Apparently Anna had put an alarm in his room, because Fisk was rudely awakened at the early hour of six-thirty by its incessant screaming.
It wasn't like he was totally incapable of waking up without being reminded that loudly, if anything, the alarm just made Fisk want to throttle Anna. He grimaced against the pillow and slapped the alarm, hoping that that would shut it up.
Needless to say, it didn't, and the stupid thing kept screaming all through Fisk's attempt to get on a decent shirt, and then finally stopped the moment he left the room.
"Anna!"
Anna had the phone pressed to her ear, and was talking softly to somebody. She had a soft, vacant expression that he usually never saw on her on her face. "Hey, Anna, why did you put that alarm in my room? I can get up on my own." Anna gestured at the phone and glared at him. "Jude, who's Anna talking to?"
Judith had draped herself across the couch and was engrossed in a Seventeen magazine. "Huh?"
"I said, who's Anna on the phone with?"
"I dunno, why?"
Before Judith could immerse herself in Seventeen again, Anna put down the phone and strode over to them. "It's nothing you need to know about, Nonny. I do have a life outside of paying your tuition and fixing your food, you know."
"Is it a boy?" Judith grinned, leaning forward in anticipation. Anna snorted indignantly and told Judith to mind her own business. Judith responded that Anna should shove it up her ass, although Fisk wasn't quite sure what 'it' was.
Fisk stuffed his (actually done, thanks to Michael) homework into his bag. "I'm not going to miss the bus today, Judith."
"Good, because I'm never going to drive your sorry fucking self to school. My car is only for my use."
"Whatever you say." Fisk put on his coat and made his way out the door, trying not to let it slam but failing in this attempt. Anna would probably lecture him on it later. After a few minutes of waiting, the bus came, with all its screaming teenagers and obnoxiously loud pop music. Fisk really, really hated the bus.
But then again, it was better than walking. He found himself wondering whether Michael walked to school every day, or whether the day he'd run into him on the street had just been a fluke.
Whatever the reason, the moment Fisk entered the school hallway he was reminded of the fact that Michael Sevenson did, in fact, exist.
"Hello, Fisk." He was leaning against the wall next to the doorway, and was wearing a sweater that, if it was possible, was uglier than the one from yesterday.
"Were you waiting for me?!"
"Yes, I was." He smiled. Fisk had to wonder if all that constant smiling exhausted his facial muscles, because it just never seemed to go away.
"Why'd you wait for me?" Fisk stared at Michael, his mouth half-open. The fact that someone was giving a shit to wait for him to get to school before even taking off their coat was surprising and a little creepy.
Michael seemed to be about to respond when a loud, very obviously feminine voice yelled "Michael! Who's your friend?"
"Kathy, shouldn't you be in advisory?" The girl in front of them was quite short, and was not dressed quite as strangely as Michael-wait, was she wearing a sundress? She wore large glasses and her hair was a light brown, unlike Michael's somewhat unsettling blond.
"Shouldn't you?" Kathy stuck her tongue out at him. "Fisk, this is my sister, Kathryn. She's a freshman."
"So not everyone in your family is a complete lunatic?" Fisk raised his eyebrows.
Kathy giggled. "I like him, Michael. Anybody who thinks you're a lunatic is probably pretty sane."
Michael rolled his eyes. "Kathy, get to advisory. You'll be late for class too, at this rate."
"I'm not that distracted." Kathy skipped off to class, her messenger bag bouncing around her shoulders. She looked like the picture of American girlhood, what with her sundress and flying hair.
"What's with the sundress?" Fisk finally asked.
"Oh, she sewed it herself. She's quite the seamstress. Knitting and crochet, too." He apparently saw Fisk eyeing his sweater and added, "Yes, she made some of my clothes."
"You're crazy rich! Why do you wear clothes your sister made you?"
"Are you suggesting that I actually have access to any of the money my father makes?"
"Surely he buys you expensive stuff, though!"
Michael laughed. "I've never been a fan of expensive suits. Now, I've got to get to homeroom, perhaps I'll see you later?"
Fisk dashed to advisory, which was just as dull and pointless as ever. A few boys were throwing wadded up balls of paper into the trashcan, and the girls all seemed immersed in their iPhones.
After the bell finally rang for first period, Fisk saw a familiar flash of cloak-like coat in the janitor's closet. "What on earth are you doing in there, Michael?"
Michael turned around, not surprisingly, smiling. "Oh, I help out the janitor during study hall."
Fisk stared at him incredulously. "You what?"
"I help out the janitor. He's a very nice guy, really. And don't you find organizing enjoyable? I know I do."
Fisk continued to just stare at him. "O...kay."
"Help for a few minutes. There's five minute passing time."
"I guess telling Anna that I helped clean up the janitor's closet would make her like me a little better."
"That's the spirit." Fisk walked into the closet, shutting the door behind him. "Don't close it!"
"Why?"
"It automatically locks!"
"Wait, really?" Fisk groaned and sat down on one of the various boxes. "You really have got to be shitting me."
"No, I'm serious. It locks automatically. It appears that you and I are locked inside a janitor's closet together."
Fisk tried to think of an appropriate swear word to fit the situation, but none came. "Maybe if we bang on the door, someone will open it?" The idea of being locked in the janitor's closet with Michael was really, really unappealing. "And I'll be late for my next class!"
"Explain to them that you were accidentally locked in the janitor's closet with a senior," Michael said very seriously.
"You really don't realize how that sounds, does it?"
Michael laughed. "Since we're probably going to be in here for a very long time, how about talking to each other a bit? How are your sisters? They seemed very sweet."
"Sweet? Judith's about as sweet a tiger. Anna is, though. Look, I'm not here to tell you all about my personal life."
"Have you got anything better to do?"
"I don't know, maybe try and get out of this stupid closet?"
"Oh, that doesn't really matter for the time being." Michael beamed and sat down next to Fisk.
This was going to be a long day.
my reread of the knight and rogue books has sparked me to update this i've forgotten how much i miss writing these two huge freakin homos
