Fern glared at him out of the corner of her eye. Why was he only nice when there was no one around? It was frustrating, to say the least. She hadn’t remembered that they were going to show everyone’s videos. She lost her glare for a moment to glance at Zavian sheepishly. Then she decided to just not look at him for the rest of the class.
I'm sorry. He couldn't help but glance at her, missing her glance from before. The teacher began to start one on the screen. It wasn't theirs, but it brought him back to reality. Well, the fake reality. The one where he was nothing but a jerk. Shoot. He couldn't let anyone see it. No matter what he tried, he couldn't come up with a plan.
Fern watched the videos, occasionally making a comment to her friends when one of theirs came on. Fern and Zavian’s video still hadn’t shown yet, and honestly Fern didn’t know how to feel about it. For now she just pretended that it didn’t exist. It was much easier that way.
Zavian bounced his leg, everything feeling like it was falling apart. "Can I use the bathroom?" He stuck his hand up high wirh a loud voice so the teacher could hear. She gave him a hesitant nod. He stood, careful to avoid suspicion, and walked out. He didn't go to the restroom, but a few doors down. His hand went to a red box on the wall, a moments hesitation came before he pulled harshly down on the level setting off the school wide alarm. With that, he caught up with his friends filing out of his class, no one suspecting anything.
Fern and her friends were chattering amongst one another.
“There’s not a fire drill today, is there?” Nate asked.
“Ohmigosh that means it’s an actual fire!” April exclaimed. Lydia looked panicked. Their group was caught in the middle of a sea of confused students.
“Where do you think it could be?” Fern asked. Nate shrugged. They continued to chatter loudly (like many other students were doing) as they walked down the hall. Soon they were standing outside and the teachers were screaming for them to find their classes. Fern and her friends went and sat on the grass by their English teacher.
When you forget the name of the teacher that you made up and you’re too lazy to go back like two pages to see it lol//
(XD mood)
The teachers had gathered their classes up after a little. Everyone was "safe" and they were rallied back into the building after it had been cleared. By the firemen. He really had really hoped they hadn't come, but they did. He made his way back into class when a few minutes in, the principal and an officer were calling him outside. Shoot.
Fern noticed him get called out of the corner of her eye. She wondered if he had any part to play in this; he had left the room shortly before the alarm went off. But why would he pull it? Was he really that desperate for the class not to see their video? Fern had put so much hard work in it and he was still ashamed of her. Of course he was. She felt tears prick at her vision but swallowed her feelings down. Whatever. She tried to pretend she was listening to Allyson, April, and Nate.
They took him to the front office, past a few kids in the hallway who gave him suspicious looks. The principal closed the door and sat down. He pointed to the chiropractor for Zavian to sit down. He did so with a slouch, the officer obviously not pleased. "You do realize there are consequences to pulling an alarm, right?" He looked to the officer, not saying a word. The principal sighed. "Zavian, it's a two thousand dollar fine. And you have to pay." Shoot. He knew he wouldn't be able to pay that. Not with his, not with his grandma- he was done for.
Meanwhile Fern had no idea what was happening in the office. She was currently sitting with her friends while they speculated Zavian’s involvement. Not that she heard any of what they said. Her mind was far away.
“Fern?” Allyson asked.
“Hmm?” She responded, snapping back to reality.
“Nate asked you three times what you thought Zavian’s involvement was,” Allyson told her, raising her eyebrows in concern. “Are you okay?”
“Fine, just tired,” Fern sighed.
"Fine." Zavian stood from the chair and began to walk out after talking to them about the details. They had basically told him that since he was eighteen, he was supposed to be legally responsible for the money, but his family would be allowed to pay, he just didn't have to inform them. He also had three days of out of school suspension starting tomorrow. They had the possibility of expelling him just based on his behavior, but for some reason they decided against it. He reached the door. "Zavian, we all know you're a good kid somewhere. We've all given you a second chance. When's it gonna be the last one?" He said nothing but just continued walking back to class.
Fern subconsciously traced figure eights on her desk with her fingers, thinking about the way Zavian had acted at his house versus how he had acted earlier that day. She wished that he could be more like home Zavian than school Zavian more often. Her friends continued to chatter as she hummed the song that he had played on Saturday quietly.
Zavian walked into class silently. He was trying to figure out how this was going to work. No way in the world he was going to tell his grandma this. She wouldn't be able to handle it for tue moment she remembered. He kept his eyes to the floor as he walked to his seat, passing Fern on the way. She was humming something familiar… He quickened his pace a little, more panic coming to him. She's still onto the real me even after the "fire."
Fern looked up as he passed, shooting him a glare that was more aggravated than angry. She wondered if he could see her confusion and hope that she was trying to conceal from everyone else. Why was it always an act with him? She noticed him walk a little faster, wondering if it was because of her. Her mouth twisted into a sardonic ghost of a smile.
Jerk. Somehow, his eyes decided to glance up and at Fern, which he soon found out to be a bad idea. Jerk. He was. And he knew it. She knew it. That's the part that ached the most for no reason he could pin point. He kept his eyes glued to the desk as they began to haze over slightly. Not because he was bored, but distraction. He had so many things running around in his brain, a few he didn't entirely understand.
Fern was a bit surprised when Zavian didn’t make any comments or snicker or something. He looked upset, which made her wonder exactly what had gone on. Her friends were continuing to speculate and snicker and gossip.
“I’ll bet he pulled it just to get out of class,” Nate said.
“Or as a distraction for some sort of mischief,” added April.
“I think he just pulled it for kicks,” Allyson remarked with a haughty sneer. Usually Fern’s friends were so nice. She knew Zavian was kind of awful to them sometimes, but if they were awful back didn’t it make them just as bad?
“Can you guys lay off him?” Fern asked, aggravated. She glanced at them. Lydia gave her a questioning look.
“Lay off Zavian? I thought you hated him,” she said.
Fern sighed. “I don’t hate him,” she replied.
“Don’t tell me you were actually into that little scene earlier?” Nate teased, though it had a bit of an edge to it.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Fern asked, hurt and confused. Nate and April were smirking, though both Lydia and Allyson looked sympathetic. Why were her friends being such jerks today?
Zavian could hear them, almost every word. How could he not? Everyone was basically saying the same thing. But, unlike how it would be for a good kid, no one stopped the chatter. If anything, they supported it. The "bad" kids never really get the support they need, do they? Their voices seemed to trail off right before Fern had told then to stop as the class was about to be dismissed. Everyone was talking which meant no one could hear.
“Look, if it was me who pulled that alarm, people would still gossip, but one of you would put an end to it, at least I hope so,” Fern said. “Someone has to stick up for Zavian. Besides, who even knows if he pulled the fire alarm? It could’ve just been a misunderstanding.” She got her stuff together and stood up. “And I’m not going to talk to you if you’re all going to act like this.” Her friends looked surprised at this. She didn’t usually act like this around them.
Zavian needed to get out of this place. It was suffocating. So many minds amd voices, all trying to make a difference. So, as soon as the bell ring, he walked out the class door and out the side school doors, heading outside. There was only two solutions he knew of: one he couldn't do because that required his grandma seeing him and two- the forest. He began to walk, staying on campus for a little to avoid suspicion.
Fern noticed Zavian actin good weird, and decided to see what he was doing. She never skipped class, but this seemed important. Besides, if he was acting weirder than usual she wanted to know why. She felt stupid but thought that taking a chance for once might pay off.
He made his way across the campus, the bell ringing as he stepped off. He lived a little ways away from the school, but the only thing between him and it was the forest. Well, a part of it. It spread for a little, but the deepest part was in-between his house and the school. He made his entry where he always did, between two large trees, just a few feet between to go through.
Fern followed him, far enough behind that he hopefully wouldn’t notice, but close enough she could see where he was going. She tried to be silent and breathe as quietly as she could. Any sound made her nervous, and she kept checking to make sure that Zavian hadn’t seen her.
Zavian made it to the center, unaware of Fern behind him. Trees surrounded him. He looked to the sky, little glimpses of it seen through the leaves before looking back down at the ground. He leaned on a tree near him and slid down it gently, closing his eyes. "You had to go and mess up again…"
Fern suddenly felt like an intruder, seeing something she wasn’t supposed to see. He wasn’t doing anything stupid, now she could leave because she knew that he was safe. She started to walk back slowly. A twig crunched under her foot and she froze.
Axl stood and whipped his head around to the noise. "What the heck do you think you're doing?" How long has she been following me? Everything inside of him felt like he was going to rupture.