An ex-couples rivalry for the spot as student body president becomes even more convoluted when two new, unexpected candidates enter the race. Chloe and Preston team up, each vowing to get one member kicked from the competition-- but when they both e...
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"So, is it wrong for me to assume this is your first detention?" Finn asked, wheeling a large recycling bin down the hall with us.
I laughed, knowing he already knew the answer. "No, that's right. Today's just full of firsts for me. You know, I was so swept up in what happened with Fulton that I forgot to ask him where detention was. I had to go to the office to find out."
Finn smiled and stopped next to an empty classroom, leaning into the open doorway and grabbing the small blue container next to the door. He flipped it over, dumping its paper contents into our large bin, which was already mostly full.
This was our detention: taking care of the school's recycling for the day. We were responsible for the upstairs west wing, while Milton's other delinquents took care of the other areas.
I took a few steps to grab the bin from the class across the hall. "Hopefully also my last detention," I said as I shook the paper out of the bin.
"You don't like playing janitor?" he teased. "I thought it seemed right up your alley."
I gave him a playful glare as we rolled a few feet to the next set of rooms. Truthfully, I expected detention to be a lot worse. Picking up recycling from one wing of the school wasn't exactly the most severe of punishments, especially considering the disturbance we'd caused.
"You know," Finn's voice was more serious when he spoke again, "I've been thinking about what you said, about me not being prideful. I don't know if it's true."
My brow furrowed as we came to a stop again. "What do you mean?"
As the two of us got the next pair of bins, he shrugged. "Well, I mean, I didn't even have the guts to tell everyone the truth. I gave them that BS about Fulton wanting to negotiate."
"It's what anyone would've done," I tried to comfort him as we moved forward again.
"Yeah, maybe. But I didn't think it's what I would've done." He shook his head, sighing. "I tell you not to care about your image and then lie to keep mine intact."
"Finn," I said, placing a hand on the recycling bin so he'd stop the job for a second. "You introduced me to your friends and stood in front of the whole school with me, the girl you keep referring to as Milton's princess."
"So?"
"So if you were really worried about keeping up your rebellious, tough-guy persona, you wouldn't have done that."
He raised a shoulder, leaning against the top of the recycling bin. "So then why'd I lie? Why didn't I have the balls to tell them the truth, that I needed the protest to end so I could stay in the race?"
"Doing something because you want people to like you isn't the same as doing something to keep up an image. Trust me— I know a lot about doing both of those."
