who was this lady, ordering us around making us listen to a stupid speech or whatever. Screw her. I needed to find Tweak. My eyes scan the crowd of terrified students and they land on the beautiful strange green eyes staring back at me.

Bingo.

" found him." I muttered to myself.

" what's that? " Clyde yawned twiddling his fingers next to me, he didn't remember much about the night of the party, just what we told him.

Apparently, it never happened according to him. Did I let him away with it? hell no! He got a few punches and a serious talk about respecting people from both me and Kenny.

" nothing dude..." He followed my eyes to Tweak " ahhh..."

" shut up Clyde"

Clyde pouted and crossed his arms
" when is the beginning of the end of my life going to start? This is taking forever."

I took a deep breath. Tweak was panicking, digging his fingernails into his arm. But I couldn't go get him. He was too far away and the room too crowded.

" alright everybody! Welcome to your pairing day!"

Nobody claps. Nobody cheers, its a life sentence with the wrong person.

But if you were lucky enough to get the right one...

We roll our eyes and sigh as she reads off the same government sanctioned script she does every year.

" today is a celebration of yourselves and all the work you've put in, so! Why do we have pairing day!? Well, as a society grown from chaos and confusion, bound by loneliness, by overpopulation and the ever growing drop of skills, pairing day was established to make more of the best! And less of the rest!" She giggled at the rhyme as she continued to droll on and on about pairing day.

how it benefited the human race, how only having one child was a good thing for each family and recession. All I cared about was how frightened Tweak looked.

I bit my lip playing with my snake bites, I wanted to go to check on him.

"- and now we come to it!-"

I turn my head, everyone's eyes widen as it begins. Finally.

Put us out of our misery.

They call each of us up one by one, an envelope waiting for us in her boney fingers as she grinned happily handing them out.
" congratulations!...congratulations!.... Congratulations!.... "

I sit up in my seat as they call Tweak's name. It rang in my ears.
My heart stopping as he turned to look at me desperately. The trauma wrapped around his gorgeous green eyes.
I bite my snake bites and nod to him as he approached the podium, a shaking nervous wreck filled with anxiety and fear.

I want nothing more than to pull him back, to keep him away from there. Anything at all.

Just please Tweak, don't take that damn envelope.

I sink into my chair as his fingers wrap around it, he shakes violently. Terrified. He looks back at me as he turns to walk, one last look in my direction.

The rules were simple, no one was allowed to look at their results until the ceremony was over.

" Craig Tucker!"

I felt my legs move before I realised where they were going, walking silently toward the podium that would mark the end of my freedom to chose. The start of adulthood.

She stretches her boney hand toward me with the envelope
"Congratulations!... "

It takes all of my muscle strength not to flip her off before I take it.

I turn and see the crowd behind me, needy dead eyes watching my every step, poor Tweak. Someone without anxiety would find this terrifying.

Looking over to him standing by butters I sink, he's crying. No..sobbing.

Would he miss hanging out with me that much? We would still hang out...just...it be harder to...I guess.

Frowning I sit down, twiddling the envelope in my hands.

I know I'm not supposed to open it, but I don't give a fuck. I pick at the corners slowly, tearing the edge. Clyde peers over my shoulder at it, watching eagerly for a glimpse.

So this was it...I was about to find out who I had to spend forever with.

My stomach churned, I took a final look at Tweak. His eyes set on my white sheet of paper in fear. Neither of us blinking.

I slipped my fingers in and pulled it up enough to read in gold letters the first name. My mouth dropped open and I stuttered quietly

" K-kenny McCormick.. "