Moonlit

three

This chapter has a slow start, but the ending is worth it! -R

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Sophia raised her eyebrows at me as she swung her bag over her shoulder. Her dirty blonde hair fell to her lower back as she stood up from our desk, with eyes that held oceans. She wore white jeans and a denim jacket, quite the contrast to my preppy look.

"Jesus, are you okay? You hardly ever swear," she asked in concern.

I sighed as I too got out of my seat, fiddling with the straps of my bag. "Don't use the Lord's name in vain," I mumbled, unsure of what to say. I may call Sophia my best friend, but I didn't have many friends in the first place to rank. People in general didn't interest me as I had read so much fiction, reality now felt too ... ordinary. I also didn't trust anyone; I had read enough experiences of people jeopardizing their lives by opening up to others.

She gave me a questioning look but decided to let it slide.

~

The rest of the day proceeded at a turtle's pace. No other teacher was quite like Mr Fern: each were either too strict or too not bothered, as though they only became a teacher to receive the pay check at the end of the day.

I was relieved when last period finally decided to show up, but that positive feeling was turned to dust when I read from my timetable that I had physical education, the class I dreaded ever going to. It wasn't even educational; anyone could run from one end of a field to another, occasionally catching a spherical object for the sole purpose of scoring “points” that wouldn't matter in a year's time.

I groaned heavily as I came to find out that I was going to have the same teacher I had last year. I entered the freshly cut field, with my shoulders slouched and my feet dragging along the grass. Coach Donovan pursed his thin lips as he caught my glare but after a few seconds he smiled sweetly. "Nice to have you again, Tahli."

"You too, coach," I lied, forcing myself to smile.

"I trust you'll be joining our classes more often this year?" He examined the matching polo shirt and dark green shorts we were forced to wear during these classes. Last year, I made up many excuses to keep myself out of wearing the repulsive attire as well as engaging in pointless activities, so I could listen to Arctic Monkeys on the benches while everyone heaved their way through the hour. I must admit, it did work for most of last year and the several years before that, until Donovan caught me sprinting after my fly-away beanie once I had told him I owned a sprained ankle. 

"Why wouldn't I be?" I grinned, and with that I skipped innocently to where the rest of the group had began jogging laps to warm up. I may have been lady-like most of the time, but I had my moments.

"Hey, T. Guess who." A familiar voice sounded behind me and a pair of hands squeezed my waist, locking me in place so I couldn't turn. I let out a breath, deciding to let the earlier events of this morning go.

"Who else would call me T, Ryan?" I twisted in his grip as he loosened his hold so I could face him. 'T' was his nickname for me, a nickname I wasn't particularly fond of but let him call me anyway so I didn't upset him.

He chuckled, flashing white teeth. Now that he wasn't smothering himself all over me, I could take notice of his appearance today. His blond-brunette dyed hair was gelled more than usual, yet that suited him. He wore the same uniform as me, yet it was ironed well and showed off his hairless tanned skin. He took pride in his physical appearance more than I did for mine, and that said a lot.

"I'm sorry about this morning," he apologised, pouting. He could be a sweetheart at times, which was why I stayed.

"It's cool," I replied, giving a closed mouth smile. I leaned up on my toes and kissed his forehead to show that I forgave him. He replaced his pout with a returning smile, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Don't guys kiss the girl's forehead, not the other way around?" I frowned. I thought it was cute.

"Sor—"

"Who's ready to get into some baseball this year?" Coach Donovan's voice interrupted me. Ryan dropped his hands from my waist and turned away from me to listen to the teacher, who had a fading yellow baseball bat in his hand. Some of the overly enthusiastic students in the class roared a "yeah" while the rest of us muttered sarcastic remarks. I scoffed at the thought and made my plan to escape for a bit of the lesson.

I began stalking off towards the bathrooms. When I had taken about half a dozen strides, I heard Coach Donovan. "Miss Brooklyn, where do you think you're going?"

"Bathroom!" I didn't turn around nor stop walking, but kept my steady pace. The good thing about this guy was that he wasn't controlling. 

~

I spent around fifteen minutes sitting on a toilet seat in the girl's bathroom with To Kill A Mockingbird in my lap, before a female red-head told me I had to re-join the class. I argued with her but she insisted it was Coach's orders, so I closed my book reluctantly and exited the heavily deodorant-scented bathroom.

"You really hate sport, don't you?" Jess, the red-headed girl asked in her high-pitched voice.

"I really do," my voice trailed off as I spotted a shirtless boy jogging along the maroon running track creating the perimeter of the field. His back was facing towards me, so I had a clear view of his contracting back muscles as well as his biceps that flexed with each movement. I was close enough to see the beads of sweat on his neck, the dust that lifted and fell each time his feet made contact with the ground. I noticed his familiar messed hair that partially gave him the haunting atmosphere that surrounded him and I felt my body become rigid.

Suddenly, he halted as if he felt my eyes on him. I wouldn't be surprised, the unrecognizable feeling of anger and frustration that built up inside me as I remembered his rudeness from this morning would've felt like knives if emotions became objects. He cocked his head to the side slightly, his dark hair moving with the wind. For some reason, I wanted to see his face, to see if that would show why he had stopped. My prayers were answered rather quickly, for he turned around slowly until his soulless eyes pierced through my own. 

My body became paralyzed entirely. My heart skipped at beat. I didn't - couldn't move a muscle in my body. And Jake didn't look like he could either. We were two statues, gazing at each other from a distance. I swallowed nervously, unable to comprehend what was happening. His pink lips parted as though he was going to say something when -

"You alright, there?" I snapped back to reality, automatically turning my stare away from Jake to look at Jess. 

"Uh, yeah." Jess didn't look convinced.

"Come on," she encouraged, sliding her arm through mine so we were linked. She tugged me to where Mr Donovan was conducting a drill. I complied, letting her drag me as I searched for the mysterious boy, but he was no where to be seen.

-

*Cue the suspenseful music* DUNANANAAAAAAA -R