Hard Heart to Crack

Chapter 2. Staying Away

The rest of the school day was pretty normal, except for the fact that it FRICKIN WASN'T. I had all the same classes with the boy, who I could now put a name to.
"Jaden" he had said on the bus, "Jaden Miller"
"Nice to meet you." I had said
"What's your name?" He asked
I had looked him over, taking in his converse, his black jeans, and grey button up.
"Chris" I had said
He gave me a look, "What?" I had said.
"Chris?"
"Yes?"
He smiled, "Chris what? What's your last name Sweetheart?"

I looked out the window, I hated telling people my last name because it reminded me of my parents.
Whenever they had screamed at me, or...hit me, they had called me by my last name, never my first.
"Well?" Jaden said.
Just then the school bus pulled up in front of the school. I sighed in relief, "Well!" I said, "Gotta go to class!"
"Wait!" He said, he grabbed my wrist before I could bolt off.
I flinched, and he immediately let go. "I-im sorry" he said, "I was just wondering, ummmmm..." He looked nervous all of a sudden. All of the other kids had started to file out, some of the girls still looking back to stare at him.
"What are you up to after school?"
I blinked, " Can I please see your class schedule?" I asked him
He looked stunned, but he took a piece of paper from his back pocket and handed it to me.
I looked it over, "Uh-huh, just as I expected!"
"What?" He asked
I handed him the piece of paper back. " You have all the same classes as me." Then I heard the bell and bolted out of the bus for class.
I had gotten to class just in time. I stepped in to the class room, just as the last warning bell rang. I sighed, and bolted to an empty seat. Mr. Leborio, our first period teacher, had been writing what looked like pretty much gibberish on the board when I had walked in. Now he turned to the class with a withering scowl on his face. He looked at each kid individually, trying to catch their eyes and make them uncomfortable. I was use to adults trying to intimidate me, and push me around. At my jobs, the other workers and my bosses thought that they could push me around cause I was younger than them. I had learned that holding your ground and making eye contact with people trying to push you around made them respect you more. As Mr. Leborio's gaze fell on my face, I met his dark grey eyes head on. We had a bit of a staring match for a second, his mouth twitched, like he was trying to suppress a smile. Just then, Jaden ran into the room, he looked out of breath. The teacher turned and gave his full powered scowl to Jaden. Jaden just smiled, and said,"Hey, nice to meet you man!" Jaden closed the distance between him and Leborio, then he shook hands with the teacher. Leborio looked stunned, but he quickly hid it with another scowl. He pulled his hand away from Jaden and said, "You're late, Mr-"
"Name is Jaden Miller, sir."
"Mr.....Miller." Leborio said it with such distaste, like he had just heard that an elephant was to be taught in his class.
"Yes?"
"Please go take a seat next to..."
I looked around, and realized that there was only one empty seat. Guess who it was right next to...
Please don't say it, I thought, please just say my first name. Please don't say-
"Right next to Ms. Summers"
I flinched, and sqeaked loudly
The whole class turned to look at me, I hoped it wasn't because of the sound I had made, and that it was because the new boy was going to be sitting next to me. All of the girls had started breathing heavily and fanning themselves.
I rolled my eyes, he wasn't even really that hot.
"Who?" Jaden asked
Leborio pointed, the boy looked and then he smiled.
I was surprised that Leborio hadn't given him a late notice! Or even a really loud lecture and scolding.
The boy walked down the the side of the class room, scooted past a few kids, then finally, he plunked down in his seat. I looked straight ahead, but I felt the pressure of his eyes on me. Today was going to be a very long day, but at least the boy seemed to draw the attention of the other kids. I had been trying to focus on what Leborio was saying, when a piece of paper landed on my desk. I looked down at it, it seemed to be a note... I didn't open it. I looked back up, and continued listening to Leborio. I could not see what he was writing on the board,which was strange, since I was seated in the middle row of desks. I should have been able to....
After class, I took the note and read it by my locker.
You never answered my question.
Would you like to go out after school Maybe for a...
I just moved here, so I have no clue what you guys have.
-Jaden
There was also a number, I want sure how to answer. Then I remembered I had work after school.
During my next period, while the teachers back was turned, I slipped a note onto Jaden's desk. He didn't pick it up until after class.
I had just written a simple message
I have work. I don't have time for anything else.
The next two classes, I got no response back, not that I had been expecting one.
Then it was time for lunch. Our cafeteria had blue walls and a glass ceiling so you could look into the sky. It doubled as our gynasium during P.E. In the cafeteria at my school, all the different grades weren't allowed to mix. They had their own table to sit at, and they weren't allowed to sit at any different tables. Not that they ever listened, I always sat by myself. All of the other kids in my class squeezed into one table, which was funny to watch, so that they wouldn't have to sit at the second table with me. All that my class could seem to blabber about was the new boy. Which was good for me, it meant that they weren't paying me any attention. Which meant no hollers and catcalls. But I knew it was only temporary, the class was going to get over him fast, then the tormenting would begin again.
You only have to survive to graduation, I thought.
The thought kind of cheered me up, then the room got quiet. I looked up from my apple, and I saw that the boy had walked into the cafeteria. I didn't really understand what everyone was on about, be wasn't even that good looking. He walked past the table where the rest of the class was, and came and sat across from me. He pulled a plastic container from his backpack and opened it. It had a few slices of cold pizza in it, he raised his eyebrows at me and smiled. I looked back down at my apple.
"Where do you work at?"
I looked up, "I'm sorry?"
He took a bite out of pepperoni slice, chewed it, and swallowed it. "Where do you go to work?" He asked.
I wondered if I should even tell him, I had no clue who he was, and I did not want to get to know him. I had no time for boys. So I talked to him like he was a customer that I would never see again. "I work at the Subways down the street."
I had three jobs actually, but he didn't need to know that.
"Are you good?" He asked
"At what?"
"Your job!" He exclaimed, "are you good at your job!"
"Well I still work there don't I?"
He hesitated, "How long have you worked there?"
I tensed and he must have seen it, "I'm sorry, it is your business and none of mine."
He started slowly eating the pizza slices.
The truth was, I had been working there for five years.I had been at the subways when my parent had died. The social worker who worked my case before my grandmother had gotten me, had tried to convince me to quit my jobs. I had been working four back then, someone had to pay the bills. But I had refused, she had also tried to get me to go to therapy for "any traumatizing effects you may have experienced" I had immediately pushed her away, then my grandmother became my legal guardian, and now I was hers and she was mine. I hated talking about a lot of things it seemed, but if I had told him, he may have thought he was getting somewhere with me. He may have even started to ask me more personal questions. I know you probably think that I'm crazy for continuing to work at the place where I had been when my parents had died. But the thing is, work was an escape. It was an escape from my parents. Being at work when they had died wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was going home to find the bodies. I knew they were dead, but I still checked their pulses. Then I called 911, I didnt cry, there was no point mourning over dead people who never really lived. Fire fighters, ambulances, police, and social services all arrived. The bodies were taken away, I was interrogated, then taken away by social services.
I huffed, I looked him up and down. I had never talked to anyone about what I had gone thru, about my past, not even my grandmother.
Why not? Why not tell him what he wants to know? Maybe it would scare him and he would leave me alone. Maybe he would learn that I was not interested in friends.
"Five years..."
He looked up, a surprised look on his face.
"What?"
"I've worked at the Subways for five years."
He nodded, taking this info in.
"What do your parents do?"
I regretted telling him anything now.
Stupid stupid stupid
I glared at him, he stared back. "Ummm," he shifted in his seat, he was obviously uncomfortable.
I huffed out a raspy sigh, and looked at him.
"They're both dead."