Ever since I woke up I just knew today was going to be a bad day.

Nightmares were creeping into the day again...since this morning I ignored my alarm clock and barely had time to get ready in the morning. My hair wasn't even combed down and my clothes were picked out at random and quickly.

I arrived five minutes late to baking 101 where thankfully my friends: Hunk and...regrettably Lance were saving a seat for me to be in their group.

Lance was a boy I didn't really like and sometimes...well. I took out my anger and bad moods on him. I said mean things or decided to ignore him for no reason other than I could. It wasn't a good thing to do but it was all I could hold onto sometimes. Lance was always combating my mean statements with something nice or fighting back with something that snapped me back into reality. I liked him as someone that could be there for me even though I kept my side of the relationship chaotic.

Our group in baking got started with a bogus assignment of making ~whatever~ you wanted.

I'm not sure if it was the depression or the first day of school that I was making things worse than they were. Maybe it was Lance who was starting at me with a slight look of concern, I could see the look out of the corner of my eye.

I focused on the task and Hunk took leadership right away since cooking was his specialty.

Hunk doled out the tasks with respective names.

Me: Chopper.

Hunk: Flavorer and stirrer.

Lance: Everything elser and extra pizazz control.

I was five minutes into chopping the carrots when my vision got sort of grey. This was normal some days when I went really hard in baseball practice but it never happened when I was in class. I felt a heart palpitation and my hand slipped.

The knife missed the carrot and the next moment I was gasping from the sting of the knife.

Instantly there was a small pool of red on the cutting board. My right pointer finer held a respective gash that didn't stop bleeding right after I hit the knife on my finger. Along with the classroom chatter there was a strong smell of spices. I looked to my partners, Lance and Hunk.

"Psst." I whisper, looking to the cutting board intensely.

I don't dare look away from the growing pool of red.

Still...no one noticed me bleeding; I sneaked a glance to my partners.

They are both engrossed in getting the spices to be "just right".

I sighed.

"Hey." I pester my partners at normal volume.

They both turn comically at the same time, Hunk holding a spoon in his hand for tasting and Lance trying to get out small dishes and spices.

"Hey Keith-" Lance smiled.

His smile dropped when he looked to my face, his gaze traveling down slowly.

I stared back at him.

"Woah shoot-" Lance is wide-eyed, "You should leave."

"Sure." I nodded, grabbing my bag, leaving a trail of blood on the ground.

I don't care about the blood but I pin Lance with a harsh glance because I didn't know where to put the pain of my finger.

Cry? No.

Glare at Lance. Sure.

"No I meaN- You should go down to the nurse-!" Lance said quickly, "I don't know anything about cuts but the nurse- Well. She should know a lot. You can get help there. It will help if you go down sooner."

"Whatever." I muttered, "You're just trying to get rid of me Lance."

"Good luck dude." Hunk clapped my shoulder and I nodded to him.

Lance tried adding in a last comment, "Hey Keith. Do you need some help or a towe-"

"Don't you dare think about escorting me down Lance."

I moved past Lance quickly.

When I give a last look to my group, Lance looked hurt.

I go directly to the teacher's desk.

The teacher is sitting up straight and typing quickly. Her hair is in a bun and she gave an air of contained motivation. She took off her glasses and put them on a neatly stacked pile of papers.

"Uh...? Mrs.?"

She smiled easily, "Please just call me Allura."

"What?" I heard what she said but it didn't process right away.

A drop of blood hit a stack of her papers and she finally notices my finger.

"Sorry-!"

She gasped and told me to go to the nurses office after handing me a big wad of tissues.

I glanced away and head out of the room without a word. My feet take me instinctively down the hallway and I don't know where I am for a moment in the school I have been going to for years. I am greeted by a stranger coming down the hallway.

I recognize him as the new principal.

Really new.

"Hey there young lad! Do you know my name?"

I stop walking and he stopped also, I stared.

"Yea sorry...but no." I emptily tell him.

"Coran Hieronymus Wimbleton Smythe." He bowed.

"What do you want me to call you?" I try to inch down the hallway, to get away.

He maintained eye contact.

"We can be pals like hip to hip-oh mans! Call me Coran-your super hip and yolo principal!" He smiled and dabbed.

Yep, he was the best principal this school has ever seen and he was completely a nut. Well...a well rounded nut that thought he was fifteen still...but somehow it was okay.

My feet start taking me to the office before he could comment or talk about anything else.

Auto-pilot some days was honestly the best.

I entered the office and started to see black spots around the edges of my vision. Huh. I shook my head lightly and looked up at the office secretary. I smiled lightly at her and held up my finger. Her face softened and instead of guiding me to another room she punched some numbers into her phone and talked.

"Yea? Greg we got another bleeder here. What? I don't know, I'll ask."

"Did you do this to yourself?"

"Yea."

"On purpose?" She raised her eyebrows and looked at my hand.

"On accident."

"What class?"

"Baking 101."

"Mkay." She put the phone back to her ear and grouchily talked to Greg the school nurse.

I blankly look at the ceiling, feeling dizzy as ever. I opened my mouth to say something but there was more black in my vision. I tried to steady myself and clutched the counter but I felt myself falling.

My last thought was about how hurt Lance look when I left him in baking 101.

o

My muscles were screaming as I sat up and looked to the person next to me. Everything was slightly blurry but I forced my eyes open.

"Hey there~" Lance said in a sweet tone.

I flinched at this.

I look at him confused, "What?"

"This is the nurse's office. It's lunch now. You went and passed in the office." Lance explained.

"What?" I repeat.

He kissed his hand and pretended to throw sparkles in the air, "You. Fainted. Keith. Geez, don't you get it? You need to take care of yourself."

"Okay." I nodded, trying to get out of bed, "Thanks for the talk. I don't care Lance. Go bug someone else."

"Sure Keith but-" He put a hand on my arm.

"Stop babying me Lance." I pushed his arm away.

"Okay so listen." Lance stood on his feet, pushing me back onto the bed.

I looked to him.

"You are not doing a good job at being a good friend. I know you like to get good grades and I know you are really good at baseball! You are just good at everything you do Keith! But that doesn't mean that you get to act like a jerk to me, okay?! I have feelings too!"

Lance took a shaky big breath in.

"Yea about that..." I was glancing away, ready to apologize.

I needed to fess up and I looked up at the same time Lance had an intense gaze in his eyes. I backed away with a faint breath on my lips.

"No!" Lance stamped his foot on the ground, "You can't just apologize and act like its fine now. That's a bad move. Just don't. You know what you did and you know what you have been doing. I know we are more friends than last year but treating me like complete crap isn't cool."

I was staring at him, knowing all of this was true.

Lance starting walking out of the room but he paused at the doorway.

"And last thing Keith."

He looked me straight into the eyes, "I used to like you a lot."

The boy I used to be friends with til that moment left the room, I sat with tears in my eyes.

The bell rang to signal the end of lunch but I didn't go to class.

I cried the rest of the day.

A/N: edited 8/26/18-made it easier to read and changed the plot to be a bit more angsty.