It had been a few days since Natalia had slept over at his house. Today, Monday, was damp and rainy. Alfred was a bit nervous to see her again in study hall. Were things still the same between them, or had he made it weird by letting her sleep in bed with him?
The American had begun to feel differently about her. Now alongside his desire to help her, was the desire to get to know her better as well.
'Is this a crush?' He thought to himself, looking in the mirror. 'Must be…' He splashed his face with water. He had spent the majority of the time between Saturday morning and now thinking about her and her rare yet beautiful smile. It's something he wanted to see more of.
Alfred had no idea what to do. His friends would definitely make fun of him for crushing on the weird girl. Especially when there were many popular girls crushing on him.
When he realized was running late, he practically bolted out the door. He got to class right as the bell rang, and to his surprise, Natalia wasn't there. Damn, he was really looking forward to spending class together.
About halfway into class, the door opened. Alfred looked up and saw Natalia walking in. She wore a dark grey hoodie under the coat he had given her along with a dark blue skirt. Her hair was matted and soaking went and dripping.
"Do you have a pass?" The teacher asked, looking up from his newspaper.
She shook her head and made her way to her seat.
"Hey, uh." Alfred looked at her, "Do you need help?"
She raised a brow, "With what?"
He shrugged, "You're soaking wet."
"It'll dry soon." She smiled slightly.
"Just making sure." He looked at the clock. "Why're you so late?"
She folded her hands in her lap. "Overslept."
It was obviously a lie, but Alfred knew better than to call her out for it. "Oh. That sucks."
She took the coat off and folded it on her desk before laying her head down on it. "Wake me when class is over."
The American nodded, watching her as she peacefully closed her eyes. He then went to his homework. When class was over, Alfred woke the girl up. "See ya later, Nat." He called as he left the room to meet up with his friends.
"Bye." She yawned, waving a bit as she walked in the opposite direction Alfred had gone.
Alfred then watched as Natalia walked straight out the back door of the building instead of going to her class. "Weird." He mumbled, but chose not to follow her.
His friends, Arthur and Francis, walked around the corner and greeted him before they walked to the gymnasium.
~oo~
Natalia checked her watch. It was lunch time now. She sighed, resting her head against the tree she was sitting by. The rain had cleared, but everything was still damp. The sky was slightly cloudy, and she knew it would rain again soon.
Blinking, she looked through the book bag that she took everywhere and pulled out a knife. Natalia knew she'd get expelled from school if anyone found it, but did that really matter? Her grades were slipping and it was unlikely she would graduate on time anyway. Besides, it wasn't like she wanted to cut anyone with the knife. It was for her own safety.
She traced the edge of the blade with her fingertips, careful not to cut herself with it. She then stood up and faced the tree she had been sitting by. Her lips curled in anger and she threw the knife as hard as she could at the tree. As expected, it stuck into the bark.
Eventually, the tree began to look like all the people she hated. The bullies, her parents, and her brother. Each time she threw the knife, she felt some of her inner turmoil boil down. It felt good.
"Natalia?"
An all too familiar voice called just as she was about to throw the knife again. Startled, she accidentally sliced open her finger. She hissed, glaring at Alfred. "You sure have a habit of finding me."
"I saw you leave after first block. What are you doing here?" He said, concerned.
"I could ask you the same question." Her eyes narrowed as she put her bleeding finger into her mouth. The cut wasn't too bad.
Alfred frowned, "Are you hurt?"
"This? No, I'll be fine."
"You're bleeding."
"Really? I didn't notice." She sneered sarcastically. "It's not bad."
He held out his hand, "Let me see."
"Stop, its fine." She slapped his hand away before displaying her finger to him, "See? Small. It's not even bleeding anymore."
"Why are you here?" He asked for a second time.
"I didn't feel like dealing with people today." She shrugged.
Alfred sighed, "Look, I know school sucks and all, but you'll regret it later if you skip class."
"Whatever." She turned away from him.
"Lunch isn't over for a while." He said, "Let's eat here."
She nodded in agreement and watched as Alfred pulled out a large sandwich.
"Did you bring anything?"
Natalia shook her head, "No. I was too rushed this morning."
He handed half of his sandwich to her. "Here, we can share!"
"No, it's fine. I'm not very hungry anyway."
He wasn't having it. "Look, you should still eat even if you're not hungry. It's good for you."
Right as she was about to reject him again, they were cut off but the sound of her stomach growling. "Fine." She took the food.
Once they finished, Alfred convinced Natalia to go back to school with him.
They reached the school's entrance. "So… Thanks for the food."
"Don't worry about it. I always pack too much anyway." He smiled. Then, without thinking it through, Alfred said something very unexpected. "Hey Nat?"
"Hmm?"
"Do you want to go out to dinner sometime?" He froze, nervously watching her for a reaction.
Natalia had a very noticeable blush. "Like… a date?"
"Mhm." He nodded, "If you want."
"Uhmm…" She paused, "S-Sure." She hadn't been expected that of all things.
Alfred grinned from ear to ear. "Hell yeah!" He was so sure she would decline. "How about Saturday? We can go anywhere you want!"
"Alright." She nodded, "Sounds like a plan."
The bell rung, meaning they were both late. Waving goodbye to each other, they rushed to their classes. A bit out of character for Natalia, she was actually smiling her whole way there.
