Chapter Text
"So then the fire alarm went off, and they had to evacuate the whole school because Mr Fern was using a fog machine in his PE class!” Ned concludes his story and you laugh with your friends.
“Oh no, hide me,” you say, quickly dodging behind Peter and Ned. Peter turns to look at you in puzzlement.
“What?”
“It’s just Brad. We got paired up in biology and he’s been really creepy ever since.”
“Oh come on, he can’t possibly be that creepy,” Ned says, moving slightly so that he’s no longer blocking you from view. “See? Nothing happened…”
He trails off as Brad sees you and makes his way over to your group. “Hey Y/n!”
You sigh, glaring at Ned as you reply. “Hi Brad.”
“Do you want to get together later to do the homework?” he asks, completely ignoring the two boys beside you. “Maybe we could go and get coffee after or something.”
“I think I’m busy,” you say, forcing a smile.
“Some other time?”
“Sure. Maybe,” You respond absentmindedly, grabbing your friends and dragging them into the crowded lunchroom.
“Sorry,” Ned apologizes hesitantly.
“It’s fine, you didn’t know. Brad just can’t take a hint.”
“Well it sucks regardless. Do you want us to do anything?” Peter asks, looking concerned. He’s so sweet.
“No, I think I’ll be fine. Thank you though.” You smile again, not at all forced this time. “By the way, are you still okay to pick me up early tomorrow?” you ask, changing the subject. You and Ned usually got a ride with him to school, but you had to go early to make up a test.
“Yeah, of course,” he nodded. “I can always hang out in the computer lab or something. Ned, do you want to come?”
“No, I need my sleep. You two have fun.” He gives Peter a look you can’t decipher, although Peter looks decidedly more red in the face then he did a second ago.
“Okay...” you say slowly. Whatever. You won’t call them out on it.
°•°•°•°
You stumble into the kitchen the next morning and nearly shriek when you see Brad sitting at the table with your mom. You thanked all the powers above you had actually changed out of your pajamas before coming out of your room for once. “What are you doing here?”
“He said he came to pick you up so you could make up your test.” Your mom raises her eyebrows questioningly. “I thought Peter was coming.”
“He is. Um, thank you Brad, it was very... sweet of you to come give me a ride, but it’s really not necessary.”
“No, he can’t come, he’s sick.” Brad says quickly. “He asked me if I could come. I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you ahead of time, but I don’t have your phone number.”
“No, Peter would have texted me.” You check your phone to see that it’s dead. Of course it is. You look up at the ceiling, trying very hard not to scream in frustration. The trust you have in Brad's statement is barely bigger than infinitesimal, but you don’t really have a way to verify. And your mom is starting to give you the Really Y/n try to be more polite look.
”You forgot to charge your phone again, didn’t you.” It’s not even a question anymore, this being such a regular occurrence. You rub your forehead, dragging a hand down your face.
“Let me grab my stuff and then we can go.” You can already tell this is going to be a long day.
About ten minutes later you’re sliding into Brad’s surprisingly nice car. If you had to think of a car to give him you would say a beat up minivan, probably smelling slightly like old cheese. Instead he had a fairly new Honda Civic, which decidedly did not smell like cheese.
“My dad gave it to me for my birthday,” Brad explains loftily as he starts the car. “Do you want to go somewhere to get breakfast?”
“No, I’m fine. Let’s just get to school.” You look out the window to avoid his gaze, which you can practically feel traveling across your body. You can’t help but compare him to Peter, who you know would never do anything to make you uncomfortable. It was one of the things you loved about him. Now where did that thought come from? Peter was your best friend, and if you started having an unrequited crush on him it would just make things weird in your friend group.
Your thoughts are pulled back to the here and now by Brad resting his hand on your knee. The boy literally did not know when to quit.
“Brad?” you say, still staring out the window.
“Yes?”
“You have five seconds to move your hand before I snap it off at the elbow,” you inform him, trying your best to keep your voice even.
“You’re so funny Y/n,” he chuckles, not moving. You’re a bit afraid of what might happen if you make good on your threat while he’s driving, so you wait until the next stop sign before opening the door and hopping out. You grab your backpack from where it had been resting on the floor of the car and start walking in the direction of your school.
“Wait, what are you doing?” Brad asks. He seems genuinely confused, and you have to resist the urge to get back into the car and slap some sense into him. Repeatedly.
“I’m walking to school.” you keep moving, looking for cars before crossing the street.
“But it’s like a mile still. You won’t even make it in time for first period, let alone your make-up test.”
“I’ll take my chances, and the subway,” you say. You don’t like the subway, and would much prefer Peter’s car, but beggars can’t be choosers.
“Okay,” Brad shrugs. “See you in biology.”
On second thought, maybe you could just walk and miss your first class.