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THE SUN BLAZED in through her bedroom windows with such an intensity that Ana was confident it was pissed at her for the previous evening as well

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THE SUN BLAZED in through her bedroom windows with such an intensity that Ana was confident it was pissed at her for the previous evening as well. Some cosmic punishment for her foolishness come in the form of streaming rays that stung her eyes antagonistically.

She woke in bed alone, and while the sheets on the other side of the mattress were hastily thrown back and crinkled, the spot that had been previously occupied by Benny was decidedly empty. Probably for the best she reasoned, things were certainly less awkward that way, and not a single part of her didn't groan in pain as she adjusted to a sitting position.

'Todays gonna be a real bitch,' she thought to herself,  swinging her legs over the edge before standing to stretch.

But Ana had no way of knowing just how right she was.

Her truck was thankfully parked in the drive, her keys sitting expectantly on the kitchen counter in the spot she usually left them. She didn't bother pondering how they had gotten there or when. Assuredly, it could be attributed to Benny's kindness or, rather, his regret, but he wasn't there to question about it, so she gave the matter no further though. Ana was just happy it was one less problem she'd have to remedy that day.

The first tardy bell rang just as she arrived at the school, but Ana couldn't wrangle the energy needed to rush that morning.

Totting around the most massive coffee cup she could conjure, Ana headed into work thoroughly regretting not just calling in sick. It wasn't like she didn't have the days saved, or was needed for anything particularly taxing. Maybe she just didn't want to be at home with only her turning thoughts to keep her company. Even with teaching as a promised distraction, she still wasn't sure which was going to kill her first, the hangover or the shame.

Making a beeline towards the teacher's lounge upon arrival, Ana intended to refill her rapidly depleting caffeine supply and go about her day in utter misery. Instead, she walked in on Scott Clarke bragging to another science teacher about some giant radio the school had bought. It could reach all the way to Australia, apparently.

However, she didn't have the patience to humor such levels of nerdiness, not that early in the morning and not while nursing a splitting headache. She was definitely dehydrated too, not that the coffee was aiding in that problem, but beggars can't be choosers.

"Have you found someone else to talk to on the other end, or are you just going to let the kids chat with whatever random person answers?" She snipped at her colleague as though he were the source of her current woes. The school coffee tasted burnt, and a bit like plastic, but she drank it greedily anyway, giving Clarke a judgement look over the rim of her mug.

Scott's face visibly fell at the question, all earlier joy sucked from his countenance as his grin slipped. "I-I hadn't thought of that."

Ana took one last slow sip while offering him a raised brow, before heading out the door. "Perverts, Scott. You've always got to be wary of perverts. Who else just casually sits around listening to a giant radio?" And with that bit of wisdom imparted, she was gone.

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