Abby questions why she decided to take AP Government. Yes, it serves as a hefty boost to her GPA (and the course load is effortless for her to manage), but as Ms. Brennad drones on, she can't help but question her decision.
"Ms. Lincoln, what federalist paper argued for judicial review?" Ms. Brennad had a sixth sense, it seemed when it came to students realizing their mistake of taking such a tedious course.
"Federalist Number 78." Abby could tell that Ms. Brennad was disappointed that she had known that. Behind her, she can sense Kuki beaming at her and can't help but smile a bit herself.
"And who wrote that paper?" Ms. Brennad really wanted to catch Abby off guard. Her teacher seemed almost angry when she got answers right or got near-perfect scores on her test. It made Abby a bit uncomfortable sometimes for reasons she couldn't quite place.
"Alexander Hamilton." Ms. Brennad's frown deepened. Shouldn't she be happy that Abby had gotten the answers right? That she had been studying and completing the worksheets? The classroom felt different now as if Ms. Brennad's bitterness had spread. Pictures of past presidents seemed to glare at her, almost as if they were judging her. Judging Abby for knowing too much, for flaunting her knowledge.
Needless to say, it was a relief when the bell rang a few moments later. Abby quickly shoved her binder into her red backpack and escaped out the door. Kuki joined her soon and flung her arms around Abby.
"You are so so smart," Her sweet voice brought some relief to Abby, and she could feel the tension leave her shoulders. "I don't even know how you pay attention. Government can be so boring. Plus, Ms. Brennad is such a party pooper." Kuki let go and made a dramatic show of sighing and feigning sadness. Abby couldn't help but laugh.
She was happy that Kuki was feeling better than she was, her usual bubbly self. Abby had been distraught after their call last night. Worried for Kuki and her gentle heart. She did an excellent job of pretending to be okay, but Abby could always tell when Kuki wasn't feeling happy. However, judging by her enormous smile and pink tulle dress, Kuki had returned to her usual mood. And even though she was still a bit concerned, she didn't want to push Kuki to discuss the Wally incident when she didn't want to discuss it. She'd talk about it when she felt comfortable, and Abby didn't want to force her into an awkward situation.
"Trust me, Abby doesn't even pay attention in that class herself," The strange feeling occurred again, and her easy smile fell. Despite her high grade in that class, she couldn't help but dread it. Kuki seemed to realize that this subject was meant to be discussed later. Outside of school, in a more private place.
"Omg, I forgot to tell you, I got a new lunch bag!" Kuki changing the subject was seamless, removing that momentary dark cloud that had almost ruined Abby's mood. "It's a Rainbow monkey bag, isn't it just so cute?" Even Kuki's beaming face that would seem a bit overkill on anyone else perfectly hid that little hiccup.
Abby once again found herself thankful for her peppy friend. Who was currently babbling on about her new lunch bag. Abby couldn't help but laugh. It was hard to stay upset when Kuki was so vibrantly herself.
They made their way to their lunch spot in the school gardens, a lovely secluded picnic table among the blue and lilac hydrangeas. Kuki began chirping on about how beautiful spring was and how it was her favorite season. Too busy cooing over some pigeons that were hopping nearby to even start her lunch. Abby listened contently, sometimes stopping to murmur in agreement.
"Oh my god," With a loud sigh and a frown, Virginia plopped herself down at the lunch table. "You will never believe what happened in PE today."
"Oh no, what happened, Ginny?" Kuki's bright brown eyes filled immediately with concern. She gazed at Virginia with a look suited for a wounded bunny (which decidedly wasn't Virginia, with her combat boots and bluntly cut hair.)
Abby's mouth was currently full, so all she could do was give a concerned hum. Virginia was pretty practical, probably the most practical when it came to reacting to situations. Her calm demeanor took a lot to shake. (The last time Abby had seen her this upset was when Mr. Partek had dumped a bunch of recyclable bottles into the garbage bin.)
"Ugh," Virginia's grimace deepened. "Some jerk threw a dodgeball at me today, and it hit me in the forehead!"
"Oh my goodness, who?" Kuki looked a bit mad too. Abby could feel anger rise in her as well. She immediately understood Virginia's rage. Dodgeball at Gallagher High had stringent rules, no running, no jumping, and absolutely no aiming for the face. (All of these rules, of course, had been established their freshman year, where PE lawsuits had occurred many.)
"I don't know, some jerk named Barney or something," Virginia stabbed at her tofu particularly hard. "He didn't even get in trouble for it. That's the worst part."
"That's horrible. I really want to punch that Barney kid now," Kuki was glaring too, an odd juxtaposition with her rosy cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Ginny, that's so unfair."
"It's okay Kuki, I don't want you to waste time on this stupid poop head." Virginia using childlike insults was a significant indicator of her frustration with this Barney kid. "He even tried to apologize and say it was an accident, but there's no way you can accidentally-"
Whatever Virginia was about to say was cut off by the sound of the PA announcement.
"This year's valedictorian for the senior class is Simon Bowek," There was a pause, and there was some rustling from the intercom. "If you see Simon feel free to congratulate him on his amazing feat."
There was another pause. No one at the table spoke. They all knew what was coming next and how important it was. "And for the junior class, the top runner for the position of class' valedictorian is actually a tie. How fun!"
Abby looked at her friends in shock. There had never been a tie before in the past few years. Usually, the staff was good at narrowing down the top person who was most likely to earn the prestigious award at their high school commencement.
"Juniors, please Congratulate Hoagie Gilligan Jr. and Abby Lincoln! Keep up the hard work, you two, and you'll be able to achieve amazing things."
The announcement ended in a soft crackle, and Abby was trapped in silence. Even Kuki couldn't think of what to say to stop this agonizing moment.
Author's Note: Hi everyone! Here is chapter two of The Pain That Binds Us. Sorry for the delay of publishing, I'm going to try to update this story at least once a week. This chapter a new character is introduced, Virginia, one of my favorite side characters! While this story will be focusing mostly on Sector V, there will be some other characters from the show sprinkled in as well. It would be very boring if it was only three people interacting with each other.
Brick88: Thank you so much for commenting! I'm glad you find this story interesting :) Sector V is all decommissioned and have no memories of the KND, though they do have memories of their past friendships with each other. Nigel may make an appearance in this story ( ;) ) but probably not in the way you're expecting.
Odetowords: Your comment was so so sweet! It was such a big compliment, especially since I really love your stories. Most Likely to Succeed was actually one of the inspirations for this story. Thank you so much for commenting, and I hope you enjoy this update :)