Chapter Four

Thinking About Tomorrow

As soon as the dismissal bell sounded, the doors to each and every classroom in Mt. Abraham High School burst open and the students trapped inside poured out, heading down the hallway toward their freedom. The glee was suppressed only by the knowledge that they would be forced to return the following day but even that didn't seem to have much effect on them. They had survived their first day of school.

Clear was the last to force herself out of her World History classroom, having nothing to look forward to by hurrying home. Only the thought that she might see Alex before heading to her grandparents house caused her to pick up her pace slightly and join her peers outside in the crowded parking lot. The brunette scanned the area, looking for the familiar brown head and perking slightly when she saw Alex and Tod standing off to one side, talking with a boy who appeared to be slightly older then them.

With nothing to lose, Clear headed their direction, hoping that Tod had at least had a chance to talk a little with Alex, assuming they had had a chance to talk at all. Tod saw her first and rose his hand in a slight wave, making a "come-hither" motion to her, causing Alex to turn and see who he was motioning to. He didn't smile, causing Clear to wonder if he saw her at all, knowing that he must have, which caused her to frown as well, knowing that he didn't care whether she was there or not.

"Hey Alex." She said with a smile, filling in the gap between Tod and the object of her affections. "Hi Tod." She added, a second thought, feeling bad that she hadn't included him earlier. He was, after all, the first person (so far) that had really gone out of his way to make more then polite conversation with her.

Alex nodded in way of a greeting, shifting uncomfortably and Clear forced herself not to notice. "Hey Clear." Tod said with a slightly smile, his gaze ticking over to his friend. "This is my brother, George." He introduced, pointing to the boy standing on his other side. George remained silent, as did Clear, who's attention was currently all for Alex.

The group of four remained silent for a moment, an uneasily, uncomfortable sort of silence and Clear knew she was the cause of. It wasn't the first time that she had noticed that no one seemed to know how to act around her but this was the first time that she really cared. She wanted desperately to say something, anything but wasn't sure what to say and wisely kept her mouth shut.

Finally, Tod realized that it was his duty to break the ice, glancing from his friend to Clear, a smile pulling his lips up slightly. He had known Alex since they were kids and had seen him go through many crushes and thus, found it easy to tell when he was about to launch himself into another. And so, it wasn't difficult to tell that Alex was uncomfortable around Clear because he was attracted to her; Tod wasn't sure how deep the attraction ran but he knew it was there and knew it was his duty to make sure that it wasn't put to waste. "So, it's pretty great that we're all in the same French class, isn't it?" So it wasn't the smartest of remarks but Tod hoped it would at least get the conversation flowing.

However, Clear and Alex both nodded, staring at the cracked pavement beneath their feet; once again, Clear wanted to say something more but couldn't form the correct words. She was actually worried about what might come from her mouth and decided not to take the chance. Beside his brother, George shook his head, snickering slightly. "Well, this is certainly a rousing conversation. Tod, tell Mom that I went to practice and I'll be back for dinner." And with that, George slipped his matching letterman's jacket on and headed toward the back of the school, where the football field was located.

Tod sighed, knowing that there was only so much silence that everyone could take and decided that they had long since exceeded their limit. "Well, we'd best be heading home, see you later Clear." He said, nudging Alex along, who seemed slightly grateful to be doing something other then studying the sky.

"Right, see you tomorrow." Alex told the brunette, who eagerly repeated the same, unable to repress a smile as she waved. She watched Alex and Tod until they disappeared, walking home together.

A smile still on her face, Clear headed in the direction of her grandparents' house, having decided that she didn't want to take the bus and that walking would help her organize her thoughts anyway.

Not that she had a lot to organize, sine the only thing on her mind was Alex and the knowledge that Tod was going to do his best to see if there was any chance of a romantic future between the two. Clutching her newly issued school books against her chest, it was all Clear could do to keep from skipping down the sidewalk, something that she surely would never had done before. Despite her burning hatred toward her mother, she found herself wishing that she could tell her mother all about Alex and confide in her. But that was impossible and she surely wasn't going to tell her grandmother about the new (and first) love of her life.

Clear managed to push those slightly grievous thoughts from her mind by simply thinking of Alex's face: his beautiful eyes and charming, slightly bashful, smile.

He had promised that he would see her tomorrow, he had actually said it; not just a simple "goodbye" or a wave but those ever-so-promising three words. Clear couldn't keep the smile from her face as she thought about all the promises that tomorrow might hold.

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Okay, I know this chapter's short, which is why I'm posting two. Also, the name "Thinking About Tomorrow" comes from the song of the same name by Beth Orton.