Ambivalence; 80s/90s imagines 💌

♡ Ted 'Theodore' Logan // -Because I'm Baroque ♡

History class: your last period of the day before you can just head home, fall onto your bed, and turn on MTV. Only fifteen minutes of the hour to go, and you're free. Fifteen turned into ten, then ten into five. Your belongings were already packed up, slowly edging out of your seat. That final bell was like a gunshot to set off the hounds in a race. Swinging your backpack around your shoulder, you emerged yourself in the crowd trying to exit out of the classroom door.
That is, until a loud "Wait a minute!" came from your teacher. "I almost forgot!"
Pulling out a piece of paper that listed a column of pairs, your teacher explained your surprise homework assignment, as they pinned the paper to board. The topic was of anything you learned these past few weeks, should be easy, you thought. Just get a book from the library, and since you were an avid note taker, putting the subject in your own words wouldn't be too difficult.
"You have the weekend to work on this paper with your assigned partner-"
The whole class groaned, you just rolled your eyes. Great, there goes your planned out weekend of absolutely nothing but the top 100 video countdown.
"Yes, yes, I know; but all that whining won't get it done."
Leaving at that, everyone then crowded on the board instead of the door, seeing who they were partnered with. Dreading as you stepped forward to find your name, you were caught behind one of the taller boys in your class. Skimming over the heads in the room, you were wondering who the teacher assigned you with. It's not like you had a general dislike to everyone in your class, but you didn't interact much with your peers in this particular class. You knew familiar faces, but never engaged in conversation. As long as your partner was someone easy going and actually paid attention, you'd have no problem.
With your mind slightly off pondering, you didn't notice one of the student's abrupt pushing to see the list. It caught you by surprise, and it pushed you right between the shoulder blades of the taller boy in front of you.

"Woah, hey!" He chuckled, as your nose straight up poked him in the back. The taller boy turned around, making his dark, Joey Ramone styled hair flip out of his face.
Red crept up your cheeks, holding a hand to your nose out of total embarrassment. "Sorry about that-"
"Oh! It's no problem, lady dude! I know you weren't totally determined to purposefully boink my back with your nose!" He wasn't annoyed or mad, just seemed nice and playful, "-But your nose isn't damaged or anything, is it?"
"Nah, it's fine." You brushed off, assuring him. "There's no blood or anything, I think I'll survive."
"Ah, excellent!" He kept smiling, facing you still. It hadn't occurred to you that you had never actually talked to the dark-haired boy, but he seemed rather nice. Nice, but not nice enough that you'd mind being partners. He and his friend who sat in the back weren't exactly the sharpest of the knives in the drawer. Your evidence being their few responses to the teacher's questions.
"Ted!" The voice of his shorter companion hit his shoulder, reminding him he was next to check the list. He sounded kind of pissed, maybe they didn't get partnered up. Was the world going to end or something? The two huffed and groaned as their last names weren't coupled together like they usually were on group assignments.
"-Oh but Bill, look on the bright side!" Ted laughed, "You got partnered with Stacy Palmer! You've had a crush on her since like, middle school! Ha ha! You always keep saying how she's babe with a bodacious bod: It's a total perfect excuse for you to be apart of her most undivided attention during the next few days." The shorter, curly-haired male just agreed and grinned stupidly.
You just rolled your eyes on their comments, typical high school guys, you thought. Now if they would just hurry up and get this over with.
"Well, then, who are you with, Ted?" Bill asked, reading the list with his friend.
"[Y/L/N]" Ted read aloud, as he dragged his index finger under the name next to his. "Who's that?"
'Shit.'  You scrunched up your face as him saying your last name perked your ears. Exhaling, you turned around. "That'll be me." You raised your hand, getting their attention.
The two of them just looked at you until Bill patted the back of his friend. "Well... I guess I wish you two triumphant in your assignment. Catch ya later, Ted!" He chuckled, before running off to chase a certain blonde. "Hey, Stacy! Wait up!"
Ted just watched his friend head off, waving bye slowly, before turning on his sneakers to walk with you as you were exiting down the hall. "So, [Y/L/N], how's this gonna work? You come over to my place? I go over to yours?"
  "[Y/N]-" you gave him your first name to start things off. "-and honestly, I was thinking the library is just fine. If you can at least help me with the outline and mention certain facts, I don't mind writing the finished piece."
Ted hopped right in front of you, to your surprise, opening the door before you could even extend your arm to push. Letting you exit the building first, you two made your way to the parking lot.
"-But doesn't that sound unfair?" His tone was with genuine confusion. This lead you to be confused as well. This boy seemed to be surprising you by the minute: Usually someone wouldn't pass at the opportunity to have someone else do all the work for them. Now here he was, labeled as a general slacker, to then saying how he thought having you do all the work was unfair.
Pulling the keys to your car out of your pocket, unlocking it, you opened your door and rested an arm on the hood. "Well, I was just thinking about how this assignment is totally last minute; you probably already plans for the weekend."
"Yeah, but don't you have plans, too?" Ted made his way across from you, facing the passenger side door.
"Not really, that's why I made that offer." Shrugging, you didn't want to appear too pathetic that you were willing to do this entire assignment by yourself, but we're kind hoping for all means that he kept surprising you. Maybe your past judgments of him were too quick- Ted could actually be a sweet guy, and you didn't even know it.
Getting in your car, you turned your engine. About to switch gears, you halted, as something felt wrong. Turning your head to the right: someone was missing. Getting back out, you looked over the hood at the dark-haired boy who was just standing there. Raising a brow, you looked at Ted,
"Aren't you getting in?"
"Oh," Ted's face looked surprised, but still kept a smile, "We're doing the library thing now? Right on!"
You just stared forward, wondering if what just happened actually just happened. Shaking your head and slumping down in your seat, you reminded him to put on his seatbelt, and sped right out of the parking lot.
"Oh, man, what are we listening to?" Ted kept skipping ahead on the cassette you always kept in your car radio, the sound not really the kind he listened to. Playfully swatting away his hand form the controls, you kept it on the song that was currently playing.
"it's Kate Bush-" You took your attention off the road for a moment to face the boy. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing... It's just... chick music." He admitted, shrugging, while looking at you
Turning your attention back to the road, slightly rolling your eyes out of his view,
"Look, it's my car, so I choose the music." You said matter-of-factly, and from the corner of your eye, you could see him again shrug an "oh well."
Once you got to the library, you and Ted set up at an empty table. Going around picking up books you might need, you didn't realize how much of a heavy stack of books you were making him carry. Practically up to his chin, you apologized and asked if you could lessen the load.
"Nah, it's fine. I can handle it! Toss a few more on, [Y/N], I can carry it!" He joked, but internally sighed a huge relief once you said that what there was collected, was enough.
It took you about an hour, but you two had decided to do your paper on the Baroque style. Seeing how Ted seemed to be most interested on the subject- especially since it was the section in his handwritten notes that did not have excessive pencil doodles of his band's name and logo. You two got right to work, you compiling good points that you and Ted made sure to highlight on your paper. It actually went by without much hassle, except for the occasional 'woah.' Ted would slip out, as the two of you looked at the paintings of the 17th century: the paintings that included naked women. You smirked, letting him know there was a way you could incorporate the paintings in your essay, saying how the new style included caricatures (the naked women) that the Renaissance did not. Ted chuckled quietly, nudging your shoulder, to keep his noise level down. Admittedly having an actual fun time working on this project with him, there was only one time when a librarian would come by and tell you two to hush.
You were able to get everything done in one evening. Your outline, draft, and final draft, typed up nicely on one of the Library's electronic typewriters. Making sure the final copy was in a secure spot in your binder for Monday, you and Ted were getting ready to leave the building.
"Do you want to grab some fast-food before I have to drive you home?" You nudged the taller, dark-haired boy- you two have gotten a lot more friendly since this afternoon. You enjoyed hanging out with him, and deep down hoped this wasn't the only occasion you could talk and hang out like this. Minus the homework assignment, of course.
"Sure, that sounds good, but I can't." He looked at you with a serious face.
"Oh...T-That's alright. Some other time then, Ted." It wasn't a big deal, but it was kind of a bummer deep down. You were looking forward to talking to him more where you didn't have to whisper to each other, a librarian hovering from behind to make sure you kept your volume low. "Do you mind if I ask why?"
"I can't go eat... Because I'm... Because I'm Baroque." He tried looking serious, but couldn't hold face for much longer, as you two just kept staring at each other. He giggled, while bouncing down the steps of the building to stand next to you. He couldn't help but laugh at his own joke.
"You dork." You rolled your eyes, trying not to crack a smile as he kept going on, proud of himself.

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