A/N: Wooh! Three reviews! A big thanks to Sookdeo, Homely, and the guest reviewer.
On another note, how were your guys's weeks? Mine was filled with good music and chocolate covered cashews, which are nice, and internship applications, which are not nice :(. But the reviews really did brighten up my day, and every little bit gets me closer to my goal. Anyway, here's the next chapter of Intolerance. Read, review, and enjoy!
INTOLERANCE
CHAPTER 2-Hello Again
The weekend flew by like it always does, and before I knew it I was trying not to pass out in my Monday biology class. Which sucked. (The being tired thing, not the being in biology class thing.) See, I really liked biology, but I worked on a ton of assignments over the weekend and I'd pulled an all-nighter trying to finish an English paper. Luckily we were only supposed to be listening to Dr. Vexen lecture this class. It wouldn't matter if I dozed off for a few minutes...right...? My eyelids had just started to close when the door opened and interrupted Dr. Vexen's lesson. Normally I wouldn't have cared, but a familiar, not-all-that-welcome person stood in the entrance.
"And who might you be?" Dr. Vexen asked.
"Vanitas Blade." I glared at the jerk, standing there all pompously in the doorway. Luckily I hadn't seen him in here before; maybe he was just delivering something.
"Then, Mr. Blade, I hope you have a good reason for interrupting my class." Yeah, Doctor; you and me both.
"I was moved into this section." Moved here? I sunk down in my chair. Of course I had to have him in at least one of my classes.
Dr. Vexen frowned, "I wasn't informed of this."
Vanitas walked over to his desk and handed him a blue slip. "It was just changed this morning."
"Very well. Find a seat and try not to make a spectacle of yourself for the next hour."
I breathed a sigh of relief when I realized my classmates had filled all the spots near me. At least this was a one of those huge, lecture hall classes. We'd probably never even have to talk to each other.
xxx
At the end of the day I grabbed my books and backpack and walked out the double doors alone. Selphie told me at lunch that Aqua and Roxas caught a bug that was going around. Some flu virus or something. I sighed. I still needed to talk to Aqua, after that whole hissy fit I threw in her car. But that wasn't a conversation for the phone, and she had already told me twice not to come over since she thought she was contagious.
I decided to let myself enjoy the moment; I liked being alone after school. It meant I could walk home instead of taking the bus. If I tried to do that with Aqua or Roxas around they'd insist on driving me. It did make sense-I mean, I had to go about two miles to get to my humble abode. But I preferred walking, especially during the beginning of fall. The air cools just enough, and the leaves turn the ground into this patchwork of ruddy tones. There's a faint smell of barbecue in the air. Clear skies.
I breathed everything in and sighed. I wished I got to do it more often. Although...I was pretty sure my parents didn't like the idea of me walking home alone. It meant I'd get back late and they'd worry, even if I called to let them know what I was doing. I couldn't blame them for that. Not after my sister.
xxx
The next morning I stood outside Dr. Vexen's room, glaring at a list of names in front of me.
"We'll probably never even have to speak to each other, she thought. I won't ever have to deal with that prick again, she thought." I muttered to myself. At the moment I didn't care who thought I was crazy, and by the number of stares I was getting, I'd say quite a few people did. Instead of focusing on them I checked the list for the hundredth time. Unfortunately, looking at a piece paper over and over again doesn't change what's written on it.
Dr. Vexen had told us at the end of last class that we had a lab Wednesday, and that he'd post our partners outside his room Tuesday morning. Well, it was Tuesday morning and there I was, staring at my name followed by a comma, then 'Vanitas Blade.' The bell rang and people started filing out of the hallway. Good-that meant I'd have fewer witnesses to my mental breakdown.
"It's okay, Xion." Yes, I was still talking to myself. "Maybe you won't have to say anything to him. You can just do the whole thing by yourself and tell him to go strangle a puppy or club a baby seal or do whatever the hell he does for fun-"
"Xion?" I turned to see Riku. "You okay?"
I blushed. "Oh, yeah; I'm fine. Just checking for my lab partner." I laughed awkwardly and pointed to the sheet.
"What, did you get someone bad?" he smirked.
My face must've said it all. Or maybe the whole thing of me talking to myself was the dead giveaway.
Riku leaned over me to see the names, and I reddened at how close he got. "Woah. Vanitas, huh?" He said. "That really does suck."
"You know him?"
He nodded. "We went to the same high school before this one. He's bad news; I'd avoid him if I were you."
"I had planned to, but..." I glanced over at the sheet again and sighed. "Guess I'll have to figure something else out." Rubbing the back of my head, I looked away. Riku's face still hovered close to mine. Really close. And he smelled good, really good...Gah! Focus, Xion.
"Hey..." Riku said.
"Yeah?" I tried to sound nonchalant.
"I'm gonna have a party at my place this Friday, and. Well," he smiled. "It'll suck if you're not there."
He was staring at me. Hardcore. I cleared my throat and looked away. "...What time does it start?"
xxx
On Wednesday morning I mentally prepared myself before getting on the bus. "It's just one class period," I told myself. "Then you're done." Earlier, I had considered skipping, but then I decided I didn't want some jerk's presence controlling my actions. I liked biology and he was not going to ruin it for me. Or so I told myself...
Roxas and Aqua were still sick, so I didn't wanna complain to them about it. I settled on texting Selphie. It was nice to have her to talk to, although I did want to strangle her whenever she mentioned how cute Vanitas was and how no matter how badly he acted, she wouldn't complain if she were in my place.
xxx
Before I opened the door to the lab, I prepared myself with a deep breath. Then another deep breath. Then, you know, a third for good luck.
"You gonna go inside or just stand there like an idiot?"
"Whu-? Oh." Behind me stood none other than the cause of my anxiety. "Well if it isn't Mr. I Hate the World."
Vanitas scowled at me and I scowled right back at him until I turned to open the door. He followed me inside. "I assume you prepared?" He said.
"Of course I prepared. Did you?"
He scoffed. "What do you think? I'm not an idiot and I'd like to finish this as soon as possible."
I stopped and turned sharply to him. "Well, the feeling's mutual. Look, why don't we agree just to talk when it's absolutely necessary? Then this'll be less painful for the both of us."
"Painful?" He muttered. "You don't think that's a bit of an exaggeration?" I shot him a glare.
"Whatever. Sounds good to me."
"Excellent," I mumbled.
"Was it absolutely necessary for you to speak just then?" I glared at him again, but he just snickered back, his yellow eyes glinting.
The lab was an easy one-determining how many cells were in each stage of mitosis. Basically, all we had to do was count. Vanitas and I managed to get through it without so much as a word, and we still had about an hour of class left after finishing. I figured we could leave, but when I asked Dr. Vexen, he told me no and that I should work on my lab report if I had so much free time. Fine. Whatever. I scribbled down answers to the textbook questions and rewrote the procedure in my notebook. There. All done.
I stared at the clock and frowned. Still thirty minutes of class left. It looked like Vanitas and I were the only ones finished so far. I shook my head-knowing my classmates, they didn't even bother to skim over the lab explanation before now. I was willing to bet most of them didn't know what mitosis was.
I glanced over at Vanitas. He fiddled with his pen on the other side of the room. It looked like he was grinning at Ventus, who still hadn't figured out how to adjust his group's microscope.
Sighing, I laid my head on my desk. A few minutes of sleep should've wrapped up the class nicely. Should've.
"You like biology?" I jumped. Had Vanitas just teleported across the room? He sat in the seat next to me now...Seriously, how the hell did he get there so fast?
"Right," he said. "I guess that question wasn't absolutely necessary." He shook his head and started to go back to his old spot.
"I do. Like biology, I mean."
He turned to me. I waited for him to say something else. Instead, he took the seat by me again and stayed quiet.
After an awkward minute, I decided to break the silence. "Would you like to talk about the weather now? Perhaps we could gab about our parent's jobs or how big our houses are..."
He raised his eyebrow at me. "Are you this sarcastic to everyone, or is the honor reserved for me?"
I scoffed. "Don't flatter yourself. You're a general annoyance, that's all."
He scoffed, too. "Oh, I see. You're still pissed about what I said at the party."
"Maybe it's because you were such an arrogant ass then. That might have something to do with it."
He scowled at me. "Arrogant ass? You're being ridiculous."
"Oh." I said. "The boy who goes to a party just to sulk and piss off anyone who comes near him is calling me ridiculous. You know, maybe if you weren't so blind to your attitude problems, you'd see how childish your whole 'I hate the world' act is!"
"And now the girl who can't help holding a grudge over one small conversation is calling me childish." His eyes glinted. "I guess you're angry with me for feeling the slightest bit superior to the drunkards and skanks that went to that absurd thing?"
"Yes. In fact, I can't imagine why you feel above anyone at all, when your understanding of people and the world around you is so obviously limited."
He scoffed. "What are you talking about? I'm smarter than everyone else here-I was at the top of my class in Radiant Gardens."
"Well, there's more to the world than what you read in textbooks...You seem to think you can guess a person's character just by looking at the clothes they wear or the type of drink they prefer." I gagged mentally at the 'you can't judge a book by it's cover' defense I'd just spouted, but reminded myself it was an axiom for a reason. I wondered what he had to say to that.
"Maybe it's that I don't care to dig any deeper. Most people just don't interest me."
Wow, what a jerk. In fact, I think he just out-jerked himself. I opened my mouth, but Dr. Vexen interrupted. "Can't you two find something productive to do?"
"Right, sorry." I said. I turned back to where Vanitas had been sitting, but by that time he had made his way halfway across the classroom.
xxx
I took the bus home. Not many people had crowded in that day, so I set my backpack in the spot next to me and slid into the window seat.
Everything blurred into a multicolored smudge as we passed by. I wondered if some artists saw the world that way, as a brilliant blur of yellows, reds, and blues. I wished I could see the world like that. It would make everything so much more...interesting.
Before long, we screeched to a stop in my neighborhood.
I took a deep breath before I opened my front door. The house had changed in the past two weeks. Not in physical appearance, but in atmosphere. It felt...colder than it used to. Emptier. I turned the handle.
"Mom?" I called.
"Yes, sweetheart. I'm in the kitchen."
She stopped chopping carrots when I walked in. "How was school, Xion?"
"Fine. Work?"
She smiled half-heartedly. "Oh, you know. It's busy every day."
I nodded. "I'm gonna go do some homework in my room."
Mom smiled at me before I turned toward the steps. "We're having your favorite for dinner." She called as I sprinted upstairs. "Sweetheart, did you hear me? Chicken soup. Your favorite..."
"That's great, Mom. Thanks." I said before slamming my door. Leaning against it, I caught my breath. Then I walked to my sock drawer and yanked it open, pushing all the unfolded pairs out of the way. The envelope still lay there, waiting for me to read the note inside another time.
I flopped onto my bed with the letter. Lying on my back, I examined it-the cheap stationary, the smudged ink of a Bic pen. It looked like it had been a grocery list before it got to me-words like 'tampons', 'ketchup', and 'tuna' had been scratched out. Only she would write something so important on such a shit piece of paper. I laughed humorlessly.
I saw the note two weeks ago, read it for the first time then. Had to struggle through Kairi's shitty handwriting. I wiped the wetness off my face. Who writes letters anymore, anyway?
I wanted to crumple the thing up, or better yet, burn it.
Instead, I laid it neatly back in its place.
A/N: Hmmm...tampons, ketchup, and tuna. They sound like a good mix, right? Anyway, hope you guys liked it! A new chappie will be available next Friday. Until then, auf weidersehen