Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Andrea Sanchez?”

“Here!”

“Jason Smith?” 

“Here.”

Lisa Swallows rolled her eyes. She knew she was next. She didn’t particularly care to make her presence in chemistry known. Idly, she flicked her pen against her notebook, mentally preparing for her bored sounding call. 

“Percy Steinman?”

“Present.”

Lisa’s head turned around to stare, but so did everyone else’s. He was…odd looking. Not ugly. Just…strange. His dark hair swooped in his eyes, it could probably look nice with some gel. But given the fully buttoned up white shirt with a black vest buttoned over grey trousers, she quickly deduced he didn’t care much about being in on the latest trends.

“Lisa Swallows?”

“What?” She turned, blinking out of her daze. “Uh, yeah…here…I’m here…”

“Nice of you to join us.” The teacher deadpanned. As the new kid let out a snort, Lisa assumed it must have been out of derision. She slumped into her chair, hoping it would make her invisible. At least she wouldn’t have to face him anytime soon. 

Except, it turned out, she would. He was in her English class too, apparently. Lisa habitually slid into her desk beside Taffy, as one of Taffy’s cheerleader friends, Lori asked “what’s with the weird new goth kid?”

“She’s not weird or new okay?” Taffy tried “Lisa’s my sister. She’s kind of like a hard candy, really hard on the outside but-“

“No, I mean the new new guy.”

Taffy’s head whipped around in the least discreet way possible “New new guy?”

“His name is Percy.” Lisa supplied in a monotone. 

Taffy’s eyes lit up “You like, know him?”

“No,” Lisa rolled her eyes “he’s just in my chemistry class, too.”

“You know, Lisa,” her stepsister tried “with a little fixing up…you could be cute with him.”

“And become double the creepy new kid fixation?” Lisa raised an eyebrow skeptically “I’ll pass.” 

“I’m just saying…” Taffy tried.

But the cheerleader was cut off by the English teacher coming in, proclaiming “If we could all get out our copies of Julius Caesar…”

And that should have been it.

But no. He was in her biology period, too.

Lisa had been tempted to skip anyway, she didn’t love biology, especially given the dissection of frogs, something she, as a vegetarian, was staunchly against. But worse than that, fucking Doug would be there. Doug who’d…who’d touched her at that party Taffy had dragged her out to. But Taffy had cheer practice, so if Lisa went home early, she’d have to walk. 

So she resigned herself to the existential horror that would be sitting in that classroom for 65 minutes. 

“Huh,” the teacher was mumbling already, though at the moment, she couldn’t see to who. “I suppose this does throw a wrench in the previous lab partner assignments…”

Lab partners? Her ears perked up. A chance to dump Doug as a lab partner? “Oh, wow, Mr. Wilson, a change in lab partners? Is there anything I could do to help out with that, or….?”

“Oh!” The teacher grinned. “Lisa! This will be perfect.” He turned to the other student he’d been talking to…the other new kid. “Lisa only transferred at the beginning of the semester, so you won’t feel like a total outcast.”

“Thanks, Mr. Wilson.” Lisa spoke dryly.

“And thank you,” the new guy turned, “Lisa, was it?”

“Yep.” She let the p pop.

“I…appreciate not being left for dead.” He gave a half hearted smile.

She sort of…grimaced back. She wasn’t doing him a favor. She was doing herself a favor. Totally different. 

Other students started to file in, and she slung her bag over her shoulder, making her way to the same habitual seat. Which would have been fine. If it wasn’t for Doug.

“Hey, Lees…” he smiled, trying to come off as warm, genuine, and charming, but he was not good at acting, the artificiality seeping through his tone and teeth. “Can we…talk about this weekend?’

“I’m not-”

Anything she was going to say was interrupted, suddenly, by that new kid. “Excuse me. But I believe you’re in my seat.”

Doug blinked, confused. He looked to the new student, then to Lisa, then back up to taller teen. “Um, no? Lisa and I are lab partners, pal. We’ve been-”

“Oh!” The teacher winced. “Doug! I’m so sorry. We’ve had to move some seats around. You’re not actually going to be partnering with Lisa anymore.”

Doug turned to Lisa once more “What?”

Lisa couldn’t help but grin a little as she shrugged “Sorry, Doug…”

As her old lab partner stepped away, the new one slid in next to her. “I’m sorry I interrupted you with your friend-”

“He is not my friend.” she interrupted, rolling her eyes. “If anything, I owe you one.”

The new kid eyed her in a way she couldn’t quite place. It was…intense, but not malevolent. Perceptive, but not judgmental. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Do whatever you want,” she muttered, almost mindlessly, flipping her notebook open to prepare for class.

That was the last time they’d converse, that day. 

It didn’t stop Taffy from making a mountain out of a mole hill. 

“Lisa!” She gasped, meeting her stepsister at her locker. “I saw you walking out of class with the new guy…”

Lisa rolled her eyes, dryly trying to correct “We weren’t walking together. We’re lab partners, we’re equidistant from the door.”

“Lab partners?” Taffy repeated. “I thought you were lab partners with that little mousy kid.”

“I was.” Lisa’s lips twitched up into a half-smile. “But not anymore. New kid joining meant we had to reconfigure the class, so…”

“So you’re paired up with him!” Taffy grinned. “I told you, you make a cute couple…”

“We’re lab partners, Taff.” Lisa sighed. “Not going to the prom together. Besides, you know I have my eye on…”

Taffy shook her head. “I just don’t see Michael for you. Besides, doesn’t he have a girlfriend? The one who drugged you?”

“Yeah, Tamara’s a bitch, but-”

“Wouldn’t it be so much easier to just date a guy who doesn’t have a girlfriend?”

“We don’t know the new kid doesn’t have a girlfriend.” Lisa pointed out. “Or if he even likes girls. He could be, you know, one of those…”

“You could ask.” Taffy raised her eyebrows. “Now that you’re lab partners and all.”

Lisa smiled. “That’d be a great idea,” her smile fell, as she deadpanned “if I was into him.”

Taffy let out a dramatic sigh. “I have to go to practice. But we’ll talk about this more when I get home!”

Home. Without Taffy.

Taffy wasn’t the best person to be forced to suddenly live with, but she wasn’t the worst, either.

That award would undoubtedly go to Janet. What her father saw in her, Lisa would never quite understand. He was lonely, sure, but sometimes Lisa felt like he’d just jumped into the first pair of open arms he could find.

She didn’t like being around her. She shuffled off to her room, closing the door, the headphones of her walkman blaring Never Tear Us Apart by INXS to drown out any thoughts she didn’t currently want to be having. It wasn’t quite The Cure, her current favorite band, but it’s what she had on deck at the moment, and it would have to do. It was better than the Debbie Gibson drudge Taffy was always playing. She sighed deeply. No Janet. No shrill cries of how her teenage angst was upending her perfect suburban fantasy. Just Michael Hutchence, broodily crooning, as her own fantasies of a different Michael started to swarm.

In the privacy of her room, she could live in her own fantasy. Exist in a realm where she could bend and twist reality to suit her whims.

Until an alarm would blare for school the next day.

At least Taffy offered to drive her.

“So Lisa,” her perfectly manicured nails tapped against the steering wheel. “There’s the winter semi-formal coming up-”

“Isn’t that before Christmas break?” Lisa questioned. “It’s October. That’s two months away.”

“I know!” Taffy gasped, clearly on a different page. “It leaves so little time, which is why I think we should go dress shopping this weekend. I called the girl who does my pageant gowns, I get a discount with her since I keep winning titles, and she said she’d be willing to give you one too if we came together.”

“Oh.” Lisa blinked, surprised. That was not where she was anticipating this conversation to be going. “Um. Thanks, Taffy. That…that was really nice of you to ask. For me.”

Taffy’s smile brightened. “That’s what sisters are for! Plus we can just get the store size and you can alter them so we don’t have to pay insane tailoring prices. I heard Tricia’s dress cost an extra 75 dollars to get hemmed, can you believe that? I’m actually a perfect size 6 so you wouldn’t only really need to do your own, and you love sewing anyway, so I thought…”

“No, no,” Lisa cut her off, letting out a small chuckle “That sounds…nice. Thank you.”

“And you know,” Taffy’s voice started veering to the tone Lisa came to dislike “I could probably help you find a date…”

“It’s in December,” Lisa rolled her eyes. “That seems like a two months from now problem.”

Taffy nodded “Good point. There might be some decent rebounds in November. Don’t wanna lock into anything too early.”

And speaking of locking things…

“Ooooh,” Taffy squealed. “What’s the new guy doing waiting around your locker?”

Lisa immediately looked concerned. What was he doing there? “He probably just needs notes for biology since he’s joining us mid semester.”

“Oh, I think he wants to take some notes on your biology…” Taffy wiggled her eyebrows.

“Okay! Bye Taff!” Lisa’s voice was dramatically boisterous, making sure her step sister got the hint. 

With a wince, she walked to her locker, hoping to squeeze by him, hoping he was waiting for someone else, hoping nothing could happen that Taffy would go and whisper in the cheer squad’s ear about. Lisa did not need more press at the moment. 

Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. “Lisa, right?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, eyes focused fully on her locker. “New kid. Lab partner.”

“Percy.” he stated, seeming a little irritated that she couldn’t be bothered to remember his name. “Anyway, I was hoping…” he paused, before trying again “...I need your help with something.”

“And this couldn’t wait until one of the three classes we’re in together?” She raised an eyebrow.

“I…I sort of need a favor.” He tried. “And you said you owed me one-”

Lisa snorted. She couldn’t help it. “Dude, it’s a figure of speech. I hardly know you.”

“Well I hardly know anyone in this town,” he sighed. “And I thought you might at least be able to relate.”

Before she even realized she was doing it, Lisa bit down on her lip hesitantly. “So what’s the favor? I’ll at least let you pitch it.”

“My old high school is only about 45 minutes away. I may have lied to my ex about already moving on. And she may have called my bluff and bought two tickets for me to attend a dance this weekend with my new girlfriend.” He explained, his voice speeding up, growing more hastily embarrassed with each word. 

“If this is your way of trying to ask me out…”

“I’m not.” He interrupted. “I’m…I’m very much not over Clara. But…she dumped me for someone else. She’s clearly not…I want to make her jealous. Make her think I’ve moved on. Then, maybe she’ll…”

“Come back to you?” She put together on her own. “I don’t know, man,” Lisa closed her locker door shut. “That’s a pretty big favor for someone I don’t really know.”

“Think about it?” He pleaded, his eyes wide and full of a sadness so earnest it almost made her say yes on the spot. This type of emotional vulnerability was not what she was used to, especially not from guys. “It’s not until Friday night.”

It was Tuesday.

“Okay.” She sighed. “I’ll think about it.”

Chapter Text

“Wait, so they kill Caesar?” Taffy stared, dumbfounded.

Lisa was bored, her mind was elsewhere. Michael Trent wore a V neck to school today. She had better things to be thinking about then having to explain the plot of a 300 year old play to her stepsister. “Yeah.”

“This early?”

“Mhmm.”

“So why is it named after him?” Taffy questioned, flipping through the text. “Does he come back as a ghost? Is he a zombie? Do you think they had zombies back then?”

This caught Lisa off guard. “Did they…” she repeated slowly, making sure Taffy understood exactly what she had asked “...have zombies …back then?”

“I don’t know when they were invented!” Taffy tried to defend. 

“...invented…” Lisa once again spoke slowly.

Taffy shook her head, still not getting what Lisa was getting at. “I gotta get to my math class. I’ll be at the car later.”

With a nod, Lisa turned into her biology class. There was a weight off her shoulders, knowing she could slink right past Doug and not have to actually interact with him. The new kid - Percy, she guessed - was already in his assigned seat next to her.

“Does she really not know the plot of play?” He smirked as Lisa slipped in next to him.

“Hmm?”

“Your cheerleader friend.” He tried.

Lisa’s eyes widened “Oh! Taffy. She’s my stepsister. Yeah, she’s not the most intellectual person.”

“That’s a shame,” he sounded…genuine, not condescending. It was odd to her. A good odd. “I read that poem you wrote for the lit mag this morning. I was…moved. And very impressed. I didn’t realize I recognized the name until after. You definitely seem like the type of intelligent person who’d enjoy a mutually stimulating conversation. Did you have smarter friends at your old school?”

“You talk a lot, huh?” Lisa raised an eyebrow.

Percy shrugged. “Only when I have a lot to say.”

Lisa had a quip loaded about how chatty he was being, but she never got the chance to fire it off her tongue, as the teacher walked in, “Good afternoon, class. Open your text books to page 35-”

The class dragged on for what felt like forever. The dismissal bell was like the sweetest music she’d ever heard. She wanted nothing more than to bolt out of that chair and run to the car. Sure, Taffy would be babbling about some silly gossipy drama, but it would be better than another nanosecond of science class. 

“Did you get a chance to think about my offer?”

Lisa turned, genuinely a little stunned, brought out of her own thoughts. “You only asked this morning. I’m. You know. Marinating it.”

He nodded, swallowing a lump in his throat “It was…weird of me to ask. I just…genuinely don’t know anyone here and…and I still love her so much…”

At this, Lisa softened a bit “You still love her?”

He nodded, his eyes far off, wistful. “More than anything.”

“That’s kinda sweet.” she smiled. 

“Lisa!” Taffy called, as if both syllables of her name were a separate word. “Stop flirting, we gotta go!”

Lisa rolled her eyes, “I’m sorry about her.” before turning to Taffy, crying “Unlike some of your friends, not every one who talks to a guy is looking to jump into bed with them. Some of us can have intellectual, platonic conversations with the opposite sex.”

“I don’t care what kind of sex kinks you were talking about.” Taffy rolled her eyes. “Mom’s totally going to barf us out if we’re late getting home. She has that seminar tonight, remember? She wants us to have dinner tonight as a family before she goes.”

Ah right. Intuitive People or whatever they called themselves. Lisa didn’t think Janet could intuit much at all, but if it meant she was out of the house for the evening, she’d take it. “Do you think she’s actually making dinner tonight or is it gonna be more takeaway?”

“Pizza, probably.” Taffy shrugged, opening the door to her little red car.

“Think she’ll remember to get one without meat this time?” Lisa sighed, before dramatically crying “It doesn’t even have to be veggie lovers. I’d be fine with plain cheese!”

“I’m sure she’ll remember this time.” Taffy’s voice was neither confident or assuring. Lisa sighed. Taffy meant well. She was trying her best. She couldn’t fault her for that.

Janet, however…

“Lisa, could you please pretend you care about looking like a lady and chew with your mouth closed?”

She hadn’t been chewing with her mouth open, she bit the inside of her lip. So she gasped in pain, unfortunately resulting in half chewed pizza still in her mouth. But she wasn’t about to fight with Janet over this, so she rolled her eyes, but made a big show of chewing with very tight closed lips.

“See, this is why you can’t get a date.” Janet shook her head disapprovingly. “Taffy gets invited out all the time, because she has good posture, and knows how to behave like a lady in public. You can’t even do that in the privacy of my beautiful home…”

“Actually, Janet,” Lisa interrupted, having swallowed both the pizza and her pride, apparently. “I did get asked out today.”

“Oh my god,” Taffy gasped across the table, hands flying to her face in excitement. “The new guy? The tall one you’re lab partners with?”

Lisa, suddenly aware that she was going to have to go with this now, nodded. “Yeah. Percy Steinman. He just transferred here. I guess there’s a school dance going on at his old school on Friday, and his ex girlfriend offered him two tickets to it, to show there were no hard feelings.”

Janet narrowed her eyes “And out of every proud Possum at that school, he chose you?”

“Yeah. He read one of the poems I submitted to the literary magazine, and he was so impressed when he found out it was his lab partner who wrote it.” Lisa wasn’t lying, entirely. But she was sure twisting the truth to make Janet a bit uncomfortable.

“Tell him to come here first!” Taffy cried excitedly. “Mom, he’s kinda dark and mysterious looking, but I told Lisa if he fixed his hair a little bit he could be kinda cute. I think they’re going to be so sweet together. Oh!” Her eyes widened, reaching across the table. “He can use the tanning bed! He’s so pale, kinda like Lisa, they’re like…indoor cats.”

“The same tanning bed that electrocuted me?” Lisa raised an eyebrow. 

“The electrician says he thinks it’s fine now.” Taffy tried to assure her.

While the impulsive blurt out at dinner may have saved her from some Janet wrath, Lisa was going to have to face the consequences of her actions. She didn’t know where his locker was, so she instead waited outside the door to their shared chemistry class, eyes lighting up as he came into view. “Hey! Um, about your offer…”

He nodded, solemnly, muttering “Lisa, I totally understand.”

“No, no, I’m gonna do it, actually.” her voice was peppier, cheerier than normal.

He raised an eyebrow. “You are? Why?”

“Cause you seem nice and I wanna be nice,” she twisted back and forth. “Can’t I try to be nice?”

He eyed her, very suspiciously. “If you’re sure…”

“I am.” she nodded. “Taffy even says you can come over to our house first and she’ll fix your hair.”

“What’s wrong with my hair?” he asked, a hand going up to it.

“Nothing!” Lisa cried. “Just…Taffy’s really in tune to the mainstream, she can give you like, a mainstream hot boy hairstyle. Your ex will go crazy for it.”

“And Taffy knows it’s all a ruse?” he questioned, as the two stepped inside the classroom.

“Please,” Lisa rolled her eyes. “I don’t think Taffy could define the word ruse . But, um, no. She doesn’t. My whole family kinda…thinks it’s a real date…”

“Might be better this way.” he pondered out loud. “No conflicting narratives. If everyone assumes we’re a couple…”

If everyone assumed they were a couple. Huh.

Taffy wouldn’t keep trying to set her up with random, not Michael Trent losers.

Doug probably wouldn’t try to grope her again if she had a boyfriend for him to be afraid of.

Michael already had a girlfriend, anyway, maybe seeing her with another man might make her appear…more desirable.

“I think this is going to work out well for both of us.” Lisa smiled knowingly.

Leaving the class 65 minutes, Lisa made big steps to catch up to him in the hallway. “Hey, should we like, hold hands or something? Get people talking?”

“We’re going to the same English class,” he smirked knowingly. “I could carry your books for you.”

“So old fashioned.” Lisa teased.

He laughed, but pressed “Is that a no?”

“Hey,” Lisa thought, suddenly, words coming out as she thought of them. “You should come over after school. We can like, make a backstory and everything. Write the story we’re gonna tell.”

“Yeah,” he nodded slowly. “That seems like a good plan.”

He didn’t end up taking her books, but they did walk into the class together, something Lisa noticed that Taffy noticed immediately, her stepsister wiggling her eyebrows at the pair as soon as they entered. “So…you and tall, dark and broody, huh?”

“I’ll tell you more after your cheer practice tonight.” Lisa offered vaguely. That would give them time to come up with a cover story, at least.

Taffy squealed in her seat. “I’m just so happy for you, Lisa. You deserve someone who’s gonna make you happy.”

“Thanks.” Lisa smiled dryly. 

Class went on as normally as possible, Taffy and others still wrapping their heads around the fact that they were reading a play called Julius Caesar and that Caesar himself was long dead. The bell rang, and immediately Taffy was in her ear again. “Listen, Lisa, I know we normally walk each other to the next class, but I don’t want to be a third wheel so…” she raised her eyebrows towards Percy, who seemed to be waiting to approach them.

Lisa chuckled, rolling her eyes. “Understood. See you tonight, Taff.”

She glanced over to him, his eyes brighter than a moment ago, a soft smile tugging on his lips. 

She rolled her eyes “You don’t just have to stand there waiting for me, you know. You’re allowed to come towards me.”

He smiled more at this. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Taffy’s already starting to ask questions.” Lisa started, “So I think it’s a good idea that we get this hashed out. I’m pretty much good with saying whatever, but we gotta make sure we’re on the same page.”

“Agreed.” He nodded. “There have been a few…lies…I’ve rattled off to Clara. I wouldn’t want them falling apart under too much scrutiny.”

“Oh, we need to talk about that, too.” Lisa’s eyes widened. “What if it works? And she wants you back? Then what do we tell people happened?”

“I feel like that would be easy,” he shrugged nonchalantly. “I left you to go back to my ex, I’m an asshole, you’re heartbroken.”

Lisa laughed “You really got this all figured out already, don’t you?”

“I’ve put some thought into it.” He grinned playfully.

At this, they arrived at the door to their next class. Lisa was hit with a startling revelation. She didn’t really want to go to class. Well, that wasn’t startling. She hated biology. More…she wanted to keep talking about the plan. Her brain was fully focused on this now, and it was the only thing she felt like talking about, like it was urgent. “Hey, have you ever cut before?”

“Cut class?” He asked, hoping he was understanding.

“Yeah, like, this isn’t really important. I’m not gonna be a doctor or anything. And I was just thinking, you know, it would give us more time to hash out the plan before Taffy or my parents get home…”

His eyes lit up playfully “Are you inviting me over because your parents aren’t home?”

She laughed, rolling his eyes, whacking his arm “Come on, goofball. Let’s go.”

Chapter Text

“You have a nice house.”

“It’s not my house,” Lisa rolled her eyes, “It’s Janet’s.”

“I thought your sister’s name was Taffy.”

As she continued to lead him up the stairs, she rolled her eyes. “Yeah. And Janet is Taffy’s mom.”

“So what happened to your mom?”

Lisa had opened the door to her room already. The question made her freeze. She turned around, eyeing him. His face seemed…neutral. Curious, but not teasing. Not trying to provoke. She softened, almost whispering “Have you…have you really not heard yet?”

“Heard what?” He asked, lowering his voice to mimic hers.

Lisa inhaled deeply. “Ho boy.”

She ushered him in, gesturing vaguely at her bed, offering to sit, before handing him a half eaten bag of peach rings. He took one, with such a hesitant nature it almost seemed tentative, before muttering “I’m sorry I asked about your mom. We barely know each other…”

“It’s fine.” Lisa waved a hand dismissively, hoping she was giving off a genuine air of nonchalance rather than simply using it to mask the despair in her voice. “Um, she was murdered. In our home. I was there when it happened. I called 911 but…”

“Oh.” His voice was soft, sad, caring, as he gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “Lisa, I’m…I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be.” She shrugged. “I mean, you didn’t kill her. I assume.”

“Don’t remember ever murdering anyone.” He teased with a light chuckle. 

“Anyway, like 6 months later, my dad met Taffy’s mom, they got married like right away. So we left my hometown, the only place I’d ever really known, to come here. Start a new school for my senior year.”

“At least your whole senior year started here.” He let out a dry, half-laugh. “I, um, I don’t really tell people this, but I transferred from Lanchester Academy.”

“No way!” Lisa gasped. “That’s like, the super rich people school where all the super gifted art kids go! I tried to get in on a scholarship for my poetry in 9th grade, but…”

“How did you not get in?” He questioned, eyebrows knitted in confusion. “I’ve read what the lit mag has published. Your poetry is phenomenal.”

“It’s better now than it was then.” She admitted with a sigh. “Besides, you know better than anyone, probably, but those scholarships are few and far between, they’re super competitive.”

“I wouldn’t know, actually.” He laughed awkwardly. “I, um, wasn’t on one.”

Lisa’s face etched with confusion “What do you mean?”

“I mean, I still had to be accepted, they called me a piano prodigy.” He rolled his eyes. “But my dad was making a lot of money, so paying the tuition wasn’t a hurdle…until the company he was Vice President of got caught in an embezzlement scandal.”

Lisa gasped “No!”

“Yeah.” He nodded, eyes focused on the floor, as if he had something to be ashamed of. “We lost everything. He got a job out here. A house. Nothing nearly as fancy as before, but better than eviction.”

“I’m so sorry.” She muttered gently. Her instinct was to put her hand on his, comfortingly, but then she flexed back. That would be weird, right?

“At least both of my parents are still alive.” He lightly nudged her arm with his elbow.

She smirked, letting out a soft “You got a point there.” It was a nice moment, in a way. The quiet lingered, both of them smiling, comfortable in the other’s presence. Until Lisa suddenly cried “Wait, this dance is a Lanchester?!? Your ex goes to Lanchester?!?”

“That is how we met.” he spoke dryly, but his voice warmed, his eyes far off and dreamlike as he recounted. “Clara’s a dancer. Classical ballet. I’d play for her, she’d dance. She always moved with such a grace and poise, but watching her dance…it was an entirely different experience. And she’s…beautiful. Of course, I was smitten right away. Eating out of the palm of her hand. I’d been assuming she was only using me for my musical talents but…somehow…somewhere along the line…”

“She fell in love with you, too.” Lisa cooed.

He nodded. “Yeah. Or at least, I thought she did, for a while. Then this summer…we were busy. Starting to see each other less. She had performances booked. And the thing about those performances…there were other accompanists. Older accompanists. Cooler accompanists. So when school started back up…well, we were both seniors, so she couldn’t find anyone older. But cooler? Quite a few on that front.”

“And that’s who she’s going to be with?” Lisa asked. “The guy she left you for?”

“Left me for is a bit of an oversimplification,” he sighed, running a hand through the messy, kinda too long hair of his. Huh. For a second, Lisa could see it. See how the prim and proper ballerina could find herself melting over the brooding piano player. She shook her head, too much empathy. He was still talking. “She was continuing to see me. While…also seeing him. Apparently since that summer break started.”

“Damn,” Lisa exhaled. “That’s rough. And you still want to be with her?”

He nodded, his eyes sad like a wet puppy getting splashed with more mud as a dirty truck drove by “The heart wants what the heart wants.”

“Or else it does not care.”

This seemed to cheer him up a little, if only to comment “I should’ve known you of all people would know the full quote.”

“Dickinson is like, famous female poet 101.” Lisa laughed.

“Oh, I’m sorry, are you too cool for Emily Dickinson?” He teased.

With a roll of her eyes, she admitted “That might be the first time anyone’s called me cool.”

“Really?” He seemed taken aback by this. “But you’re so…countercultural.”

“Gee, thanks.” she deadpanned.

With a soft smile, he assured her “I meant that in a good way.”

There was a look in his eyes…something she couldn’t quite describe…that made her believe him.  It was vulnerable, open…kinda like he was. A sincerity, an understanding…all expressed through his eyes. Lisa felt something tighten in her chest. She’d never seen someone so expressive in such a simplistic way. “Um, okay,” she blinked, shaking her head. “We should, um, we should work out that back story, right?”

“Of course.” He nodded. “That’s…what we came here to do.”

Lisa nodded, grabbing a peach ring, and asking “So, what have you told your girl already?” while shoving one in her mouth.

He sighed, and then looked to the ceiling, as if pulling the thoughts together. “I told her I have a new girlfriend who goes to my new school.”

“I do go to your new school.” Lisa nodded in approval.

He laughed, before continuing “She wanted to know if she…you…were like her…and I said no.”

“Well what’s she like?” Lisa raised an eyebrow, grabbing another peach ring.

He sighed wistfully. “She’s very…prim and proper. Graceful. But social. All American girl next door type.”

Lisa couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped. “Then you picked a good foil. I am none of those things.”

He eyed her, carefully, as if considering that. There was something in his eyes beyond the pensive intensity, but Lisa couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Regardless, he spoke “I guess you’re not.”

“How long have you said we’ve been together?” Lisa asked.

He paused, admitting “I don’t think it ever came up. I think it’s best if we act like it’s very new.”

“Right.” Lisa nodded, “Especially since we only met this week.”

“We rushed into things.” He laughed. “Instant infatuation.”

“Oh, head over heels for each other!” Lisa cried dramatically, throwing her head back, “our eyes met across the room and we both knew…”

“Love at first sight.” He shook his head.

Lisa laughed, “So we’re that couple. Gross. I love it. Are we keeping it that you asked me out? Cause that is kinda what happened.”

He seemed to agree to this. “It would be the charming gentleman thing to do, to ask for my paramour’s favor.”

“Is that how you talked to her?” Lisa’s nose scrunched up, despite the light blush playing at her cheeks. “Was she into that?”

“I’m not sure.” He admitted with a laugh. “I’m not sure how much she actually admired and how much she put up with.”

“Taffy does always say it’s best to just accept a guy’s flaws instead of wasting time trying to fix him.” Lisa recounted.

“Do you always listen to Taffy’s advice on the opposite sex?” He raised an eyebrow quizzically.

Lisa gave a half hearted shrug. “She’s actually been on dates before, so she has more experience than me.”

At this, his eyebrows knit together “Wait, so you’ve never…”

Lisa shook her head “Never done a lot of things. Involving guys. Just, in general.”

He nodded in understanding, before suggesting “Maybe we need to work out some ground rules then. I wouldn’t want to…overwhelm you.”

“Overwhelm me how?” Lisa asked, confused. “We’re not really dating.”

“But we have to make people think we are.” He reminded. “And now I feel…awkward about asking if even kissing you is okay.”

At this, Lisa leaned back, surprised. “Why would you try to kiss me?”

“Because we’re a couple.”

“Not a real one!” She argued.

He narrowed his eyes at her, leaning forward a little bit “But we need to convince people that we are.”

“Look, I’m not some prude, okay?” She tried to defend herself. “I’ve…done stuff before. I got groped by Doug at the rager last weekend and he tried to make me grope him back…”

At this, the previous light, easy, joking air fell. “You what?” He asked, almost as if it was a threat “He what?”

“I mean, it was probably partially my fault, Michael’s stupid girlfriend got me drugged…”

“You were drugged?!?”

“Yeah but not on purpose!” She tried to clarify. “She was trying to get herself high, I think, and I took too big of a sip trying to show off in front of Michael-”

“Why do you care if your publisher thinks you are or aren’t a lightweight?” He raised an eyebrow. “Lisa, that’s…that’s not a story to just brush over.”

“Oh, it fucking sucked.” Lisa nodded for emphasis. “But I’ve been through worse. You know, watching my mom get murdered and everything.”

Quietly, he tried “Has anyone ever told you trauma isn’t a competition? Just because something hurts less…doesn’t mean it doesn’t also hurt.”

“Damn, Socrates, calm down.” she tried to brush off. He was right, and she didn’t want to hear it. She wasn’t ready to hear that yet.

“You know we don’t actually know much of what Socrates actually thought or believed.” He smirked. “He authored no texts himself, everything we believe he said is having to trust that Plato and his other students understood and recounted correctly-”

Lisa laughed, shaking her head “I appreciate the philosophy lecture, but we’re getting off topic.”

“What was the topic?” He questioned, seeming genuinely confused.

She lightly whacked his arm “Our cover, dude!”

He tenderly rubbed where she whacked him, pouting a little. He wasn’t exactly the rippling biceps picture of men’s health. “Right. I just…I don’t want to do anything to make you uncomfortable.”

“Well if you start to, I can always just whack you in the arm again.” She shrugged nonchalantly.

Somehow managing to both wince and roll his eyes at the same time, he muttered “That was surprisingly effective.”

“And maybe me being uncomfortable could be a good thing. Like, we could fake fight and she’ll rush to comfort you and tell you that you deserve better than me anyway or something.”

He held back a chuckle. “Ah yes, I deserve better than the girl who was rightfully upset when I intentionally crossed boundaries, and better than that is the girl who cheated on me.”

“Well when you put it that way it sounds like you really do like me more than her.” Lisa smirked, a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

He raised an eyebrow, musing “That is the goal, right?”