Warning! This story is rightfully a T (ages 13+) story, but it begins to boarder on 16+ at Chapter Thirteen due to relations. Fair warning.

This story, as the title implies, will be told from two perspectives. Thanks for reading! :)

Chapter Nine: Double Vision

~Kayley~

Kayley showed up to school the next day with no intentions of making amends. She had already tried and failed.

Kayley placed her lunch bag in her locker. After making certain her locker was secure, she made for her American Literature class. She took her seat and flipped through her textbook. Soon the professor entered and began roll call. He unhurriedly made his way through the list, finally coming to the J's. "Jim Hawkins..."

"He's not here, sir," called the slightly nerdy student who usually sat beside Jim.

Kayley turned and saw that the boy was right. "Hmmm, peculiar—"

The professor shook his head in pity and jotted a note by Jim's name.

Only then did Kayley realize that she had not seen Jim at his locker earlier that morning. As the professor called her name, Kayley turned back toward the professor and the blackboard. "Here," she answered. The professor called more names, and Kayley began to ponder why Jim had not shown.

"All right, class, let's begin with exploring the writings of some of America's greatest female writers." He tapped his pointer on the board under an underlined name. "First we'll study Anne Bradstreet, a devout Puritan who lived during the colonial period, and then we'll study Emily Dickinson's poem, 'If I can Stop One Heart from Breaking.'"

And Kayley quickly found herself forgetting Jim.

O~o~O

At lunch, Kayley arrived at the circular table only to find that Jim was not there. "Well it seems that boy has pulled a disappearing act," she told herself.

She pulled out her seat and sat down. She removed a peanut butter sandwich from her bag, gave thanks, and then ate the sandwich. Upon finishing it, she next attempted to open her root beer. Unable to pop the confounded tab, she gave up and absentmindedly held it out to the side for a second, momentarily forgetting Jim's absence. Not having the can taken from her, she colored in realization and quickly put the can back in her bag. Removing her pear and biting into it, a bitter taste filled her mouth—and it wasn't the pear, but more of a nasty thought. Had Jim not shown up because of her? She laughed aloud at the absurd thought. "Simply preposterous." But the longer she thought about it, the more her confidence diminished. Kayley continued to bite into her pear as she felt a sense of loneliness stronger than she had ever felt in the past few weeks.

~Jim~

Jim stood near the entrance of Bronx Academy High School, waiting for Kayley to finish up at her locker. He did not want to be spotted by Kayley. She had made it clear that enough was enough. And he agreed. Only after she had left and had entered the English classroom did Jim approach his own locker.

As for English class, he had considered sitting outside the door and taking notes. He quickly realized that wouldn't work; someone would be bound to find him and he'd get in trouble. And Kayley would hear about it eventually and think he was hiding from her—which he was in a way, though he wouldn't admit it. No, he'd skip English. He was passing it anyway. One missed session wouldn't do much to hurt his grade.

For the next fifty minutes Jim rode his skateboard around the block. He hadn't skipped school for a long while. He smiled as he remembered some of the times he'd skipped to go to the skate park. But he no longer could skip out on the entire day. And he couldn't continue to miss English. He blew his bangs out of his eyes. He still had some kinks to work out if he was to go on avoiding Kayley.

Jim returned to the school and attended his next two classes. Next came lunch. Jim poked his head through the cafeteria doorway and searched for a different table. There was a seat at Zach's table, but he wasn't about to sit there. He decided he'd eat outside. He ate through his meal hastily and reentered the school. Many students were still eating. Curious, he peeked inside the cafeteria. He espied Kayley absentmindedly holding her soda to her right, and the realization that flashed across her face, including the deep reddening of her porcelain cheeks, made him smile crookedly. It was funny. But he also kinda felt sort of bad for the girl. But not too bad. He shook his head mercilessly. No, he wouldn't feel any sympathy for her. After all, she was now the enemy.

~Kayley~

As Kayley staggered out of the Spanish classroom, the bell rang, signaling the end of school for the day. Teenagers filed out of classrooms left and right, packing the school hallways like cans of sardines—or Disneyland's Main Street during the fireworks and parades. Kayley shuffled to her locker where she collected the rest of her school textbooks. Having stuffed four in her backpack, she held the other two close to her as she attempted to squeeze through the crowd of students. And that's when she spotted Jim. Backpack slung over his left shoulder and skateboard in hand, Jim exited the school.

She needed to talk to him. "Wait!" she called. The buzzing, gossiping students drowned out her cry. Pushing through more urgently, she shouted, "Coming through. Pardon me," to a group of girls chatting about the latest Twilight Saga flick. The girls wouldn't budge.

"Omigosh, like, Taylor is so hot!" one girl raved in a thick Bronx accent.

"Bella shoulda totally chosen Jacob," another commented. "After all, he's like, alive."

"And hot," the first girl chimed.

"Excuse me!" Kayley exclaimed.

"C'mon guys, Robert Pattinson is really cute," the third girl piped.

"He's a pretty boy," the first girl snorted in a nasally voice.

Kayley rolled her eyes and finally pushed the girls aside.

"Hey!" the nasally voice whined.

Kayley, having gotten through, called over her shoulder before taking off, "Robert Pattinson for the win!"

The Team Jacob fans' expressions darkened, and the lone Team Edward fan smiled appreciatively. If only they had known Kayley's reason behind her declaration; it had nothing to do with Twilight. Robert Pattinson was English, was he not?

Kayley ran toward the door, hoping Jim had not gotten too far. Sprinting through the exit, she looked to the right and then to the left, all the while trying to peer through the schoolyard's trees. Finding it nearly impossible to see the street from her position, she dashed forward to the sidewalk and tried once more. Right, left, viola! Jim was skating down the street and was about a block away. Seeing he was out of hearing distance, Kayley decided her only choice was to chase him down. She ran forward. And she kept running. "Dang, he's fast," she thought and she tried to catch up with the boy.

Soon she found she was making headway and was just about in earshot. "Wait!" she called frantically. He kept going. He hadn't heard her. "Wait! Jim!" Hearing his name, he slowed and turned. Kayley was running like mad, waving her free arm wildly and yelling, "Stop! Wait for me!" Jim stopped and couldn't help but grin at the spectacle.

Kayley finally reached him, face flushed, and gasping for air. Bending over, hand to her knee, she gasped, "Where were you?"

He narrowed his eyes. "None of your business."

She looked up, hurt in her eyes. A strand of hair that had come loose from her ponytail dangled in her face. "If it's because of me, I'm telling you we don't have to get along, but at least show up for your mother," she begged.

Jim bristled. Who was she to tell him what to do? "I did show up."

"I know," she panted, standing upright. "But..."

"But what?" he asked hotly.

"You didn't show up for English." She was met with cold eyes and a frown in response. Kayley looked away, humiliated. "Just...think of your mother."