Harmony amidst Chaos | A Jori story

Shorelines

-TORI'S POV-

Theater history's done! I practically sprint out of the classroom. That was almost the last exam of the school year. Only English is left, and then... summer!

But first: Lunch!

I plop down at our usual lunch table at the Asphalt Café, the heat radiating off the ground. It's scorching out, the heatwave baking LA for days now. Even the shade doesn't offer much relief, but at least we have iced drinks.

André, Cat and Robbie are already lounging, all of them wearing their sunglasses. "How was theater history?" he asks, sounding like the heat has drained all his energy.

"Ugh, don't even ask." I groan, reaching for my water. "So glad that's over."

Cat's bouncing in her seat as usual, her energy completely unaffected by the weather. "Only one more exam! Then we can celebrate!"

André chuckles, sipping his iced coffee. "Well, after English, we can all relax. But man, I cannot wait to be done with this heatwave. It's brutal."

"I know!" Cat chimes in, pulling her red hair into a higher ponytail. "One time, my brother got so hot during a heatwave that he tried to cool off by lying naked on the kitchen floor with both the fridge and freezer doors open. But then he fell asleep, and when my mom came in, he had blisters from the melted ice of the freezer all over the front of his body and on his—"

"OKAYY, no need to continue that." I say, cutting Cat off just in time. Robbie looks visibly relieved, while André shakes his head, trying not to laugh.

Just then, I notice Beck and Jade walking toward us. "Hey, Vega." Jade says, holding a black-covered book.

"Hey." I smile up at her as she takes a seat next to me.

"Here's your theater history book." She hands it to me, and I take it with a raised eyebrow.

"Thanks." I say, but my book wasn't all black when I lent it to her. "Why is it all black now?"

"I have black paint." she shrugs, like that's a perfectly normal explanation.

"But why would you paint— oh never mind." It's way too hot to start arguing.

"I hate sweating." Beck says, breaking the silence again.

"I know," I agree, "my arms feel like warm, wet ham."

Beck chuckles at my comment, and I can see Jade's eyes narrow slightly. She doesn't seem too pleased with how amused he is, but instead of saying anything, she takes it out on Robbie.

"Robbie, you done with that water?" she asks, her tone sharp and impatient.

Robbie blinks up at her, snatching his half-full bottle and clutching it to his chest as if his life depends on it. "No."

But Jade obviously doesn't take no for an answer. "Give it to me." She demands.

Robbie's eyes go wide and he quickly hands over the bottle. "Alright." He murmurs.

Jade snatches it and takes a long sip, clearly enjoying the refreshment of the cold water, though her expression quickly shifts back to her typical scowl. I notice a single drop of water slowly trailing from the corner of her mouth down to her chin.

She wiped it with the back of her hand, but I can't help but notice something else. While everyone else looks like a shiny, sweaty mess, Jade seems completely unbothered by the heat. Her hair is slightly tousled, but her makeup is intact, and her skin doesn't glisten like the rest of ours. It's almost as if the sweltering sun doesn't affect her at all.