The Label Maker

CHAPTER TEN: PEOPLE ARE LIKE PENGUINS

It was Thursday night. It was the night that Leo and Gwen were to work on homework together. It was the night Gwen was supposed to put in a world for Chris. She was running around grabbing the books and notebooks she was going to need. She only had two subjects to work on, chemistry and algebra. She was supposed to work on chemistry with her partner, but she figured that RJ wasn't going to do it, or work on it with her. She was better off doing it alone anyways for without working on it with someone, there was no one to argue her conclusions. It was almost time for Gwen to meet at Leo's. She made sure that her phone was fully charged. Her parents wanted her to keep her ringer on high for she has never been to a boy's house alone before. She's always been to Emma's house, or even a party or study group with more than one person.

With the news of Gwen's new friend, her parents have temporarily stopped fighting. They were more worried about what type of boy Leo was, what his parents were like, how smart he was, what he looked like, everything that a parent should worry about. Unlike other kids, Gwen was glad her parents were worrying and being over intrusive. It distracted them from arguing over things that she still didn't know about.

She came downstairs with everything she needed in her hands. Scrump was at her feet making the equivalent amount of noise of what a hound dog would make. He knew she was going out. He always makes a fuss when Gwen leaves. She doesn't understand why since Scrump is actually Farrell's cat.

"I'll be back later!" Gwen calls as she reaches the front door.

"Be safe!" Dad calls to her. She shakes her head in amusement. She knew her parents were joking with her for she is always safe. The sky was still blue when she made her short walk to Leo's house. She made sure to walk at a comfortable pace for she didn't want to arrive too early or too late. She approached the front door slowly. She looked at all the flowers that were still live and vivid on their front porch. She rang the bell and waited patiently. The door opened several seconds later. A short woman with vibrant red hair stood before Gwen. When she saw Gwen she smiled which made her smile back.

"Oh you must be Gwen! I'm Linda," She cheers.

"Hi," Gwen answers, giving a small wave.

"Come on in. Leo's just tidying up his room. You can go on up if you want. Last door on the right," she encourages.

"Thank you. It was nice meeting you," Gwen says, walking towards the stairs. She walked up the stairs as quietly as she could. She hated when she made noise walking. When she got to Leo's door, she heard voices inside. Maybe a sibling? His father? Even though she knew she should wait to let the two finish their conversation, she knocked on the door. She had homework to do and she wanted it done. The voices stopped. Leo opened the door. Although he seemed flustered, he smiled when he saw her.

"Hey you made it," he greets.

"Well I do live eight houses down," she jokes.

"Well come on in. My dad was just leaving," he says, not even looking at the man behind him.

"You must be Gwen," he says, a smile on his face. Something gave Gwen the impression that it was fake.

"Hi," was all she could say.

"Well I'll let you two get started on your homework. Leave the door open Leo," his dad says before walking out. When his footsteps were far enough away, Leo shut the door leaving only a slight sliver open.

"Sorry about that. He's actually really nice," Leo apologizes.

"I thought he seemed fine," Gwen says, making herself at home at the foot of his bed.

"He is. He's just overprotective I guess." He shrugs his shoulders.

"In what way?" Gwen didn't mean to pry, but she couldn't help herself.