READY FOR LOVE | JENLISA

Chapter 33

Lisa

My phone at the edge of the table lights up with an incoming call. I quickly glance down at the screen to see a number that I've been dodging for quite some time now. Instinctively, I hit the decline button and flip my phone over, face down on the table.

I look up and just so happen caught rat boy's beady little gaze on my phone from across the table. Nosey motherfucker. Snatching up my phone, I stuff it into my pocket, flashing rat boy a 'WTF' glare. His gaze quickly snaps back to the dead relative in front of him.

I turn my attention back to Jennie, getting a large whiff of formaldehyde from the actual lab rat sitting between us as I do so. The little rodent is cut wide open, its internal organs on full display. With gloved hands, Jennie pokes and prods around inside the little guy, glancing back at our lab manual for reference every now and then as she rambles off the different parts that we're going to be quizzed over next week.

"I think this is the adrenal gland." she mutters uncertainly under her breath. Squinting her eyes and angling her head to get a better look, she points with her pinkie at some bland coloured tissue inside the rat.

I scoot closer, leaning my head in to hover over the rat, my cheek inches away from hers. "Hmm, I don't know, Finch." I say, my gaze swinging back and forth from the dead rodent in front of us and the one in our lab manual for reference. "I think this might be it." I point just a few centimetres above where she's pointing.

Her lips twist to the side in contemplation. "No, I really think this is it." she says, still pointing to the same spot with her pinkie.

Hell if I know. Everything is so tiny and pretty much the same bland colour, it's hard to tell what's what. But I'm fairly certain I'm right, though.

"I don't know... I think I'm right. Maybe your genius has finally rubbed off on me and now you need me as your tutor." I tease.

Jennie grins. "You wish." she says, and we fall into a playful banter of who's right.

"Jennie's right." rat boy cuts in from across the table matter-of-factly.

How the hell does he know that? There's no way he can see what she's pointing to from that far away. Hell, I'm sitting right next to her and even I have to squint my eyes to see what she's pointing at. So either this rodent faced asshole has superhuman, laser sharp vision or he's just trying to spite me. And I know it's the latter.

I flash him a glare, clinching my jaw to prevent myself from chewing him out. "Focus on your own rat." I instruct him curtly.

His dark beady eyes narrow, glaring back at me.

"What are you guys looking for?" Rosé asks, peering at us over the rim of her glasses from the other side of the table, where she hovers over her own dead rat.

"The adrenal glands." Jennie sighs, sulking back in her chair, mildly defeated and slightly irritated.

"Let me take a look." Rosé stands up and walks over to our side of the table, wedging herself between the two of us. She leans in over our shoulders, observing. "Hmm, it's hard to tell." she says, pulling away and using her wrist to push up her glasses, hands gloved.

Looking over her shoulder, Rosé flags down Irene and she comes skipping over to our table.

"What's up, friends?" the bubbly, redheaded TA asks, more than ready to help.

"We're trying to find the adrenal glands." Jennie informs her.

"Alright, what were you guys thinking?" she asks, prompting us to show her our ideas, probably wanting to make this some sort of teaching moment, instead of just giving us the answer.

"I think one is here." Jennie says, pointing with her gloved pinkie again.

"Lisa?" Irene prods, and I show her where I think it is.

"Sometimes, those tiny parts are a little hard to identify with these guys. They're definitely not as clear cut and defined as the manual makes them out to be, and these rats get roughed up after being used all week, so they're by no means in prime condition. But, Jennie, I think you're right. Right here..." Irene points to where Jennie was moments ago "... is a gland. Then the other is over here." Irene points to the one on the other side.

"Like I said, sometimes it's very hard to tell, but you were really close, Lisa." she says encouragingly.

"Told you." Jennie says smugly, playfully sticking her tongue out at me. I know it was a good-natured, poke-fun gesture, but somehow it ends up rubbing me the wrong way.

"I told you that she was right. You don't even know anything." rat boy states, not so pleasantly, really making my blood boil. I muster up a great deal of restraint by holding myself back from leaning over this table and punching him square in the face.

Involuntarily, my hands ball into fists as images of kids all pointing and laughing at me while the teacher purposefully belittles my intelligence in front of the whole class fill my head.

"What are you, a fucking idiot?"

My eyes snap to Jennie, but I realise she didn't speak. No one did.

"You'll never amount to anything!"

"You should be dead on the streets because you're the child of a whore!"

The voice in my head rages on. My breathing becomes ragged and I grit my teeth as a mild ringing begins in my ears. Glass breaking, doors slamming, a burning sensation on my arm. Instinctively, I grip my forearm, rubbing my hand over the scarred cigarette burn marks, as if they're fresh.

My pocket vibrates, momentarily bringing me out of my disturbing memories, and I quickly pull out my phone, glancing at the screen, my blood boiling when I realise who it is. Again. And that seems to be my tipping point. Like a balloon filled with too much air, I explode.

"You all think that you're so smart, don't you!?" I snap, abruptly standing up from my chair, the legs screeching against the floor. Everyone in the class snaps their attention to me, the room falling silent.

Jennie jerks her head back, stunned. A flash of hurt and confusion flicker in her eyes as she stares up at me from where she's still sitting. "Lisa." she says softly, reaching out to touch my arm, but I jerk away.

"Don't!" I instruct firmly.

She draws her hand black, limply placing it in her lap as she looks away, her long caramel hair creating a curtain to hide her wounded expression. A pang of hurt shoots through my chest.

"What the hell, asshole!?" rat boy sneers.

I clinch my jaw, peeling off my latex gloves. "I'll show you hell, asshole!" I say, taking a few quick strides to round the table, and he scurries back, with pure fear in his eyes.

"Lisa!" Irene yells, her voice surprisingly stern and anything but bubbly anymore. She quickly grabs my bicep to prevent me from going any further. It's not that she's physically strong enough to hold me back, but she's preventing me from fighting now that she's within arm's reach and hits could easily be ricocheted her way. "If you're going to act like this, out of my lab. Now!"

"Gladly!" I bite out.

In a blur, I snatch up my things, flinging my backpack over my shoulder and storming out of the classroom. Shortly after, I find myself barging into my room, throwing my stuff down next to my desk.