❝I know it's hard for you to be friends with a girl without objectifying her - but lucky me, not everyone's you!❞
❝Oh yeah. 𝙁𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨. The lady goth protest too much.❞
❝𝘿𝙤𝙩𝙝, Gavin. Doth.❞
→ From Van Zandt family disappointment and Grade 8...
A/N: Is this filler? Sort of. But it's fun, there's still important character stuff, and obviously, I had to pay homage to the line that gave me my username.
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Things weren't completely over or healed, but I was at least back at base with almost everyone in my life. Not like before, stronger and weaker in new places. A new normal. Mostly I was back at base with Ellie and Manny — which was to say they would talk to me and never, ever talk to each other. Ever.
Meanwhile, I did continue my temporary habit of getting rides to the hospital with Paige at least once a week. The last time, Hazel was there and Spinner had work, and I didn't realize how much easier it was to talk to Spinner than his girlfriend until that moment. Hazel and I were still on good terms since the Saturday detention misadventure, but we were awkward without Jimmy's presence.
I couldn't quite pinpoint why I got along so well with Manny and couldn't keep a conversation going with Paige or Hazel. Even Emma was easier to talk to. The worst parts were when they tried to include me in the conversation just because I was there, and I would promptly ruin whatever they were talking about. When Paige tried to relate to me talking about music, the conversation went to Ashley — which made sense, but usually ended the topic.
At least I still had the supreme privilege of making fun of JT whenever he did anything, which meant when he showed up to school with a giant cardboard cut out of himself, I couldn't resist.
He showed Toby, poking his head out from either side of...well, his own head. "Here I am, there I am. Here I am, there I am. Pretty weird, huh?"
I approached with a frown and folded arms. "You know, I had a nightmare like this once."
"Just once?" Toby asked, and we both sent JT wide grins.
A guy with his name on the breast pocket of his jacket came up behind JT and asked for the standee back, thank the gods. JT gave a sheepish wave. "Uh, thanks for letting me borrow, uh... me."
"I can't believe that cutout's going to be in the caf... our caf!" Toby said incredulously and I gawked.
"I know!" JT said, beaming. "And schools across our fair land."
