Breathe

Chapter Three - Bad Influence

Opal went into her first class of the day with a sigh. She hated Mondays. She wanted nothing more but to crawl into her bed and go back to sleep until noon. But instead, it was 8:45 and she was sitting in class. The only thing that made this better was that she had this class with her boyfriend, Jalin.

James always called Jalin a "bad influence" on Opal. Jalin was an outcast at school, but if anyone wanted any marijuana, Jalin was the one they went to. Opal knew this, but she didn't care. She looked at Jalin's heart and loved what was there. She loved how he made her feel special. She even loved the small glimmer he seemed to always have in his eyes. Even now, sitting in class next to him, she kept catching herself looking into his deep brown eyes to watch them glimmer.

Jalin caught her one time and chuckled. "Why do you keep staring at me?" He asked her.

"What? Is it a crime to look at your eyes?" Opal asked softly.

"You should be doing your work." Jalin said as he continued doing his work.

"Okay, and? You act like I don't have a B in this class." Opal said as she picked up her pencil.

Jalin smiled and rolled his eyes. "But I see you took my advice."

The two went on talking with each other as they worked until they finished. Opal went and turned both of their papers in. She then sat back down and continued looking into Jalin's eyes. "Now you don't have an excuse to throw at me." She said with a smile.

"Yeah, whatever." Jalin said as he turned to face her. "You doing anything tomorrow night? I was thinking about spending some time with you."

Opal's smile quickly turned to a frown as she sighed heavily. "Unfortunately, I am. I promised James I would go to this youth thing at my church."

"You really still go there?" Jalin laughed, shaking his head. "I thought you'd be done with that stuff by now."

"James says I have to wait until I'm eighteen to not be able to go. Until then, I go against my will." Opal said with a shrug. "I mean, it's only two more years. Then I'm done and I can spend my Sundays however I please." She said with a smile.

"Can't wait. Maybe then you can move in with me." Jalin said with a smirk.

"We shall see." Opal said with a wide smile.

The bell rang and Opal frowned. This was the only class she and Jalin had together. They didn't even share the same lunch. She had to wait until the end of the day to see him again.

"Don't look so down, babe. I'll see you at the end of the day and take you home." Jalin said as he walked with her out of the classroom and to her next class.

Opal nodded and smiled at him as she grabbed his hand, intertwining their fingers together. As they walked, they talked about what they should do on their next date. Once they had gotten to Opal's next class, she sighed heavily.

"Hey, come on. I'm gonna see you at the end of the day, okay?" Jalin said as he looked at Opal.

Opal looked into his eyes and smiled. If she ever needed to brighten up her day, she knew the twinkle in Jalin's eye would do the trick. "Okay, baby. I love you." She said as she hugged him.

Jalin hugged her back. "I love you too." He said before kissing her forehead. "Have a good day." He said to her.

"You too." Opal said as she walked into her second class of the day.

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As Jalin pulled up to Opal's house to drop her off, he grabbed her hand. "You sure Pastor Cousin won't mind me giving you a ride?" Jalin said with a smile.