To Know You

Chapter Five

~Chapter Five~

I stand in the school's cafeteria line to buy food because I, stupidly, forgot to bring my own lunch to school today. I guess I was in so much of a rush this stupid morning that it slipped my mind, but I suppose that's what I get for waking up late for school. So now here I am, buying an egg salad sandwich and fruit punch juice box with the five dollar bill that I had to ask Reggie for on our way to class this morning. He reluctantly gave it to me after I threatened him a few times, but I told him I'll pay him back, and I will... eventually.

After a five minute stand still, the line finally moves up and it's almost time for me to pay for my stuff. That is, until a tall figure cuts in front of me in the line. 

I scowl at the back of the persons head and grunt. "Hey, buddy, you can't cut here!" I say loudly, tapping him on the shoulder. 

He turns around slowly and I give him a deadpan expression upon realizing who it is. I cross my arms over my chest and sigh, relenting a little bit. "Carter, you can't cut in front of me. I've been waiting in line for, like, fifteen minutes already," I tell him, more calm this time.

He looks down at me and a smirks tugs at the corner of his mouth. "I think it's the least you could do in return for me saving your ass yesterday," he says vaguely and in a low tone, making sure not to announce to the entire line up of students the predicament I had been in last night. But as vague as the statement is, I obviously understand what he's referring to. 

He watches me as I narrow my eyes at him.

I go to speak, to disagree and put up a fight, but decide to just close my mouth and keep it shut instead. I look down at my shoes as the line moves forward again and I don't look back up because I know he's watching me.

He turns around and steps in front of the lunch lady behind the cash register and places his items down on the counter. She types in some numbers into the register, ringing up the cost of his burger, fries and energy drink. "Is that everything?" I hear her ask him, her voice husky and sounding as though she's been smoking since she was twelve, which she probably has.

There's a long pause and just as I'm about to look back up, a muscular, tanned arm wraps around my back and I'm being pulled in the direction of the cash register. I stumble, bumping into Carter in an attempt to keep my balance. 

He holds my shoulders with one hand and takes my sandwich and drink from me with his other, placing them in front of her.

"These ones too," he says, not sparing me a second glance. I go to protest and refuse, but his arm wraps around my head and he covers my mouth with his hand, his bicep and tricep nearly crushing my head like a nutcracker, and my skull being the walnut.

The lady watches us, looking puzzled at the events unfolding before her, but she shakes her head and types in the prices of my items too. "Alright, that'll be ten dollars, please," she says, awaiting his method of payment. He lets go of my head, pulling out his wallet with the hand that was previously covering my mouth. He retrieves a ten dollar bill from the brown leather billfold and hands the crinkled banknote to her. She straightens out the folded up sheet and places it in the register, then pulls off his receipt.

She smiles at him, the crows feet around her eyes crinkling even more with the movement and he takes the receipt from her, stuffing it, and his wallet, back into his back pocket. Quickly, he picks up his stuff and starts walking out the double doors into the main hallway of our school.

He takes long strides, almost twice the length of my own, and I quickly grab my stuff from the counter and run to catch up to him,  then resort to speed walking in order to keep his pace.