Private Ale

6 - Christie Road

*One week later*

I haven't heard from or seen Billie in a week. Other then our little run in at the lake, the only time I'd see him anyway would be in school, and he never shows up. I'm trying to repress the memory of what happened at the lake... or at least what almost happened. I feel so insanely guilty for just leaving him hanging like that.

To be honest, I could care less about having cake with my family... my leaving wasn't about that at all. I just felt so many emotions at once and it confused the shit out of me. Maybe I was just scared to know what would happen next if our lips did touch. It was happening so fast. Too fast.

I toy around with my pencil and look out the window. The vibrant leaves are starting to fall now and the trees are becoming more bare with each passing day. The trees looked so vulnerable and so beautiful. Plus, anything was more interesting to look at than the equations my physics teacher was sloppily etching on the blackboard.

I turn to the lime green-haired boy beside me, Tré. Remembering the first night we met at Gilman, I laugh to myself, realizing I've never spoke to him when he wasn't shitfaced drunk.

"Hey Tré. Do you understand this?" I whisper, tilting my head to gesture to the blackboard.

"Does it look like I understand this??" He says with a chuckle as he reveals a page of his notebook, splashed with doodles of weed leaves, skulls, and cartoon girls wearing bikinis.

I stifle a laugh, afraid the teacher will hear.

"Figures." I reply with a sigh. "You're... friends with Billie, right?" My hands begin to lightly tremble at the mention of his name, and I stuff them in my pockets quickly.

"Oh yeah, we're best buds." He smirks twistedly. "Why, you wanna steal him from me? Cause he's mine, girly, back off." He flips his imaginary long locks of hair sassily in my face.

I laugh awkwardly, "No... um... I just haven't seen him in a week and was wondering if he's okay."

"Oh yeah, you're the new girl at Pinole Valley High, that's right." He playfully winks. "Billie is notorious for showing up to school like five times a year and somehow never getting in trouble. But if you really wanna know, yeah, he's fine. Me, him, and Mikey live together. He just looks like he has a lot on my mind lately, I guess. The kid's hard to read."

I nod, digesting his words. A lot on his mind... that could mean anything.

"Did he... well, mention what was bothering him exactly?"

"Stell, if I can't read the kid, nobody can. He's not exactly an open book. And honestly, his moods change with a gust of the wind. Something that was bothering him yesterday could be completely different than today." He stops and looks at me for a second. "How are you doin'? You look like you have a lot on your mind, too."

"I'm fine. I'm just... upset because I don't understand anything in this class." I lie.

"You wanna hangout after school and get faded with me and Mikey? You look like you need a joint in your life." He bats his eyelashes like the princess that he must think he is, baiting me to say yes.

"I mean, I've never done it before." I admit.

"Even better, we'll steal your weed virginity!! I'd love to have the honors. Please let me, please, please, please, plea-"

"Alright fine!! You win." I say, punching him.

"That's what I thought." He snaps sassily. "After class, just follow me out the doors and I'll show you the trail we take when we cut and go home."