I'm Wide Awake

iCan't. 10

A\N: Swallowing down my fear of reading back my work and deleting it, I realized there is a loud reader, *pointedly looks at the silent ones. :) * who has been loudly *keeps staring at the mutes* letting me know how much he enjoys my work. So it's about time I credited him [4theSupport]. Thanks Doz. <3

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I tried to stay awake. Emphasis on try, but the clock—it's ticks were so melodic that they were whispering me to sleep. Go-tick-to-tock-sleep. Everything has subliminal messages, you just have to choose if you want to hear them or not. 

The bell shrills inside the whole school indicating lunch break already. Okay, so maybe not everything has subliminal messages. Dazed out of my mind, I try to exit the science class without getting my head talked off—unfortunately, luck has a different plan for me and makes me walk right into Mr Pope's arms. Chest. Ugh, it was a clipboard. 

"Good morning, Ida," I think he is smiling as his smooth voice reaches my half deaf ears. I'm not sure my half dead eye sight could be failing me.

"Actually, sir," I say all knowingly, "It is exactly lunchtime which is the most important meal of the day to those who think breakfast is a joke." I pause, and point. "Me."

He just shakes his head and gives me a generous amount of A4 papers with text, diagrams, tables, and science on them. "Oh sir," I laugh nervously, "I don't mean to be rude but if this was food I'd be more grateful for your gesture, but. Why?"

"I'm scared you have the potential to fall behind even though you're a bight stu-"

"Ah, see?! Bright student, meaning what you're doing could possibly be a felony." Shut up Ida, shut up, shut up, shut up.

He gives me a pointed look and strokes his 5 o'clock shadow, "You have the potential to be anything you want Ida," as if he hadn't made his point enough he hands me more handfuls of scrumptious study sheets like a charity clown handing balloons. Yes, with the smile and everything, "and that means even being a failure. We don't want that."

I smile and lean one hip, "It depends which audience falls into the categorized, 'we.' "

Mr Pope almost laughs but he swallows it down as he walks back to his desk covered with books the size of the Tower of Pisa, mine professionally wedged lopsided somewhere near the bottom showing a hasty turn-in. Like the cool teacher he is, Mr Pope whips my book out, specifically, somehow avoiding a homework catastrophe on himself and plops it open ready to assess. "Just get some more sleep, Ida."

I smile, walking away as I die in the inside. Felony. Felony. Felony.

The explanation towards my odd behavior is because Rae Bae has been on a hiatus from school for a while now and as her bestest friend ever, I miss her so my body,  immediately, to adapt, attains some of her traits as if she was here to lessen the emptiness. I promise I'm better than this. By the time I reach the cafeteria, I'm swarmed by two-thirds of the twins and before I know it I'm sat down at a secluded table away from the crowd, a tray in front of me, and a pair of arms at either side facing me. Felony. Felony. Felony.

"Where's Raegan?" They both ask. Is this what hanging out with twins feels like? Because it's radical.

I give each of them a turn to be analyzed by me and suspiciously ask, "Do you guys practice that or is it some Telepathic ability?"

"We're perfectly normal," they argue, at the same time.

I point my french fry dipped in tomato sauce at them as if declaring a joust, "Liars!" I burst. I realize it too late that my voice may have accused more than just our table, but the whole cafeteria. "MY BEST FRIEND HAS BEEN ABSENT FOR ALMOST 24HOURS I'M FACING EXTREME WITHDRAWALS SO I'D KINDLY APPRECIATE IT IF YOU DIDN'T JUDGE ME," having done my lectyelluring, I sit down, brush the invisible dust on my lap and look back at the boys. I calmly speak to the boys staring at me with wide eyes, "No, you're not normal."

Ramen clenches his jaw and asks with a terse tone, "Is there something wrong?"

"Yes, where's Raegan?" I ask.

With both raised eyebrows Ryland reaches into his curly halo confused and mutters, "We asked you first."

Grinning as I flip a leg over the other, I place my chin in my hand that's rested against the table, "I asked you second. Anyone else who wants to hop in the line?" They keep quiet and just stare at me. Ramen purposely blinks as if to make me uncomfortable. I'm not saying he doesn't succeed. "So, anything on her AWOL?"

"No. She better come back soon, I don't want to have to report to an officer that the last thing our little sister said to us was 'bye boobs.' " grunts Ramen as he skims the cafeteria, obviously very jittery about something. 

I nod my head and continue eating. "Wait. Did you say 'bye boobs?'" I shamelessly ask with my mouth full. 

Ramen looks at me with hard eyes and nods slowly as he speaks excruciating slowly, "Yes...and you were there, you started it by insulting my being."

"I may have you know noodles, especially Ramen, are happily preferred and appreciated across the globe," I declare, defending the name of noodles. Remembering what I was going to say I explain to the boys about the car and the  hospital. Ramen stomps off somewhere out of the building after I tell him about Raegan making me call my mom. I don't know what his problem was but it was obvious he had been having a bad day. "What's his issue?"

"Middle child problems," Ryland blatantly states. "So, this car..."

"Sorry. I asked Raegan and she explained me to non-rich-people language and said, and I quote 'a waste of money.'" I shrug. The feeling of helplessness suddenly dawns on me as Raegan could be in some kind of trouble.  I would end up having the withdrawals affect my future, resulting in me living as a hobo in a one storey cardboard box house, instead of a two story because bestest friend Rae Bae is gone. I clutch Ryland's shoulders refraining the urge to sneakily get a feel of his curls. I shake them slightly and whisper, "We must find her. My future depends on it. Hers too, we're basically each others halves."

"I know," he says, too calmly. He gently takes my hands away from his shoulders and I see it as a sign, even when he places them back on the table. "Which is why you're coming to a party with us."

Suspicious, I ask, "Who is us?"

"Us as in the middle child, you, and I." 

"Interesting. I will think about it." I return to my fries, silently thanking Ramen's little mood for he seemed to have spoiled me with quite the amount of them.

"It could get Rae Bae back." He tries to coax me.

I chew with my mouth slightly open, "Vewy intbwestn indd." I look up at him, smile, and look back down at an empty spot. Looking back I see he is holding it. 

He taunts me, wiggling it above his head. "Let's try this again. Party, you, me, bro, potential get Rae Bae back."Felony. Felony. Felony.

Exasperated, I agree to the ridiculous plan, "Okay, okay. Yes. Just please, not the fries."

His face beams and for a slight second I forgive his criminal ways, just a slight second. "Great! I'm glad you saw things my way. See you later, sweet cheeks." With a wink, as if practiced he saunters off the stage as if it was made for him with a grand exit. Adding more fries to my mouth I mutter.

"Vewwy intbwestn indd."