Will's Flashback

FRIDAY

Will wasn't thrilled about spending lunch with the cheerleaders, but Sharon didn't give him much a choice when she has right behind him in the line, and kept talking all the way, unwittingly leading him to their table. He couldn't escape without being rude, and Will was thrilled.

Yay! I missed talking to my friends.

Hum.

Oh, come on, they're nice.

They're not bad. Who are they again?

Can't you make an effort to remember their names?

I remember Lucy and Sharon. The other is... UFC? Dana? I forgot the last one.

You're hopeless. And she's Chloe.

Will sighed, accepting his fate, and sit beside Lucy.

"Hi, Lucy."

Lucy just nodded, not even opening her mouth in the wide smile she always wore.

"Hum."

Did we say something?

Not that I recall.

Will kept glancing at her, noticing she was only moving her food around.

"Aren't you gonna eat anything?"

Sharon answered for her.

"She can't."

"Why is that?"

Lucy turned to Will, and grinned, letting him see her teeth and the metal shine in it.

Ow, poor her. I wore it when I was 11, it was terrible.

It's good to see you can be sympathetic instead of mocking.

She's my FRIEND, of course I can be sympathetic.

"Oh, braces. When did you get it?"

Lucy was too busy carefully passing her tongue over her braces to answer, so Dana did it for her.

"She got them yesterday after class."

Will frowned.

"Are they still hurting that much? Even after 24h?"

Lucy snorted.

"They weren't hurting that much, but less than five minutes ago Vanessa passed by me and ACCIDENTALY brushed her shoulder on my mouth, hitting it. With force. Damn her for being so tall."

Dana sighed and patted Lucy's hand.

"I'm sure she didn't mean to."

Lucy rolled her eyes, murmuring.

"Oh, I'm sure she did."

Sharon's voice was tired, like she had argued with Lucy over it for some time.

"Vanessa had no reasons to do it."

Lucy glanced at Will, before answering staring at her food.

"She had, she doesn't like the... company I'm keeping, in her words, not mine."

Wait, Vanessa HIT Lucy because she befriended Nico!? How in hades she is the head cheerleader? Don't you have to vote for her or something?

I joined last year, she was already head cheerleader. And didn't get to vote for this year.

Why don't you protest?

Coach likes her.

Tell him what she does!

It's a her, and because Vanessa is an angel in front of Coach Lira. She's an experienced cheerleader with family history in it.

Family history?

She had two sisters, both were head cheerleader before she was even in high school.

Were they... despicable like her?

I don't know, to be honest.

Dana stopped eating to hold Lucy's eyes.

"You mean that emo guy? Why do you hang with him, by the way? I never understood."

"Let's say he needs me more than he realizes."

"So is it a case of charity?"

Lucy shuddered.

"Not charity, Nanni would kill me to be called that. More like... concern over a fellow sophomore's mental and physical health."

Chloe sighed dreamily, leaning her head over one hand.

"I can't blame you, you get to hang around Niel. He's so dreamy..."

Lucy choked with her water, spluttering all around. It wasn't pretty.

Ew, gross.

"You like the pirate? REALLY?"

Chloe propped her hands against the table to stand up, her incredulity clear in her eyes.

"How can you not like him? He's so charming."

She sit again, sighing. Lucy was looking at her like she'd never seen her before.

"... I'm now wondering if he's a pirate or a siren, because you're obviously enchanted by some magic or voodoo he cast on you."

"His compliments, oh my... His tongue is magic."

She paused before continuing.

"Of course, I wonder how magic his tongue can be..."

Will followed Lucy when she pushed her trail away from her, even if in her case, it was still full.

"Ew, gross. I did NOT need that mental image during lunch."

***

He was walking to class, Lucy still by his side, passing her tongue over the braces, ignoring how many times Will said she should stop it before her tongue became sore. He barely heard Hazel calling them, but noticed when Lucy stopped walking to look behind her.

"Lucy! Wait up!"

"Hannah? What..."

Hazel nodded her head to him, while Lucy's eyes zeroed on Hannah's hand, more precisely what she was holding.

"A smoothie? Oh my god, it's a rainbow! That is so pretty! Where did you get that? I want one too."

Hazel handed her the multicolored treat.

"Actually, this one is for you."

"For me? You didn't have to!"

Hazel hesitated, fiddling with her feet before correcting.

"It wasn't me."

"What?"

"Well, someone gave me this and asked me to give it to you. The person said, and I quote 'this she can eat'. I'm assuming they were referring to the braces."

Lucy's jaw dropped.

"I have a secret admirer?"

"Hum. See this more as a guardian angel."

"Who?"

"Hum, someone unexpected."

"NANNI?"

Hazel shook her head.

"I'm not saying. The person asked to remain anonymous."

"They did?"

"Not with these words, but if they came to me first and not directly to you, this is kind of obvious. Now I need to go. Bye Lucy, bye Will."

Lucy just waved, too busy drinking her rainbow, content in every line of her face.

"I have no idea who gave me this, but they're surely an angel."

***

Will was locked inside his room, still more pink that he could bare, and for a miracle, not arguing with his host. She was serious when she said she wanted to follow medicine, and was participating more than him in their studies. Until her mother knocked on their door and stuck her head inside.

"Hon, are you busy?"

"No, mom..."

Mommy.

"... mommy. What can I do for you?"

She entered the pink hell holding an endless supply of hangers.

"Hum... fashion advice?"

Will tried not to let her seeing his snort.

Now it would be a good time to be a GBF...

Shut up.

"Why do you need fashion advice? Are you going out?"

"Okay, I don't know how to say this, except... I have a date."

She had dates before, right?

Yeah, she rarely asked for my help. She loved to opine in my own outfits, though.

"So? It's not your first date, right?"

She was nervously looking around, not meeting his eyes, which made both him and Will uncomfortable.

"No... but I really want to make a good impression and I want to make it work."

"Don't stress so much over it, m..."

Mommy.

"... mommy, I'm sure he'll like you."

She stared at her feet, like a child ashamed of something.

"I know, but the bets are so high in this case."

"Why?"

"Because he's my boss."

"... Oh."

Now I get why she's so nervous.

"And, hum... he invited us to a New Year's Eve party."

Wait, WE?

Oh, Apollo's lyre. Mom doesn't have a date, she has a boyfriend.

She never needed advice for an outfit, right? Ask her that.

"You never wanted fashion advice, right?"

She was just trying to find a way to introduce the subject. Sneaky.

Their mother blushed guiltily when Will said that.

"I was hoping you accepted a dinner with him before the party."

By the Delphi Spirit, I'm NOT looking forward to this.

OH, HELL NO...