I never hated school. But I never liked it either.

I knew the importance of a good education. And I knew my dad had expectations, for both me and Tyler. I knew I shouldn't complain, because just being able to even get an education was a privilege in itself.

But as I stare down at my equation in calculus I cursed the whole system.

Who invented algebra? And what were they thinking!?

I bite my lower lip in anticipation, stealing a glance at the clock in the front of the classroom. For once, time is going too fast in class. The seconds are ticking by, and I feel my shoulders sag in defeat.

My eyes move to the kid next to me, and to my relief, he looks just as lost as me. I turn my eyes to the paper again, trying to make sense of the numbers written there. 

They don't fit though. They don't fit together. They're just a big mess and I can't sort them out. I don't have the capacity to make sense of the problems.

I huff and bite the tip of my pen. 

Don't bite your pen. You'll get blood-poisoning from the ink. My mothers voice rings through my head. I shake off the thought but release the pen.

Just as I think I'm about to solve a problem, the bell rings and my time is out.

...

"How did it go on the math test?" Hailee asks.

We're standing in the lunch line. I make a grimace and look at her. 

"That bad huh?" 

I nod.

"I just don't understand it. And my teacher is awful. Like, seriously. He's hopeless," I say, flailing my arms around to make a point.

"Get it together. Mr. Hiller isn't that bad. He's just a bit old school," Hailee defends. She's a bit to angelic sometimes.

"He's not old school. He's just plain old. He should be in the grave by now."

Hailee gasp. "You will say no such thing miss Benedetto!"

I slap her arm playfully and we both laugh. "Oh, stop it. We both know it's true."

We chuckle again, her melodic laugh sounding like honey in my ears. It's a laugh I've heard ever since second grade. I remember the day crystal clear. It was life changing.

"Rick! Give it back!" I whine, a pout on my lips. My eyes are watering, but I don't want to cry in front of everybody.

"No, it's mine," Rick says.

"But mom made it for me," I lamely retort.

"So? I don't care. What are you gonna do huh? Go home to mommy and cry?"

My lips start quivering and I cast my eyes downward. I don't want to cry but I can't help it. It's the third time he's taken my sandwich now. I don't even know why. I'm about to turn around and run when I see a swirl of blonde curls come between me and Rick.

"Hey, give it back," the girl says. 

I remain silent but look up. Rick goes rigid, his brown eyes looking between me and the girl.

"Whatever," he says. Then he throws the sandwich in my direction and it lands on the ground.

The girl turns around and I quickly look down, afraid to meet her eyes. She takes my hand. 

"Hey, wanna share my sandwich?" she asks.

I'm taken aback by her question and look up. My pale blue eyes meet her vibrant blue ones. Her curls frame her face like fire. Galaxies of freckles are sprinkled on her face like stars. Her rosy lips are pulled into a wide grin.

I grin back. "Sure, thanks."

We walk to a bench beside a trashcan. The sun is shining brightly and kids run all around us on the playground while the grown ups are struggling to keep control. I look to the girl.

"Boys are so stupid," she says before she hands me half her sandwich.

"Yeah, they're the stupidest," I say and we both start laughing.

I stare at Hailee as the memory flashes through my mind. 

Her wild blonde ringlets have tamed down to soft golden waves and her freckles are less prominent. But her eyes are as blue as ever, and just as striking. She hasn't changed a bit, I think. She's still the kind of girl that will give me half her sandwich. 

The «boys are stupid» part has changed though, as she is madly in love with my brother. 

When I first found out, I detested the whole thing. But as time went by I realized she was the best thing to ever happen to my brother at the time. They've been together for nine months now.

"Hey, snap out of it," she says, snapping her fingers in front of me.

"Sorry."

We make our way to an empty table after buying our lunch.

"You know, if math is that bad, I can always help you," Hailee says.

I look at her hesitantly. "I don't know. I know your super busy focusing on Harvard and all that, although it's like years from now, and I don't want to burden you," I blabber.

"You're not a burden. You're my best friend." 

I smile at her and nod. 

"Come over to my house after school."

I think it over for a few moments before saying, "Okay."

...

"How can you not understand this!? It's so easy!" Hailee basically screams in my face. She's hovering over me, her hands flying in all different directions.

"No it's not! I'm not fucking Einstein! Not all of us have an inhumanly large brain Hailee!" I scream back.

She glares at me. "My head and brain is the perfect size. Yours is simply just too small."

I cross my arms and let out a huff, knowing this won't lead anywhere. 

"Ugh... Can we call it a day?" I groan.

"No. Not until you get this. How have you gotten this far without getting this!?"

"Hailee! Chill, okay. Do you really think screaming at me will help me? Have you ever thought the reason I don't ask for your help might be because I know you'll end up screaming in my face? Seriously, I love you, but your words are not appreciated when it leads to your spit being displayed all over my face," I explode.

We're both silent for a while, just staring at each other. Then we burst out laughing. 

"I-I'm...s-s-sorry," she wheezes between her laughs. 

I shake my head as if to say it doesn't matter, because it honestly really doesn't.

"Nah, it's fine. I know I'm hard to teach," I say before getting up. "I'm just gonna sleep it all off."

Hailee gets up with me and we make our way through the house to the front door. "Are you sure you should walk home? It's already ten thirty," Hailee says, concern laced in her eyes.

"Hails, I'll be fine. Stop 'mommying' me," I say. She answers me by practically showing me out the door while laughing.

"I'm not 'mommying' you," she says, then slams the door in my face.

I shake my head and chuckle before turning around and start walking down the street. The street is quiet, dimly lit by the lampposts every twenty meters. Most windows are dark, indicating that people have gone to sleep already. 

It's not cold out, just a bit chilly. My denim jacket doesn't provide any heat though, so I'm basically feeling like an icicle. I should have dressed warmer, as it's mid October.

My mind wanders to my bed and I walk faster, wanting to get home quicker. It's already ten-thirty and my curfew is nine o'clock. I'm gonna get in so much trouble if mom finds out. Dad's probably not even home yet.

I think about the consequences of my mothers wrath and quickly pull my phone out of my pocket. I curse when I see it only has 18% battery left. My frozen fingers tap Ty's number. The beeping noise is the only thing I hear besides my shoes hitting the pavement. 

He's not answering. He's either asleep or out somewhere. Yeah, he's out.

I call another number, which picks up on the first ring.

"Where are you? Did someone try to rape you? Do you have your pepper spray on you!?" Hails voice is in full panic.

"Chill, I'm okay. I'm just calling to ask if you know where Ty is. I need keys to sneak in and I didn't bring mine to school today. Ty probably has some."

"Oh, right. He told me he was going to the gym a few hours ago, but I don't know if he's still there."

"Kay, thanks. Goodnight," I say before hanging up.

My feet pick up speed as I change my direction, heading for the gym.

I've never actually been there, as I'm slightly scared of it. I mean, it's in a pretty sketchy place. But then again, any place in this town that isn't in a neighborhood is pretty sketchy.

I shake my head, willing myself not to think about it as I am literally alone on a dark street on th edge of the town. It'll only make me more paranoid.

I'm walking faster by the minute, cursing myself for getting into this. I don't even know if Tyler's there. For all I know, he could be in his bed, sleeping. 

And what if he's not there. What do I do? Is it even open this late?

"Shit, shit, shit, shit..." I keep psyching myself out with my thoughts. But who wouldn't? It's almost eleven o'clock by now and its pitch black. 

This is a bad idea Adeline. You need to get home. Seriously. You'll just have to deal with mom. She'll be easy on you. It's the first time you've done something bad. It's not even that bad, right? It's just two hours past your curfew. Easy-peasy. You'll talk yourself out of it. Math is important.

My nerves are calming a bit as I reach a lamp-post between two run down buildings, providing me with some light, some comfort, safety.

But the calm before the storm really is put into action when I feel my nerves crash and burn as someone basically runs me down.

---

A/N: 

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