Chapter Two

Sam sat at the kitchen table, lying her head on her arms. Mason was barely eating his cereal and watched television, but Sam was not as relaxed as he was. She really didn't want to go back to Casper High again. It was better than the school her and Mason went to for the time she was living with him, but she still didn't like it. All the feelings she had for it remained, even though she hadn't been there for months.

Mason looked at the clock and dropped his near-full cereal bowl into the sink.

"We got to go." He said. Sam looked up at him gloomily. "Did you eat?"

"No." He gave her a look before going into the fridge and handing her an orange. She took it as she slipped her backpack on and stood up from the table. She took her time walking to her car, and got in the driver's seat as Mason got in the passenger's seat. Sam drove to school, but had no rush to get there.

"Whoa! Slow down Speed Racer!" Mason joked as a result of how slow they were going. "You really don't want to go to school, do you?"

"How could you tell?" She asked sarcastically. She parked in the parking lot of Casper High and turned the car off, staring at the school. She hasn't been here in what seemed like forever, and the other school she went to was even worse than this. She had no idea how Mason was able to stand it there. Mason unbuckled his seat belt and looked at her.

"You know, to go to school, you're actually acquired to go inside." He said. She shook her head as if that would bring her back to reality and pulled the key out of the ignition.

"Then let's go." They went to the main office first to get their schedules. Sam groaned as her and Mason exited the office. "I have Mr. Lancer first period... with you. I'm not very thrilled right now." He nudged her.

"At least I'm there to suffer with you."

"Yeah, can't wait." They took their time walking down the hallway. Sam already knew where she was going, leading Mason down the hall, she just didn't want to go so soon. She stopped outside the classroom door, breathing out. She hadn't seen or faced these people in a while. What were they going to think now that she had come back? She shook her head. Why did she care what other people thought? She did whatever she wanted, screw what other people thought. She opened the door and stepped in with Mason behind her. Mr. Lancer looked up from the book he was reading and looked at her.

"Ms. Manson," He said, as if he were shocked to see her. She gave him a blue pass to excuse her and Mason for being so tardy.

"Mr. Lancer," She said mockingly, looking around. "So, where am I sitting?"

"You can go in your old seat."

"Sweet."

"Good to have you back." He said as she and Mason made their way into the back. Sam scoffed as she sat down.

"You liar," She said under her breath. Even though all the other students stared at her, all she was worried about was Danny as class went on. Tucker already knew she was coming back, but she didn't know if he had told Danny. She was scared of how he would react. Would he care? Would he not care? Would he be happy? She barely paid attention to the lesson and the bell rang before she knew it.

"Sam, let's go," Mason said, kicking one of the legs on her desk. She jumped a little, but packed up her supplies nonetheless. She sighed as she exited the room and entered the hallway. "What do you have next?"

"Free period."

"Oh, I have history."

"Here, I'll show you where it is." She walked him down the hall and pushed him inside the history room before heading to the cafeteria for her free period. When she walked in, everyone was half asleep, so there wasn't much noise. She stood at the entrance for a moment until a certain red barrette caught her eye. She smiled as she snuck up behind him and shook his shoulders.

"You don't even say hello to your best friend?" She says. Tucker turned around to see who it was, then brightened when he saw it was Sam.

"Sam!" He hugged her first before pulling away. "You look..." He was going to say she looked the same, but she didn't. She looked tired, unhappy and most of all, miserable. "...Older." He finally said. She scoffed.

"It's been a few months, not a few years."

"Feels a lot longer." They sat down at a table together, and for a moment, it felt just like old times. But just for a moment. "So, your step brother moved with you, huh?" Tucker asked.

"Yup."

"Does he like it here?"

"Who does?" Sam said sarcastically. Even if Sam looked different, at least she acted the same, and that was good enough for him. She tapped the table and looked around, as if trying to find someone nonchalantly.

"Danny's not here. He's making up a test." Tucker said. Sam looked at him.

"I wasn't looking for him." She defended. "Why would I be?" She added hostilely. Tucker sighed.

"Sam, about what he did, it's not what you think,"

"You know what, I don't even care anymore."

"So, you're not still mad at him?"

"The jury's still out on that one." Before he could say anything, she took his schedule and compared it with hers. "Sweet, we have classes together. It'll be like it was before I left."

"It's not the same without Danny." Tucker said. She sighed before lying her arms on the table.

"Did you tell him?" She asked.

"I dropped hints, but you know, clueless." The bell rang, and Tucker stood up to leave. He stopped and turned around to Sam. "I'm meeting up with Danny now. If you really don't care about what happened between you two, then you'd come with me." Sam sighed as Tucker started to walk away. This wasn't just about her she realized, it was about Tucker. He really wanted the three of them to be the trio they used to be. Even though she had some unsolved business to attend to with Danny, she would make an effort, just for Tucker. She got up from the table and ran after him.

"Tucker! Wait up!"