Chapter Text
So I am being breathed on. His scruffy beard swaying lightly as he constructs me on what to do, with that revolting scent of chicken noodles flowing from his mouth. It disappears for a few seconds as he glances back at the class, and I thank God for that.
"Clementine Everett, you're not paying attention."
Damn it, it's back.
"I-I'm sor-" Mr Pete’s eyes squinted and he hushed me, and soon students were flying out of the room, crowding the door and trying to climb over eachother, attempting to see what was causing the mayhem in the halls. I could practically see my reflection in his bald scalp.
"Such a stupid bitch!" Someone's got a potty mouth...
"Says the girl who failed art!" This girl has a cute accent...
I would love to stay at my desk, content and out of the bodies of odorous eighth graders, but I need to pee. Like, super-mega-badly. I spot a little doorway through the crowd, and quickly sliver through the cheering crowd. Then I see what the commotion is being caused by.
A blonde and a redhead, who're trying VERY hard to get eachother's heads off. I think I recognize the blonde though... Can't really see her face when all the hair is covering it up.
That blonde girl throws bad punches. She seriously just hit air in the face. Hah! But then she comes back with a strike of her left fist right to the redheads nose, and that's pretty much when the halls got louder with cheers and yells. The redhaired walrus growls and slaps the girl square across her face, and then the redhead tackles her to the ground.
Woah, these jeans make her ass look ah-mazing from this angle.
Not that I like it, cuz I don't like girls. Never. I'm more straight than a ruler. And not those flexi ones. I support abstinence. And I go to church.
Straight.
Maybe I admire some actresses a little more than the average person, but still, my door doesn't swing that way.
I wonder if that picture of her hugging your one is still on my laptop after Lee found it yesterday. I'll see to that at home.
Soon teachers are pulling at both the girl's arms and grunting at them in dismay. They still claw and throw hits at eachother until they are being dragged apart into different classes. Oh, it's her.
And by her, I mean, by far, the most prettiest girl I've ever seen.
It's just a compliment, calm your tits. Or balls. Or whatever middle category you fall into.
Violet.
Ever since she entered my home room I've never taken my eyes off her. She has green eyes, shortish dirty blonde almost snow hair that matched her cold personality, and her smile- If she ever smiled at me, I'd probably wet myself, then cry, then die of a heart attack. It's that intimidating.
I say 'If' because, well, I'm not really popular, and she is. As in, the only time she talks to me is when she directing an insult at me. No one talks to me, like, no one at all- Well, my cat, Tiffany, or Tiff, talks to me, but no actual human does. Not even my Dad. Well he does but it feels forced and unnatural. I don't like it. Louis does I guess. Sometimes he calls me a twit though. And an orange. Still hung up on the twit thing.
Twit. Who says chiz like that?
I'm disrupted by the gentle tap of a finger on my shoulder, only to turn around and see Dad, the principle/history teacher/foster carer extraordinaire, staring at me and- Wow, where'd everyone go?
He's all red cheeked and his eyes keep darting towards a teacher who was stomping away muttering about the printer that had no toner. Carly I think it was.
"Honey, you seem zoned out today. What're you doing standing in the hall?" Waiting for Violet to whisk me away with your cloud of sexiness. Or death to take me. That would be cool beans too.
"I'm, uh, I was heading to the, er, the bathroom. Yeah, the bathroom." I got distracted as I saw a blonde head enter said bathrooms. Violet. She could seriously stop a herd of...everything. I mean, GOD, look at her. Well, you can't see her...
Oh, how you miss out.
"Oh, well in that case, carry on. By the way, fantastic job at the National Cinematography Regionals, I loved the short film. The way you used the rails to signify the actors loneliness and trapped feelings was great! I mean I personally would have went down the more historical route but yes. Great!” And with that, Dad cleared his throat and stopped rolling on the balls of his feet. He made a move to pat me on the shoulder but remembered our earlier talk. "Treat you like a student. Right" He whispered to himself, straightening his tie as I ducked away. There was no straightening of that tie.
“Get to science class Clementine!” He called out.
I conducted an entire not so life-sized sculpture of the Statue of Liberty for the upcoming science fair, made completely out of clay. I installed eighty electro-magnet wires in the hollow of the sculpture, then pulled them through the clay while it was wet. Everyone knows that the protons, neutrons, and electrons of the electric current will bounce off of the texture of the clay, so that nothing will happen. But I coated the clay with large amounts of neon gas, which is an excellent conductor of electricity. After covering the wires with protective plastic, I painted the sculpture, and took the plastic off, then screwed rainbow bulbs over the wires and connected the wires into potatoes. Yes, potatoes, because potatoes can conduct up to two-hundred trillion, billion mega-watts of electricity. Then it was done.
Now, go back and read all of that. I know you better than you know you. Hmm.
Violet.
... I'm freaking the hell out of myself.
I know every kid in school looks at her the way I do. At least half the way I do, I bet-
Wow, I just walked all the way to the bathroom, took a whaz, and now I'm washing my hands, all while talking to you.
I'm such a beast.
I'm currently soaping up my hands while looking in the mirror. Fun times. This lightening wasn't the most complimentary. The bathroom was lime green and an ugly lime green at that. Even the best lights couldn't make this bathroom appealing.
My head nearly snaps off my body as one of the bathroom stall doors slams shut, and a huffy blonde makes her way into the-Oh god it's her. She’s dressed in an oversized and off the shoulder band shirt which was tucked not so neatly into her usual ripped jeans. And let’s not forget her converse.
My knees- I can't feel my knees. They just like, freaking melted, and she comes up, RIGHT next to me. By the sink. Yes! She's washing her hands.
Oh gosh, my problem. My hyperventilation problem, it's coming, I feel it. She's so close to me. Oh God.
I realize that my hands stop moving and I'm staring at her longer than I should, but I physically can't take my eyes off her. Despite the little cuts that flaw her lower blood stained lip and cheek, the soft, porcelain skin decorates the frame of it, with her little hair flailed around her head, and her eyebrows tucked downwards in annoyance. She tries running her fingers through her hair, trying to get come order out of it, but growls as it seems it does no difference.
My lungs are starting to constrict and I open my mouth slightly to take in some air but not so much that I open my mouth wide and look like an idiot; It doesn't help.
My arms feel heavy. Like I'm holding the camera as I do every morning. But there's no camera. There's just soap.
I wonder if I told her that she looks beautiful like this, would she take it wrong. Probably.
She probably wouldn't take it wrong. Because girls liking girls the way girls like boys isn't very common around this town.
"Stupid fucking hair."
The bell rings and she groans before catching my eyes, and by now my vision is blurred, I can't feel my body, and I see three beautiful, blonde-headed angels, raising an eyebrow at me. The last I catch is the sound of feet fading out the restroom.
She looked... At me. I just saw her jaw clench
Then, it's dark.
"You fainted, hun." Nurse Molly says to me as she sits over me, reading some magazine. "Huh?"
“Yes sweetheart. You did.” The voice of her helper Sarah chirruped up from the corner. Did I mention that Sarah’s really pretty?
Like. Really. Black haired and Spanish to boot. Fall on me.
... I swear I'm developing Tourette's...
"Apparently you collapsed in the restroom and Duck found you after being told by his friend. He’s my new assistant for the day seeing as he doesn’t want to face the wrath of Ms Lily in Geography. Say hi, Duck," Molly murmured in her signature accent as she nodded her head over to a teen dressed in a plait shirt and jeans, huddled over a comic book on another bed.
"Clem, you see me a lot during the year, but never for something like this. What happened, hun?" Sarah asked. I love when she calls me that.
"I, uh, I was... Hot."
"It's only fifty-seven degrees today. And I was just testin' ya, you had a hyperventilation-induced-panic-attack." Sarah was sill studying for her nursing boards and was clearly very proud of herself for being able to answer.
I grew uncomfortable under the trios gazes.
"I'm gonna go to class now." I quickly stand up, then quickly lose my balance, thus falling forward and nearly breaking my face in the process. Nurse Sarah gently pulled me up and tapped my nose. "Be careful, Clementine! And if you ever need me to talk to about you know the move and your parents and all that? I'm here."
If I break my ass will she tap that too?
One can only wonder.
I slip out of the nurses' office with a pass and make my way to fourth period.
I don't like girls.
:)
So far, I have had the worst day ever.
So, I was at lunch, going to sit at my table and finish reading Wuthering Heights, but then I tripped. Boy, did I trip.
I tripped, and went face first to the ground. And my food went spilling all over me. I remained on the ground for a few more seconds, because the only thing my body can register is pain and the sound of laughter. I pull my face up, and my heart actually stops, and breaks.
Louis, my supposed friend, is standing there, holding himself and guffawing, and his friend Marlon is rolling on the ground, killing- himself-laughing, but that's not what truly hurts me the most.
My eyelashes are smeared with an unknown substance, but I can still see perfectly what hurts me. What hurts me is that Violet is standing there with tears in her eyes, pointing at me, and sniggering along with her usual bunch o groupies. She's draped against her almost girlfriend Minnie who couldn’t care less about the situation and is just playing with her joint lighter. I pull myself up, and make my way out of the lunchroom in a dash, leaving my book and my food forgotten. Everything was just in pain.
Everything just hurt.
After my unsettling public embarrassment, I try to reduce the tears that threaten to fall, and I succeed in that, trying to remember that majority of those idiots aren't going to make it into Harvard and I am. Ignorant twits. I changed my clothes (I always keep a second pair for safety) and headed to the Art Room for the remainder of the lunch period, as that's the only place where it's empty this period, and I can work on assignments and not be bothered by paper targeted at the back of my head.
With a silent sigh, I look at the art around me. Just paintings of-
... Is that a... Is that a penis?...
And while I finish up my math, now disgusted, I hear my name over the intercom,"Clementine Everett, please report to the principals office, Clementine Everett." And internally thank God/Marilyn Monroe that I don't have to face the eyes of eighth graders. They've probably gotten a nickname for me now... Again.
It's only gotten worse since Violet moved into town.
Toad legs, Run-Up-Get-Done-Up, Vicky McVirgin, Gold Star (I hate that one), Quadruple-Eyes when I used to wear glasses (I guess it makes her feel smarter instead of using the word 'four'.) Some of the things she calls me, I just don't understand. Like, this one.
Orange.
...?
I'm not tan. And Clementine’s aren’t oranges. I guess now I know where Louis got it from.
All in all, she calls me a lot of things... And since shes once again noticed my not so tall but taller than her height last week, now I've been deemed Giraffe.
I sometimes despise that I love her.
I enter the office with a gentle push on the door, and see Ms Kate, the secretary smiling at me. My spirits are lifted a little bit as I pass by her desk and I take a seat in Dads leather chair.
"Clementine- er Miss Everett, are you okay?" Dad asked. I nod. "I was told about your... Incident, at lunch, and I figured that the least you wanted was a break from all these kids. Oh, here," he says, gently pushing my forgotten book towards me. I mutter,"Thank you."
"As you know, there's been er numerous breakouts of fights this month, with the same particular person, and I want to put an end to it. Seeing that you are one of my best students in, well, the school, I think you're the perfect girl for the job. So, I'm going to assign a task to you. You are going to be my new monitor. My little spy. My accomplice. My helping hand. My guide dog." He rambled, drumming his fingers on the desk.
I really, really hope he means I get to monitor like monitors. Computer monitors. Google is cool. "Student monitor." Dammit. "For the rest of this month, you will be assigned to that student, and you will monitor her actions." Her?... "You will also help her with her studies, because, well, she ain't doin' so well. Oh, excuse my southern side. I've been watching those game shows and the people you see on them! Wow. And Kenny of course.”
"Are you up to it?" I give him a thin lipped smile, push my brown ringlets behind my ear and straighten my cap. "Alright then. Miss Violet Keane, come on out."
"The name is just Violet. Come on, Lee, you know that." Dad ignores the girl's remark to her first name, and points to the seat... Next?To me. "Take a seat, Violet."
Wait.
Violet.
I have to monitor...? Violet? For a... Month?
"Lee doll , you're really not gonna make me waste my time with Ally McAbstinece here are you?"
"I'm Principle Everett to you" Dad cleared his throat and straightened his posture with a wiggle. "Clementine is a great inspiration to numerous kids around the school, and I think it'd be great if you stepped in the same path path as her- Clementine, are you okay? You look a little pale..."
I'm gonna die.
"I'm fine," I squeak. Violet slouches in her chair and her shirt rides up and- Oh my God, she has the most faintest abs I've ever seen. But besides that.
I'm gonna start hyperventilating again. "
Violet, can you handle a month with Clementine here?"
"Whatever, I guess. Not like I have a choice” She... She actually said?...Yes? "As long as she doesn't touch me or whatever. I don’t Princess Perfects germs all over me..." ... I feel like a feather right now...
Everything is all blurry?... "So, starting tomorrow you'll be... -Clem? Are yo- ... Jesus, not aga- What the fuck dude hey off of me-... She's drooling on-... Is she dea-... She's out like your one in Eurovision..."
And that's the last of what I heard.
And although my body was nonfunctional, my brain was wide awake, and my mind was screaming in my ears.
Violet Keane and Clementine Everett, together.
Vi and I were going to be together.
Then, I see black.
So, apparently, I have a fainting/hyperventilation/panic attack problem, and I need to stay home for the rest of the day. This is purely unacceptable. Dad drove me home.
I'm sitting in my room on my bed, still trying not to go into a coma at the thought of being in the same room as Emaline, when there's no one around but us. Although I'm 99.9% sure that Violet hates my guts, I still can't believe she actually agreed to it. I'm gonna have to watch her through school, and that means gym.
I don't have gym, so I'm predicting I just get to watch.
Hell yes.
But then again, why would she stick with me for even more than a second? Like I said, it's pretty obvious she hates me. The first time we met at school, I can still remember those first, same... Colorful words.
'Are you from Texas? 'Cuz your forehead can't BE any bigger.'
Such a good memory.
I need to get a grip of myself...She purely despises me with a passion. She despises everyone with a passion. Apart from her friends and some kid called Tenn in first grade. And I guess she doesn’t mind Louis. But that’s not the point. I can't keep on thinking that this is gonna somehow change her view towards me. I'm still Vicky McVirgin, I'm still the black girl who blacks out wherever she goes, I'm still... Me. And I can conclude that Violet will never seem to accept that.
I sigh as Tiffany saunters up to me and lays on my lap and meows. "I am not freaking out, Tiff. It's just?You know how long I've liked Violet."
Tiffany meows again. "A month is too a long time!" ... "Can we count in light-months?" She hissed at me and jumped off of my lap, and I straightened my glasses as a knock at the door caught my attention.
Yay, the pizza guy is here!
I grab my twelve dollars and rush out of my room and to the front door, and- Dammit, AGAIN?
"Ow..." I push myself off the floor and frown at my hand. My money is all crinkled now. I hate that. I straighten my clothes once again, and open the door to...
So. Not. The pizza guy.
"Buhfluhbaguh..."
Why does my mouth hate me so damn much?
"Um, okay?..." Violet. At my door. In my house. She slides past me and claps her hands together. "Let's get one thing straight, Er...Orange? We are not friends. I'm only here because my mom is fucking killing me about grades this year, and you're a nerd, so you can help me. So, let's get started."
She's?Talking to me and not directly making an insult. "Clementine."
She gives me a blank look. "What?"
"My name... It's Clementine." I look down at me feet as she continues burning holes into me with her eyes, and she snorts with laughter. I remain quiet. "I know" I let out a silent sigh. "Can we just get to the part where you help me pass school? And what the hell are you looking at? Is there a piece of lint shaped like George Bush down there?"
My eyes snap up at her snide comment, and I sigh again. "Principle Everett said that we don't start until tomorrow..."
"Ugh, well, whatever then. I'm missing the Drama anyway." And just like that, my first ever, real conversation with Violet Keane was over. She confuses me.
She disappears out front door and I mentally check again that I just had a conversation with her. "By the way, I'm not going around hanging with someone with a name like Clementine Everett. Your name'll be..." She saunters over to the door and off she goes. Just in time as Lee’s Jeep slides into the driveway.
She bites her lip...
It's freaking adorable.
I just wanna eat her up and out and in every possible way...
That was very, non-subtly dirty.
But I can't deny the truth.
"Just Clem."
Wow. How creative!
"Bye, loser!" And she's gone again.
...Vi and Clem
I don't know why... But that phrase just has heaven's ring to it.
Where’s Ben with my pizza?