Chapter 14
Elise just barely made it into the classroom before the first bell rang. Me? I was lost. Since I decided to follow Elise down the halls, I now had no clue where I was.
I have a pretty good sense in direction. I pride myself on it. But I wasn't paying any attention to where I was going. For all I know, I'm in a separate building.
O-okay. Breathe. Look around. There's blue lockers on the left. What do they read...
234 on the right. 284 on the left.
Okay. The first number generally is the floor level. So I should be on the second floor. What else?Stairs are generally at the ends of a building. So if I go down this hall, at some point I should find a stairway.
Bad idea. This hall split off to two other hallways. There's a set of double doors on the left, whereas on the right it looks like it goes to another hallways.
Okay. I officially regret it. It's just a huge empty room, filled with random boxes and a layer of dust.
I walked around the room, searching for a map (maybe I'm too hopeful?) but no luck. The white walls, blank and empty stared at me. I I heard a creak, and in a tucked away corner, I saw a spot of red coming down a tiny staircase.
"Ah. Miss Actor." Castiel raised an eyebrow at me. "Skipping class now?" I caught a whiff of cigarette smoke.
"Nah. School is too nice to me! They're just letting me figure things out today. My official first day of school starts tomorrow."I laughed, smiling at the grumpy looking red-head.
"Alright. And what are you doing up here?" He huffed, averting his eyes.
"Got lost. There's no need to be so guarded, I'm not about to bite." I huffed, amused by how cautious he looked.
"Ok." He shrugged, brushing past me. I followed him.
"Hey! You're just going to leave me here?" I huffed, following the illusive boy.
"You seemed content where you were." He replied, not slowing down his pace at all.
"I am lost, and you seem to know where you are!" I scurried in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.
"There's floor maps in the classrooms. Go find an empty classroom." Castiel turned around, and started going in another direction. I jogged up to him.
"Why do you hate me?"
"What?" Castiel's face sharpened, and focused in on me, eyes no longer averting from mine.
"Why do you hate me?" I repeated again.
"God, are you really a goth Lolita?" He murmured.
"That's how I dress, though I guess I don't really act like one. But what has that got to do with anything?"
"You really don't act like one." He shook his head. I took a step forward.
"That's off topic."
"I don't give a f***." He replied before turning away.
"You sure don't act like it."I shouted at him. He spun around, middle finger up.
"Get the image?" He snapped.
"Nope. You're just convincing me that you really do hate me."
"It's impossible to hate someone you barely know!"
"It's possible to deeply dislike someone upon first sight. Is this because I know your ex? Or that I model for the talent agency that rejected you?" I took another step towards him.
"It's because you act like my ex." Castiel raised an eyebrow. "And that you've taken a liking to my friend."
"You're not the type to say 'friend', but I can guess you're referring to Lysander. And he's interesting. Is it wrong to take interest in someone interesting?" I asked, tilting my head, taking another step. Usually it scared people, but Castiel stared back evenly.
"Why am I even having this conversation!" He threw his hands up in the air, and walked off.
"I'm done!"
"I believe it." I snorted, watching him flip me off again before disappearing around the bend.
"Well. There's always going to be someone that dislikes you. Hate maybe." I whispered to myself.
"I'll be alright. It's not a repeat." Then I clapped my face.
"Alright! I've got a good sense of direction! I can do this!" I announced to myself, setting off in the opposite direction of Castiel.