It was downpouring. Jem stood dispirited under the covered walkway, just out of the reaches of the rain. She saw her female classmates running back to the Sun Dorm, screaming and squealing all the way. She was doomed to be trapped inside with them.
"What are you going to do now?" she heard from behind her.
She turned to see the man who matched the voice, Zero, standing there looking at her, his hands in his pockets. "I don't know. I was thinking about staying right here to copy them before trying to locate you," she responded.
"You don't need to do this for me, you know," he said flatly.
"I know," she replied, "but I've come to like it. It gives me something to do and actually makes me pay attention in class. Besides, it gives me an alternative activity at the end of the day to smoking."
"Well," started Zero, "on days like today the headmaster doesn't require Yuuki and I to be on patrol, just make a few rounds throughout the night." He stepped towards her. "Just give me your notes. I'll copy them and give them back to you."
Jem opened her notebook to the page and held it up. "You want to try to decipher this?" she asked.
Zero took the notebook from her and held it in one hand to examine it. "Wow, that's impressively messy," he taunted, almost seeming to laugh at her.
"Yeah, well the teacher talks fast," Jem returned. "As you would know should you have been awake."
Zero handed the notebook back to her. "Well, then come back to my room, I guess. It's cold out here and I don't want you catching pneumonia on my account."
"That's the best offer I've received since I arrived," she replied as she closed the notebook.
Zero looked at her then turned towards the rain. It was only the two of them now. "Ok, you ready?" he asked reluctantly.
Jem got herself ready, bending her knees and clutching her books, ready to take off. "Go!" she cried and the two took off running to the boys' dormitory.
Once they reached Zero's room, they kicked off their wet shoes at the door. He went over to his closet as she set the books down. "Here," he said, tossing her a towel.
"Thanks," she replied graciously as she rubbed her hair and face dry. Zero took off his blazer and hung it up, while Jem did the same and draped hers over the back of his desk chair. He also took off his vest and tie, finding a place for them as well. "What do you want me to do with this?" she asked, holding out the towel to him.
He didn't say anything, simply took it from her, holding it up briefly to his face and then doing a once-over on his hair. He then tossed it into a hamper that Jem had neglected to notice until now. Sitting on his bed, he moved back until he could sit against the wall, practically curled up with one knee up and the other falling to the side. Then he looked at her. "Well, are you going to sit or just stand there all day?" he contested.
She sat, a little away from him, facing him, with her knees bent and feet at her side. She took her notes out and placed them before her. "Ok," she said, looking them over. Her hair fell in ringlets around her face as she looked down, taking a foot in her hand absent-mindedly to play with as she read them over. "Would you like me to dictate or just copy them for you?"
"Well, if you don't mind..." answered Zero, knowing it would be much easier and cohesive that way.
"Not at all," she responded. She went through her daily routine of tearing the notes out and setting them next to the fresh page. As she would finish with one, she would set it aside. The first page she set aside Zero picked up and examined as she continued to work. After that, he had closed his eyes, his head resting against the wall. "Haven't you gotten enough sleep already today?" Jem asked without looking up.
She received no response. It was too quiet. She glanced up for a second, he was out. She tried to be more quiet and still as she turned back to her task.