This chapter is shorter than the last one. Sorry about that.
Disclaimer: I own nothing
WARNINGS: Bisexual character, beginnings of boyxboy
"You can't survive without these!" Mr. Matthews exclaimed, holding a cell phone. "You don't know how to communicate with each other. You use emoticons whether than emotions. You're a generation of unfeeling zombies."
Riley and Maya groaned and moaned like zombies, leaning toward each other and pretending to gnaw on each other's heads.
"Stop eating her!" Mr. Matthews scolded.
The door opened, and another student strolled into the room.
"You're late, Ms. Mazelle," Mr. Matthews admonished with raised eyebrows (I'm not sure how you spell her name).
"My gold fish died," she said, flatly, her expression dull and almost dead.
"See, this is the perfect example," Mr. Matthews said, slinging an arm around the student. "Ms. Mazelle has clearly suffered a tragic loss, but she's not in touch with her emotions."
"Excuse me?" The girl demanded, offended. "I am crying my eyes out. I'll have to leave class early."
Mr. Matthews frowned at her back as she opened the door and strolled out of the room, closing it behind her.
"Hey, she actually made it out the door this time," he laughed, turning the handle and reopening the door.
"I actually made it out the door this time!" The girl exclaimed in excitement before reentering the class and taking her seat.
"But Dad, cell phones have been around for like ever," Riley pointed out.
Cell phones have only been around since 1973, Farkle thought.
"I think you'd be surprised to know that there was an entirely different world before you and cell phones," Mr. Matthews said.
"I think you would be surprised to know that I have 394 friends in here," Riley said, tapping her phone.
Farkle still couldn't believe she got away with talking back. If he used that mocking tone with his mother, he'd have quite a few bruises to remind him of his mistake.
"No, you don't," her father replied before approaching the door and dragging a piece of chalk across it to form a line. "This is a time line of all human existence.
"Starting here," he continued, tapping the left side of the board where the line began, "represents every person who every lived, laughed, and loved. The cell phone era, which starts about her," he said, drawing a vertical line not even an inch from the end of the time line, "pretty much destroys all of that," he told them, gesturing to the rest of the time line. "Wait a go, you!"
"Mr. Matthews, if I may take a different standpoint," Lucas said, raising his hand.
Farkle focused on the teacher and tried not to look at the handsome boy beside him.
"Of course, Mr. Friar," Mr. Matthews said, sarcastically. "Do I go too far?"
"Always, sir," Lucas said, looking slightly afraid of the teacher. "I use my phone to video chat my old friends in Texas."
"Yeah, how else would he keep up on all the how-downs and cattle pageants?" Maya said in a Texan accent.
"Maya," Riley sing songed.
"It's okay, Riley," Lucas said. "I'm unaffected by Maya's views of country life. As my uncle always said, be like an eagle and soar above the mocking bird."
Maya turned around so that Lucas wouldn't see her face turn red in embarrassment.
"You're the mocking bird," Riley murmured.
"I know," Maya said, flatly, before turning to face Lucas. "It kills me that I can't get to you."
"I'm sorry, ma'am," Lucas replied, tipping an imaginary hat.
Maya grumbled.
"Farkle time, sir?" Farkle asked.
"Ooh, I love Farkle time!" Mr. Matthews exclaimed before switching with Farkle.
Farkle stood at the front of the room.
"With all due respect to history, Mr. Matthews, the things that are important to our generation are on this side of the time line," Farkle said, pointing to the end of the line. "Where Farkle and technology rule," he added.
The class and teachers looked a little frightened at that.
"I will be able to make another one of you," Farkle said, plucking a hair out of Riley's head.
"Ow," Riley said.
"And another one of you," Farkle added, plucking a hair out of Maya's collection of golden locks.
"Ow," she said, flatly.
"So there's four of us and one of you?" Riley asked.
"That's awesome," Farkle said. "The future, you cannot escape it. I AM FARKLE!"
Mr. Matthews and Farkle switched back, and Farkle slid into his chair as Mr. Matthews continued the lesson.
"The assignment, you cannot escape it. I am teacher," Mr. Matthews said. "You will be split up into teams, and you will decide whether technology has made you better people. You will do a presentation on your findings, and the twist? No computers."
"What?!" Farkle exclaimed.
He'd been raised in a technology based family. His father ran a technology business for Pete's sake!
"You will be doing your research at the town library," Mr. Matthews announced.
"Where?" Maya demanded.
"And as for the teams... Maya and Riley, you're together."
The girls hissed the word yes in excitement.
"Farkle, you're with Lucas."
Farkle blinked. He was paired with the handsome boy he had a crush on and was trying to stay away from to avoid his feelings? Not good, not good!
"And since I don't trust you, give me your cell phones."
Farkle blanched. He used his phone to communicate with his parents, his mother in particularly. She often texted him to pick stuff up on the way home. The one time his phone had died and he hadn't seen the messages? Not good, not good.
"But Mr. Matthews, I use my phone to communicate with my parents," Farkle pleaded.
"You're a part of the class, Farkle. In, it goes," Mr. Matthews said, holding out the tub of cell phones, and Farkle sighed before dropping his phone into it.
He had a feeling this wasn't going to end well.
Farkle walked inside after school to find his mother waiting.
"Where's the milk?" She asked.
"What do you mean?" Farkle questioned.
"I texted you asking you to pick up milk on the way home," she said, slowly. "Where is it?"
"I didn't get it, Mother," Farkle mumbled, staring at his trembling legs.
"Are you ignoring my texts now?" His mother exploded, and Farkle shook harder.
"No! Mr. Matthews took my phone as a part of an assignment," he whimpered as his mother clenched her fists.
"Did you tell him that you need it so I can text you or call you?" His mother demanded.
"I tried, but-"
"Obviously, you didn't try hard enough!" She grabbed his shoulders and pinned him against the wall.
"Mother, I'm-"
A fist struck his ribs, and Farkle doubled over as much as could, gasping in pain.
"Go to the store and pick up the milk like I asked you, too. Since that milk is for dinner tonight, you're not having any."
"But Mother, that's three nights in a row without dinner!"
"Want to make it four?"
Farkle deflated in defeat.
"No, ma'am, I'll go to the store."
As Farkle stepped outside, it began to rain, but his mother didn't call him back in.
Farkle sighed and put his hood up before beginning the long walk to the store.
"Mother," Farkle said, hesitantly. "I'm going to the library tonight. My friends and I have a project."
His mother nodded. "Who are these friends?"
"Maya, Riley, and Lucas."
His mother looked away from the television.
"Lucas?" She asked with raised eyebrows.
"Yss, he's a new kid from Texas," Farkle answered.
"Do you like him?"
Farkle shook his head, rapidly. "Not in that way," he lied.
"Good," his mother said, standing and taking him by the shoulders. "Because those are bad thoughts, the ones you shouldn't be having about other boys. Right?"
Her sharp finger nails dug into his skin. Her thumb curled over his collar and pricked his shoulder so hard, he knew it left a mark.
"Yes, Mother," he replied, just as the door bell rang.
His mother answered it.
"You must be Lucas," she said.
"I am, and you're Farkle's mother?" Lucas said, politely.
"Unfortunately," she muttered. After all, Lucas wasn't even a teenager yet; he wouldn't report anything. She didn't need to keep her 'perfect mother' act up around most children and teens, Lucas included. Now Riley? That was a whole other matter, considering she told her parents everything.
Lucas frowned. "What is that supposed to m-"
"Let's go!" Farkle exclaimed as he rushed to the door with his backpack. "Don't want to keep Maya and Riley waiting."
Lucas looked like he wanted to say more, but Farkle bid goodbye to his mother and shut the door behind him.
"What was that all about?" Lucas asked as they walked down the sidewalk.
"My mother isn't the most... affectionate person," Farkle said.
"Did she do that?" Lucas asked, pointing to a mark on Farkle's collarbone. The mark his mother's fingernails had left on him.
"Um, no, that was our neighbor's baby. She has some sharp fingernails," Farkle lied, and Lucas gave a confused laugh before dropping the subject.
He didn't like lying to his friends. He hated it, but it was lie to them or betray his parents. Farkle was a loyal person; he would never betray his family...
Even if they betrayed him.
Farkle rang the buzzer.
"Farkle," he said.
"And Lucas," Lucas added.
Minutes later, Riley and Maya arrived.
"What is this place?" Maya hissed as they walked through the library.
"It's where the ancients kept all their knowledge," Farkle answered, dramatically.
"Look at all of those," Maya gaped at a bookshelf full of books.
"Books," Farkle supplied. "Hey, Ms. Walters!" He whispered, and the librarian waved.
"You know her?" Lucas asked as they claimed a table.
"Yeah, I come to the library to get away from my parents' fighting," Farkle said before freezing as he realized his slip up.
"Do they fight a lot?" Maya asked.
Farkle nodded.
"About what?" Maya pressed.
"Dad works too much, Mom spends too much, I don't help around the house enough, fairly normal stuff."
Maya pursed her lips.
"My parents used to fight a lot, too."
Farkle stared at her before nodding. They could relate. Maybe not on everything, but they both felt abandoned, unloved by their parents. They didn't need words to describe the connection.
Lucas, turning away from the conversation, picked up a book and blew away the dust.
"Tales of Human interaction," he said.
Farkle took the novel and opened it.
"Only when we put down our phones and turn off our computers and look into each other's eyes will we finally be able to see into each other's hearts," he read aloud.
"Like that's gonna work for anyone," Maya snorted as her and Riley ventured off to do their own research.
Farkle laughed, and his eyes happened to meet Lucas's.
They fixed their eyes on the other, and for a moment, they were captivated by each other's eyes. Nothing else seemed to matter in that one moment.
Finally, Farkle returned to the here and now and the eye contact made him uncomfortable (as eye contact usually did), and he tore his gaze away. Lucas did the same.
"I think the thing I miss most about Texas are the pets I used to have," Lucas confessed.
"I had a stuffed bear," Farkle offered. "My parents thought pets were too most work."
Lucas shrugged. "They are a lot of work, but it's worth it. I would know. I had twenty four horses."
"Wow," Farkle replied.
"One time, Sarah was fouling."
"Giving birth," Farkle added.
"Not bad, city boy," Lucas laughed.
Farkle shrugged. "I read a lot. Go on."
"I was the only one home, so I called a doctor and he talked me through it. Did you know that a baby horse can stand within an hour after birth?"
"Amazing," Farkle responded.
"I've never told this to anyone, but I want to be a vetanarian someday," Lucas admitted. "Now, I have a question for you: why do you want to take over the world so badly?"
Farkle thought about it for a minute.
"Well, I look around, and I... don't see what I want to see. Homeless people, poverty, parents hurting their children, uneducated people who don't have the opportunities I have. If I ruled the world, I would change these things. I guess I just want to see what I can do with it," Farkle said. "Now, I have never told that to anyone, so don't go blabbing."
Lucas laughed. "You can count on me."
Farkle would be lying if he said that he didn't lock that memory away in his mind to cherish forever.
"How did the research go?" His father asked as Farkle entered the house. His mother wasn't present, so she was either out or in bed.
"Good," Farkle replied. "How was work?"
"Busy," his dad replied. "Farkle, it's been a while since we actually talked. Tell me about this project and this new friend of yours, Lucas."
Farkle gaped. His dad actually wanted to talk to him. He couldn't remember the last time his dad stopped working long enough to have a conversation with him!
As if on cue, his dad's phone rang, but Stewart simply hit the power button, silencing the call.
"Dad, that could've been important," Farkle said.
Stewart smiled. "They can wait."
This was the best night Farkle had had in a long time.
"Phone for you," Mr. Matthews said, placing a phone on Maya's desk. "Phone for you," he chirped, giving Riley her phone.
"No talking, no feelings!" He said, and Farkle vaguely wondered what had happened there. "Let's get on with the presentations."
Farkle, Lucas, Maya, and Riley came to the front.
"When I turned off my phone, I learned things I never knew," Riley said, pulling a slip of paper out of her pocket and unfolding it to reveal an amazing illustration. "Maya drew this; neither of us knew about her talent until last night. I've been carrying it around in my pocket where my phone used to be."
"We learned that turning off our phones offers us the opportunity to talk," Lucas said. "Farkle and I didn't know each other very well before the project, but... we're good friends now."
"It helped people outside of this classroom," Farkle added, and Mr. Matthews raised his eyebrows in curiosity. "For those of you that don't know, my dad is the CEO of a huge company, and he's always at work or on the phone. Last night, my dad asked me to tell him all about this project and my new friend, " Farkle explained, gesturing to Lucas. "His phone rang. Normally, my dad would've dropped everything to answer that call, but this time, he took out his phone and ignored it. Then, he had a conversation with me without answering any calls or texts or emails. I don't think we've had a straight conversation like that in over a year. The lesson Mr. Matthews gave us expanded outside this classroom."
The class applauded.
The class filtered out, but Farkle stayed behind.
"Sir," Farkle said, approaching Mr. Matthews.
He smiled. "Farkle. What's up?"
"Thank you," Farkle said. Mr. Matthews didn't need him to elabroate for him to understand.
Mr. Matthews smiled. "Any time. Tell your father he got lucky with you."
Farkle smiled. "Thanks, Mr. Matthews. I don't think anyone's ever said that to me."
Farkle left the classrom, and Cory smiled at him as he left before turning back to grade his papers.
The part where Cory is like no talking, no feelings is because Riley mentioned now that she could interact, she could finally talk to Lucas. That part isn't included because this is in Farkle's point of view and Farkle wasn't there for that.
See you guys next time. Hit the review button.