𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒕. ♡ 𝒋𝒐𝒉𝒏𝒏𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒅𝒆.

ix

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ring!

"...and so, class, we conclude with today's lesson of color theory, just in time for your free period!" mr. mckinley, the art teacher, announced. the students were already packing up and exiting out the classroom door when mr. mckinley shouted after them,

"also! some of you may have seen the paper outside already that says who's paired up with who for your first project this semester, but for those who haven't, make sure to take a look at it during your lunch period! and remember that it's due october fifteenth, so you have more than enough time to finish it! i'm not taking any excuses for unfinished work!"

everyone either hummed tiredly or grunted in acknowledgement, more concerned with finding out who their partners were. johnny stalked out among with them, laying low so not to be seen in the moving crowd, no different than any other moment he spent in school. he had barely been listening during the lesson, opting to drawing on his desk and on his arm just barely hidden by his trusty denim jacket sleeve. so he vaguely understood what the project required. he just prayed he wouldn't be paired up with a Soc as he trudged to look at the list.

but before he could step out his teacher caught up to him,

"oh, mr. cade, if you're not comfortable with your partner this project, just tell me and i'll find something different for the both of you to do. the numbers were odd this year so you ended up with her," mr. mckinley said apologetically. johnny nodded at him and he continued out the door, wondering what on earth he must've been talking about. he walked out into the hallway to find out.

  there was a slight crowd around the paper, some of the girls squealing noticing they got paired with one of their girlfriends, others groaning at the prospect of interacting with a fellow student they weren't particularly fond of, but most were indifferent as they moved on with their school day. johnny sighed as he managed to squeeze through from the outskirts. barely being able to make out the scrabbly handwriting of his teacher on the paper when being nudged by the people around him so much, he squinted and managed to read,

trish e.

"huh," johnny thought as he began turning to walk away, "didn't know she was in this class. that must be what mr. teacher was—"

"ouch!" johnny groaned when he collided with someone among the crowd, tearing him from his thoughts.

"oh my— i'm so, so sorry! i wasn't watching where i was going! i was tryna— oh, i'm sorry, are you hurt? gosh, i'm really sorry," a soft-toned voice frantically apologized. johnny turned back to be greeted with the same circle-rimmed glasses he came to be familiar with. speak of the devil.

"oh, trish, it's you." trish's worried face somehow grew even more worried when recognizing the person she had just bumped into was johnny, and her face became almost as bright red as the striped dress she was wearing. "hey, i-it's no sweat, really," he reassured her.

  "johnny? oh my god i'm really sorry. i-i was just tryna look at who my partner w—"

  "we're partners," johnny monotonously interrupted her. trish, in shock, blinked blankly at him, before snapping back to reality.

  "w-we are?" she asked and attempted turning around to look at the list herself, only to be shoved to the side by another student. "ow..."

  johnny sighed and grabbed the poor girl by the wrist, leading the both of them to a different part of the hallway and ignoring the weird looks they were receiving. he leaned against the lockers next to her.

"t-thanks, it was really stuffy over... there..." trish awkwardly said. johnny simply hummed in return. she clutched the books in her arms tighter and looked off down the hall behind the boy in front of her. she saw him side-eyeing her in her peripheral vision. after a moment she cleared her throat and looked at him.

"ehem... um... a-as you were saying, you sure we got paired?" she went on her tip-toes and tried to read the paper from over the crowd, but she was unfortunately too short.

"yeah. ain't your name spelled t-r-i-s-h?" johnny retorted.

"well, yeah, it is," trish replied with a nervous laugh that died down fast. she was finding it very difficult to hold a stable conversation with this boy. another awkward moment of silence between the two occurred before trish spoke up again.

"fine, i'll take your word for it johnnycake!" she piped up, using that nickname johnny oh-so-tolerated yet chuckled at. "jay sure wasn't lying when saying this gal's helpless in this town," he thought.

"and at least i know you. i haven't met many friends here yet. especially since i have to sit in the back of all my classes all the time and there's not many people, um, like me in the back of those classes either," trish added.

johnny just nodded. "that must be why i haven't noticed her until now," he realized. trish spaced out for a second before suddenly breaking out in another smile.

"hey johnnycake, wanna join me for lunch? we can arrange how to do the project. i brought a few more brownies than i can finish anyway, i always make too many... i'd gladly give you some," trish excitedly proposed, her awkward demeanor completely washed away while she started rocking back and forth on her heels. johnny was a bit startled at the sudden offer, and kind of wanted to decline, but he had no clue where ponyboy was to spend free period with, so he couldn't find a reason to turn the offer down.

"sure."