December

Four.

December had to drag herself out of bed on Monday morning.

The first thing that she noticed was that the house was void of thoughts. Her parents were already gone to work, and she was grateful for that. She didn't want to hear part four of World War Three. As she pulled the covers off of her, she wished that it was Sunday again instead of Monday.

Her parents had been arguing on and off all weekend, and it was just about to drive her insane. She had avoided being in the house as much as she could, spending most of the weekend with Jenna at her house.

She had gotten little sleep.

Wrapping a short silk robe around her, she tied it around her waist and made her way downstairs. She had been debating about getting out of bed for about an hour, when finally at ten after six she knew staying in bed was useless.

December didn't know why her parents were gone so early, but she was still thankful for it. Even though they worked in the same business, she knew they would be able to avoid each other if they needed to.

As long as they were out of the house, their arguments and thoughts away from her.

After December swallowed one hot mug of coffee and ate a quick breakfast, she went back upstairs so that she could take a shower and get ready for school. She was glad when the seaming hot water hit her skin, relaxing her if just a fraction.

When she got out, she dressed in some black leggings, flats, a tank top and a white sweater that hung off one shoulder. She let her curly hair hang down past her shoulders, and put on a little make up. She put her finished homework into her backpack and filled her travel mug of coffee.

"Good morning," Jenna greeted her when she walked into school a little bit later.

December started putting her combination into her locker, wondering how her friend was being so chipper.

"No emphasis on the good," She said, sliding her backpack onto the hook in her locker.

The thoughts of her classmates were mostly complaints about the upcoming school week. December couldn't help but agree with them. She didn't want to be here, either. And she wasn't the only one who came to school in a horrible mood.

When Cori walked into Washington High School that morning, December heard her thoughts before she saw her. She had just as horrible a weekend as December did, and for the same reason. Her parents were fighting.

And she was on a rampage because of it.

Before December and Jenna could slip away Cori rounded the corner and spotted them. Her perfectly mascara'd eyes narrowed at the pair of us before a wicked grin crept up on her face.

"Look what the cat dragged in," She said slowly, a rare menace in her voice.

I looked over at Jenna, who had her mouth open as she was ready to retort. Not knowing exactly what Cori was going through, Jenna was much more willing to sink down to Cori's level and be mean right back.

"Don't," December pleaded quietly. "It's not worth it."

Cori turned to her, glaring at the girl.

"What did you just say?" Cori asked.

"Nothing."

She turned around and grabbed her stuff for her first class, walking away before Cori could say anything else. She didn't like letting Cori walk all over her, but it just wasn't worth it.

No one would win.

It would make December feel like crap, and Cori's feeling of victory would only last so long.

When she slipped into her seat in first hour, Kaiden came in and sat next to her. They offered each other small, knowing smiles before class started. Her heart hammered a little in her chest when their eyes met.

Kaiden and December didn't have time to talk in first hour.

Cori was making comments under her breath here and there but she was trying her best to ignore them, even though they were a little more viscous today than they normally were. December wasn't going to let it get to her.

When it came time for second hour gym class, she was glad that Cori was not in that class. Even though December's athletic skills weren't that bad, she knew Cori would rip her apart in gym if she had the chance.

Kaiden, however, was in my second hour gym.

When December emerged from the locker room, dressed in black shorts and a white t-shirt their gym teacher, Mr. Lucky was already rattling about the game of softball that they were going to play today. Mr. Lucky was a tall, husky man and despite living in New York for the last twenty five years, he still had the thickest Texas accent December had ever heard. He had been born in the Lone Star state.

Two captains were picked - two of the most popular kids - and all of the guys were picked first, and then the girls. Luckily, December and Jenna ended up on the same team. Kaiden, however, was on the opposite team. She almost found herself a little frustrated about their lack of conversation today, but then December realized that it was okay that they hadn't had a chance to talk.

Their shared secret of having everybody's thoughts shoved down their throats made silence okay.

Comfortable, even.

The jeers of the popular kids didn't help when she was in a sports type environment. December was coordinated enough to get by, but wasn't awesome. And anything less than good gave them something to make fun of.

It happened when December hit the ball at her second at bat. She found herself running towards first base, but she was going too fast and didn't stop soon enough before she collided with the first baseman.

Who just happened to be Kaiden.

The skin to skin contact startled both December and Kaiden. She gasped out loud, yanking her arm away from his. When they had ran into each other - when their skin touched ever so briefly - the thoughts of her classmates had been muted.

They stared at each other in shock.

Forgetting about the twenty some people in the room, December reached up with a trembling hand. She touched Kaiden's arm, and it happened again.

The thoughts paused.

"Freak," Near by Jesse Henderson hissed. She was Cori's right hand woman. She ignored Jesse, hardly able to believe it. December hadn't noticed it in the park the other night. It had been the first and only time they'd had skin to skin contact. But there had been nobody in the park anymore.

The bell rung.

No one said anything, even though their thoughts told that they were clearly confused. She turned on her heels and bolted towards the locker room, changing more quickly than she had in a long time. She was glad that her next class was study hall in the library. She randomly grabbed her books and darted through the crowds.

She needed to process this.

After she scrawled her name onto the study hall sign in sheet, she found the most secluded corner of the library and sat down. She hadn't meant to run out on Kaiden, but she was seriously shocked and not sure how to deal with it.

December was just about to pull out her assignment when she heard a soft crying coming from somewhere close to her. She stood up, pushing her chair back as she listened a little bit closer. She crept along, wondering where the source was coming from.

December had just went around a bookshelf when she spotted the blonde in the chair, crying her eyes out.

It was Cori.