Chapter Text
Tina was having a terrible day. She fought with her sister at breakfast, she found out she failed a math test she’d studied really hard for, and her underarms had been sweating since first period.
All of that was fine. Manageable. Tina could have forgiven the universe for all of that, if Jimmy Jr. had noticed her hair.
Tina got a new curling iron for her birthday—probably the cheapest one on the market, yes, but that didn’t bother her. She loved it. She treasured it. She fixated on learning how to curl her hair, pouring over tutorials and practicing in the mirror. That morning, she had gotten up early and painstakingly curled every hair on her head.
She felt pretty, and her mom gushed over her, but what she really wanted was for Jimmy Jr. to notice. She fantasized about him calling her pretty, or beautiful, or enchanting. When she saw him in the hallway at school, she made eye contact and smiled expectantly.
He didn’t say anything. Of course he didn’t. He just stared at her blankly, like she wasn’t even there, and then he looked away. That’s what he always did. Tina felt like an idiot. Stupid, and embarrassed, and exhausted. She hated high school, and she just wanted to go home.
When she arrived in her afternoon science, class she flopped down in her chair in a huff. She no longer cared if the harsh movement ruffled her curls.
After she’d been sitting down for a few moments feeling sorry for herself, she saw a small piece of paper land on her desk. Surprised, she turned her head to look at the person who had left her the note.
Zeke was in the seat next to her, his head cocked goofily to one side and a toothy grin lighting up his face. Tina couldn’t bring herself to smile back, instead furrowing her eyebrows apprehensively before reaching for the folded scrap of notebook paper on her desk.
She opened it slowly, a little hesitant, knowing she wouldn’t be able to take it if the note was critical or mocking. Her self esteem had already been through the ringer today. When at last Tina had unfolded the note and saw its message staring back at her, she felt a sea of warmth beginning to creep into her cheeks.
Your hair looks pretty like that :)
Tina jerked her head to look over at Zeke, half bracing herself for laughter, but he just kept smiling at her. Then, as though to punctuate his message, he gave her a thumbs up.
Tina smiled down at her note, sheepish and thrilled. Someone did like her hair. A boy, nonetheless. Zeke’s handwriting was thick, like he had dug the pencil in with all of his strength. The smiley face next to his words was lopsided, and Tina suddenly felt herself forgetting why she had been upset all day.
She opened her science notebook and tore off a corner of a page, scribbling down her own note for Zeke. Before she could stop herself, she drew a heart at the end. She even colored it in.
Thank you. Her note read . I like your shirt. That ‘s a good color on you <3
She leaned over in her chair, placing the note on Zeke’s desk where he could see it.