Zodiac

One

the smell in the air was littered with cheap perfume, axe, and the air freshoner that was nailed about the class door. we had grown used to it, so it wasnt that noticeable that much anymore. mr. owens paced slowly at the front of the class as he talked to us about the greatness of the universe. not a lot of people were paying attention, just the few front rows.

i was sat in the second to last row, the seat all the way to the right. i sat here everyday since the first day of school. my legs were crossed in my chair and i was too busy drawing in my notebook with my favorite glitter pens to listen.

every now and then id stop and look up to make sure he wasnt talking about school work. luckily it was the last day of school, so we were all a little anxious to go. but wed all have mr. owens again next year, so of course he had something up his sleeve.

"now, lets talk about a summer project. you will be in partners, and you will get this done. Ill call your pairs and then well explain."

i had my elbow on my knee and my chin in my hand watching as he called names. my eyes looked over to the kids names that were called, slowly.

"i hope we get paired together." my friend, percy said to me with a cheesy smile. id known him since we were young.

i rolled my eyes, dropping my legs to the floor as i met eyes with him. "well be with each other all summer anyways and he knows this, so i dont see why we wouldnt be paired."

"ronan, youll be paired with kai."

"whos kai?" i mouthed to percy. he scrunched up his nose and shrugged. my eyes lazily darted to each student, but none seemed to be looking for me. then it hit me.

theres someone sitting behind me.

i didnt sit up, didnt move my feet, only turned and looked at the boy.

shit.

kai was that guy who almost everyone seemed to look up to. he had bleached blonde hair that every girl admired. he was a very smart and overall an out-there boy, which is why everyone liked him. he stuck with the popular kids, and kept away from us in the shadows.

"youre ronan?" he asked with a slight smile.

"its just ro, actually." i corrected.

"okay, just ro." he leaned back in his chair. i turned back around, facing the front.

i didnt want to be stuck with him for the rest of summer. he gave me a weird vibe.

i turned to look at percy, who only shrugged and gave me a sympathetic smile. perc was one of my only friends in school. i had others, but i talked to him the most. he was one of those friends you could trust with your life, ya know? in a way i did, he didnt know literally every thing about me but that was because i didnt let anyone know certain things. i was an open book with ripped out pages. all i needed was for someone to tape them back in.

"mr. owens?" a girl raised her hand. "what about those of us going off to camp? what if our partners wont be there?"

"youll figure out a way," he assured with a tight, forced smile. "you guys always do. now about the project... im assuming you all know about zodiac signs, you each have them. i want you all to study each others, and how your two sun signs go together and such. are your signs traits true to your partners personality? let me know. tell me everything. how you present this, is up to you. but i want it on my desk, in august on our first day."

 with that he went on talking about things completely off topic. i switched positions so i was sitting with my legs against my chest, and rested my chin on my knees.

a piece of paper rolled off my shoulder and landed on my desk, all wadded up. i opened it.

why do you look so fragile?

i frowned.

why do you seem so stupid?

i wadded it up and threw it behind me. moments later it was back on my desk

touche, bear. You should text me, ××ׄ××ׄ××××

i frowned at the number, like i didnt know what it was.

"ro!" percy snapped his fingers in front of my face. "class is over. come on lets catch the bus before anyone else."

i stood and grabbed my things, shoving them in my bag and walking with him. we walked together in silence as we headed out the door and to the bus which took us all home.

"thank god schools over, " a guy in front of us said to his friend. "we wont have to look at preppy boy here."

"haha yeah. who wears white jeans?"

"and pink jumpers? what is he a girl?"

"no, hes just cuter than you fucks." percy hissed as we stood to leave.

"you didnt have to do that," i mumbled, looking down. honestly i was used to those two giving me rude remarks. i had dealt with it since i was small.

"i like defending you," he smiled. "ill see you tomorrow yeah?"

"yeah," i nodded with a smile. "bye!" he ran under the stairs, and i ran up them. we lived in the same apartment building, he lived on the first floor and i lived on the second.

i walked in the door and quietly closed it behind me, taking my white converse off at the door.

"camille?" i called out shyly. "im home.."

there was noise from her room, the headboard hitting the wall. i scrunched up my nose and set my bag down, then ran to my room.

i could still hear them, so i turned on music. Twenty One Pilots played through the silent room, i happily danced around and sang. these were how my days went, i went to school, came home to my adoptive family, well, my mom 2.0, then hid in my room until repeated. dont get me wrong, i love camille to death! but.. she has guests over way too often.

a ball of paper fell from my pocket, and that number jumped out at me.

text it, ro. see if its fake.

i mean.. i am going to be stuck with him until summer ended..

it wont hurt.. right?