carson's pov
Mr. Girsel, the principal, comes out of his office and shakes my hand.
"Thanks for telling me about Alisster. She and one other friend got suspended for the rest of the week. Please tell me if you see anything like that again."
I nod politely. "Thanks, Mr. Girsel."
Mr. Girsel leans on the door frame and looks past me into the hallway. "How's she doing? Brynn...err, I guess she goes by Bry now."
"What?" Something registers in my mind, but I'm too preoccupied with other thoughts to really think about what he said. "Oh, she's fine. The nurse is just looking making sure she's ok. I think she's going home early."
"Good. Have a good rest of your day, Carson." The principal smiles and goes back into his office.
Bry? Brynn? Funny coincidence...My thoughts barely drift onto that before I'm interrupted by Johnny calling.
"Hey, bro," Johnny sounds very hurried.
"...yeah?"
"Are you coming over today? Kenzie's birthday is coming up and you said you'd help me set up the surprise party."
"Oh. Lol, whoops."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'LOL'??"
I roll my eyes. "Ok, ok, I'm coming over. Am I the only one helping you? I mean, I'm not Kenzie's best friend..."
Johnny sighs. "Yeah, fine whatever, invite whoever you want to come help. Lauren's here though, so she's gonna help plan."
"Okay...see you later...?"
Johnny laughs. "C'mon, it'll be fun. And thanks a ton."
"No problem." I hang up and head down the hallway, shaking my head. I have no idea how I got roped into this. Who am I going to ask? My mind goes back to what Hayden said about Brynn being one of Kenzie's best friends. Maybe I can ask her. It would be an opportunity to see her again...hey, it's worth a try.
brynn's pov
My head is still pounding, but I'm feeling a good deal better. I got permission to leave early, which is super nice. I still want to find Carson before I leave and thank him. Walking slowly down the hallway, I peer around through my thick glasses and let my hair cover my face. I see him, leaning on his locker, looking at his phone. As I come closer, he looks up at me for a second. Then he finishes typing something and hits send. A text message. Then he looks up again and smiles.
"Oh, hey. How are you feeling?"
I smile. "Better, tha-" I'm interrupted by my phone buzzing. Pulling it out, it's a text...from Carson.
Carson Lueders
hey, brynn, it's carson from the rock your hair concert
you know Kenzie's birthday is coming up and Johnny wanted me to help him set up a surprise party and i know you're good friends with kenz
can you come over to the orlando's apartment later today and help us plan it?
I was THIS close to responding to him to his face. Luckily, I remembered just in time, and just looked at it and then put my phone back in my pocket.
Carson gave me a hint of a confused look, and then I quickly stammered, "Yeah...I'm good...I mean, b-better...uhh, by the way, I just wanted to...thank you for saving me."
"No problem at all. If those girls bother you again, tell me." He smiles, and then gives me a fist bump. What's that supposed to mean? "Get some rest."
I nod and smile awkwardly, and then walk past him and pull out my phone.
i'd love to! what time?
Then I look back and see a big grin on his face as he reads my message.
how about 5:15?
perfect! see you then :)
×××
As soon as I get home, I curl my hair, pull on a different outfit, and take off my glasses. Then I apply makeup. I always wonder how big the difference is between "Bry" and Brynn. I guess it's big enough that all the kids at school don't notice.
Mom drives me up to the Orlando's place at around 5:05, bids me goodbye, and reminds me to text her when I'm ready to be picked up.
Walking up to the giant apartment building, I text Lauren and tell her I'm here. Soon, the door buzzes, letting me in. Sheesh, this building is riiiiiiiiich. A front desk person in a fancy black dress asks me who I'm visiting, and points me to a row of shiny gold elevators. I hit one of the giant gold buttons, and it opens immediately. Coincidentally, Lauren was coming down to meet me.
"Hey, Brynn! Good to see you again!" I love Lauren. She's the sweetest, and you can have any kind of conversation with her. Deep, confessional, slap happy, or small talk, it'll be the best conversation you've ever had.
"Good to see you too!" I hug her tightly, and then we hop onto the elevator. It takes us up to the 34th floor, and lets us off onto a giant tiled foyer with big windows and plants.
"This way," Lauren grins at my amazed expression and pulls me down one of the red carpeted corridors. We stop in front of a big red door, and Lauren knocks three times.
The door opens, and Carson grins when he sees me...us...ugh, whatever.
"Hey, Brynn! Good to see you!"
I nod and step inside. "Great to see you too!" Then I glance around. Sheesh, this apartment is big enough to be a house.
Johnny comes out of a hallway, holding his laptop. "Hey, Brynn. Glad you could come! Shall we get planning?"
-
-
-
-
-
-