Fictober Prompt 7: "Didn't we already have this conversation?"
Little Ants
The lodge's roof had changed since last summer. The renovated terracotta tiles fanned out. Their color was a bright teal blue that clashed with the deep brown logs and slabs of wood.
Clem thought it looked horrendous, but he withheld his opinion. Crystal had expressed that the tiles appeared pleasant. They reminded her of the sky on a clear day. Clem decided it was a nice sentiment as they sat together, legs kicking out, overlooking the camp on the rooftop he disliked.
"...and that's when Milla offered to start tutoring me," Crystal finished, crossing her arms. "She said, 'Crystal, if you're struggling this much, you can come to my after class party, and we can work something out to fix your levitation predicament.'"
Clem nodded, tilting his head. Crystal's levitation skills faltered over the school year. She could hardly summon her levitation ball without it vanishing in the middle of a run or popping out of existence when she tried floating through the rings. While he hadn't fared better, he could at least manage it during a race, even if he still stumbled over himself.
"Did she ask about the root of the problem?" he wondered, frowning as Crystal sighed.
"Well, no." She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "I mean, she saw me struggling and pulled me aside after Benny laughed at me. I don't think she wanted to embarrass me by asking me right in front of the other Tender Brains. That counts for something."
Clem hummed and stared ahead at the deep rocky trench below the bridge. That didn't count for anything. Milla wasn't addressing the issue that he saw right in front of him. Levitation was a psychic skill that consisted of positive feelings. If Crystal didn't channel those emotions, then she was as good as grounded. No amount of special training or extra credit courses could fix that; he had already tried and flunked out.
Crystal straightened her shoulders and quickly turned to him. She dropped her hands into her lap and grinned, saying, "But I think it'll be a good time! I'll get a whole dance party for myself. Milla said she'd play my favorite songs, and the dancers said they'll help, too." She gently elbowed him. "If you want, you can come, Clem! If you're there supporting me, I can totally do it!"
"No prying eyes to bother us, right?" he asked, chuckling from the back of his throat. His smile waned. "Sorry. I would, but Coach Oleander is really grilling me. He wants me to complete more Basic Braining lessons, and I'm sure it'll coincide with Milla's party."
Her eyes widened. "What? But you've already passed Basic Braining."
"That's what I said, but the coach has other plans for me," he said, shaking his head. He remembered the concern in Oleander's face when they had sat down in his classroom. He had said he was startled by the lack of progress Clem made over the years. Clem had smiled when Oleander prattled on about personalized training sessions and joked that he simply wasn't the psychic meant to power a brain tank. His comment had cut their conversation short.
He looked at the bridge, pointing at it. Crystal followed his finger. Together, they watched Kitty and Franke walking hand-in-hand to their usual spot beneath them. They promptly ignored Clem and Crystal shouting down their greetings and went to the shag rug Kitty had already laid out, their cardboard box filled with chic arts and crafts materials that they refused to share.
Crystal wilted. She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. Clem patted her back, narrowing his eyes on the girls. Kitty and Franke made their friendship bracelets without a care in the world. All of the summers they had wasted taunting Crystal made his skin crawl, and he scoffed at them, wishing the leader of their duo had stayed at home in her room to give Crystal a monthly reprieve.
"Look at them. They're like little ants," he muttered. "Cruel, cruel, little ants. They-"
He cut himself off. His buck teeth nipped the tip of his tongue. Crystal stared at him with pupils so deep and so dark that he thought he would have fallen in them. She frightened him, and he repressed his shiver, his lips twisting into a grin.
"Uh, Crystal? Is everything okay? You've gone bug-eyed," he quipped, fixing his headband.
Crystal blinked and gave a shake of her head. She cleared her throat, Clem noticing the sunlight peeking through the clouds. The rays hit her face at a nice angle and brought her long eyelashes.
Taking a slow breath, Crystal asked, "Didn't we already have this conversation?"
He hesitated. He thought about their recent discussions, but nothing rang a bell. They were mostly about writing new cheers and lamenting their mutual woes. "Uh, did we?"
"Last year. You pretty much said the same thing as last year," she murmured.
The heat and humidity in the air suffocated Clem. He wanted to melt into a puddle and dissipate under the burning sun. He crossed his arms, unsure of what to say, and he watched as Crystal observed Franke and Kitty.
"They're mean, yeah, but I don't know if I agree that they're little ants," she said, rubbing her thumbs against her palms.
He shrugged, keeping his hands up. "It's not like they've given me a reason to trust them. Sure, I play cards with Nils and Chops, and talking with Quentin is fine whenever Phoebe isn't around to psychoanalyze me. That doesn't mean I don't think they're not contemptible."
Confusion crossed her features. She twirled a lock of hair that had come loose from her high ponytail. Crystal crossed her ankles, her shoulders curving forward, and she continued peering at Kitty and Franke with an emotion Clem couldn't place. Did she want to speak with them after everything they had done to her? After all of the cruel nicknames and insults they shot her way? After all of the arrowheads they had stolen from her for their toll? He couldn't understand why she considered giving them what must have been their thousandth second chance.
"They can be two-faced, I guess. That's all I'm saying," he added, his hands numb, his pulse pumping far too much blood in his neck.
"Yeah. Yeah, that's true," Crystal said to herself. "I just want to believe. I don't know. Maybe one day."
He didn't want to dash her hopes. Kitty and Franke would never be Crystal's friends. Their passion in life consisted of tormenting other girls and empowering their sense of entitlement. If Crystal opened her eyes to the truth, then he knew she'd be much more content about life's little evils. Maybe she would have even maintained her levitation ball.
"Sure. Maybe one day," he offered, reaching for her shoulder. When he noticed the muscle in her arm twitch at his touch, his heart sank, and they fell into a merciful silence.