AN: Hey guys! I just wanted to say thank you so muh for the reviews so far, they are lovely and totally inspirational. Also there's a bit of spoiler in this chapter pertaining to 'Brave New World' a novel written by Aldous Huxley. Enjoy!
Days passed quickly as their relationship evolved; eventually they were able to have comfortable (although somewhat short) conversations without erupting into a full blown argument. Jessica wondered if he only tolerated her because he didn't seem to have any other person in the large class to talk to. She realized she had misjudged him though when he caught her copying answers from his test and moved his arm to clear her view. Their friendship was a definite plus for Jessica, her marks had never been better thanks to his tendency to turn the other way when she scribbled down answers for the previous night's assignment. She wondered though what he benefitted from their symbiotic friendship seeing as she wasn't particularly smart or kind. In fact after the bludgeoning with her binder just weeks ago, she had no idea why he even spoke to her.
Occasionally, when the lesson was especially tortuous, she would ponder Jack Napier. He was quiet and studious, yet not from lack of confidence. Oh no, Jessica was all too certain he suffered no lack of self-assuredness, in fact he almost seemed arrogant. It was as if he considered the school and its inhabitants far beneath him which it probably was. He had the magic combination of beauty and intelligence, she was sure he would excel in all future endeavors. During these hours spent secretly watching him from the corner of her eye she began to notice little things. His nails were always perfect, oval shaped and clean. His shoulders were broad and strong despite his tendency to hunch over whatever book was placed in front of him. How his eye brows arched almost perfectly, his straight nose, and- oh god he'd caught her staring. At this point she would typically pretend he'd had some food stuck between his teeth or something of the like, but today was different.
"Yes?" He asked, raising a 'perfectly arched' eyebrow. Jessica bit down on her lip, glancing towards the closed novel on her desk.
"I'm really confused," She began, reaching for the book and the sheet of questions assigned that class. "Question seven asks what John represents, and then his character type. What does that mean?" The class had been studying 'Brave New World' By Aldous Huxley for the past week and she had found it incredibly draining.
Jack glanced down at the cover of her book and pulled out his own sheet of questions, all answered in his characteristically cramped script. She leaned towards him, attempting to read the paragraph beneath question seven. He jerked it out of her view and shoved it into his binder.
"Hey!" She exclaimed, reaching for his arm. "Just let me see what you wrote, please?"
"Just think about what it's asking," He sighed, as if she were some petulant child.
"That is not helpful at all, that is the stupidest answer ever." She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. He rolled his eyes (she couldn't help but notice an imperceptible smile making its way across his face).
"Think about what John is, where he's come from, who raised him." He steepled his long fingers and Jessica caught herself getting distracted by the slender digits.
"The savages raised him."
"No they didn't." Jessica's brows furrowed as she began to bite her lip again. God she felt dumb, if he could understand some high school level book than she could too.
"His mother?" He shook his head and turned away, beginning to pack his bag. "Let me know if you figure it out."
Jessica sat with her friends, mulling over what Jack had said. What had he meant by who raised him? The boy had lived with savages his entire life while his mother lay in bed, drinking the intoxicating Mezcal.
"You there Jess?" Nicole laughed, waving a hand in front of her friend's face. "You've been sitting all spare just staring into the distance."
"No no, just thinking about something for English." She ignored the theatrical gasps that circulated the table. It was true though, she'd wasted the entire free period internally grousing about Jack's cryptic question. If only she had any inkling of what he had been talking about. She had gone over their conversation a million times, still unable to see what he had been trying to get at.
"At least you aren't in advanced English," Lisa groaned, reaching into her bag. "Look, this is what I've been studying for the past two weeks." She dropped Othello and Hamlet onto the table which elicited a chorus of moans and muttering. Jessica's eye lit up as she jumped from her seat. The girls at the table exchanged bewildered looks as she slung her purse over her chest and began to move away from the table. "Jess?" Leah asked, completely puzzled at the girls outburst.
"I'll be right back!" She called over her shoulder as she ran from the library. Hopping down the tiled cement stairs and bursting through the parking lot doors she made a bee line towards where he was certain to be. They had spare the same period and he was always in the same place outside of class. She squeezed through the narrow gap in the chain link fence, yanking her pony tail through as an afterthought. She could make out the bright red hoody behind the same tree as always and began to grin as she jogged towards him.
"Jack!" She shouted, practically overcome with joy. His head perked up and landed on her approaching form. She stopped at his feet and braced herself against her knees, panting and massaging a cramp from her side. "Yes?" He said cautiously, peering at her in bewilderment.
"I know what it means!" His expression grew even more confused.
"I mean that I know who raised John!" She clarified, grinning spectacularly at the boy. Jack sat back, his mouth forming a small 'O' as he motioned for her to continue.
"The books, he grew up on Shakespeare's plays and poems. It's why he doesn't fit in anywhere, because he can't function in a world different from Shakespeare's. " It all came tumbling out in excitement as she sat heavily beside him, content and smug.
He nodded pensively as she turned towards him, awaiting his response.
"Which means his character type is?"
"Shakespearian, which is why he committed suicide." She said slowly, watching his reaction.
"Good, there you go. Now did you really need to come all the way out here to tell me that? From now on don't bug me outside of class." He suddenly seemed irritated at her interruption, despite the fact that he didn't appear to actually be doing anything. Jessica instantly felt extremely put out, she sat feeling hurt and angered by his callous dismissal.
"You told me to let you know when I figured it out, so I did. No need to be such a jerk." She snapped, rearranging her purse on her shoulder and jumping up from the hot earth. She brushed the dry blades of grass from her jeans and tried to keep her face composed.
"Jerk?" He snorted. "You're calling me a jerk, I didn't know you knew anything but obscene insults." She turned towards the school and marched off, eyes stinging. She rubbed the offending orbs and stomped her way through the opening in the mesh fence, not bothering to pull her bobbing hair through it again and was rewarded with harsh tugs as sparse hairs were ripped from her scalp. She felt completely ludicrous, almost crying and storming off after what some stupid boy had said. It hadn't even been particularly mean, but what Jack didn't understand was how important that moment was to her. Years of struggling through classes, staying up for hours equipped with a dictionary and thesaurus while she wrote pages of essays, only to be rewarded with a D. She had read dozens of books and had barely been able to understand what everyone around her seemed to have a firm grasp on. It was frustrating and humiliating, for years she had felt like an utter idiot. Until today, today she had been able to understand subtlety and symbolism for the first time. She had been articulate and thoughtful, for a few short moments she had also been proud. But Jack had made the accomplishment dumb and cheap, he had burst her bubble.
She yanked open the heavy doors and walked in a random direction, too full of self-pity to return to her friends.
