Awakening

9: Notes

"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't think they'd be right outside the door!"

"It's....fine. Really."

Why did Cameron and Amelia have to see a certain someone hop out of the boy's restroom? The questions started afterwards, which meant June had to explain. Everything. Not like she could lie her way out of it.

The subsequent embarrassment was unfortunate for the both of them. But Blake was more worried about the weapon he left in the girl's bathroom. At least Amelia didn't have a full bladder, or Cameron for that matter. But what about the next person that stepped foot in there? He could only imagine the yelps or screams that would ensue.....

"Still, I feel bad." June's voice washed over him like honey, sweet and genuine. "They were laughing pretty hard."

"I can take it, I promise. You know me; I don't take a lot of things personally."

"I know...."

She wanted to say more. But nothing came to her mind, evidently. The two of them kept walking, not a block from his house. She stuck close to his side as they strolled, and even followed Blake as he turned for his own home. He paused before even reaching the front door.

"Um, you don't need to follow me?" he said.

"I told you earlier, remember? During lunch. I forgot my house key. So I gotta wait until Mom gets home. She won't be back until around seven, as usual."

"Oh. Oh yeah. Right." His shoulders tensed up for a moment, but he forced the relaxation onto himself. He fished the keys from his backpack in a matter of seconds, and unlocked the door with a jangle of the little metal object. He and June both walked into the quiet abode.

"Thanks for letting me stay over for a bit," said June. She set her bag beside the cough, and stretched her arms upwards. "Do you have any snacks, by any chance?"

Blake nodded while setting down his own bag. "We got some grapes and....a couple oranges, I think."

"Hmmm. I'll take the first."

Once he got to the kitchen he opened up the fridge, and looked. But he took his time with it. His mind still raced, and his thoughts continued rushing back to the park bathroom. This was torture. He needed to get back and retrieve that scythe. But how could he possibly justify that to June without looking suspicious in any way?

He pulled out some green grapes from a drawer, then headed back to the living room. June by now had pulled a notebook from her bag and opened it up.

"You got your English notes here?" she asked as he sat down.

"Oh, yeah." Blake set down the bag on the coffee table in front of the couch. Then he reached for his pack.

"Mr. Donnell is definitely gonna test us on the lessons and books for the final, so we ought to review those chapter notes."

"Any particular one you think we should study?"

"Well....I missed a bunch of chapters from Little Women. You got all the notes on those?"

"Yeah. I can share them with you. Let me just find the page...."

June shuffled closer to him as Blake flipped through the notebook pages. Together, they read through the various passages of handwritten notes. Blake's handwriting must have been decent enough, because he heard no complaints from June. He occasionally observed her squinting at some words, as if contemplating their meaning, but then would continue onto the next section after a few more seconds of thought, twiddling with her rosary every now and again. She also leaned forward to grab small bunches of grapes. He did also, but less often.