Chapter Text
John leaned back against the ugly grey tile of the wall in the usual alcove where his friends met up every morning and closed his icy blue eyes.
It was the first day of their senior year, he'd been in the halls for less than 5 minutes, and he was already done- done with school, done with the teachers, done with the boy he'd been and the man he was rapidly becoming.
The guidance counsellor had recommended he not come back- not for a few weeks, anyway- but he'd ignored her. He usually did when someone offered him advice, but he was beginning to think his stubborn streak had steered him wrong this time. Even the low buzz of teenage joy that was beginning to build in the hall seemed to echo inside his skull in the beginnings of a massive headache.
"John? My god, is that really you? What did you do to your hair?"
He opened his eyes to see Barbara looking at him with one of her sharp eyebrows raised.
"Good to see you too, Barbara, Ian," John said nodding to his friends. "Did you have a good summer?"
"Not too bad, worked for my dad most of the summer, but I made some money, so that's always nice," Ian said before Barbara could start in on John again. "We tried to call. I'm sorry, John."
"I don't want to talk about it," he said, cutting off any further comment that Ian might have made.
"John!" Barbara said, angrily.
"Honestly, Barb, I don't want to talk about it. Just... tell me about your summer."
She opened her mouth as though to speak again, still frowning, but Ian laid a hand on her shoulder to stop her. She closed her mouth after a moment.
"Johnny-boy!"
The three of them turned to the entrance of the alcove to see Jack Harkness striding over to wrap John in a bear hug.
"Didn't hear from you all summer. Not that I blame you, sorry about that. Love the new jacket. Would never have known you had quite such a fine ass under that ridiculous thing you wore last year," Jack said with a grin, prowling around John to look him over.
John rolled his eyes even to remember the long, green, velvet coat he'd worn all the previous year. He'd found it at a thrift shop, paid far more for it than he should have, and worn it thinking it made him seem mysterious, whimsical, and unique.
"Yeah... can we not talk about that either?" he asked, cringing slightly at the memory.
"The clothes are good, but what prompted you to cut off those curls? The buzz makes your ears look a bit..."
"Jack!" Barbara said, sharply. Of the group, she was very much the one who kept them all in line- mothering them when they needed it, and bullying them when they needed that.
"He can't be surprised!" Jack objected.
"I was, actually, when I first cut it off, but I dunno... I think they make me look distinguished."
"That's a word for it, isn't it?" Sarah Jane asked as she joined the little group, sliding naturally under John's right arm and giving him a side-arm hug. "How was your uncle's?"
"Boring," he said, shortly.
He'd avoided every phone call and e-mail all summer after his house had gone up in flames just after finals the previous year. He'd never had what anyone could call a 'close' relationship with his mother, father, and brother, but to have them all dead in an instant while he'd been out on a camping trip had broken something inside of him. He'd been shipped off to his uncle Wilf's farm until his 18th birthday two weeks prior, when he'd left and come back to find an apartment that he could afford on his parents' trust until he graduated and left for university. He'd had the option of putting his graduation off for a year, but the thought of another year of high school, and this one without his friends, was horrifying.
It didn't mean he wanted to talk about it, however.
Jack was digging in his wallet and pulled out a couple of dollars. "Buy you a drink, big guy?" he asked John, cocking his head at the vending machine that had, the previous year, been emptied of sodas and re-stocked with flavoured milks, waters, and 100% juices.
"Anything but carrot juice," John said, extracting himself from Sarah Jane and joining Jack in the queue for the machine.
"You and Sarah Jane going to make a go of it this year?" Jack asked.
John frowned and made a non-committal noise in response. He'd once seriously considered doing exactly that. At the end of the previous year, he'd decided it was time to finally ask Sarah Jane out- she'd been hinting for years, but he'd always put her off. This was to be his senior year, however, and he'd wanted it to be memorable. Then his parents had died and everything had changed and now...
Now he just wanted the year over. No girlfriend. No Sarah Jane. No memories. Just done.
Jack didn't press and he bought their drinks- chocolate milk for John, strawberry for Jack- and returned to their friends.
The last of their little band of oddballs, John Benton, had arrived while they were gone, and he with news.
"There's a new girl from out of town," he was saying to the group as Jack and John returned. "Think she's already been picked up by Mickey and Adam and that bunch, but she seemed nice when she asked me directions to the art wing. Said she's taking a photography class and wanted to meet the teacher."
John shook his head. Their little group was too peculiar for anyone who might catch the eye of the golden boys, Mickey and Adam, to bother with. There was Jack, who was openly pansexual in the conservative little town. There were Ian and Barbara, both homeschooled and therefore practically alien to the rest of the class who had been together since kindergarten. Sarah Jane could have made a go of real popularity, but she'd aligned herself with John who was the sort of kid that everyone else in high school hates- too smart by half, always asking complicated questions, sighing at everyone else's questions, and generally frustrating teachers and students alike. His grades were near perfect, but his attitude made him the bane of every teacher's existence. Benton might have been popular as well- good looking, and reasonably good at sports- but he'd chosen the school play over the football team one year, and the entire school had turned on him in an instant.
No, John thought, if this girl knew what was good for her, she would run for her life.
~?~?~?~?~
Rose Tyler, it seemed, did not know what was good for her. She was that peculiar sort of person who does not quite fit into any group, but is warm and pleasant enough to be welcome in all of them.
Mickey and Adam were both making obvious plays for her attention- one the captain of the football team, the other student council president, and both wildly popular in their own right- and she appeared to flirt with both of them. There was an ongoing, low-level buzz about which of the pair of them she would, eventually (and inevitably) date, and when Mickey Smith asked her to Homecoming, everyone knew within minutes.
She was not, however, stuck in the role of 'football groupie.' She was taking photography and had quickly been recruited both by the student newspaper and the yearbook committee when her photos were so highly praised by the teacher of that class. Sarah Jane was the student head of the newspaper, and had been on yearbook staff from her first year and swore that Rose, in spite of being a sophomore, was brilliant.
Jack had introduced himself to her, as he introduced himself to everyone, with an offer to shag and a sparkling grin. She'd answered with an equally-bright grin and had turned him down flat. Jack, never put off by a rejection, had asked if she had any sisters or brothers- he wasn't picky. Without missing a beat at the vagaries of his sexual preferences, Rose had admitted that she had a brother, but given that he was only two years old, Jack might find that he'd have better luck elsewhere. Jack had simply told her that he was good at waiting, and it was possible that in about 16 years he'd be ready to settle down anyway. She'd laughed and promised to give her brother Jack's number on his 18th birthday.
John had managed to avoid her, and was quite proud of himself for doing it, until the physics teacher, Dr. Lethbridge, called him in one day and asked if he'd be interested in tutoring a younger student who was having a hard time.
John had agreed, and that was how he came to find himself in Lethbridge's classroom one Tuesday lunch period. He had seen that golden head bent over a textbook, and had nearly left immediately. He might have done, except that she'd looked up and smiled at him.
He'd been told by several people that the new girl had a smile that could kill at 100 paces, but he hadn't believed a word of it. He'd seen her in the halls, and she always seemed to be smiling, but it was nothing more peculiar than a very pretty girl with a very pretty smile. Nothing to turn John's head- he was above such things.
Until the power of that smile was turned on him directly, that was- no reflected glory here, but the full force of the sun aimed right at him, seemingly designed to melt the ice that everyone said that he must have running through his veins.
"Hi!" she said, standing and offering a hand in addition to that smile. "I don't think I've met you, though of course I've seen you around, not a very big school, is it? Mr. Lethbridge said that your name was John Lord. I'm Rose Tyler."
She said this all very fast and with a slight bubble in her delivery that spoke of nerves that became more pronounced as John did not take her hand to shake or allow his face to show any response to her words.
"Er… all right then. Do you want to get started?" Rose asked when she finally gave up waiting for him to shake her hand. She used it, instead, to gesture to the textbook open on the desk. "I'm crap at math and science. Was always better at languages and arts. So…"
She trailed off as though waiting for him to speak, but still John was silent.
Rose began to feel nerves displaced by irritation- who the hell was this person and why had he agreed to tutor her if he was going to refuse to speak to her? Mr. Lethbridge had assured her that he'd found one of his best students to agree to tutor her, but it seemed that perhaps he'd been shanghaied into it instead.
"Look, do you even want to be here?" she asked, finally allowing irritation and anger to color her voice. "Because I told Lethbridge that he didn't have to find a tutor for me, but he insisted. I told him not to put anyone out, but he said you'd agreed to it. If he made you do it, then I'm sorry, and you can go on, I'll find someone else. I'll be sure to tell him you did a great job."
"And when you fail your next test, he'll know you're lying," John said, gruffly.
Rose let out an irritated breath. "I told you, I'll find someone else to tutor me."
"They won't be as good. I'm top of the senior class. More than that, I'm top of any class they've ever seen. I'm a prodigy."
"And rather modest as well. The thing is that if someone wants to teach me, they'll be a better teacher than someone smarter who doesn't want to do it."
John was finding that his brain was finally working again now that her smile was gone. Acid and temper he could handle, bubbly nerves and brilliant smiles he couldn't. It just wasn't in him.
"Smart, but wrong," John snapped. "You're always better off being taught by someone who can answer all your questions."
"Smart, but wrong," she threw back at him. "You're better of being taught by someone who can explain to you how to answer your own questions."
"Which is someone who knows the material."
"Which is someone who cares about the material!"
Rose was shouting now, and John was close to it, the pair of them advancing on each other until they were only inches away, shouting into the other's angry face.
"I care about the material!"
"But you don't care about teaching it. So go on, get out of here. I'll find someone less damned impressive and learn more from them than I could possibly learn from you."
"Hah, good luck there. How many times do I have to tell you? No one in this school knows more physics than me."
"And how many times do I have to tell you that you will absolutely not be tutoring me? Go on, leave!"
"Fine!" John shouted and spun on his heel to storm out. He slammed the door behind himself and stalked down the hall a few feet until he stopped.
Oh hell, he thought, what had happened there? It was absolutely not a case of not wanting to be a tutor- he'd been honest when he'd told Lethbridge that he was happy to do it with his free period. He wanted to tutor but, for some reason, he'd been shocked when he'd seen who he would be tutoring.
Somehow, that brilliant, gold-tinged smile had melted the ice in his veins and it had made him feel like making the year memorable might not be such a horrible idea after all. Then he'd remembered that this was the girl being courted by Mickey Smith and Adam Mitchell- pretty boys with normal-sized ears, straight teeth, and parents. Not gawky nerds with a thin gloss of cold disdain barely keeping them from being a caricature.
He sighed. He'd panicked and been a complete ass to her, and she didn't deserve that. Honestly, he was impressed that she was worried enough about her grades to bother with a tutor. Barbara was in the same French class as her, which meant she was highly accelerated, and Sarah Jane said that her photos for the yearbook and newspaper were beyond brilliant. She could have gotten by on only those talents (Mickey Smith tended to do so with his football skills) but she'd chosen to work hard in classes that she had a harder time in instead, and John had to respect that, even grudgingly.
No, he needed to go back, apologize, and get her to let him tutor her.
He heaved a heavy sigh and turned back toward the physics classroom. When he reached the door, he could see her- still sitting at the desk, head in her hands, staring at the textbook open before her, though her eyes were not moving.
John opened the door and stepped in just a bit sheepishly. She looked up at him, and he couldn't quite read her expression, but she wasn't cursing at him, so that was something.
"Erm…" he said, then trailed off.
She did not answer, only raised a single eyebrow. One that, he noted nonsensically, did not match the colour of her hair. Not a natural blonde then.
"Erm… I didn't mention but I can also tutor you in calculus, if you need it?"
~?~?~?~?~
A month into the school year and John was finding that the only bright spots in the dull weeks were the Tuesday lunches and Wednesdays after-school that he spent in the little physics classroom with Rose Tyler, trying to force enough physics and algebra into her brain that she didn't completely fail either class.
She was bright and clever, but she had no head for numbers.
"I'm not bad at geometry and trig," she said one day after John failed to explain a formula to her in a way that she understood for the fourth time. "Spatial reasoning, photo composition, I'm good at that stuff. Even in 3D I'm not too bad, but this? This is mad."
"It's not. This is the building blocks of the universe- everything from your bike to the North star follows these rules, you know? It's totally simple. Intrinsic."
"Then clearly I'm an alien from another universe. Somewhere the laws of physics were designed by a madman instead, 'cause none of it makes any sense to me."
"Yeah? What kind of a universe is that?"
Rose shrugged and gave him a grin that had her bubblegum-pink tongue tucked into the corner of it. John Lord was developing a soft spot for Rose Tyler's smiles, but this one… this one burned a hole straight through him to his heart (and points south).
"Probably have zeppelins instead of airplanes."
"That's not physics, that's history. We might use zeppelins if not for the Hindenberg."
"All right, fine. Maybe a universe where everything is bigger on the inside- like you step into a 4x4 box and it's the size of a cathedral inside, how's that for physics, Doctor?"
John couldn't help the smile that crossed his face. She called him that whenever he got pedantic, which was regularly, and it pleased him in some obscure part of his makeup to have a nickname. Particularly one from her. He'd never seen her give it to Mickey Smith. The jury was still out of whether she and the football star were dating- no one had heard whether she had accepted his invitation to the homecoming dance or not.
"If I'm the Doctor, does that make you my assistant?"
"God no, I'd be terrible as an assistant. I could be your companion though."
"Companion?"
"Yeah, your plus-one. Your date."
At the last word, John startled like a rabbit.
"I don't date," he said, gruffly, and started gathering his books.
"Er… all right." She sounded confused. "Only I thought... "
"You thought wrong," John snapped, closing his backpack and speeding from the room. The session had, technically, ended over an hour ago, but they had been going longer and longer as the pair had become friends. It wasn't as though John had any reason to get home, and it sounded like Rose's mom and step-dad were happy enough to extend her curfew to spend more time in academic pursuits.
John rushed through the empty halls of the school, trying not to think about what Rose had said- what she might have been implying. She would go to homecoming with Mickey (the idiot, as John had taken to adding to his name in his head), so she couldn't have been saying what he thought she was saying. He'd run away from her like a coward because of something in his own head, and she was going to think he was a completely crazy.
"John?"
He spun, expecting Rose to have followed him out to talk to him (probably to tell him that he was a madman) but found himself facing Sarah Jane instead.
"Sarah!" he cried, sounding far too excited. At that moment, he was pleased to see anyone on the planet but Rose. "What are you still doing here?"
"Newspaper stuff, as usual. Didn't expect you here so late either."
"Tutoring."
"Oh, right, of course! Rose, and all that. Bit late though, she still having trouble?"
"Er… a bit, yeah," John hedged. There was something just slightly mean in the way Sarah Jane said that.
"Well, I'm sure you'll get through to her eventually. You're brilliant. She's only a kid, after all."
"Er… right," John said with a frown. Intellectually, he knew that Rose was younger than him, but he'd never really thought of her as a kid. She was smart and funny and challenged him when he got prickly and rude.
"Look, John, I've been meaning to talk to you actually. Alone." Sarah Jane seemed completely unaware of John's internal turmoil and stepped forward to lay a hand over his chest.
John jumped at her sudden proximity, and the intimacy of her touch.
"We've been dancing around this for years, you know?" Sarah Jane continued. "I think it's high time we make a go of it for real. I was always kind of waiting for you to ask me, but it's the 21st century, I can ask you, right?"
"No," John blurted out.
"No? No I can't ask you?"
"No," John said again, feeling like a broken record. "No, you can ask. Of course you can ask. Obviously. But… no… I don't want to date you."
Sarah Jane's eyes widened. She had obviously not expected the rejection.
"But… why not? We've been best friends for ages, John."
"Yeah, and that's what we are, Sarah: best friends. This isn't some movie where the best friends end up getting married- sometimes friends just stay friends."
"But… what about last year? What about when we went camping? What was that all about?"
John felt the tips of his ears flush remembering. They'd shared a tent, some beers, and a bit of heavy petting that weekend, and it had been then he'd decided that he'd ask her out.
"Everything changed when my parents died, Sarah. I'm not the same person I was then. I won't say it didn't mean anything, but it meant less than it should, and less now than it did then."
"Oh my god," she whispered. "You were using me?"
"No!" he said, and wondered how many times more he'd have to say that in this conversation. "I was going to ask you out, Sarah, but then everything happened, and… well… it's all different now."
"Is there someone else?"
John felt that he might get whiplash from her changing tones- one moment nearly in tears, the next angry and judging.
"No!" John shouted, though his mind immediately conjured an image of Rose Tyler's tongue-touched smile.
"Oh my god, it's Rose Tyler, isn't it? For god's sake, John, she's a sophomore, what are you going to do when you leave? Long distance never works, you know that."
"I'm not dating Rose Tyler."
"And isn't she dating Mickey Smith, or near enough as makes no difference? You know that someone who will cheat with you will cheat on you?"
"I'm not dating Rose! There's nothing between us. She's just some girl I tutor, all right? Why are you making this about her?"
"Just tell me why you won't go out with me and I won't have to guess!"
John sighed. "No. I've told you but you're not listening. My parents died less than six months ago and I… just… can't. I can't be the kid I was back in May with you, Sarah. That kid died in that fire along with my mom and dad and Brax. I'd be no good for you now, if we dated and, honestly, you're not what I need either."
"I could be!"
"Don't do this. Please don't do this to me or to you. Honestly, Sarah, we can't. I can't. I need a friend, right now, not a girlfriend. Can't we be that? Please?"
She shook her head, tears glittering in her wide, brown eyes. "I don't know, John. Do you know how many dates I turned down over the years because I was waiting for you to finally see me? For you to finally be ready?"
A wash of anger flared up in him at that. "No, don't you dare put that on me, Sarah Jane Smith. If you turned people down, that was your decision, not mine. I never asked you to wait for me."
"But I did wait for you…"
"Maybe you shouldn't have."
John turned to walk away from her, anger, guilt, frustration, and hurt swirling in his chest. He hoped that whatever had broken between him and Sarah Jane that day wasn't completely destroyed.
As the doors to the school came into view, he saw Rose rushing through them, pink backpack bouncing with each step as she took off down the darkening street. He thought about running to catch up with her- offer her a ride home- but hesitated. She might have heard what had passed between Sarah Jane and him and he didn't want to talk about it. Not to anyone.
He let her disappear into the darkness.
The next day, everyone was talking about the fact that Rose Tyler had accepted Mickey Smith's invitation to the homecoming dance. Fewer people were talking about the fact that Sarah Jane Smith was officially dating John Benton as well.
~?~?~?~?~
For three weeks, things between John and Sarah Jane were strained. Oddly, however, things between him and Rose Tyler were not.
Despite the fact that she was officially 'with' Mickey Smith now, she seemed to have no interest in the homecoming court to which he had been elected, or in any of the spirit week celebrations that were in full planning mode. She had mentioned that she would be photographing those things, but was otherwise uninvolved. She put all of her focus, instead, into her midterms, and John was instrumental in helping her with those.
On the Wednesday afternoon before spirit week, John was quizzing Rose on physics terms when her stomach let out a nearly deafening growl.
"God, I'm sorry about that," she said, flushing a becoming shade of pink. "Skipped lunch today to take some very artistic shots of the band and football uniforms while the locker rooms and band rooms were empty."
John chuckled. She had expressed her distaste on several occasions for how boring the photos required of her for the yearbook had been.
"If they're so damned interested in the football team, they'd let me take pictures of them showering instead. At least that one might get me noticed in an artistic portfolio."
"You just want to go ogle their naked butts, don't deny it, Rose Tyler," he had joined.
"Guilty! Love a good ass, but a nice smile is important too."
"Jack says Mickey has both," John had said, without thinking. He didn't like reminding himself that Rose was, technically, with someone else, but his mouth seemed determined to remind him every chance. "I wouldn't be much of a judge, you know?"
Rose had shrugged. "Sure, he's fine," she said, without much conviction. "Now Jack, on the other hand, he's got the whole package."
"He's quite proud of that package."
Rose had grinned. "I'll bet he is."
In the present, John asked Rose if she wanted to go grab some food. "No point studying on an empty stomach, you won't retain anything properly."
"No, I don't want to put you out. I'll grab something on my way home later."
"Absolutely not, I insist, Rose Tyler! I refuse to tutor you when you won't remember a word of it, so you'll have to have some dinner. Doctor's orders!"
Rose laughed, but John suddenly had a sobering thought.
"Unless, of course, you think Rickey might have a problem with it?"
Rose frowned. "Mickey? Why would he care?"
John swallowed hard. "No reason. Come on, what are you hungry for?"
They ended up at a fast food restaurant. Rose had ordered a large order of fries and was eating them as though they were the height of epicurean delight, and John watched her like she was the most fascinating thing in the world.
Somehow, Sarah Jane's accusation had dislodged something in him. He'd told her that he'd be no good for her, and she'd be no good for him, but it had made him realize that maybe there was someone who would- someone whose smile made him feel a wee little strain of hope somewhere in the dark anger in which he'd lived since his parents had died. Someone who could actually make him laugh.
Someone like Rose Tyler.
Sarah was right- their time would be woefully limited, but he wondered if he cared. Might it not be more worthwhile to have what he could have with her while he could than to worry forever about what the next year would bring?
There was the small issue of her boyfriend, but she never seemed to think of him at all, and that let John forget him as well when they were together. Their Tuesday lunches and Wednesday after-schools had morphed over the weeks. She would seek him out in the hallways to ask questions and show him her graded assignments and tests. The first time she had aced a physics exam, she had thrown herself into his arms and he'd been so thrilled he'd picked her up and swung her in his arms for several long minutes until a teacher had yelled at the pair of them.
He knew, if he pursued anything with her, it would make Sarah Jane furious, but she was with Benton now, and they seemed to be doing well- what little he saw of the pair of them since he and Sarah had fought.
"Are you going to the homecoming game next weekend?" Rose asked after she'd finally polished off her fries.
"Eh?"
"Football game next weekend? Kind of a big deal? Parade and everything that goes with it is all anyone at school has been talking about? Surely you've heard tell."
"Shut up," he said with a grin. "Yeah, Jack usually drags me along. Ian and Barbara won't want me sitting home alone all night, and with the three of them ganging up, it's easier just to give in. You going?"
"Yeah, think I'll drop by," she said with a cheeky grin.
"Right, course you'll be there. Important that you watch your Mickey get crowned homecoming king."
"Actually, I'll be taking pictures for the newspaper and the yearbook," she said, with an odd look over at him.
"Right, 'course. That too."
Rose pursed her lips and glanced back down at her empty fry container. After a long moment, they both started to speak together.
"John, do you-"
"Do you need a ride home, then?"
They both stopped, looking a bit sheepish.
"I'm sorry, what were you-" John began.
"Yeah, I'd like a ride home," Rose cut him off. "Getting a bit dark."
"Right, yeah," John said, pulling out his car keys. "We can go then, whenever you like."
She directed him to one of the seedier neighborhoods in town and to a house that couldn't even have three bedrooms.
"That's me. Thanks for the lift, John. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yeah, see you tomorrow, Rose Tyler."
She reached up to one of his hands on the steering wheel, and gave the smallest squeeze before jumping out of the car and heading up to the front door of the little house.
John watched her until she had the door open and waved at him before closing it behind her.
~?~?~?~?~
"Why do we come to this every year? We hate football."
Jack laughed. "Only you hate football, the rest of us are ambivalent to it, and it's an important part of the academic year."
"The band is off-key."
"The band is always off-key, John," Barbara said as she and Ian returned from the concession stand with a round of hot chocolates for everyone. "Worst band in the state."
"Worst football team in the state too," Jack said with a grin. "Worst academics, at least when Johnny here breaks the curve."
"Not my fault everyone at this school is an ape, is it?"
"Our one claim to fame is the prettiest reporters, eh?" Jack said, looking over John's shoulder.
John turned quickly, hoping that Rose was coming up behind them. It was, however, Sarah Jane and Benton instead.
"Don't worry, John," Sarah said, acidly, "no one expects you to agree with Jack."
"What? No, our reporters are all gorgeous, naturally," John stammered. He really hated how angry Sarah was with him. It seemed wrong that she should still be so, but also dating poor Benton.
"You really think so?" she asked, and suddenly the ice was gone.
"Yeah, 'course I do," John said, surprised. A person would have to be blind not to think Sarah was pretty- silky brown hair and large dark eyes. She was very pretty, even if he didn't want to date her he could acknowledge that.
Sarah looked inordinately pleased at this half-compliment, half-confession and was warmer toward John than she had been in weeks. John was surprised, but not displeased at her sudden change.
A quarter of an hour later, John was wrenched from a conversation with Ian and Benton at Jack's bright call of "Rosie!" over his head. He looked up and, sure enough, there was Rose Tyler, looking absolutely adorable in leggings, a denim miniskirt, and a long, multi-coloured scarf, her blonde hair in two braids on the sides of her head. She looked young and funky and happy.
Jack rose and wrapped her in a bear hug when she came close enough, bending his head down to talk to her. John had not realized that the pair of them were so close, and something green and fanged in his chest seemed to squirm and make itself known. He was just about to get up and go to the pair of them when Sarah Jane planted herself in his lap.
John was shocked and glanced over at Benton, who took his seat beside John without a word. Sarah didn't say anything or do anything in particular but turn to watch the game, but John was wildly uncomfortable, and wanted to leave.
"Here, Sarah, go sit on Benton, I've got to go to the bathroom," John said, pushing her so she would get off his lap. When he returned, Sarah had taken his seat, so John sat next to Jack and Rose who were in deep conversation about something that had Jack looking scandalized.
"...Tricia Delaney, apparently," Rose was saying as John dropped into the seat beside her. "And I bought our tickets last week figuring it was a done deal."
"That bastard," Jack said with disgust.
Rose shrugged. "Whatever. If he wants to go with her that's fine. They'll be cute together, you know?"
John frowned. "But… aren't you dating Mickey?"
Rose turned to look at him in surprise. "Seriously? He's all right, but I barely know him. He's too busy with football to want to do anything outside of school, and I'm too busy with the newspaper to do anything either. When would we have gotten to hang out?"
John's mouth fell open.
"But he asked you to go and then changes his mind the night before the dance? That's not right!" Jack said, indignantly.
"It'll be fine. I'll wear the dress for… I dunno… something else. Maybe I'll get asked to prom. The tickets weren't that expensive."
John saw her bite her lower lip, the way she did when she was worried. He remembered the shabby little house where he'd dropped her off a few nights before, and had a feeling that a dress and homecoming tickets had been far more dear than she was letting on.
"You could go with someone else?" Jack suggested, unsure.
"Nah, the night before the dance? Everyone's already going with someone, aren't they?"
"John's not," Jack said, quickly.
"Benton?" Rose asked.
"He means me," John said, quietly.
"You?" Rose said, surprised. "Aren't you going with Sarah Jane? You seemed cozy earlier."
"She's dating Benton, has been for most of a month now," Jack said.
"Oh, she never said. I figured... " Rose trailed off and shook her head. "Well, I've an extra ticket, if you'd like to go, John. Could be a lot of fun, or it could be a total waste of time. But… you know, you don't have to. Probably a huge pain in the ass to get a tux at this point."
"Oh, he owns one," Jack said with a grin.
John shook his head, trying to stop Jack sharing this piece of information with her.
"Yeah? Why's that?"
Jack grinned evilly.
"Don't you dare," John said, warningly.
"Until last year, our sweet Johnny-boy was in the show choir," Jack said.
John buried his face in his hands in shame, but Rose didn't laugh.
"I didn't know you sang, John, you'll have to perform for me sometime," she said, sweetly.
"Means he's light on his feet as well," Jack said, poking John in the side.
"Cut it out, Jack. Stop that, John, show choir is fun. If I could carry a tune in a bucket, I might go out for it. But you still don't have to come to the dance with me. I know it would be really boring for you."
John looked up, swiftly. "No, I'd like to go with you. Take you. I'd like to take you to the dance, Rose, if you'd like."
Rose flushed that becoming shade of pink again.
"Oh… alright… yeah. That'd be great."