Icon of the Indecisive #3 of 3 (COMPLETE)

Chapter 2

I can't believe he likes her. She's so fake!

Quin held out his arm and I touched it, sort of gave it a curved swish with my finger, and my response to that message for the Goddess of Love was sent right through the cosmos. Or at least up the classroom four rows behind me.

Yeah, this was the second class of mine today that Quin sat in on, taking the seat beside me, making sure he was within reach as the Goddess received pleas and responded to her people. The thoughts were coming every few minutes, and I pretty much gave up on learning anything that day. I could barely keep up with listening to the teacher, taking notes, listening to a love plea, thinking of a response to it, and then sending it out through Quin.

And touching his skin a lot.

That was fun. I tried a bunch of ways to do it, to avoid boredom. I tapped. Drummed my fingertips. Swished with my index finger. Bumped with my knuckles. Flicked with my pinkie. Drew a check on his forearm. Hey, I'd had this unrequited thing for him for over a year, could not be blamed for enjoying myself.

Since he was a senior (and a god) and these classes were of no use to him, he doodled. On a single slip of paper he bummed off the guy in front of him, using a pencil, the only school item he had with him.

He drew trees. And birds. And what looked like delicate female hands. The way he drew them reminded me of shadows.

It's my birthday and I don't think he's going to greet me. I hope he greets me.

He heard that too and bumped his bare elbow to mine, and my response Happy birthday, you look beautiful bumped right out and landed where it should, somewhere in the hallway, where a fussy college girl was thinking too much and too loudly.

This was what Ford River's students thought about. I thought I would be surprised, but I guess I shouldn't be. Teenagers everywhere were probably having the exact same thoughts. To another person it would sound shallow and selfish, so many didn't say what they really felt. They exaggerated it for some people, downplayed it for others, but admitted the truth only to the Goddess.

Yeah, it all sounded selfish, and shallow, and petty, and unreasonable... but when these thoughts bounced around unresolved for too long they became more trouble for everyone. Rejected. Again. Why do I bother?

That was really near. It was coming from Raph, just two seats away from Quin on our row, and we both looked in his direction. I worked with him in a group assignment once. He seemed like the slacker type, couldn't even be bothered to check his email. He obviously had other worries.

I came up with this: You're going to find someone who enjoys everything about you. Be patient. And then I sort of raised my pinkie finger to be cute but Quin was reaching toward me already, and... Fingers. Tangled.

And then he half-smiled.

What. Is. Going. On.