From Day One

iii. the ride home

I shake my arms in attempt to flick some of the soaking paint off of my body. With little improvement I try my best to grab on to the ladder beside me and I prop my arms up to a prong. I balance my body to my knees and start to get up, and to my luck a pair of arms grab onto my waist pulling me back down to the slick floor.

"What was that for?" I ask in annoyance to the boy behind me.

"What was this for?" He asks me, gesturing to the mess of paint that entrapped the two of us.

I shrug my shoulders, "Gee, it was an accident. It's not like I meant to do this!"

He wipes the silver off of its eyes with the back of his shirt sleeve and then I knew who it was: Asher Grimes.

Of course he was the one I had to spill paint all over. It had to be him. I mean it wasn't like he was the worst guy in the world, it's just that he has a reputation to punch things that is in his way. He's the aggressive type.

"Edi, you okay?" Nora runs over to my side after noticing what had happened.

I nod, "I'm fine, it's just that doofus here decided to pull me back to the ground after I was almost up."

"Doofus? Me?" Asher pointed to himself as if he were innocent, "I was blinded with the paint that you spilled all over me. If anyone is the doofus, it's you."

I shake my head, "Can you just help me up?"

Nora nods and instantly grabs my hands and in a swift movement forces me to my feet. I slowly move myself out of the circle of paint and watch as Nora helps Asher up as well, after many attempts, may I add.

Once Asher was officially up he took his  now metallic jacket off, sling it across his arm and walked out of the gymnasium most likely to a bathroom to clean up.

I go to the nearest janitors closet and grab a mop and bucket full of water and the lemon scented soap to clean the mess. Returning to the gym, I notice the entire room has been cleared of people, I shrug it off and continue to the area of the room. Once there I dip the mop end into the solution of soap and water, I squeeze out the excess water and start to sway the mop from side to side. After several minutes of repeating the actions I realize I have cleaned up the entire mess and to top it off I grabbed some paper towels to dry the floor so no one will slip.

I went back to the janitors closet and put the supplies where they were as if they were never touched. Down the hall is a dark figure that waves their arm for me to walk over that way, so I close the door and in a steady, but hurried walk, I make it to the figure to find it is principal Phillips.

I open my mouth to say "good evening," but he cuts me off before I can get a single syllable out.

"What are you doing here, Ms. Evans?"

I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear, "I'm helping with the set-up for the homecoming."

He nods, "Well, you are trespassing now."

I raise my eyebrows in confusion, "What? But it's only four-thirty."

"No, it's almost eight at night, the school closed three hours ago. You are now trespassing," He says.

Walking out of the boys bathroom comes Asher who, in complete confusion, looks at the principal and then to me and back to him, "What's happening?"

Principal Phillips looks down at his watch again and says, "the two of you are trespassing, I need you both to leave immediately and I'm writing you up for detention tomorrow after school."

I turn to face Asher who is rolling his eyes right after principal Phillips turns around to escort us off of the school's property. My eyes open wide as I remember that I left my backpack in the gym, "I have to go back in, I left my bag in there!"

Our principal shakes his head, "there's no time, your going to have to come back tomorrow morning. I just locked up the school."

"But I have homework due tomorrow, I'll get in trouble and then my parents will get angry and then I'll be—"

Asher sighs in annoyance and grabs my left arm and starts dragging me away from the school. I stomp my heels into the ground to stop him, "What're you doing?"

"I'm giving you a ride home," he simply says, "I'm just trying to be the better person here."

"What are you talking about 'better person' you make it seem like I assaulted you or something. All I did was spill a bucket of silver paint. That's it!" I respond to him with anger.

He rolls his eyes again and opens up the passenger door of his car, "get in," I sigh and then step up into his blue jeep. He then closes the door and I buckle myself in because, you know, safety first. He goes around the front before getting in himself, he fastens his seatbelt and puts the car in drive and slowly we start moving forward.

"Where's your house?" He asks as we sit at the red light just down the street from the school.

"It's on Martin Street," I say.

He looks over at me, "you live two blocks away from the school? I could've just let you walk home then."

"You could have," I smile in his direction, "but you insisted on being so sweet."

He grins and stops at the sidewalk the leads up to my house. I look into a window and notice two shadows flailing their arms around, "Well, I better get inside. Thanks for the ride, though."

He tilts his head to the side, "you're welcome. And please, never, and I mean never, come near me again."

I give him two thumbs up and turn my back. I walk inside with a goofy smile plastered to my face.

Not edited | 1047

Thank you asas01 for the amazing trailer. It really suits my story well. ❤️