touch-me-not & forget-me-not

Chapter 12: don't rush

Lauren's POV

  My smile flatered. Oh. I looked away from her intense gaze. "No?" She sighed. Not yet. "Oh, okay. But I still mean what I said," she said quietly. But if I said it, would I mean it?

  Maybe I'm just overly thankful that she was not terrible to me. Maybe it's just lust from... You know. What if it doesn't work out in the end?

  She let go of me and forced a smile. I just ruined the mood, didn't I? She tapped my nose and I smiled half-heartedly. "It's okay, Adams," she said. "I never expected you to say it back this early anyways," she laughed.

  I bit my lip. "Hey. I'll wait for you. Whenever you're ready," she smiled. Well, thanks for making this easier. I smiled awkwardly and nodded.

  A handful of flour exploded around me and I swatted it out of my face. "Sorry, Lauser," someone snickered. Hm... Apology not accepted. Flour does not taste good on its own.

  Dani patted my arm comfortingly. "You're already a mess anyways," she said. "On the outside I mean," she quickly added. "And on the inside but let's pretend I said something encouraging," she muttered.

  "Hey Dani! Have some hydrogen, carbon and oxygen!" Someone yelled. She covered her face as they threw sugar at her. "How sweet!" She laughed. Very funny.

  "What's all this mess?" Someone yelled. Uh oh. Wait, why am I worried? "Mr principal sir!" The teacher stammered. "I can explain," she started. He help up a hand to stop her. "There's no need for an explanation. You're fired," he yelled. She hung her head and nodded. "Well, why are you still here? Leave," he ordered. She bowed her head and ran out of the class.

  "As for the rest of you," he said. The entire class was silent, staring at each other and shuffling their feet nervously. "Who started all of this?" He asked.

  Someone raised their hands. "Yes?" He questioned. "She did sir," he said. 30 eyes landed on me. "I see," the principal nodded. "You're that girl in the play weren't you? What's your name?" He asked.

  "Her name is Lauren Christine Adams," Dani replied. "Well, I'm sure Miss Adams could tell me herself," he said. I bit my lip and glaced at Dani from the corner of my eye. "I'm sure you can respect her decisions sir," she said. "I can do that, Miss Cimorelli. Well class, did Miss Adams start this?" He asked.

  They all started to nod and murmur in agreement. Oh well. "Well, Miss Adams, as punishment you shall clean the entire classroom," he said. "But sir–" Dani started. I squeezed her hand under the table. She looked at me and sighed. "Nothing sir," she said. "Miss Adams, drop by the office at 3 p.m. to pick up some cleaning things. Take as long as you need but the floor must be shiny enough to be able to see my reflection," he said. "And shower once class is dismissed," he said. He walked out of the classroom.

  Dani nudged my elbow. "You didn't have to take the punishment. You did nothing," she said sadly. I looked at the rest of the class staring at us not so subtly. I grabbed my phone and dusted away a layer of flour from the screen.

Me: I know but I continued it

Dani: but if that's your reasoning, the entire class should get punished too

Me:
it's no biggie
I can clean

Dani: I still don't like it

Me: chill. I'll take one for the class

Dani: the class doesn't even like you

Me: Selena Gomez said to Kill 'Em With Kindness