𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓻𝓮𝓮
—𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦—

𝓞𝓭𝓮𝓽𝓽𝓮 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵 the lack of sleep dragging at her eyes when first period began. The loud bell had woken her up slightly, though, as it had alerted everyone to get to class. But because she had a ton of book work in her science class, she wasn't too excited to take her seat next to August Teegan. The boy didn't look too excited, either, as he didn't have his backpack with him that morning.

Odette sighs as she places her backpack in the floor beside her, and pulls out a pencil and piece of paper for the two of them. August smiles weakly at the girl, his brown eyes peaking out from under his blonde curls. The girl places her textbook in the middle so that they could both work on the 'practice exam' their teacher had assigned for the next hour.

"You look tired," August comments, beginning on the first problem, "anything on your mind?"

"Not anything in particular," Odette shakes her head, putting her chin on her hand. "I just didn't get too much sleep last night. Life really takes a toll, you know?"

Odette had known August Teegan since the beginning of the year, when they were assigned as lab partners and placed in seats next to each other. She hadn't grown too close to him since recently, when they had finally began to engage in conversation. She had related to him on a greater level than much, and found herself enjoying his presence.

But with the past couple of days, he had grown to be more self-preserved and closed off. Odette heard that his mother had passed sometime last week, and he was taking it hard. In fact, it was rumored that he was moving— he had cleared out his locker and everything. Odette felt her heart ache for him, but didn't push onto the concept.

He was always a welcoming boy to everyone, and he didn't deserve to have something so horrible happen to him. The girl remembered the first time they had met, when he had cracked several science jokes to tear through the awkwardness of being sat together. And in the times after that, things between them just clicked.

"Tell me about it," he grumbles, looking around the room. "Especially this place. It gets to me, too. I heard there's a test in math today, and I'm not too excited about that."

"So he wasn't joking," Odette murmers to herself, running her fingers over her pencil. "Have you studied for it?"

"I'm done with all that," August says honestly. "Studying and exams are just too much at the moment. I'm taking a break."

"If only I could," the girl sighs, gesturing to the book. "I'd get away from all of this stuff in an instant. I wish someone would just realize how much stress all the studying puts me under. It feels like the weight of the world is on my shoulders."

"I know how you feel," he gives her a warm smile, placing his head on the desk. Odette places her hand on his shoulder, gently squeezing to give him a sense of comfort.

"We'll get through this eventually," she says. "There's not too much longer before we can graduate and get out of here."

"But do we ever really?"August asks, too quiet for Odette to hear him.

After giving him a reassuring smile, Odette goes back to focusing on the problem. It mentioned something about a science experiment going wrong, and questioning how the mistake would have to be fixed. She is immediately reminded of a time back in her sophomore year when she was lab partners with Claire, and finds herself laughing under her breath.

"What is it?" August asks, sitting up to look at the problem.

"Just a memory," Odette says, pointing at the question. "When Claire and I were sophomores, we failed a science experiment that caused too much of a chemical reaction, and led to a small fire. The whole school had to evacuate and we were talk of the school for the week."

"My friend told me about that," he says. "I also heard the two of you are no longer allowed in the same science class because of it."

"That's one-hundred percent true," Odette laughs, shaking her head. "We were laughing the whole time in Principle Manning's office, which only got us into more trouble. I miss that, I feel like I never get to have fun anymore."

"Never?"August asks incredulously.

"I mean, sometimes I do, but it's not like it always was," Odette shrugs. "I don't know. Just . . . as I get older, time flies by and I never get the chance to do any of the things I'd like to."

August looks over to her, his eyes finding hers.

"Hopefully that changes soon."

---

After first period, Claire and Odette meet up in the hallway, each of them fully content with the idea of going home early. But all they had to do was continue as they were and finish the day.

"August left class early," Odette shakes her head in disappointment. "I feel so horrible for him, he was so overwhelmed today. I didn't want to pry about his mother, so I tried to let him know that things would be okay without being too obvious."

"He's a sweet boy, it's a shame," Claire says. "He's supposed to be leaving the state first thing tomorrow to live with his grandparents."

"I'm gonna miss him in science," the brunette sighs. "I'm gonna have to fight through the rest of the semester without a lab partner."

The bell rings overhead, Odette stopping at the English classroom to face her best friend.

"Maybe you'll get a new partner," the red head tells her. "Just hope for the best. I'll see you after class, okay?"

"Bye, Claire," Odette waves, walking into the small classroom to take her seat at the back. So far, only two others had made it to class, not including the teacher. And from what Odette remembered, they would be focused solely on their essay today.

The other students filed in, their arrivals scattered, but seemingly the same as they walked in with their friends. And as soon as the tardy bell rang outside the classroom, her English teacher closed the door and made her way to her desk quietly.

And so Odette Carswell in her seat during second period, her eyes on the page of work in front of her. The clock was ticking at the front of the room, and the quiet chatter of her classmates could be heard as they all talked about what they were planning for the weekend ahead.

It would be a usual weekend for Odette— she would do the usual reading as she got home, before going out with her parents to dinner late Saturday night. Then on Sunday morning they would attend church with Odette's best friend, Claire Rose, and her parents. It was a tradition the family always liked to keep, as none of them had ever particularly liked change. So every day seemed to be the same.

The brunette taps her pencil on the desk, glancing to her phone for a short moment. It was around nine o'clock in the morning, which meant she'd have to deal with English class for at least another half hour. Odette didn't really mind it, but she wasn't too thrilled about continuing her essay, either. English was something that couldn't be avoided, so she dealt with it. Besides, the senior only had a few more months of school before she could finally rest for a bit and think about college options.

The girl continues to write on the page, finding her thoughts clearing as she relaxed into her seat. She felt a sense of serenity in the medium-sized classroom; a place where the loud noises wouldn't echo or the students wouldn't bother her too much. And her teacher, Mrs. Gaunt, wasn't too focused on anything in particular, either, so their assignments were almost always free-writing and exam practice. And besides, she was currently at the front office, anyway. You could almost say the eighteen year old liked that room.

But it was almost like a flip had switched within the next five seconds. Down the hall, somewhere in the distance, several screams bounced off the walls of Lincoln High School, before Odette covered her mouth in horror— to cover to sounds of her already muffled sobs.

That was when she heard the gunshots.

_______