He's Just a Skater Boy (boyxboyxboy)

Chapter 76: One for the Road

"You two looked like you were having fun." Jacob remarked, grabbing my backpack from the foot of my bed.

I laughed awkwardly. "We're getting along more lately..."

"Yeah, so he sits on your lap?" Atlas asked with a raised brow. "The fuck is that about..."

"We were busy..."

"Busy with what?" Atlas glared at me.

"He's a friend if that's what you're asking." I glared back. "I don't... I'm not like you." I replied somewhat quietly, grabbing my backpack from Jacob as I was getting up.

"What's that supposed to mean..." Atlas scowled at me.

Jacob glanced at me as he handed me it. "Seems to be a habit."

I looked up at him. "Huh?"

Jacob just stared at me, his disposition cool and unbothered, still he seemed to stand a little taller I thought, or maybe he had just grown in size since his last class and returning to the infirmary. I wouldn't be surprised.

It took me a moment to remember that the last time he walked in on us Amir had been sitting on my lap too. Well, not sitting, not like that. He'd had his knees on either side of me in the seats of the stands where we were hanging out. It wasn't like that, obviously, but I guess it looked weird. We were just mucking about, no one would think otherwise.

"What's a habit?" Atlas asked, looking at Jacob, who shrugged, setting his backpack down to put on the coat perfectly folded over his arm. He looked at me like he was about to transfer the question but just then the door opened and for a split second I thought it was Amir coming back.

Instead, a teacher stepped inside, smiling kindly it was Miss Dorset, seemingly completely unaware of the oddly awkward atmosphere in the room.

"Hello Akara, your mother finally answered, she can take you home."

"She did?" I blinked in shock.

"Yeah?" She responded with a confused smile. "So you can go."

She turned to Jacob and nodded. "Don't worry about it after all, thanks Jacob." She said with a smile.

"Goodbye ma'am." He nodded to her impassively, late in remembering the false smile, glancing down as his phone began to vibrate, he pulled it out of his pocket, checked it and ignored it, sliding it back in place.

I couldn't believe it. It had been two weeks since she had last been home and the last time I spoke to her she had said she was delaying things. Not that I was bothered by that, I could stand on my own two legs obviously, but it felt like the amount of time my mom and dad were spending at time was getting shorter and shorter and their time working longer and longer.

Again, didn't bother me. But there was a weird feeling to it. Coming home and everything being still and cold.

It wasn't like I grew up that way, my parents used to be with me all the time when I was really young, I didn't think about it back then, just felt like a matter of course, but the more time they spent away from me awakened the realisation in me that maybe they just grew to like me less and less. Maybe the school had rang them up and bothered them one too many times, or maybe I wasn't doing well enough. It wasn't like I did anything to help them stop thinking that way. Instead I stewed in my own misgivings and waited for them to tell me it explicitly, that they wished they'd never had me or something.

I'd never say that out loud.

It would be nice to have her home for a while.

Miss Dorset was about to leave before she stopped just as she was closing the door. "Ah yes, so she said she'll wait for you down the street from the school in her car."