Distractions

One: Gifts and Possibly Crazy Sisters

Nicholas groaned as he realized he had to return to the main room soon. He didn't want to - didn't want to deal with Wesley. He was too much. Too tall, too funny, too caring, too good. It was impossible to hate the guy. There was no way to hate how he cared for his friends because there was nothing bad about it; he wasn't overbearing and he always knew what to say. You couldn't hate his humor either. There was nothing that he said that was rude, or offensive, or inappropriate in any way. Wesley Meyers was perfect in every way. He was too perfect, too much.

"What are you working on?" A voice spoke up, stopping the sound of keyboard keys being aggressively clicked.

The girl with purple hair looked up from behind her screen, blinking as she adjusted to the lack of black and white in her vision.

"Huh?"

"I asked what you're working on." Simon chuckled as she reached for the empty cup of coffee. "You're typing so aggressively that you might break your keyboard."

Everest Fray's eyes widened dramatically as she imagined a scenario where her computer broke. "No," was all she said before shaking her head to banish that thought from her mind.

Everest stood from her spot, moving across the table to sit next to the boy. She looked at the chair in distaste before sighing and placing her sweatshirt on the chair in a crumpled ball. "I'm working on 'Shadowed Spot Lights." She turned her computer so that he could read what she had written.

"That's the one with all the denial and drama right?"

"That's all of Everest's writing Lewis," a barista laughed as she placed Everest's 3rd coffee on the table.

"That's true," Everest mused. "Thanks Sara!"

 "Anytime Everest. Just remember to drink water," Sara reminded her, knowing full well that the girl would go days without water if she didn't remember to.

Everest smiled proudly at the brunette, brandishing her water bottle. Sara and Simon both nodded proudly, before the barista returned to work.

"This is really good Ev," Simon told her.

"Really? Did I use too many commas or too much of the word 'too'?" Everest asked.

It was obvious by the way her face twisted oddly and how her shoulders hunched slightly, that she really didn't think her writing was that good. Simon wondered, as he did every time this happened, why she thought her writing was so terrible. She had been writing for years, and had even been accepted into several literature based schools alongside the Child Care program she had been accepted into.

"Yes Everest. This is great, and you should be really proud of it," he reassured the girl.

Everest smiled, and was about to reply when the door chimed and Clary walked in. Everest frowned at the disappointed look on her sister's face when she noticed the way that Clary's mouth twitched slightly. Everest grinned, confusing Simon and Clary.

"Give me the professors' names and I will end them," Simon told the redhead when she sat down. The sisters shot him a look. "You know, with a scathing email to the dean."

Everest snorted quietly as Clary handed over her letter. She tensed as Clary almost sat on her bag, but relaxed when Clary handed it to her under the table.

"Don't bother," Everest told the boy.

Simon's mouth fell open in shock before he smiled broadly at Clary. "What? Sad face, really? Well played, well played."

"Congrats, Ritz," Everest congratulated her sister with a grin.

 "You know, it's weird. They kind of liked my assigned work, but they flipped out over the drawings for our graphic novel." Clary smiled as Sara brought Clary's drink over with a Biscotti.