"Just look at the board." Jackson mumbled under his breath, laying on his bed and watching the poor video notes that Holt took.

A shakey camera looking mostly at the board. But of course Frankie sat in front of them.

She sneezed and once again the camera floated to her image.

"Bless you, angel"

"Aw thanks, Jackson"

Jackson almost gagged at the loud whispers from the video. This wasn't Flirt with Frankie 101 why couldn't he just take notes.

Groaning as he had to get to school soon and his math was incomplete.

Giving up he went to change for school. And… take a shower. Remembering he made Holt take… that other route to class yesterday. He still smelt like moldy catacombs water.

Having just enough time for a quick shower, he hadn't really been to this bathroom since they screwed up. It still smelt smokey.

Frowning at the mirror; like he had at his reflection since the change. Every time he caught sight of himself, it was still weirdly jarring to look at. Like he shaved his head and just kept forgetting somehow.

Pushing his red hair down and squinting making a face. Still kinda looked like him… just in monster flavor. Weird because he'd known Holt all his life in a way, but never actually met him. Taking off his clothes and realising why Holt generally had wireless headphones. Even if it was hard to get his collar around a wider head.

Turning on the shower and pausing.

Wait how did Holt shower with music…

Sitting on the closed toilet seat and dropping his pants he looked around the bathroom for a speaker or a stereo.

Looking at his thighs. So much blue.

Taking him too long to realise something he'd just glazed over every day. Peeking in the shower at the shower radio. Turning it on to what he assumed was trigger ready music station. Not on commercial for one thing. Finally unplugging.

Taking a deep breath and getting fully nude.

Grumbling to himself, only because he had seen Holt naked before in photos but usually in a pranking sort of way. He generally didn't look forward to it.

Even if it was just his usual self but cerulean.

Stepping in the shower and quickly pumping the water up to full heat, standing on the dry side while he waited for the water to warm more.

Guessing he was more sensitive to colder water like this.

It was a quick shower but he did really enjoy the near boiling spray. Shivering to leave the tub, he was starting to realise why they always used to keep the house so warm when Dad was still around.

Leaving the bathroom to change shirts and put back on Holt's awful fashion choice of firetruck red jacket. It was just past sunrise and he needed to get going.

His mother's door was open to her room and she didn't seem to be in there so she must have been downstairs.

Pausing at the foot of the stairwell.

Taking a breath and hoping she didn't remember that he still had his car keys.

She was in the kitchen looking at a Health magazine, seemed to be monster themed though judging by the werewolf with the cone of shame on the page she was leafing through.

Sipping her coffee she glanced up at him. Hard not to when a stoplight entered the room.

He gave a nervous grimace then went to make himself a bagel for breakfast. Starving after having not eaten since dinner. Doing schoolwork all night.

"You're up early." she noted.

Jackson went to get some milk for his incoming bagel, scratching his neck.

"Yeah well. Short night." he answered passive aggressively.

"Doing what exactly again? Because I'm pretty sure you didn't take out the trash."

Right, Holt tended to do chores instead of homework.

"I have classes too." he mumbled getting out scream cheese too. Stalking over to wait for his breakfast. At Least his stomach wasn't sour anymore.

"Mm hm" she made that awful noise, like she didn't really believe anything he was saying.

Jackson brushed it off as his bagel popped up, quickly preparing it, ready to just eat it upstairs rather than endure all this.

"So you never gave me the keys last night."

Jackson stiffened up. Great.

"Oh. Didn't I?" he answered nervously.

"Neither of you did." she looked up from her magazine holding her hand out "Walk or take the yellow school bus, what is it gonna be~?"

"Is the yellow school bus, Jackson?"

"Yes."

"That wasn't horribly clear"

"Keys, Holt."

He sighed dramatically pulling them from his jacket pocket and handing them over. Taking a bite out of his bagel that was warming his hand.

"And I don't know how your clothes work" his mom continued cocking her head "But make sure you bring Jackson some unburnt clothes."

Jackson actually blinked innocently before his mom gave him this look.

"Woah that wasn't me." he answered in a convincely Holt-like way.

"Again I don't know how your clothes work so I'm going to have to trust Jackson since he said the same thing…" she added suspiciously "Just make sure he doesn't have a holey shirt at school ok?"

"Ok." he looked at the kitchen clock "Guess I'll need to start walking if I'm going to make it on time"

"When you prove you can pass the driver's test without "seeing how many cones you can hit" we'll talk about keys." his mom reminded him as Jackson headed upstairs to grab his stuff for class.

Jackson didn't remember it ever taking him this long to get to Monster High.

Why did Holt have to be such an awful driver anyway.

Slightly out of breath he still had enough time to get to class, crossing the campus parking lot on foot for once, he wondered if he could squeeze in enough time to finish some more math problems before class.

Before he stumbled over something his foot clearly hit.

Then was caught by an equally invisible hand.

Looking around, and waiting for InvisiBilly's courtesy to visify.

It took longer than usual.

A yawning InvsiBilly fading into the morning light.

"Oh man I'm sorry... I forgot I was that close to you."

Jackson squinted barely able to make him out.

"It's dangerous to be so close to the parking lot." Jackson warned starting to walk again. Having a hard time hearing any sort of footsteps nearby, but flickers of the nearby "ghost" were enough to get a sense.

"Uh duh, that's why I was shadowing the most visible thing out here" he heard. Though the voice was groggy.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah just really tired. Can't really… saving visibility energy for when I'm making sure no one sits on me during roll." Jackson heard another yawn.

"You know those nights where you're just like up all night chatting with your ghoul. I mean like, texting, nothing weird but…"

Jackson rolled his eyes as it was obvious he wasn't exactly seeing anyone right now.

"Wait you're single right? Sorry man"

Or not that obvious.

"I'm on pause." Jackson grumbled not wanting to explain the Frankie thing again "So yeah, it's complicated."

"Doesn't Jackson normally drive to school?" he heard InvisiBilly press, feeling a slight tug on his bag as they got closer to more students, guessing InvisiBilly really was shadowing him at this point. Not wanting to get bumped into.

Jackson took awhile to answer this one.

"I felt like walking" he lied.

"Uh huuh." he heard InvisiBilly mull over. "So do you share the car or…?"

"So am I your seeing eye monster or can you get to class on your own?" Jackson asked frankly getting kind of annoyed that he couldn't shake InvisiBilly right now. He was a nice monster but Jackson didn't need anyone over analyzing his behaviorisms.

"Seeing eye monster." He answered "Unless you have a white sheet I can use. I'll pretend I'm a new ghost and see how many people I can catch off guard~"

Ok that was pretty funny but Jackson didn't laugh.

"And here I thought you were supposed to be the fun one~~" InvisiBilly sang. Jackson could still feel the tug on his bag as he maneuvered the halls full of werewolves, vampires, zombies and random unique monsters. Every shade of hair color, every color of eye, or lack of pupils. He avoided eye contact with Scarah as she looked at him suspiciously.

"Shh if you don't think about me too hard sometimes I can get under the radar." InvisiBilly hushed him.

"Doesn't help that you're talking then"

"We're in a crowded hallway she won't notice."

"That's your plan?"

"That's the plan~" InvisiBilly glanced at his ghoulfriend before Jackson tugged them down the hall approaching his next class.

"Are you avoiding her?"

"No, but you could say she's master of hide and seek and I'd like to win for once in our relationship, hehe. Think that may have counted thanks." InvisiBilly finally started to fade into view, now that they were stopped. Needing to maneuver to his own class after all, dull blue color scheme already sort of drifting into the shadows regardless. He gave Jackson a poorly executed fist bump before walking off.

Jackson slunk into class, for once, early. Avoiding his usual morning obstacles was certainly a time saver, if only he could trust Holt to actually get him to class on a regular basis. He recalled trying in the past… and not making it to class until 3rd period. And not the right class at that…

Fully prepared for being dismissed early he tried to sit in a less than obvious spot. Behind a tall werewolf he'd never met, recalling no one really sat back here after that flea rumor.

Wondering how long he could survive this time.

He sat awkwardly, trying not to be noticed.

No one sat next to him, and no one seemed to look at him.

Though he didn't really know anyone in this class. He usually entered late, or wet, or bruised, and just focused on his work.

Slipping on his glasses subtly as their literal ogre teacher began the lesson, slightly difficult to see past the tall itchy werewolf but he managed.

Never more excited to take notes really. The lesson actually starting and he wasn't getting called out. A huge relief from yesterday.

Until about half an hour in.

The itchy werewolf got up to excuse himself to the restroom and Jackson sunk into his seat. A bit cocky he could get away with

"Holt Hyde?" the warty ogre woman put her chalk down for a minute looking straight at him.

With the rest of the class.

Jackson slipped his glasses off and smiled nervously.

"Um. Yes Ma'am?" he asked drumming his fingers in anxiety.

She looked at him expectantly for a moment.

"I marked you absent."

Jackson breathed out in relief "Uh. Sorry." he answered "I'm here."

"Say something next time" she continued with the lesson while Jackson tried to calm his pounding heart, then smiled that she let it slide. Apparently someone could give Holt a chance, feeling like a weight was lifted. Scrawling out notes hurriedly, he doubted other teachers would give him the same opportunity

Scratching his head, he briefly wondered if there was a reason no one sat in this seat.

.

No one even said anything about the glasses, or looked at him. Like he was invisible, which was great because he was wearing the brightest color scheme in class and was usually pretty loud. Wishing he had sat closer, only able to hear half of her lecture over his music, Jackson was just lucky he avoided any pop quizzes today.

Scooting out of his seat at the end of class he took his time, and swallowed unsure if this could come back to bite him, but he felt grateful to not say anything.

Approaching the teacher's desk after class.

She looked up at him, orange, warty and really not the most attractive monster, she slapped on jewelry and make up regardless of being a female ogre thing.

"Did you understand the lesson ok?" she asked actually sounding sweet. Though this was the teacher he was usually forever grateful to… letting him get to class late consecutively.

"Yeah I was just. Uh." he scratched his head again, knitting his brow wondering if that was going to be an issue "Wanted to say thanks for not kicking me out."

"I believe any student eager for knowledge will make an effort to show up." she just left it at that. "Even if they're a bit late to class. By a few months." she pulled her own pink rimmed glasses down to look him over smiling as he felt in the spotlight. "If you're ever curious as to what goes on in first period I teach a weekly review after school on tuesdays." then added "And a night class."

"Thanks for the offer." after all this was over he wondered if Holt would consider going back to night classes. Or at least something more than two electives "I'll keep it in mind just uh…"

"You're going to be late for next period~" she warned stacking her own papers.

"Thanks!" he squeaked out before going out into the hall. Almost regretting it, but after yesterday he didn't think she fully knew how much just having one normal period meant to him right now.

Recalling Mr. Rotter's class yesterday, getting the boot immediately.

Couldn't hurt to try.

Again.