When We Spirits Awaken

Chapter 10: Inconvenient

I took a deep breath and walked into the art room. As per usual, there were only three seats open: one next to Shayla, Jared or Kaleb. However, the daggers Shayla shot at me with her eyes and the all-too-eager look on Jared's face proved that I really only had one option.

I put my bag on the floor next to my chair and sat next to Kaleb in silence. I opened my mouth to speak, but I had no idea how to start.

"If I talk, can you listen before you say anything or dart off?" I could tell by the tone in his whisper that he was hurt. A sharp pain hit my heart when I realized I was doing this to him, and I wasn't finished.

He slowly turned his head to look at me, hoping for a response. I gave him a stiff nod.

He leaned closer. "I get why you've been avoiding me, after what happened with Mr. Dalton, it makes sense but--"

"What are you talking about?" I interrupted. My mind flashed back to my incident with Mr. Dalton last week. Had Kaleb seen? The door was closed. How did he know? What did he know? He would have seen the charm... he would know that I wasn't normal! He'd be suspicious, but how on earth could I explain a teacher trying to be with a student, or a ring turning into black smoke?

I felt his hand on my shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"What does Mr. Dalton have to do with anything?"

"When he called me into his class last week, he told me what was going on..." he trailed off, as if he needed to find his words again.

Mr. Dalton couldn't have remembered, but he must have! This was not happening...

Kaleb gripped the bridge of his nose with his pointer finger and thumb, closing his eyes before continuing. "I should have known people would jump to that conclusion when everyone here is always dying for something to gossip about. With people thinking that, the distance makes sense, but don't let that affect you, please. I... I just don't want you to think you have to lose a friend over a stupid rumour."

"What rumour?"

"You, don't have to play dumb with me Lil," he rolled his eyes and smirked a bit, "Mr. Dalton told me that he thought you and I were together, and that he was worried I was not treating you right. If the teachers thought that, I can only imagine what the students have come up with."

He thought I was avoiding him because of a rumour that we were dating? I put my hands over my mouth, trying to hold in a laugh, but I couldn't help it. My shoulders shook as I tried to calm myself.

"I was hoping for, 'yes, Kaleb, you're right' but I guess laughing hysterically works too," he said sarcastically.

I finally found the strength I needed to calm down. Now, what would I say? Truthfully, I already knew that much, it was just how to go about saying it.

"Kaleb I... umm..." why was I making this so difficult on myself?

He laughed, but it wasn't cheery. "It has nothing to do with that does it?"

"It's just that--"

"No, no I get it," he pushed his chair away from the table, "it's just that you have better things to do then make friends... with me."

I wanted to cry, but I couldn't. I had to do this. I took a deep breath and stared ahead, not really seeing anything. "Yes."

He stood up then, in the middle of class, and grabbed his bag. "My apologies for wasting your time."

My voice had been cold, I had to struggle to make it that way, but the hurt in his voice came without effort.

I kept staring ahead as I heard his footsteps while the rest of the class was continued about their work, completely clueless to what had taken place.