constellations & ocean waves // snowbaz

ii

SIMON

Even though Basilton was the bane of his existence, Simon couldn't help but admire his arms. Simon wished he had those arms. They were strong, fit things with veins apparent in all the right places; enough veins to be hot but not disgusting. His hands were large too. You know what they say about big hands...

Shunning that topic from his mind, Simon turned back to his work. Basic geometry. Simple enough mathematics, yet a lot of it went completely over Simon's head. He understood the concept of proofs, but he couldn't help but wish they weren't necessary to pass the class—all the theorems left Simon confused and dizzy, forcing him to study for hours once school ended in the hopes of not falling behind. He and Penny would head over to the library every afternoon, just to keep up the highest marks possible. He wished he could be naturally adept at academics, just as Basilton was.

Basilton. An unnecessarily sophisticated name, yet it suited him perfectly. Suited his regal features, his perfect posture, his annoyingly pretentious sneer, his talent at absolutely everything. Simon knew Basilton's family didn't allow such frivolous things as nicknames, but he couldn't help but wish he could call Basilton something shorter, something that didn't use as many syllables. Something that made Basilton seem more human. Something like 'Basil' or maybe even 'Baz'. Something that would-

"Simon Snow, are you even paying attention?" His teacher's loud voice rung through the room, cutting off Simon's inner monologue.

"Uh... no, sir," Simon stated. He, quite frankly, didn't give a fuck about Mr. Stoner. And Mr. Stoner could tell, going off the rising anger in his facial features. The class giggled. Except for Basilton. Obviously.

"Simon. Need I remind you that passing this class is necessary to graduate from Watford?"

"Stoner. Need I remind you that I have an A?"

That was clearly the wrong thing to say.

"Simon Snow, participation makes up a high percentage of your overall grade. Your grade heavily depends on your respect and contributions to this class, and let me tell you now, the odds are not in your favor. You are getting an automatic 0 and detention. I suggest you focus from here on out, as you'll need to ace each test and assignment in order to have even a shot at a C," he sneered. Unfortunately, his saggy old-man skin added little to his words, so his little rant was less scary and more laughable (if not faintly disappointing). Simon always studied and aced his tests; it was no question that he would still pass the class and, in turn, graduate from WHS. Maybe not with the GPA he was striving for, but it's important to take everything life throws at you in stride.

"Okay."

And that was that.

----

After class ended, Simon Snow Salisbury had lunch. Lunch was his favorite part of the day, as he could reconnect with his best friend Penelope and his almost-girlfriend Agatha, neither of whom (unfortunately) shared any of his classes. 

"Hi!" Penny exclaimed, plopping down on the bench of the lunch table. "I've been having the greatest day of my entire high school career. So, Ms. Martin selected me to go to this civics meeting thing with the governor, some other politicians, lawyers, other students, all kinds of people. We're debating important issues in the state. But get this! Only two students from the entire high school are selected to go! Can you believe it! I, a little freshman, have already achieved peak academic experiences. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Oh my god, I'm so excited. To add to that, I got my picture taken for the yearbook. They wouldn't tell me what exactly it was for, but I recently attended an interview to see if I'm applicable for Most Outstanding Freshman, so maybe I got the spot? Anyway-"

As Penny rambled, not even stopping for a breath, Simon glanced around the cafeteria and munched on some of his homemade cherry scones. Agatha hadn't made an appearance yet. Normally she was the last one there, so it wasn't too out of the ordinary, but she seemed to be taking an even longer time than usual to get to their designated meeting spot.

Just as Simon was beginning to worry more than he already was, Agatha sauntered into the cafe. But she wasn't alone. On her arm, smirking his annoyingly perfect smirk and whispering sweet nothings into her ear, was Basilton Pitch. The Basilton Pitch that everyone knew but no one talked to, the Basilton Pitch that both creeped people out and seduced them with one word. The Basilton Pitch that Simon had been staring at in Geometry.

The Basilton Pitch that seemed to have stolen Simon's long-time crush, Agatha Wellbelove, the hottest and kindest girl on campus.

The Basilton Pitch that Simon had sworn as his enemy years ago, back when they were both 11. The Basilton Pitch that seemed to stop at nothing to annoy the absolute hell out of Simon. He just couldn't believe that he would stoop this low. It was completely unheard of, and completely unwarranted. Everyone knew Simon and Agatha were meant for each other.

Right?