Mia

Chapter 6: Research

I awoke the next day feeling much better, although I had to pee. I hate it when this happens. For me, when I wake up, I do not want to rush out of bed. I want to take my time and adjust to the fact that I had just risen from the dead, so to speak. As I attempted to get up from my bed, a warm weight prevented me from doing so.

I glanced over to find that this weight was actually Cambria snuggled up against me. Her arm is draped across my stomach, and her legs are interlocked with mine. Cambria is so adorable and, apparently, quite the cuddle bug. Look, no one sees this cute side of her; they usually just see the strong and protective side. I surmise she does feel comfortable enough to be herself around me. You know what? I'm the lucky one here.

"Hey Cambria, I have to peeee... I need you to let me go." I said as I shook her shoulder a bit, trying to wake her up.

"I'll never let you go, Jack," she said, quoting none other than the movie 'Titanic.' I started giggling, and she lifted her head and looked at me with a small smile and a yawn.

"Good morning." Cambria and I both said simultaneously. We went silent for a second and then doubled over laughing. I could get used to waking up like this, actually waking up smiling and laughing. It feels amazing. It doesn't often happen, unfortunately.

She untangled herself from me and remained laying in my bed. I stood up and headed to the bathroom. After I relieved myself, I decided to take a quick shower. That way, Cambria could have hot water should she want a shower too. Roughly an hour later, we were both finished with our showers, got dressed, brushed our teeth, and now we were ready for school. I didn't want Cambria to climb the tree outside my window again to get out of the house, so alternatively, I went downstairs to ascertain if the coast was clear. A few minutes later, I could confirm the parentals were long gone. I texted her, letting her know she can come downstairs. I secured the front door, and we walked to school.

~

Cambria and I took our seats next to each other in A.P. English and waited for the teacher to begin his lecture. Shortly after the bell rang, our teacher, Mr. Chapel, shut the classroom door and began addressing us.

"Settle down students! For our first project, you will be pairing up in groups of two. You'll then determine which topic you want. I've listed them on the whiteboard. You will be turning in a research paper along with a strong supporting image that correlates to your chosen topic. You and your partner will have until the end of the class period today to turn in a general outline of how the work will be shared. Please, make sure your names are legible; otherwise, you will not receive a grade, and that's final."

When Mr. Chapel finished explaining the work to us, as if on cue, Cambria and I glanced over at each other, smiled, and nodded. We returned our attention to our teacher, patiently awaiting his next command.

"Now, you may find your partners." He added, then sat at his desk, reading a newspaper. Immediately after saying that, you could hear the commotion begin as the other students attempted to locate their partners.

"Sooooo, whatcha' thinking, Mia?" Cambria asked me.

"Hmmmm.. honestly, I have a perfect idea for the imagery that I could create if we choose the 'Feminism' category," I answered, thoughtfully.

"Well, then, that's what we shall choose," Cambria said and stood up, walked over to the direction of Mr. Chapel's desk and whiteboard. A couple of minutes later, Cambria returned to her seat next to me.

"Feminism is ours!" She said proudly, returning to her seat. I removed a sheet of paper from my binder and wrote our names down to start.

"Awesome, let's divvy up our workload and finish this outline for him, then turn it in, sound good?" I asked her.