Girl Meets the Mind of a Genius

Genius Meets Buzzes

Okay the next four chapters are about one scene but it's SO long I had to split it up (transitions are a bit awkward, sorry). I know four chapters seems like a lot but I think it's worth it.

Farkle (con)

Time kept moving by and I became more used to Riley and Lucas being together. They just hit three months of dating.

But it still hurt. A lot. 

Maya and I haven't talked in a while, but she'll give me these looks of pity when they're together. 

I haven't gone to Riley's window in a while and she hasn't come to mine either. After everything that happened at the piano, I think we learned we shouldn't be around each other so closely. At least until things die down.

Who knows when that'll happen. 

Lucas has learned to deal with my existence. I think he caught on to the fact that a lot of pieces of the puzzle are missing for him, like the fact that Riley wanted to choose me, I told her to choose him, we kissed, we almost kissed again. 

So, everything. 

But he seems to be at peace with it. 

We all still go to Topanga's to study, so I get to see Riley outside of school.

But it's not the same. 

And neither is she.

I don't have to be dating her to understand her. I can see her demeanor has changed completely. That light in her eyes is gone. 

"Farkle?"

I snap out of my thoughts and see Mr. Matthews, who's looking down at me like I have three heads.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, sir."

He gives me a look of disbelief before turning around and walking to the center of the room, "Did you know we wanted to blow up the moon?"

The class collectively gasps. 

"In the 1950s, the US wanted to blow up the moon, simply because we could," he walks through the aisles of students.

A quiet phone notification goes off and I see Riley glance down at her lap.

"We wanted to do it for power. It would make us feel like we were better than others. We wanted to tear other countries down with one blow."

I see the flash of Riley's phone as she hides it by her hip to look again.

Mr. Matthews was across the room. He can't see anything.

"The Space Race was alive and well in this time. We were specifically threatened by the Soviet Union. They were too close to being better than us, so we wanted to take that strength away from them."

Riley grips her chair, so hard that her knuckles turn white. 

I lean forward, "Riley, are you okay?"

She keeps staring down at her phone.

"This fierce push for superiority doesn't just go away. We still do it now."

No one else is paying attention to her except me. Everyone else is focused on Mr. Matthews, who's across the classroom.

I put my hand on her shoulder to get her attention, "Riley, look at me."

Riley finally turns around and I can see it in her eyes. She's about to cry. 

Her phone makes a noise again and this time Maya notices. 

Maya looks back and forth between Riley and me, trying to get one of us to explain. 

'I got it' I mouth to her and she nods hesitantly. 

"Everything okay over there?" Mr. Matthews addresses us from across the room. 

Riley hides her phone behind her back and tries to perk up, "All good."

"Okay." He says slowly.

He's getting too good at reading us.

The bell rings and Riley rushes out before I can stop her. 

Maya stands next to me, "Are you sure you got it?"

"Yeah," I nod, "I think I know what's happening and I think I know what's best to do."

"I trust you."

Lucas walks up to us, "Do you know where Riley went?"

"She said she'd see us tomorrow," Maya lies. 

And thank god she did because I don't want him in this conversation. 

"All right, see you tomorrow." He leaves.

"Text me," Maya states, walking away to her locker. 

I pick up my stuff and start walking home. 

How could I not see the signs this whole time?

It all starts when you see them lose that spark. She stopped being herself. How did I miss that?

I wanted to give her time, so I didn't start my walk over until later in the night.

I climb up the fire escape and I can see her silhouette in the window. 

"Knock knock." I hop in and sit next to her.

"What do you want?" Riley mumbles. 

"Hi to you too." I say sarcastically, hoping it'll make her smile.

It doesn't.

"It's been a while since you've been here," she says sadly, "I thought you might never come back."

Her phone buzzes and I see her bite her lip so she doesn't cry.

I shift uncomfortably, "I'm sorry. I was just trying to step away for you and Lucas. I didn't want to be in the way of anything."

"Farkle, you're my friend," her phone buzzes again, "I never want to lose you and I thought you didn't want to lose me."

"You aren't losing me. I'll always be your friend. I'm sorry I made you think otherwise."

Riley's phone buzzes again. 

"It's fine, Farkle. Everything has been fine anyway." She states.

I give her a look of disbelief, "No, something's wrong." 

Her phone buzzes again, "Nothing's wrong. If something were wrong it would be being taken care of."

"Riley, didn't you learn from last time?"

She turns to me looking terrified, "What?"

"I can read you like a book. I know what it looks like when someone else is being bullied because I've been bullied. I knew it last time and I figured it out this time too."