Boomerang | DreamWasTaken

07- project

Kailey

Somehow over the weekend I was able to finish all my homework, but that meant I didn't get much sleep Saturday or Sunday. I am going to be more irritated for the next couple days while I try to catch up on sleep.

Today is Monday and I'm on my way to my computer science class with Professor Besson. He told us last week that he didn't plan on altering the assigned seats until the end of the marking period so I was looking forward to sitting next to Clay.

After Friday night, I had a small hope that maybe he would start talking to me again. The other night had been the most I talked to him since eighth grade.

"Hey" I whispered while taking me seat. He didn't acknowledge me so the hope I had went out the window. I guess we were gonna act like nothing happened. I was trying to be happy about seeing Clay but I guess I will go back to being irritated.

Professor Besson started class by explaining our new project that would require us to work with a partner. Not only did he stress that the project was due next class, but Professor Besson also made sure to announce that we would not have any class time to work on it.

He made his way around the room pairing partners by who they were sitting next to. When he finally arrived at my computer, Professor Besson waved his finger between Clay and I to signal that we would be working together.

This could be a good thing I guess. Maybe it will get him to talk to me more? I knew he was still capable of holding a conversation with me based on Friday nights antics.

I looked over at Clay and asked when he wanted to work on it but all he said was "I'll text you." Right, he still had my number yet he rarely texts me anymore.

Pretty sure the last text I got from him was something along the lines of "Hey, we're running late. *Clay's sisters name* is being a brat so we will probably get there around 7:30." His mom definitely made him send that back in July when they came over for dinner.

I'm going to start calling Clay's sister Payton for the sake of the story. I don't know how old she is but I'm going to pretend she is in middle school.

Annoyed once again, I turned back to my computer to start the in-class assignment for the day. Thankfully it was just some simple algorithms so I was able to get it done pretty fast. I was glad I could use the extra class time to start my English homework that was assigned this morning.

It was almost the end of the class when the talkative group on the other side of the classroom started obnoxiously laughing. They were chatting so loud that I could hear parts of their conversation.

At one point, a kid yelled "You watch Dream too?" That got them really excited and then they all started talking over each other. Who the hell was Dream and why were they all so excited about it? Did a new Netflix series come out that I hadn't heard about?

When they said this, Clay chuckled next to me. I was confused why he had such a reaction, but I was more focused on how it was the first time in a long time I heard a genuine laugh come from his mouth.

I missed the nights we would stay up late and talk. Sometimes he would laugh so hard that he sounded like a tea kettle. I didn't realize how much I missed his wheezing laugh.

*****

The next day, Clay still hadn't texted me about our assignment so I decided to text him first. When I asked when he wanted to meet up to start it, all he said was "I finished it."

I replied by saying, "What the hell? We were supposed to work on it together."

He said, "Don't worry, I'll tell Professor Besson we contributed equally."

"What if you did it wrong?" I replied. He read the message and a good five minutes went by without a reply

That jerk. I wasn't actually worried that he did the assignment wrong. I knew he typically did really well on assignments. What bothered me was that he probably stayed up all night to finish it just so we didn't have to spend any time together.

Frustrated that Clay has decided to go back to avoiding me, I stormed up to his apartment hoping he was home. I knocked on his door and a guy who was definitely not Clay opened the door. Shit. Am I sure I have the right apartment?

"Uh hi, is Clay here?" I asked praying that I did not just bang my fist on some strangers door.

He was hesitant at first but then said,"Depends. Who are you?"

"I'm Kailey. Clay is my partner for our Computer Science project."

He looked confused at first but then a flash of recognition was visible on his face.

"Ohhh so you're Kailey" he said with a slight smirk while looking me up and down. "I'm Nick" he said and held his hand out for me to shake. "So happy to meet you."

"Yeah, you too I guess" I said confused why he is happy to meet me. "Where is Clay?"

"He's um kinda busy right now. Do you need me to pass on a message for you?"

"No. I need to talk to him now." I say as I push past Nick and make my way towards Clay's bedroom.

Nick frantically chases after me saying, "No, you can't go in there!"

Ignoring him, I open the door to Clay's room to see him in front of his monitors with a headset on. Why didn't I notice before that he has so many monitors? Why did he need so many?

Clay quickly spins around in his chair while taking off his headset and giving me a glare.

"What do you want?"

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Clay POV next!

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