Hello. Sorry for the long wait. I had this chapter pre-written, but . . I kind of. . well, I forgot to post it. So, after that long and tedious wait, here is finally is.
"Cha-ching!" Chloe bit the bottom of her lip and teased Pete with a sexily-smug smile.
"I don't get why you insist on betting with me Pete, I always win."
"You just wait Chloe Sullivan, my time is coming. And when it's here . . . you better beware."
Chloe laughed. "Ooo, I'm quivering in my sneakers."
He laughed before and odd expression took over of his face. "You don't wear sneakers."
He inspected her feet. "Chloe, what happened to your Doc Martins?"
She tried to brush his question off with an exaggerated eye roll, and the old 'you're crazy' play. If Clark can use it, why can't I?
Then she remembered. Oh yeah, because it doesn't work for me.
"Nothing happened to my Doc Martins, Pete. I am allowed to alternate footwear every once in awhile, you know. And, women have been able to vote for years now. Stop the presses!"
"Chloee."
"Just drop it, okay?"
"Come on Chloe, the last time you went all CIA on us you ended up in the hospital. Or do you not remember that little tid-bit?"
She did remember. She remembered everything, in fact. If you want the truth, you have to posses the courage to accept it. She had always believed knowing was better than not knowing. That whoever thought ignorance was bliss was seriously off their rocker. But she was starting to wonder if maybe some things really were better off left in the closet.
In a closet 10 000 feet below the surface, covered with an ocean.
I mean, who would want to know what position their parents preferred? It's like that.
Conflict is the only constant in the universe, and the only constant in the mind. Another one of her useful quotes. You can image how many times that comes up in a conversation.
She remembered alright. And desperately wished her father and Pete would stop bringing it up. They didn't know exactly what she remembered, however. With the help of her honed acting skills, she passed for an amnesia struck patient.
Let's just say that she will never again walk the dark streets of Smallville alone at night. Without a cross handy, anyway.
"Yeah, I remember Pete. But this isn't the same thing." Under her breath she added, "this deals with the living."
"Huh?"
"Nothing." She brought her wrist up to check the time. "I better get to class anyway. I'll see you later."
"Chloe."
She turned around giving him an annoyed/expectant look.
"Just be careful."
She gave him a small smile.
"Always."
Okay. Here I go. This is me, going. Doing my thang. Okay, never say that out loud.
She took a deep breath.
Alright. This is it. Are you ready?
No.
With one last breath, she took the iced-tea free plunge.
"Ahh, how nice of you to join us. Miss . . ?"
"Max. I mean Boarder. Max Boarder." She let out a nervous chuckle before following it with a pained smile. Standing awkwardly in the door way, she waited for the teacher to assign her a seat. Or just do, something. Whatever it is teachers do with new, late students.
"Well, it's a pleasure to have you, Miss. Boarder."
She had the absurdist urge to say, "Please, call me Max." but suppressed it. Too many movies, Max. Too many movies.
"Uh, yeah. Thanks."
"So, why don't you tell us a bit about yourself."
"Um, sure . . . " She was still wondering why she hadn't been invited in yet.
She opened her mouth to say something, when --
"Mr. Kent!"
Huh?
"Late as well, I see"
She turned around to see and equally put on the spot student. She gave him a welcome-to-the-club expression and turned back around.
"We can't have you both out in the hall now can we? Come in, come in."
Finally.
"You can sit in the back there, Miss. Boarder."
"Yeah, alright."
She gave half smiles to the people she made eye contact with. Most of them regarded her with a distasteful look, others no look at all. What a welcoming crowd, she thought.
"Mr. Kent."
The boy turned his head and looked at the teacher, wearing an apologetic expression.
"If you're late to my class again this week Clark, I'll be forced to contact your parents."
He nodded, and the teacher was once again the happy-smiley educational tool he had been earlier.
Max found herself studying Clark. She had always been a good judge of character, and there was something weird about this guy. He was hot too, but that was beside the point.
She was torn between liking him, and not liking him. She usually decided who she would like and not like by simply watching them. Rarely did she ever get the chance to actually meet them. Which she supposed was her own fault. Too shy for my own good.
She liked the teacher, but she had the feeling he would become annoying-in-a-good-teacher way.
"Miss. Boarder."
Besides, she didn't really need friends anyway. Even with the few friends she had at her old school, they were never really close. Not the kind of friends you read about, or watch on TV. Maybe that was her problem. She lived in her imagination most of the time, discarding reality for something better.
"Miss. Boarder."
She looked up at the teacher, and found that everyone in the class was watching her, including the weird guy. Don't look at me, you weird guy. She thought to herself, and laughed in her head at her own craziness.
"This is your first day Miss. Boarder. I'd appreciate it if you paid attention."
"Oh." She followed weird guy with the apologetic smile and said, "Yeah, sorry."
"Just pay attention, okay? Can't learn if you don't pay attention!" He said with enthusiasm and a smile. She supposed he was trying to motivate her. Motivate her to do what, she didn't know.
She nodded and her eyes caught with the weird guy's. "Right."
The teacher turned back around, and everyone's eyes left her. She looked up to the clock and grinned. She loved this school.
Their class periods were so tiny! At her old school, they were an hour plus some. And they had 4 classes. .and that's when she figured it out.
Gah, I hate this school. Eight periods? Who could live? Not to mention the homework load! Welcome to my life.
She was so dramatic. And to be frank, liked it that way. It was fun.