The Literary Misadventures of Juniper Rosewood

11- School Spirit

My phone buzzed in my pocket, letting me know that Circe had texted me back, but I ignored it. I was too busy enjoying the most delicious pancakes I had ever tasted. Despite frequenting the Corner Bookshop, I had never been to Penny's Diner before. Penny's made American style pancakes with crispy bacon and a bucket of maple syrup, butter, and squirty cream, and they were fluffy and golden and perfect and completely and utterly deliciously scrumptious. I didn't mind that Dalton was sitting across from me watching me eat like a pig, since only that morning he had seen me with mascara smeared down my face. He was supposed to be getting to know me, and so he needed to know all of the bits that weren't quite so pleasant too.

I moaned loudly after taking another bite of my pancakes, and Dalton chuckled at me while the sparse crowd in the diner stared at me.

"What?" I asked Dalton defensively through a mouthful of pancake, "They're amazing."

"I'm sure Penny will be pleased to hear that," Dalton said, still eyeing me amusedly.

"You're supposed to be pretending to get to know me, Jamie, you have to know the sides of me that are a little crazy."

"From what I have pretended to learn of you, I'd say all of the sides of you are crazy," Dalton said, "Also, Jamie? What?"

"If you can call me Rosie, then I can call you Jamie," I said, my mouth still full of pancakes.

"Fair enough."

Dalton picked at the waffle on his plate. I could tell from the way he was looking at my pancakes, that he regretted not ordering them himself.

"You can have some, if you want," I said.

"Really?" He looked surprised.

"Sure, I won't be able to eat all of them, no matter how much I want to. And anyway, you paid for them."

"I suppose that's true," He said, cutting a slice off one of my pancakes and tasting it tentatively. "Oh my God," he said, "You were right, I don't know why I ever doubted you."

"If there is anything you need to know of me, it's that I am always right. Unless it's maths. Then I'm probably wrong."

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and texted Circe back, confirming that I was in fact, still alive. Dalton continued to steal bits from my pancakes, completely ignoring his waffle. I pushed it to the side of the table in annoyance.

"We can share since you seem to be enjoying them as much as I am," I said.

"You're the best, Rosie," Dalton said.

"I know."

I checked the time on my phone. It was half-past eleven.

"Have you started on the book yet?" Dalton asked through a mouthful of my pancakes.

"Not yet," I said, "I haven't exactly had a chance these past couple of days."

"Oh yeah," He said. He hesitated a little, "Are you feeling okay after... all of that?" He asked. I could tell he was trying to be sensitive, but he felt awkward. I nodded.

"The pancakes have really helped," I said, taking another bite. Dalton laughed.

"Seriously though. I promised Circe I would take care of you,"  He said, with such sincerity that I was left speechless for a brief moment.

"I'm not one hundred per cent," I said, "But I will be okay."

"That's all I needed to know," He smiled.

Once we had finished our pancakes, Dalton walked me home. We had sat in the cafe just talking for about an hour after we had finished our food, and eventually Penny had kicked us out. She said that while she appreciated our custom and our compliments, she actually needed the booth free so that other people could eat. Dalton had left an extra-large tip for her trouble.