Chapter Twenty-Seven
Juliet
I told myself this was a very, very dumb idea. I’m physically annoyed with myself for stooping this low. The world has come to a sad place, and the depths of Hell might actually be freezing over right now as I step into the main office before first period. Yes, I’m ordering a love gram.
Slowly I approach the back of the line heading to Mrs. Appleton’s desk and look at the people standing there. Austin Reed is near the front with Tyler. I pull the sunglasses propped on my head over my eyes and stare at the ground. I can’t have those two see me.
With the dark tinted shades, along with the dim lighting of the office, I’m practically blind. I know the simple solution would be to remove my sunglasses and stop acting as if I’m a famous actress avoiding the paparazzi. There aren’t cameras in here flashing to take my picture, but his two best friends are collecting love-grams and they’ll be passing by me any second. I do not want them telling my sister or anyone else for that matter they saw me in line to purchase a love-gram.
“Nice shades, Slim Shady,” a voice I recognize but also jolts me from my hiding pose.
I startle and turn around and slap Chase in the arm. “Ow. Damn it! Juliet that’s gonna leave a bruise.”
“Shhhhhh! Don’t say my name. I’m incognito.”
“Are you? You’re standing in line with sunglasses on. You look ridiculous. How the heck can you see right now?”
I scowl at him. “I can’t. Just zip it.”
He shakes his head. “Operation getting someone is going underway I see.”
What part of shush it does he not understand? I swear it’s like he’s trying to get me caught. I’m going to … wait a second. I’m going to use this to my advantage. I can totally lie and say I was just in line with Chase. Everyone knows I’ve been on an anti-love fest anyway.
I rip my sunglasses off and shove them into the side pocket of my backpack. Then I loop my arm with Chase’s.
“Um … what are you doing?” he asks.
“Hush. You’re my cover story.”
He glowers at me. “This is beyond dumb. I hope you know that.”
Pssshhhh. He knows nothing. This is totally brilliant.
Tyler and Austin pass by us and Tyler raises a brow. “Juliet, do my eyes deceive me? Are you in line to get a love gram? Who’s the lucky one?”
“I’m not getting one of those stupid things. Chase is. I’m just here because he asked.”
Chase grumbles next to me. “Liar,” he mutters.
I smile at Austin and Tyler. Austin nudges Tyler. “Come on man.”
“Good luck, Bud,” Ty says to Chase then he winks at me.
As soon as they exit Chase uncoils himself from me. “You’re a wicked person, Juliet.”
“I’m sorry. I needed you as a cover. Why are you in here if you aren’t getting any grams?”
He points over at the boxes of pictures. “Delivering photos. I saw you in line looking like a gangster instead of my usual brooding best friend.”
“I don’t brood!”
“Lately, you have been. Totally not a hot look for you.”
I narrow my eyes at Chase while moving up toward the front of the line. Mrs. Appleton’s voice sparks me out of my annoyance with Chase and back to the task at hand. “How may I help you?”
“Hi, Mrs. Appleton. May I please have one chocolate gram and one strawberry lollipop?”
“You certainly may, Dear. That’ll be two dollars please.” She hands me over the cards with the candies attached while I fork over two dollars.
I step out of line and start to write two messages to Jared but pause. “What if he recognizes my handwriting?”
Chase shrugs. I hand the pen to him. He stares at it for a minute then sighs. “You’re seriously pushing the friend line. What do you want it to say?”
I whisper what I want, and he scribbles the message down. Then he tosses the grams into the basket. “You owe me for this.”
“I know. I’ll buy you whatever video game you want,” I say.
He shakes his head. “I’ll cash in the favor when I’m ready, but it will not be a video game.”
Well, whatever it is I hope it’s not more than fifty bucks. I’ll be counting that as a Favor/Birthday/Christmas gift if it is.
We walk to class. He breaks off when he reaches his drafting class and I keep going to Chemistry. I hope Jared comes to his senses and asks for me to be his lab partner again. I can’t stand working with Dave Linch. He’s such an idiot for one. Two he thinks he’s the most beautiful person in the world and he’s not. Far from it.
I cringe as I enter the room and spot Jared sitting with Felicity. My dumb heart stutters and a growing pain swelters in the pit of my stomach. I tear my gaze from him and head to my empty table.
Mr. Samson walks over to my table as I shoulder off my bag onto one of the empty stools next to me. “Miss Valentine, Mr. Linch has decided that working with you is possibly a danger to his wellbeing. Did you threaten to maim him with one of your pencils?”
I hear the snickers fill the room as my face heats. Did I threaten that pig-headed moron? I totally did. He told me I should probably take a fashion tip from my sister and we could be the double-fun-twins. I simply told him if he said anything like that about me or my sister ever again I would severe his testicles with my pencil.
I take a deep breath and meet Mr. Samson’s disapproving expression. “I may have. He was making sexual suggestions toward me. I didn’t approve. When I asked him to knock it off he kept going so I threatened to make him ball-less.” I look down at my table as my entire body feels as if it’s on fire.
The whole class seems to erupt into full-on laughter. I’m afraid to lift my head and glance about the room. “That’s quite enough. Settle down class or I’ll start handing out detentions,” Mr. Samson says in a stern tone.
“Miss Valentine, I am at my wits end here. You apparently cannot work appropriately with Mr. Black nor could you work with Mr. Linch. I forbid students working by themselves. You will have a very rough road ahead of yourself young lady if you can’t compromise. If Mr. Linch’s actions on your account are true, please know I commend you for standing up to him. That kind of behavior is not tolerated in my classroom or this school. However, you still should have come directly to me and reported the problem instead of threatening another student.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“No other students are willing to switch partners, so it looks like you will have to work with me. You will be doing all the lab work and the math. Both will be due at the end of class just as everyone else. You will not receive double the grade because you are doing double the work. Everything you turn in from now on will be one grade. Unlike if you would have stuck to having a partner you would have had a chance to make up your grade if your experiment failed but all your calculations were correct.”
I nod.
“Do you agree to these terms?”
I nod again too afraid to speak.
“Bring all your stuff to my desk then.”
I gather my things and follow him with my head hung low. I feel exactly like a punished puppy when their own scolds them for chewing on something they shouldn’t have.
Mr. Samson continues to scold the class for all the things we’re going to be doing today. He also expresses how much he wants us to all pay attention. His remarks might be to the class as a whole, but I truly think that specific comment was directed at me.
He sets a timer on his desk and tells us all to begin. The only upside to working at Mr. Samson’s desk, I have all the ingredients I’ll need for each experiment already on my desk. I will not have to go over to any of the other areas and collect anything. Also, each flask is labeled. That means there is no need to put anything in order, but I still do it anyway.
The things that suck about working at Mr. Samson’s desk, he’s constantly peering over my shoulder, his non-minty breath fans in my direction causing my nose to wrinkle. He has this disgusting habit of clearing his throat. I can literally hear the phlegm. I shudder each time.
I’d give anything for earbuds right now.
The timer on the clock is ticking away and I need to hurry because I still have an entire page of questions to answer. I throw all the chemicals into the glass and take notes on each color change, and reaction as I add each ingredient.
I glance over at the timer and instantly freak out. I literally have three minutes left to finish this damn worksheet. Where did the time go? Why does this experiment feel so rushed? Every other thing in here felt as if there were too much time. Did he purposely try to shorten the time to prove a point that I need a partner?
I refuse to ask or glare at my teacher. I shut off the burner and begin working through the list of questions. I reach problem number five and students approach with completed papers, stacking them neatly in the basket. How the hell are they even finished so fast?
Oh God! I can’t fail. I cannot fail! Mr. Samson stops lurking over my shoulder and Jared makes his way to the basket. “Juliet, are you okay?”
I start breathing hard. I feel like my lungs are failing on me. Why can’t I breathe?
“Juliet? Hey.” Jared comes around and I feel his hands grip my arms but my knees buckle. I fall limply against him and he whispers, “I got you. Calm down. Breathe. In and out. In and out.”
“What’s going on here?” Mr. Samson asks.
I’m inhaling and exhaling more like hyperventilating.
“I don’t think she’s feeling well,” I hear Jared say.
Suddenly my feet leave the ground and I’m pressed against a nice smelling brick. I didn’t know walls could smell this delightful but I kind of hope I find more like them. “I got you,” Jared says in a hushed tone.
“Ooooo-kkkk-ay.” I pant as I try to keep my eyes open.
“Juliet, you have to save your energy and breathe. Okay? No talking. Just breathe, baby.”
Did he just call me baby? No. He couldn’t have. I’m delusional. Can panic attacks cause this? I’ve only had three of these my whole life. All related to high pressured tests. I passed out the first time I took the SAT when I was in eighth grade. I was in an accelerated group that got to take that and the ACT while we were in middle school. My mom thought it was an excellent idea. Get a jump ahead of everyone else and see what’s on the test, this way if I bombed it I had a better understanding of how to prep for it next time.
I sat in a room full of seniors and juniors. I was the only idiot who took the bait that taking this test early was great. Two minutes in, I passed out. I came to, to someone in a dark blue uniform standing over me with an oxygen mask stuck to my face. One of the top ten embarrassing moments of my life.
I feel my body being squeezed tighter and then a brush of something across my forehead. “Juliet, you have to stay with me, baby. We’re almost there. I promise. You got to keep breathing.”