Marie's heart was still lightly fluttering against her chest long after Nazz and her companions had left the park. She had been trying to compose herself before finally returning home, hoping to at least get /some/ studying out of the way. But that process seemed to take a lot longer than she had earlier predicted. Her thoughts were still pretty jumbled and she couldn't keep her mind from tossing through the previous events, Nazz and her cute mannerisms still taking quite the effect on her.

'Her sweet smile'

'Her bubbly laugh'

'How those cute dimples stood out against her rosy plush cheeks'

She groaned. This was absolutely ridiculous! She had never felt so flustered and emotionally confused like she had in this moment. Why was this girl making her feel all of these stabs of emotions so suddenly? It's not as if she hadn't seen her many times before this.
So why now?
Why Nazz?
Why a girl in particular?

She found these interrupting thoughts making it unbelievably hard to focus on anything, let alone memorizing what a synapse structure was. Dragging a hand over her obviously frustrated face, she let out a deep sigh. "I might as well just go home."
She muttered quietly to herself. She slowly packed up her notes and book, lazily slinging her book bag over her shoulder as she slid off of the park bench.

Though Marie had never dated one, she could never say that dating a girl hadn't crossed her mind more than a few times, as the thought had often been a part of her zoned out day dreams and midnight queries. Girls were fairly attractive and Marie was never really shy to admit that, but that didn't mean she was exactly screaming it from the roof tops of Peach Creek.
After getting over her childish infatuation with Double D, she had come to find a few other guys attractive and managed to date her fair share. But those relationships soon tanked once she became more worried about her grades and getting into a good college, rather than what her partner's thoughts were on shitty romance movies and pointless make out sessions in the back of their cars.
She had also noticed a few girls around her local library and, if she wasn't
studying, malls or arcades. But she had never actually initiated any flirtatious banter with any of them. Marie briefly wondered if Nazz was to be the one girl she finally reached out to in a romantic way, but quickly smashed that idea before it could spread any farther.

'Who says Nazz she even likes girls?'

'Even if she did, who says she'd like me?'

'Is she even single?'

"There's always a chance"
her conscience piped in.

She scoffed, stuffing her cold hands into her pockets in annoyance at her own idiotic thoughts. "There's always a chance."
She huffed sarcastically as the phrased danced around in her already jumbled head. That sentence was once used as a cure all for the, too often, crippling doubt and jittering nerves that creeped into her life more times than she'd ever admit. She had always used it as a way to get herself into trying new things or going for something she really wanted but was too terrified to even attempt for fear of rejection. It had once helped everything, but now all it does is mock her.

Finally trudging into to her shared mobile home, she kicked off her shoes, feeling the itchy carpet between her toes as she set her stuff aside. "Lee?"
She got no reply as she looked around the dim house, only lit by the rays coming from the dust covered blinds. She tossed her jacket over the arm of their small green couch, looking around once again. "May?"
Still nothing.

Where the hell had they gone? She looked at the many odd doodles, to-do lists and old magnets littering the old faded fridge in search of a sign as to where her sisters could have gone, but found nothing. Slightly frowning she walked off into her room, laying back onto the black and silver comforter that laid messily across her bed, scooting the many school notes, sketches and art pencils out of her way. She knitted her eyebrows as she stared up at the ceiling in frustration.

First her emotional exasperation and now she can't even find her sisters. Though, she figured they had only went chasing after the Edds once again. She had tried many times to get them to realize they were unwanted and that constantly stalking them would only make the Edds want them less, but nothing could keep them from trying to force the poor boys into a relationship.

Her body soon relaxed against the soft comforter, eyes slowly hazing over as she let her thoughts lingered to her study session with Nazz tomorrow. What would happen? Could she keep her sudden flush of emotions from making a fool of herself? Would they give her away to Nazz? The last thing she wanted to do was creep her out, sudden feelings for the girl or not. She often thought back to the time were she was head over heels for Double D, always wondering why she had acted in such a way when he entered a room or she heard his name. It seemed so childish now, but she feared she is starting to get those feelings again. She, at one point, even dared to call it love. But to say that Marie had ever experienced love was more than an exaggeration. She had thought she did once upon ago, but it had become clear to her that it was nothing but an over exaggerated crush. Though, that never stopped her from wondering what love truly felt like. To wake up every day with that true pure feeling of another pumping through your veins, filling your every nerve with electric fire. Only seeing that one person, glowing in a room full of dimed out people.

She doubted she would ever feel what love truly felt like
and sometimes

She hoped she never would.

*************
Author's note

I'm terribly sorry if this chapter lacked much excitement, I was really trying to get something out before I have to research a ton of stuff for when Nazz tutors Marie for her biology test. Now, I don't know anything about biology, but I'm gonna try. Wish me luck!