Not That Bad #Wattys2018

Chapter Nine

You know what I realized at lunch time on Thursday? I realized that I hadn't seen Kai in a long time. A very long time. And now that I think about it, he hasn't been hanging out with Chase and I and the rest of the gang. And he had something for me.

I'm not so good at math, but if Eli has been any help at all, I can put two and two together. And I realize that Kai was avoiding me.

I raise one finger to shut the boys up, give Chase my cigarette and march to the main building of the school. We changed our smoking place after Mr Terv caught me. Our new hang out place is in the garden shed, which is not too far from the main building, but far enough so we can smoke in peace. It's super secret so we haven't been caught.

It's almost funny how I saw Kai and he saw me. He stopped flirting with the girl with the braids, and turned his head. He did a double take and ran into the boys bathroom. But he ought to know me better. I didn't even bother run. I walked right in after him, fixed my hair in the mirror and adjusted my stockings.

"WHAT?" I tell a boy who looked at me with his mouth open. I turned and I noticed that the boys at the urinals were gaping at me too. "Oh come on." I say, "None of you have something I haven't seen."

"Wanna make sure?" Declan looks over his shoulder and winks. Declan is on the football team--he's captain--and yes, he does fit the stereotype high school football player. He's a Jaq in the making.

"No thanks." I say, "I've got a vagina of my own."

When Declan finally processes what I said, he turns pink and doesn't say a word. I laugh and walk up to that one boy at the urinal who didn't turn around. He's not even peeing. He's just standing there, stiff. I put my hand on his shoulder and force him to turn around. He won't look me in the eye,so I use my finger to lift his chin.

"Hi Kai!" I say smiling brightly for a second and then I put a serious face.

"Rori..."

"Fancy seeing you here, Kai.You know it's funny, I almost thought you were avoiding me, but I just couldn't figure out what for."

"Rori, I KNOW. You'll have it by tomorrow. The guy hasn't given it too me yet." Kai removes my hand from his shirt sleeve.

"Well, I hope that's the truth Kai." I say, "I'd HATE to think you USED IT."

Kai tugs at his ear and doesn't say anything. That boy. "First thing tomorrow." I say. Then I widen my eyes, not needing to use words to threaten him. I smile at myself in the bathroom mirror and then head back to the garden shed.

***

I guess nothing is really super secret. I mean, even if no human being knows, God knows. And Eli apparently.

It wasn't his presence that stopped me in my tracks. It was the fact that he was smoking too. He literally, had a cigarette in his mouth. It wasn't a metaphor, or a simile or any other figure of speech. He was smoking and it fit his face, and that's what made it so WRONG.

"WHAT IS GOING ON?" I say, looking at Eli with big eyes. "Chase, what is going on?"

Chase pulls at one of the curls in his hair. "The guy asked for a cigarette so I let him have one."

"He asked?"

I don't get it. I turn to Eli and try to take the cigarette from his mouth but he won't let me. He holds my wrists together and puffs some smoke into the air. I wriggle away and stare at him. In HORROR, actually.

After a few more puffs Eli takes the cigarette from his mouth, throws it onto the ground and steps on. He looks at me, half smiling.

"I thought smoking killed." I say, shaking my head.

I suddenly have ZERO desire to smoke now. Like, if seeing someone innocent smoking had that effect on everyone, nicotine patches would be useless. I go and sit in Chase's lap and instantly he starts stroking my hair. I almost forgot how good it felt. I wonder if he does that to Skylar now?

"It does kill." Eli says, looking at us carefully. "But I figured everyone is going to die anyway. And it was wrong of me to judge chain smokers and people when I didn't even know how they felt when they smoke."

"Well I don't think you should smoke." I say, surprising even myself.

Eli raises his eyebrows. "And YOU should?"

"I can afford to. But you...you have your whole life ahead of you. It would be horrible if you got lung cancer or something."

Eli would be successful just like Mr Terv said. I, on the other hand, had nothing to look forward to. I wasn't going to be a bum,exactly, but the future didn't look very bright. Eli stares at me so I just stare at him. Then I remember something.

"Did you guys initiate him?" I ask the boys, smiling when Eli's face gets all scrunched up.

"Like two minutes before you came back." Han tells me, scratching his head.

"Do it again. Now." I point towards Eli. "It doesn't count if I didn't see."

Eli tries to resist, but Han and Wesley grab his arms and force him to get into a position for push-ups. I came up with the whole initiation thing. It was only for fun, because it was HILARIOUS to see the boys doing push-ups and singing the theme song for Scooby Doo. Eli starts doing his push-ups and he's actually good at it, his arms are very muscular.

"Don't forget to sing!" I say, pulling out my phone and taking a picture.

He actually curses under his breath. That surprises me. Now, I wasn't sure what I could do in front of Eli. He was CHANGING, and it was weird. I get up and sit on his back but he doesn't flinch. His push-ups are just as good. Maybe I'm just not that heavy?

I don't know how he does it, but Eli suddenly gets up and I have cling to his shirt so I don't fall off. But then he reaches back, holds me and then he's carrying me bridal style. I fell this fluttery feeling and blush, because I've never been carried like this. But then the feeling goes out the window, when Eli throws me to Han.

That's when I start wriggling and cursing. But then I shut my mouth, because like I said, I don't even know what to say in front of Eli anymore. I'm tossed to Chase and I try to hit him hard and threaten to tell everyone his secret. He just LAUGHS at me. LAUGHS.

"You guys are going to pay for this." I say, "I SWEAR."

They only chuckle. I give up. I'm tossed to all the boys and then back to Eli. I scowl at him and his dimples appear in his cheeks as he smiles.

"Meet me in the library this afternoon." he says, before tossing me back into the air.