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Chapter 17 | ❝ You're a jerk sometimes; you know that? ❞

Wednesday, October 3rd, 2018 - 11:55 a.m.

THE HYPOTHESIS OF no one in particular looking forward to their fifth block Literature class with Mr. Richardson was an educated one. It did not take long at all for the singular fact to prove itself to be true due to the groans and sighs of students entering the classroom.

Every student, including Kelsey and Zach, was in their own headspace of what would happen if they all simply skipped class. It was a temptation which weighed on the shoulders of each seventeen or eighteen year old peer in the room. Unfortunately, going through with that particular temptation would have resulted in a punishment.

Luckily for the two friends who were not exactly walking side by side at that point, they were early, which meant Kelsey and Zach would have had a bit of time to converse before their monotone teacher entered the classroom and would begin their lecture on something no one desired to learn in particular.

The bustling halls were as crowded as ever as the group of students herded themselves into the stuffy classroom. So many sounds quickly became the slightest bit overwhelming to Zach's sensitive ears. He patiently waited at his desk for class to start. The sooner the teacher arrived, the sooner it would have been over and he would begin on his way.

Before long, a female he knew quite well sat by him at the front of the classroom. There was no need for Zach to second guess whoever's presence was beside his own before her familiar, kind voice rang out quietly next to him.

"Hi, Zach," Kelsey acknowledged him with a smile which faltered when she noticed his injury once again. "How's your eye?"

Zach turned to face her even if it would have done nothing for his sight. "Hey, Kelsey. My eye's doing better than it was, thank you. I'm guessing it looks bad, though," he joked a bit on himself in order to lighten the mood.

"It just looks like it hurts, that's all," she countered with a calm expression before it became completely serious. "Jaylen told me about what happened and you deserve an apology—if not from him, then from me. I'm really sorry he did that to you"

"It isn't your fault," replied Zach in an understanding tone. The last thing he wanted to do was for Kelsey to let her blame herself.

Kelsey sighed in a miniscule manner. "I know, but you're my friend, and I want to stand up for you and make you feel safe."

"You don't have to do that," he protested with surprise.

"I'm aware, but it's something I want to do," Kelsey assured him. "I've had a talk with Jaylen and honestly, he was not being nice about it."

"That's the thing," Zach clarified before Kelsey was able to continue speaking. "I don't want to get in between you and Jaylen's relationship. That's the opposite of what I want to do."

"We're bound to get into an argument at least every once in a while."

"But that's not healthy, especially if what you're fighting about is us being friends," he retorted in a matter of fact way.

Kelsey was hesitant with her response. "...I know."

"I can try to talk to him," Zach suggested calmly. "I mean, if that's what you want and if it'll help you at all."

"That's sweet of you, but I don't think he'd listen." Kelsey began to nervously fiddle around with the prongs of her binder.

"It's worth a shot," he continued, unsure of where exactly he was going with his proposition. "I tried explaining the situation to him on Monday, but he seemed to be way too angry to listen to me. Honestly, I don't know if he'd listen to me and it doesn't sound like he listened to you, so I don't know."

Kelsey gave him a slightly amused smile. "You tried your best, and I'm sure it will get taken care of eventually. Thank you."

Zach nodded in reply and the silence quickly became overbearing. He knew he was going to tell Kelsey about something in particular, but he was unsure of how exactly to do it. Instead, he made sure his laptop was set up and prepared for him to take notes of which he could study with. Zach clicked the screen once and the brightness illuminated the space around it a bit.

The blonde girl sitting beside him did the same, except with her textbook. She appeared to be quite bored as she set her supplies onto the desk in front of her and wrote the date in her notebook. Kelsey set her pencil on top of the piece of notebook paper she was using and let out a nearly silent yawn. She waited for Mr. Richardson to enter the classroom since the conversation she and Zach were having died out.

Or, it seemed to have been over before Zach suddenly blurted out, "I'm not going to be at school on Friday afternoon."

"Really?" Kelsey was caught off guard by his abrupt announcement. "How come?"

A pause and a slight blush from Zach indicated he was embarrassed due to his attempt to begin another conversation. His head tilted down towards his lap as he fiddled with the strings of his gray sweatshirt he was wearing.

"I actually have an appointment....with an eye doctor," he started to explain. Zach chose not to use the large word he learned from his mother since previously, it confused all of his friends except for August. "There's an experimental procedure to fix or improve eyesight that my family's done research on and I'm getting a consultation for it in Raleigh in two days.

Even though Zach was unable to see it, Kelsey's entire complexion lit up. "No way!"

"...Yes way."

"That's so cool!" she exclaimed happily. "Do you have any idea when the procedure itself would be?"

"That's what the consultation is for. It'll probably be sometime next month, but I'm not exactly sure yet," Zach replied with a simple shrug.

Kelsey decided to clarify her wonder. "So, what you're saying is, if and when you get this procedure done, you could get your sight back?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

"This is incredible-" Kelsey exclaimed. "I'm so happy for you."

Zach looked to be a bit timid. "Thanks."

"Can you let me know how the consultation goes?" she politely requested of him.

Zach nodded with enthusiasm. "Yeah, of course I can."

"Awesome!"

When Mr. Richardson finally entered the classroom at about two minutes past the hour, Kelsey was already deep in thought about the current situation she, and now Zach, were in. She still felt horrible about what had happened to him, and Kelsey's anger for Jaylen did not cease a millimeter. There was no excuse for his actions.

No matter how much Jaylen attempted to excuse himself - whether it be on the phone, through text, or in person - Kelsey told him she wanted some space, at least for a little. She knew it was unhealthy for the two of them to be arguing over someone who should not have been in the picture to begin with.

Her mind then drifted over to the following Friday. Several questions clouded her already busy brain, such as how the appointment would go, when the procedure would take place, and what would happen afterwards. Would Zach have received his sight? Would it have gone completely wrong? Would everything have been for nothing?

Kelsey found herself receiving a headache due to her overwhelming imagination. She wanted to support her friend in any way she could, but in all honesty, Kelsey had no idea where to start. The second month of the school year was starting quicker than anyone would have thought, and Zach was already going through so much due to his condition, Lyla stealing his notes, Jaylen giving him a difficult time, and school being an overall hell.

She knew she needed to do something to help the matter, but she had no clue.

"Why does everything have to be so difficult when it comes to people?" she thought to herself in an exasperated manner.

The blonde let out a small, frustrated huff as she continued to think. She had everything put together, but the question was how would she use that particular information. Kelsey felt she needed to do something to help her friend, but what was it?

As Literature class dragged on, she continued to think. Kelsey was well aware of what needed to happen and what she needed to do, however she was unable to figure out how to execute her idea in particular. It required more than one person, more knowledge, and people she was able to speak to about the matter.

Then, an idea hit her as quickly as a snap of the fingers.

Luckily for her, Literature class had ended by the time she had constructed a counterplan to Lyla's original intentions. Kelsey was barely able to wait until she was able to share her constructed suggestion with someone in particular she had in mind.

After a quick goodbye to Zach, a change of textbooks from her locker, and a bit of walking, she found herself entering her AP Psychology class. Normally, Kelsey would have disliked this class in particular, similar to her others, however there was one person she needed to talk to in order to begin to set things on the right path once again.

The person in question, with sandy blond hair, was seated near the middle of the classroom. As opposed to her usual routine of sitting near the back, she instead sat next to the boy she hardly knew. Kelsey set her textbook on the desk in front of her and attempted to get the boy's attention.

"Excuse me, uh, Harper, right?" she asked him a bit awkwardly.

A pair of chocolate coated eyes of which belonged to the teenager himself darted over in her direction. "Yep! Kelsey, is it?"

"Yeah, it is!" Kelsey gave him a friendly confirmation. "This might be a silly question, but are you a good friend of Zach's by any chance?"

Harper nodded with a grin. "As a matter of fact, I am. Why?"

Kelsey felt herself becoming nervous, even with Harper's charismatic personality. He was a kind and considerate person when it came to his friends and pretty much anyone else who was the opposite of hostile and antagonistic. Harper seemed to sense her change in attitude, combating it with a quizzical look.

"Is something wrong?"

"I was actually wondering if I could ask you about something," she requested in a more hushed tone than she was formerly using. "...Out in the hall if you don't mind."

Harper appeared to be confused, but he decided not to ask any questions. "Sure, I guess that's alright. Is everything okay, though?"

"Yeah, everything's fine. Thank you," she cleared up with an anxious smile.

The two of them stood from their desks, leaving their school supplies where they were, and walked towards the exit of the classroom. Harper and Kelsey attempted to pay no mind to almost everyone in the class staring at them as they left. The taller boy did not feel bothered by his classmates as opposed to Kelsey, guilt spreading throughout her.

When the duo were out of the clear, Kelsey asked, "This might be a random question that sounds absolutely ridiculous, but have you heard about Zach's notes being stolen?"

"That's still going on?" Harper retaliated with another question in disbelief.

Kelsey nodded a bit solemnly. "It surely is," she replied. "I know who's behind it, though, and I have an idea on how to stop it."

"Who's behind it?"

"...Do you know a girl by the name of Amelya Walker?" she inquired almost as if she was uncertain. "She goes by Lyla for short." The teenage girl was hesitant to reveal the name to anyone, even if it was the right thing to do in order to stop that particular madness.

To Kelsey's surprise, Harper snapped his fingers and immediately came up with a response. "Reddish blonde hair, short, always wears some shade of pink?"

"That's the one," she confirmed with a faux laugh. "Do you know her?"

"I don't know her personally, but I'm good friends with her brother," Harper responded, shrugging a little.

"Lyla has a brother?"

Harper began to chuckle a bit at Kelsey's reaction. "She does, actually, but she never talks about him," he revealed to her. "His name's August. He's very quiet."

Kelsey then began to think about her options then. She hesitated for a couple of seconds as she contemplated on what exactly to do. After maybe a moment, it hit her. Her idea became more complex in less than a minute than it was before she spoke to Harper.

"This is absolutely perfect," she thought out loud and almost to herself before she realized Harper was still standing by her.

He appeared to be confused. "What do you mean?"

"What do you think are the chances of him looking through Lyla's things while she's not around?"

"What on earth are you talking about-? He'd never do that." A quizzical eyebrow of Harper's raised.

Kelsey paused, the oddity of her request coming to her attention. "Sorry, that sounded really weird," she apologized awkwardly. "Lyla keeps Zach's notes on a red flash drive. She showed me when she was, well, threatening me," she forced out before realizing how out of context her explanation sounded.

"Wait-...she threatened you?" Harper questioned her in a lowered tone.

"Kinda, but that's not important right now," Kelsey dismissed the inquiry. "What I mean is, is there any way we could get August to take the flash drive from her room or wherever she keeps it so Zach can get his notes returned to him?"

Harper was thoughtful. "Maybe I could get Mason -his best friend- to convince him to at least consider the idea," he suggested to Kelsey. "August is really smart, so he'd have a better lead on where the flash drive is."

"Oh- perfect! When can I talk to August?" she asked enthusiastically.

"I can text him right now, actually," Harper answered while taking his phone out of his pocket. "He probably won't respond now since, well, he's in class and that sort of stuff is really important to him, but it's worth a shot."

Kelsey let out a relieved breath she had no clue she was holding. "Thanks, Harper."

"Anytime," he replied with a grin after typing out a quick message to his friend and sending it to him.

Meanwhile in the AP Chemistry classroom, August nearly flinched out of his seat when his phone, which was face up on the desk in front of him, lit up with a notification. Almost no one texted him, especially during class. He simply stared at his phone, waiting for the screen to go dark again so he would not have to answer it.

Mason kept giving him and his phone a sideways glance from the right. "Dude, aren't you gonna answer that?" he asked him in a whisper.

"It's Harper," August flatly told him. "I'll answer him when class is over."

"Don't you at least want to see what he said? It could be urgent," Mason pressed quietly.

August did not want to cause any trouble. Their AP Chemistry teacher did not appreciate students using phones in class. "I don't want to get in trouble with Mr. Wallace by using my phone."

"Please?"

The boy with glasses bit his lip. It was a nervous habit of his. August never had gotten in trouble with a teacher in his entire school career. He always remained under the radar except for his grades, which were rarely far from perfect. The teenager then let out a sigh, figuring one check would not hurt anything. At least it would stop Mason's persuasion.

August tentatively tapped the home button on his iPhone and viewed the message. "Can I talk to you after class about something? It's important and we need your help."

Before he was able to stop himself, August concealed his phone in his textbook, pretending to read while he slowly typed out another message to ask Harper. He was very confused by the sandy blond's usage of the word "we," and he let his curiosity get the best of him.

"We?"

Harper's reply was almost immediate. "Kelsey, Zach's friend, and I need help with something. Can you please at least consider?"

"Okay." August quickly put his phone down before Mr. Wallace would have been able to discover his very scarce rule bending.

Mason eyed him suspiciously due to his friend actually going through with what he said. With a rather abrupt tap on the shoulder, he got August's attention as quick as a whistle. The boy next to him did not look amused one single bit. Instead, he was frustrated.

"Well, what'd he say?" Mason was expectant.

August remained quiet, his voice a whisper. "He needs help with something after class," he explained, then he almost became embarrassed. "...Uh, would you mind going with me?"

"I don't mind at all," he confirmed cheerfully. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine....it's just that Harper and someone else I don't know need help," he admitted his anxiety through his tone.

"It'll be fine."

"I hope."

August went back to studying his textbook, which was what he was supposed to be doing according to his overworking mind. Instead of reading the words as they were, his mind seemed to blur them, creating a mess onto the page in front of him. Instinctively, August took his glasses off of his face to clean them. He thought they were dirty.

The boy next to him knew it was no use to pretend to focus on his work. He hated school and would have much rather spent his time listening to music or reading a good book. School simply was a time waster for him. One of his best friends, who was the brunet next to him, was one of the only people who were able to push him through his classes without falling asleep. The concept was simple really—Mason would begin to dose off and August would discreetly throw a pencil at the side of his face.

Note the word "discreetly."

August found it hard to admit to himself that he was bored. As nerdy or lame as it sounded, he lived for school, no matter what class it was. Mason seemed to notice his friend's dilemma. Being the caring, resourceful, and slightly sarcastic friend he was, he decided to offer a solution.

"You know, you could always work on your writing now and use the textbook along with Quizlet to help answer any test or quiz questions later," he offered a solution. "That's what I do, at least. I don't think you'd like that idea, but it helps me."

August rolled his eyes a bit at Mason's answer to the problem and created a scientific clapback just to spite his friend. "No wonder you're deuterium, uranium, mass, boron, arsenic, and sulfur."

"I'm what, now?"

"Textbook, page forty-six." August provided the periodic table of elements as a code to decipher his own message.

Mason did not respond with words. Instead, he vigorously searched through his AP Chemistry textbook for the code to August's rather complicated retort. When he reached page forty-six, he looked at the periodic table carefully. He wrote down the abbreviations for each element listed and his brown eyes widened.

His friend was unable to suppress his smirk as Mason gave him a dirty look. He had just discovered deuterium, uranium, mass, boron, arsenic, and sulfur spelt out a word split into two parts—one being "dumb" and the other being another popular name for a donkey. Mason knew it was a joke due to their long lasting friendship, but he still resisted the urge to throw his pencil at him.

"You're a jerk sometimes; you know that?"

August only half-smiled briefly in reply.

The rest of AP Chemistry passed by sooner or later. The both of them would have wanted it to be sooner rather than later, however Mr. Wallace was one of their teachers whose lectures would drag on and make the clock run slower than it already was. August spent his time reading his textbook while Mason almost fell asleep.

Mere seconds before the bell rang, August flicked his pencil in Mason's direction, seeing as he was dozing off for about the sixth time in fifty-five minutes. The boy with the mop of black hair atop his head sat up straight as soon as the eraser of the pencil made brief contact with his shoulder. He was about to ask what time it was until the bell rudely interrupted his thoughts.

Mason glared at his friend, picking the pencil up off the floor. "Very funny, wise guy."

"I thought as much," he replied as he was collecting his things and preparing for his next class, which was Physics.

Then, it hit him. August needed to speak to Harper and his new friend, Kelsey, about something. He had no idea what to expect from the two of them, so according to his rather timid nature, he was obviously nervous.

Mason appeared to notice his anxiousness, which August often concealed underneath the fogginess of his glasses or the red sweatshirt and matching high tops he wore quite often. Even though Mason had told him he would go with him, he thought he would give him a gentle reminder.

"It'll be fine," he assured him as the two walked side by side down the hallway.

August nodded, preferring not to give him a verbal response. He enjoyed being reserved, which was quite different from mostly everyone else at Oceanview High. It seemed as if the only thing his peers wanted to do was talk. It was hard to be a silent person in a loud world.

Soon enough, August found himself, Mason, Harper, and a blonde girl at his own locker. He blinked at the unfamiliar person, assuming that was Kelsey since there would have not been another option. The four of them greeted each other verbally, minus August as he was exchanging his textbooks from his locker.

"Kelsey, this is Mason and August," Harper introduced them.

Mason replied with a "hello" while August simply gave her a wave and let both of his arms wrap around his supplies for Physics. Harper gave August a look which made him mutter out a "hi."

"So, what's going on?" Mason asked Kelsey and Harper.

Kelsey was quick to clarify. "Harper told me that you both know how Zach's notes keep going missing, and I think I have an idea on how to get them back."

"Yeah," Harper added on politely after his female friend was finished. "She told me that Lyla Walker - your sister, August - has been stealing them and keeping them on a flash drive."

"...My sister is bismuth, technetium, and hydrogen," August joked underneath his breath. When his gaze tilted upwards to see three confused gazes, he flatly explained his riddle, "The acronyms together spell out another word for a female dog."

Mason smiled playfully while ruffling August's hair so it was messed up. "He used the same type of joke on me to call me a dumb donkey—except it was the other word."

"You probably deserved that," Harper chuckled while Kelsey was silently smiling and letting the three of them have their fun.

"Hey-!"

"Anyway," Kelsey shifted the conversation back on course. "August, we were wondering if there was any way you'd be able to sneak through your sister's room and find a red flash drive for us. It has Zach's notes on it that your sister keeps stealing from him and it's the only way he's able to study."

"She's always in her room," he notified Kelsey. "There's no way I'd be able to get in there without being seen unless she's out of the house with her friends. You're her friend, right?"

"Yeah, I am," Kelsey confirmed."

"Do you know when she'll be out with her friends next?"

Kelsey pondered the question for a moment before a smile flooded her beautiful facial features. "Us girls are all going to Moonriver Cafe tomorrow right after school for an early dinner, actually. We'll be there for at least a couple hours, so that's plenty of time for you to look through her room and find what we're looking for."

August nodded in uncertainty. He was still unsure about the idea even if it was the right thing to do. He felt uncomfortable going into his sister's room, it being the pastel paradise it was. Even if the red flash drive, which was probably his, would have stuck out like a sore thumb, it felt wrong to him to be going through his sibling's possessions—even if she was not being the nicest person.

"Can you do this for us?" Harper asked his friend, who was hesitant.

The boy with glasses glanced around at the three people looking at him. He did not want to give in, even if it was the right thing for him to do. August knew that his friend, Zach, needed his notes returned to him since it was crucial for his grades.

"Please?" Kelsey was second to request this from him

Mason thought for a moment before coming up with a bribe. "Please? I'll buy you a book you want if you do."

His friend's counteroffer was very tempting to August. He loved books, especially ones which would have helped him excel in school. If he was going to do something for the three of them, it better have been worth it. Eventually, August caved.

"I'll do it."

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