poeta nascitur, non fit ~ steven meeks x fem!reader

rosewater~

song of the chapter: hey kids by molina, but s l o w e d

(y/n)'s pov...

After (y/n)'s poem about finding comfort in fictional worlds, Neil Perry astounded the room by reciting an original piece using both Iambic Pentameter like a Shakespeare reincarnate and full rhyming scheme; all of which pertained to the gentle beauty of Autumn and how it gave way to Winter darkness. When he finished, taking off his round reading glasses, Charlie wolf-whistled as Neil turned to salute Uncle Walt, who kept watch over the young poets.

His stunning piece gave way to Meeks shyer one, but beautiful nonetheless. The freckled boy exhaled shakily and began to read, in the voice made (y/n)'s heart flutter;

"The scent of rosewater on the air,

Breath catches in my throat as

I see the sunlight glint off 

Your hair, a suddenly my

World becomes so much more bright,

Since with your existence, comes the end to

my hearts plight."

(y/n) didn't clap loudly for Meeks as she did for Neil, instead she stared down at her oak desk and let her hair fall to hide her ridiculous smile. 

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ─── 

In the course of the girl's friendship with Mr. John Keating, she had grown mostly accustomed to seeing him bring out the best in his young students, but only after helping to tear them bare to really display what truly laid beneath their cover, as pages lie within a book's bindings. Never before, however, had it irked her so much as seeing him use this same method with Todd. 

"Mr. Anderson," he addresses her blonde friend "believes that everything inside of him is worthless and embarrassing. Well, I think you're wrong. I think you have something inside of you that is worth a great deal" When (y/n) had found out that during their seeming hours of writing that she and Todd did together previously had resulted in not a single stanza to submit for this assignment, a fact that made (y/n)'s heart churn with sadness for her friend and just a hint of anguish to empathize. 

Keating instructed Todd to waltz up onto the platform at the head of the class to demonstrate his barbaric yawp, which he had written about on the blackboard. (y/n) turned around to gauge Neil's reaction to this, and seen his face partially contorted in outrage - clearly he had become very protective over Todd in the brief month or so they had been introduced. 

After a few minutes of haggling and very discontent written plainly across his kind face, Todd stood and walked to his place almost directly in front of (y/n). To her agony, some of the boys had the audacity to laugh, Meeks included, although something told her that he wasn't laughing out of actual humor, but instead the feeling of conformity. She smiled up at Todd encouraging him, something that he did not return as he usually did. 

"A yawp?" he shook his arms in distress.

"No," Keating dismissed his words "not just a 'yawp'. A barbaric yawp." With each 'yawp', Keating's voice changed to impersonate his point.