FACELESS

Chapter 22

B E F O R E

Next Friday came slowly. For the 7 days, it felt like the longest week of my life. I sit at my seat everyday during class, listen to my chemistry teacher go through the chapter about polymerisation, and then sneak glances at Zac writing down his notes and copying down corrections from the projector screen. Sometimes, when I stare for too long, my eyes drift to the back of the class, where Mia now sits, and her face, whether or not her gaze is on me, burns inside my ribcage. I don't know if it's shame or hate or pain but its an unpleasant feeling. She avoids my glance when our eyes meet, and I do the same.

Zac sometimes fall asleep during geography lessons. I let him sleep, and I smile sheepishly everytime when my geography teacher wakes up, and glares at me for not knocking the sleep out of Zac.

I know it's just silly teenager infatuation, but I enjoy seeing him sleep, how his eyelashes is fanned against his cheeks, and the slight pout of his lips. Some days, he sleeps with a scrunch in his eyebrows, and I can tell he is stressed. Though, for what, I'm not too sure. But I help him with geography, and perhaps much better than from what the teacher teaches. Behind his back, i go for consultation with the geography teacher, and work hard to keep up my A grade for geography. Then, I take my knowledge, and I teach him slowly.

We go home together, most of the time, and we eat recess together, most of the time. Most days, 3 to 4 days a week, we are hanging out together. Although, he does tell me once or twice a week that he is going home or going out or eating recess with his guy friends. And then I go home alone, or I stay in class during break and drink water and sneak candy into my mouth to cub the hunger.

I don't go to break anymore, without Zac, without anyone by my side. It makes me feel sick, to my stomach, because I'm eating alone andveryone is judging me and I get into a wave of panic that grabs me by the neck and it makes my mind muddy and my lungs burn at the thought of eating alone at the canteen.

Of course, I could eat with Zac and all his other friends, but they don't look too friendly. Or I just limit myself to Zac and pretend that I can trust somebody, anybody. Trusting too many at once, scares me.

But of course, Friday came.

When the last school bell rung, our teacher ended the class right on time, and released us from the lesson. I stuffed my worksheets back into my bag, and then threw in my pencil case, zipping my bag up. From underneath my lap, I took my jacket and tied it around my waist, and then sat on the table partially, waiting.

"So, what games do you want to play?" Zac asked, zipping up his pencil case, and then took off his jacket and stuffed it into his schoolbag.

"No idea," I replied, cranking my head to the left, sighing at the ache at the bottom of my neck. "I mean, I never really played any sort of game, I guess."

"Call of Duty? Days Gone?"

I raised an eyebrow, "Horror games."

"Um, I guess, sort of, adrenaline games."

"Anything, I guess. What about the VR?"

He laughed, "I already have the perfectgame for you to try out in VR."

I scrunched my eyebrows, confused.

"Come on, let's go." Zac said, slinging his bag over his shoulders. My eyes wandered to the ends of his jacket peeking out from underneath his bag cover, and I reached my hands out, tucking it insecurely.

"Thanks." Zac said, and then slung his left arm over my shoulders. "Come on! All hail the games!"

I laughed, throwing my head back. Tugging the strap of my bag, I leaned forward, and we made our way to the train. On the way, Zac started to talk about the tricks he had for the new math chapter. He started mumbling about integration, and it related to a theory that he would be learning after he graduates to junior college. I only stared at him with a look of incredulous. Math was my worst subject. Other than that, I do average for my sciences and excelled in languages and humanities. Zac was only weaker in geography, but only by a few marks at most. Sometimes, when we get our marked essays back, he would take mine and I would take his, and we would both read each other's paragraphs, and then reveal the marks. Most of the time I scored etter in essays than him, and we would argue who made the better point or who had a better thesis. When we stood on opposite grounds and the whispered arguments became a nuisance to our classmates near us– we end the fight with a scissors paper stone game..