Making Her Rules

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Steph's POV:

Four days of lessons with Keon and I know for a fact that I am not the sharpest knife in the kitchen.

Ever since my drunken confession to Keon on Tuesday, I've attended every single lesson he's scheduled but I may as well have skipped them.

Let's face it.

I'm stupid.

And Keon has come quite close to telling me so multiple times. Yesterday, after trying again to teach me the difference between a simile and a metaphor, he murmured that I was as sharp as a marble. What's even worse is that I didn't realize it was an insult until almost half an hour later, and by then it was much too late to retort.

Kayla keeps teasing me about Keon, but trust me he and I are nothing close to being acquaintances, much less friends. He's made no mention about my confession to not being able to graduate and I'm far too embarrassed to bring it up. Right now he is the only one who knows and he could choose to ruin me at any moment.

So yeah, friends we are not.

Kayla catches up to me as the bell rings, dismissing us from lunch. I was so lost in my thoughts of not graduating and Keon that I barely touched my food. Hungrily, I swipe an apple and bite into it noting Kayla's watchful eyes on me.

"Where's Quinn?", I ask, realizing that I haven't seen her - not that its odd, I barely ever see her during lunch and when I do, she stays away from food as though it is a poisonous plague.

Hmm... maybe Keon's lessons aren't being wasted after all.

"She said that she had a meeting with the school newspaper members", she said and I nod. Sometimes I forget that Quinn is the photographer for the school newspaper; she's so quiet you hardly notice she is there. Then again, for her to take amazing photographs of unsuspecting students, I guess she has to be a bit invisible.

"You've been really quiet lately", Kayla says, and though her tone is joking, her green eyes are pools of concern. "Is anything wrong?"

I look at my bestfriend, seeing my reflection in her eyes.

I'm not okay, I want to scream. I'm not going to graduate. I'm stupid and as sharp as a marble.

I don't say any of those things though. Instead, I bottle up my emotions and fake a smile that doesn't exactly reach my eyes. "Keon's just a pain", I say with a shrug. "He gave me an assignment that kept me up most of the night"

That's partially true. Keon did give me an assignment and I did try to do it. Then I became convinced that I needed music to help me read, and somehow ended up spending an hour trying to pick a song, another hour listening to the song which reminded me of Barbie so I decided to watch Barbie and the Twelve Dancing Princesses and... you get the gist.

"There's a party tonight by the way", Kayla says. "You've been so pent up lately I thought maybe you'd be interested. Release all that tension y'know."

I try to resist the urge to nod. I need to study, I might not graduate if I don't

But you've been working so hard all week, a voice whispers in my head. Will one break really hurt?

"I'll definitely be there", I grin, tapping my fingers against my thigh in an effort to dissipate the feeling of guilt.

"I want to come too", a quiet voice comes from beside me, and I nearly jump out pf my skin to see Quinn, holding a book. As usual she is bundled in a sweater twice her size which all but drowns her and her head is stuck in a book.

I wish I had an interest in reading like she did.

"Oh Quinn I don't think...", Kayla starts to say, but Quinn turns to her.