Principal Shelby comes back in and she almost screams when she sees me on the floor. She rushes to me trying to sit me up.
"It's okay just breath. Just breath", she says putting a hand on my chest. I nod trying to breath slowly and be as calm as possible.
My ragged breathing eventually calms down but I'm still a bit shaken. She offers me a bottle of water and I take it. After getting the cap off I take a small sip out of it.
"How are you feeling?", She asks and I nod.
"I'm okay", I slowly say and she nods.
"Come on", she calls out lending me a hand so she can pull me up. I take it and she succeeds in helping me up and I succeed in not pulling her down. I didn't actually put all my weight on her even if it was Loren she was pulling up and she happened to put her whole weight on her she'd fall.
"Have a seat", she says carefully watching me as she goes to sit down on the other side of the table. I take a seat in front of her. "Do you have these panic attacks frequently?", she asks.
"No, this is actually the second time", I say. After what happened with Sabrina Conner I've never actually had another panic attack. This is legitimately the second time and I'm hoping the last.
"When was the first time?", She asks and I look down at the bottle in my hand. My finger traces the letterings on it.
I look up, "It's uh, a long time ago".
She sighs, "Do you feel alright Abby? Should I call your parents?".
At the mention of parents my mind goes to my house and how it's just one left. My dad left without a warning and it got to me.. badly, very badly. I just couldn't understand why he would do that, why he would suddenly leave just like that. It hurts and it hurts even more that I miss him.
"No", I answer. I don't need my mum worrying over me for a panic attack I had just because I was scared of getting busted.
"Okay then but I advise you to go home", she says and I quickly decline.
"Oh no it's fine-
"I insist. I'll write you a permit now", she says and I sigh.
Principal Shelby takes out a paper and writes down on it. Afterwards she signs at the bottom of the little words she had written to sum up the permit. She then hands it to me, I take it.
"Okay now I want you to pack your things and go home.. make sure you have a good rest", she says and I nod.
"Um.. but, aren't you gonna tell me why you called me here?", I bravely ask and her eyes light up like she had just remembered what she was going to say before my panic attack popped up.
"Oh of course. Abby, you know you're one of our brightest students here and it would be a shame..", she trails looking down at her phone that had lit up due to a notification. I gulp, it would be a shame if you got a expelled.
"If you didn't participate in our new study camp program", she says finishing her sentence that I've been waiting for with bated breath. I let out a sigh of relief. Oh thank God it's not the other thing.. but wait did she say study camp?.
"What's that?", I ask and she smiles. Oh boy, it's that smile grown ups have when they're excited about something boring.
"It's a new program we're having this holiday. Since most of the study classes we've been doing haven't actually succeeded, we decided to have something different", she ends giving out a proud smile like she's just invented the means to stop world hunger.
"Which is?", I press on.
"We're giving students the chance to teach other students. It's going to be like a competition though", she says and there's a smile on my face now but it falters a bit with the competition word.
"A competition? Like how?", I ask.
"If the student you're assigned to tutor does well by the end of the whole program. You'll get a reward", she expounds and I nod.
"So you want me to participate?", I ask still a bit bedazzled.
"Of course. It wouldn't be complete without you..", she trails and I watch a frown get in the way of her smile, "But there's just one problem".
I gulp. This is it. This is where my whole career ends and maybe my life too. Goodbye tutoring, goodbye bullies, goodbye world hunger...
"Your P.E grades are not looking too good but if you can bring it to a C- then you're tutoring spot is sealed", she says and I calm down a bit. Just a bit and only because it's not about the other thing but now I know what it's about it's still kind of a problem. How am I going to move my solid F to a C-? What am I?, a Noah?. That's obviously impossible.
"You can do it Abby", I turn to principal Shelby who's smiling at me. Oh boy.
**
I walk home sighing from here to there. I think I finally know what it means to have both good and bad news, ok no I've actually experienced this before. Back in fifth grade our class pet iguana, Matilda was her name, was meant to give birth. When we got to school the next morning everyone was super excited to see her and the new born. We had gotten the good news first that she had a girl and then the bad news came afterwards that she had passed away. I sigh, may her soul rest in peace. Poor Matilda.
I walk up my front porch and to the front door. I search for my keys in my bag and when I don't seem to find them I take the search to the floor, pouring all the contents of the bag onto the floor. I search for the keys over my books and pens but it's nowhere to be found. Don't tell me I left it in the house. I sigh, come on nature I just had a heart attack.
And suddenly there's trickle of water coming from the sky. I look up and notice the nimbus forming. Oh no. I quickly pack my things back into my bag. This can't be happening.
A thought comes up in my mind and I decide to go with it running to the back of the house to check if the back door is locked. When I try the knob and it doesn't open I run back to the front. Oh gosh, this is happening.
The water which was once trickling from the sky in drops had now increased to the amount of a down pour. I take my bag off and shield it in front of me, wrapping my hands around it. My books are gonna get soaked.
"Abby?", I turn squinting my eyes from the rain that had developed ever so rapidly.
Mrs kushner, just across the street rushes to me with an umbrella. When she gets to me she covers me with the umbrella.
"How did you get yourself in this awful weather?", She asks as I slowly start to shiver. The cold is getting to me pretty fast.
"I forgot my keys", I say holding onto my bag more tightly.
"Oh poor thing", she sympathizes, "Come let's go to my house", she says and I don't think twice before following her to her house.
I get in first with her behind closing the door. She turns off the umbrella and keeps it aside.
"I'll get a blanket for you dear", she says rushing upstairs. She comes back after a while and hands me a blue blanket. I take it wrapping it around myself.
"Abby you're shivering. How bout you go change into warmer clothes?", She asks.
"But I don't have any-
"It's okay, I'm sure you can find something to wear in Noah's room", she says and my eyes widen. She wants me to do what?.
"But I don't think-
"It's fine. I'm sure he won't mind.. you're like a best friend to him", She says then ushers me to go up so I take the stairs up and head to Noah's room.
I walk in taking the blanket off before my bag. I open it up and not so surprisingly my books are wet but not too wet though. They just need to dry out a bit. I take them out of the bag and then place them on Noah's study desk. I look around the room before moving to his closet. I open it and I'm not surprised when clothes start falling out like an avalanche. I'm guessing he just shoves things in here.
My clothes are near to dripping so I'll take them off first. I walk into the bathroom and it's like I'm in a sanctuary. I'm literally in the Greek god's temple, where it all goes down. Where he cleanses.. Snap out of it Abby. I get myself together shaking the thoughts away.
I quickly change out of my wet clothes and into a rob. God, it smells so nice.. I wonder what he's shampoo smells like. I move the curtain away and gasp when I see a great number of shampoo bottles over the bath tub.
I step in to get a closer look. Oh my God he even has conditioners. I could never in my life time imagine myself using this much.. hold the thought.
Within seconds the robe falls down and I'm in the tub using every shampoo product Noah has with hot water running over my head.
**
I come out of the shower smiling like a goof. I can't believe I actually took a shower in Noah's bathroom. I'm literally smelling like him. His scent is just everywhere. It almost feels like I'm a part of him. My eyes move to his dresser and I walk to it picking up a perfume bottle.
He has so many. I wonder if he uses them all at once. I sniff the one I'm holding then pick another so I can smell it. They smell so nice and expensive. They're obviously gonna cost much if they smell so nice, right?.
I open the caps of the perfume and test them.. well not test though I actually spray them like I'm the owner. Its like I spray too much because I start coughing and that involves opening my mouth so the perfume actually gets in there so I quickly put the perfumes down and head to the bathroom. I check the cabinets for toothpaste but I can't find any so I pick out a mouth wash instead and put it into my mouth but I spit it out instantly.
"God, why is it so bitter?", I ask out loud regretting why I used it in the first place.
"Because that's not a mouth wash", I hear a deep voice say so I slowly turn and.. I freeze when I see Noah leaning on the door frame looking at me.
He straightens his posture then calls out, "Room service".