The bedroom door slammed shut behind Peridot Olivine followed by the clicking of a lock as she let out a sigh, trudging over to her cushioned office chair in front of her old computer monitor. Dropping her backpack besides the wooden desk, she let herself fall into the seat and leaned back closing her eyes, relaxing her muscles slowly. She sat in the welcoming silence for some minutes before a soft 'mew' came from her side. Opening her eyes, she smiled down at the small black kitten she had recently adopted and leaned over, picking him up and setting him in her lap, stroking his soft fur as she watched him lean into her touch.

"Hey, Hex..." she murmured gently scratching under his chin. She leaned back into her chair and stared at the monitor's screen, which was on screen saver mode, a picture of a giant alien head staring back at her with empty black eyes. Giving the small creature a scratch behind his ear with one hand, she used the other to grip the mouse and awoke the computer from its sleep.

Peridot's bright green eyes scanned over her messenger notifications, some old, some new, and she began to pick and choose who she felt like dealing with that day. Setting Hex by her keyboard, she leaned forward and started clicking out responses to a few messages. Sour Cream was requesting extra notes he had probably zoned out for in class that morning; Amethyst was making sure their weekly study date was still on for that evening at The Big Donut; Lars, who would be working at the donut shop that night, was asking her to spare him some money until he got paid (she rolled her eyes but agreed, knowing avoiding it would only lead to more annoyances); and the rest she cared to answer were all from various teachers, letting her know of extra credit she could participate in, if she wished. She did wish to participate in all of it.

Finishing the last message to her English teacher, Peridot looked over the rest of the messages with disinterest. Ronaldo, Jaime, Kevin, they could all wait. Until the end of time, even. Clicking her teeth, Peridot went to exit the messenger when a new name caught her eye, the avatar only displaying a deep blue eye staring through strands of lighter but still dark blue hair.

waterwitch718?

Staring at the name, the blonde ran through a list of people in her mind who she had not yet added on the app, but could not place a single person to the name on her screen. She ran the mouse over the unopened message, debating whether or not she should read it. It had been sent late the night before, and she had failed to see it until this moment. Chewing on her lip subconsciously, Peridot reread the name a few times before looking to her left at her tiny pet.

"Well? What do I do?" she inquired of the feline. His green eyes met hers and they stared each other down before he let out another soft mewl and pounced at her free hand. Smiling and watching Hex, Peridot quickly made up her mind, having put some word play together, and looked back at the screen, clicking the name as she took a slow breath. The message popped open.

Hi, I know you don't know me, and this isn't something I normally do, but I wanted to introduce myself. I got your screen name from a mutual friend that I have a class with. my name is Lapis, I've been going to school with you for 6 years, and, I'm sorry if this is strange, but I've always wanted to approach you, but I never knew how to. I'm not even sure how I've found the courage to write and send this to you. I don't really expect you to respond, this is weird enough as it is and I'm sure you're put off. but I decided it was time I try to speak to you, somehow. so, I guess if you ever get bored and want to chat, you now have my screen name. okay. thanks for at least humoring me and reading this. have a good night, Peridot.

~L.L.

Peridot sat back, blinking in disbelief at the bizarre message she had just read, then began to reread it once more. Once she was sure she had read what she thought she had the first time, she stood up and went to her mini-fridge, opening it and pulling out a neon green can that contained her favorite energy drink, Zap. Absentmindedly popping the tab, she took a few sips as she sat back down, staring at the message for a third time, running her free hand through her mess of hair.

Who would ever want to talk to her? What for? She was a recluse who only really socialized for the sake of her education. By the average teenager's standards, she was one of the least interesting life forms she could think of. 6 years? That in itself dated back to middle school. She had never even heard of a Lapis in her grade! Her mind went through a small whirlwind as she stared at the keyboard. Did she even want to answer? She was curious as to why this Lapis felt like she was someone to approach.

She was also on high alert as to why someone followed her for so long and stayed so quiet.

Her logical mind was at war with itself, which was another cause for alert. Logic overtook all. If logic was questioned and thought on too long, what did that equate to? She couldn't manage a proper answer, even thinking on it for 20 minutes, which is how long flew by before she realized she should finally make some sort of conclusion.

"Why not?" she murmered, setting her fingers upon the keyboard. She began to type.

Greetings, Lapis.

This is certainly something unconventional to receive, but do not worry about it. I'm intrigued, in a way, as to why someone would want to be in touch with me for any reason, but I suppose it's not the strangest request I have received. I have a lot of time to kill once I get home and am done with my studies, so if you wish to interact, I am open to it. I hope you are having a pleasant evening. Thank you for your time.

-Peridot, out.

She cringed at herself as she moved the arrow of her mouse to the 'send' option and clicked it. Could she have sounded any more pathetic? Then again. Someone watching her for so long must not care how she sounds.

Which brought her back to reality after she thought on it.

What sort of person would just casually watch another for such an amount of time without actually contacting them? Why? What did this Lapis think was so fascinating about her that she had to sit back in silence and keep up with her to the point where the first actual interaction she made was through an online messaging system? And, honestly, what sort of person had the avatar that this mysterious girl had?!

A grimace crossing her face, Peridot looked back to Hex, who was on his back, clawing at the air with his paws. Her face softened and she picked him up, holding him to her while rubbing his belly as he let out a low purr and clawed at her fingers. She chuckled and held him closer, relaxing as she stroked his fur before letting out a sigh.

"Well, whatever, right?"

She let out a yawn and stood clutching Hex to her as she walked to her bed and stretched herself across it. A nap sounded perfect at this point. She would awake and take care of her school work in an hour or two. Or later. Even for her, weekends called for a break of some sort. Smiling and setting Hex to her side, she continued to pet his head and slowly closed her eyes, drifting off into a slumber that would last for as long as her mind would allow it.

Her mind was not a complicated thing. Yet it was. She was constantly going at school, juggling all of her classes and grades perfectly to be sure that she was ahead of the game, to be sure that one day, she could possibly attain valedictorian and pride herself on 4 long years of studying and secluding herself from the general population that she found to be, honestly, quite revolting. She had her friends, yes, but the rest of her school's residence left her wanting. However, at the same time, when she could afford to, she would be the world's biggest slacker. Games and sleep and the occasional marathon of her favorite TV show took up her free time, and she tried to make as much free time available as she could for such things. It was not a hard life to manage, but she often found herself stressing from the energy she put into these activities. This stress led to more sleeping over time, and though she knew she could be spending extra energy in school work or something else more productive, like obtaining a new hobby, she constantly found herself longing for the small paradise that sleep promised her.

She dozed off before she could hear the small ping from her computer, signaling a new message.