Teenage Dirtbag

Ch. 6

I woke early for the second time this week, anxious to get to school and see Marcel. I had talked to him briefly last night before going to bed, and he assured me several times he was alright before we hung up and said goodnight. Still, I would feel better once I saw that for myself.

            I dressed in a simple black t-shirt and jeans and put my hair up in my everyday bun before quickly fixing my makeup. "Morning Scar," my mother said from the table.

            "Hi," I muttered as I rummaged around in the fridge for something to eat before we left.

            "Are you alright," she asked, and I could feel her watching me.

            "Fine," I replied, deciding on a banana and peeling it quickly.

            She sighed, and I turned to face her, "Scarlett I wish you would talk to me," she began.

            "We are talking," I interrupted.

            "You know what I mean; you've barely said anything to me since we've moved here. You have to talk to someone."

            "I don't need to talk to anyone about anything," I retorted.

            "Then talk to me about school, about Marcel, anything."

            I stared at her a moment while I finished my banana. "I'm gonna be late," I said, throwing the peel away and walking towards the front door. Contrary to her popular belief I was fine. The only thing I needed to do today was see Marcel and make sure he was alright.

            Several minutes later she joined me in the car. The ride was a silent one, and that was fine. I put my ear buds in and pressed play on my iPod, Teenage Dirtbag starting back up where I had stopped it last.

            The ride was quick and as the car stopped I mumbled a thank you before getting out. Marcel was just where he should be, standing at the top of the stairs waiting for me. Taking two at a time I ran up the stairs, he was in the middle of telling me good morning when I threw my arms around him, taking him by surprise. After a moment he hugged me back, "Scarlett...is everything okay?"

            "Yes," I said finally stepping back and looking at him. The ball had given him a black eye, and there was a cut just under his eyebrow where his glasses had broken. And there were no glasses on his face. "Can you see," I asked, moving closer to his face.

           

            "I have a contact in, I don't like them but since my glasses were broken..."

            "I have them," I shuffled through my bag and pulled them out.

            He laughed slightly at the sight of them. Most of the glass was missing on one side and the leg was barely hanging on. "I don't think I have much use for them now," he said, "you can throw them away."

            "Right," I said sheepishly, but I tucked them back into my bag. "So you're sure you're alright, it looks like it hurts."

            "Yeah I'm alright," he said with a smile, "it does hurt, but I thought it made me look a bit tough."

            I laughed as he held the door open and we walked inside, "yes very tough. Terrifying."

            "Good, keep anyone from messing with me today."

            "Can I beat them up if they try," I asked with a sweet smile.

            "Well it wouldn't look very manly if I left you fight my battles," he said with a laugh.

            "Right, I guess I'll stick to glaring at everyone."

            The day went by uneventfully. Everyone stared at Marcel in the halls and class, but he didn't let it bother him. I caught myself looking at him from time to time but for an entirely different reason. I knew we both had green eyes, but I thought mine were pretty boring. His on the other hand were beautiful. Well the one was...I couldn't really see the other one.

            At the end of the day we slowly made our way towards the front of the school. English had gone past the last bell, so there weren’t many people in the halls. He was about to open the door, but I put my hand on his arm and stopped him. "Everything okay," he asked.

            I nodded, trying to catch up to the thoughts running though my head.

            "Your mom is outside waiting..."

            "She can wait a few more minutes," I said, closing the gap between us I leaned up on my tip-toes and softly pressed my lips against his. I could tell he was surprised at first by how his entire body tensed up, but I didn't care. Once he gathered his wits he returned the kiss and when I pulled away I smiled slightly.

            "Well uh..," he muttered before opening the door and I followed him out and we walked down the steps together.

            "I'll see you in the morning," I said, walking to my mother's car.

            "In the morning," he repeated with a wide grin, before turning and heading towards his house.