𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐄 || Jerome Clarke

Tour Guide

Taylor Swift blasted through her earphones.
She hummed along to 'Back to December' as she scribbled down notes from her last lesson onto her notepad. She'd found a common room of sorts earlier with big comfy chairs, and as soon as the bell rang signalling her free period at the end of the day she found herself planted firmly in one of said chairs. She let her legs tuck beneath her and pulled her knees up so she could lean on them. Iris allowed Taylor Swift to calm her down from her earlier interaction with her brother. Why was he being such a prick?
She could not be arsed with him right now.

She continued to consolidate her notes when someone jolted her shoulders from behind. A small squeak escaped her lips as she felt her heart stutter in her chest. Iris flung her head around to see the culprit and was in no state of shock at who was.
"You going to scare me every time you feel like saying hi?" Pulling out her earphones, a small smirk lit up her face as she peered at Jerome.

"Definitely going to consider it if you you're going to react like that every time?" He chuckled as he pulled a stool over to where Iris sat. She watched as he sat himself down and leant over his forearms; the veins from his arms had become visible with the light pressure and his hands clasped together as he blew into them so as to warm them up as if he'd just been outside.

"Cold?"

"Oh yeah, it's fucking freezing out there and I had to run back and grab my geography homework."

Iris hummed quietly, smiling as she looked down at her notes, deciding she was done and packing them up.

"You alright, Rutter?" Jerome's voice was laced with concern, forcing Iris to look up at him through her lashes. His eyes pierced through her own and she saw a slight crease between his eyebrows where the hint of a frown was forming.

Her smile faltered slightly, "Yeah, I think so. Why wouldn't I be?"

"No, it's nothing," he said smirking still, "I just saw you and Fabian earlier."

"Oh, that? He was just being my brother," She laughed nervously, "He can be dense sometimes. And annoying..."

"Oh I felt that," Jerome chipped in, making her giggle when he did a mock shiver.

"What, you got many siblings?" Iris chuckled.

"One. Just one," a deep grimace was now carved into his face, "but one Poppy is enough."

Iris laughed again, though it came out more like a puff of air, her shoulders sagging slightly as she packed her bag up. Her brother had really out a dampener on her first day apparently. What was wrong with him these days?

She heard rather than saw Jerome spring up from behind the bag she was packing as he slapped his knees with a big huff.

"Alright, come one," he said holding out his hand to where she said in her chair.

"Come on?"

"Yes come on," he chuckled, still holding his palm out towards her, "I (your guide extraordinaire) am taking you (depressingly huffy newbie) on a tour of this fine school."

"I'm depressingly huffy am I now?"

"Yes yes, positively drowning me in your depressingly huffy sighs. Come on up you get. Let's get those endorphins going."

He grabbed her upper arms gently and stood her up, grabbing her bag from where it swung loosely in her hand and carrying it in his shoulder - he was suspiciously sans school bag but she chose not to question it.

"Okay sure, I relent. This is me relenting," she chuckled, ensuring not to huff from the effort of standing dare he mistake it for one of the depressingly huffy assortment, "Off we pop then, where to first."