How can we make amends
when we said all we said
I call and you don't pick up
American Authors, Luck
♡ ────── ♡ ────── ♡
Piper's POV
I walk into the cafeteria and see Valerie already at our table. "I forgot to do a packet in English, and it's due in 20 minutes!" She says.
"Do you need help?" I ask.
"No, thank you though. Sometimes my hand isn't fast enough to write down my thoughts." She says.
I start to eat my lunch when Sebastian walks by. I wave, and he smiles back at me. "Do you remember what you put for this?" Valerie asks, not noticing our interaction.
"I got the answer from this paragraph," I say, pointing at the answer.
A few minutes later, Valerie finishes the packet and says, "Done with this shit."
I laugh, and she starts to finish her lunch. "Hey, do you want to hang out this weekend? We haven't done anything outside of school in weeks." I say.
"Oh ya! I was supposed to ask if you and your siblings wanted to go laser tagging with my brother and me. My mom has a coupon for the arcade, and they expire this weekend." She says.
"I'll ask my siblings if they're free. But I'll for sure be there." I say, feeling excited. This time we'll kick Valerie and Victor's asses! It's not that serious.
"Are you ready to present next week?" Valerie asks.
"Nope. I haven't memorized any of my slides yet." I say, sighing.
"You'll do well. You're really good at flowing through your slides. I've seen so many people typing their whole script on their slides." She says, shaking her head.
The warning bell rings, and Valerie and I separate for class. I walk towards the library and see Aunt Jade shelving. "Need help?" I ask.
"Do you think you could clean the keyboards in the computer room? Lately, I've been seeing crumbs stuck between the keys." She says.
"Ya sure," I say, shrugging.
I grab a container with wipes and start wiping down the keyboards. A few minutes later, Sebastian walks in and says, "There you are! Okay, I have a plan."
"On what...?" I ask, confused.
"I'm going to make a move with the girl." He says, determined.
"Well, good luck," I say, handing him the wipes container. He starts to help me clean the keyboards, and I turn from him to smile.
"So, do you think I should casually mention that we should hang out? Or straight up ask to hang out?" He asks.
"Does she like people who are straight to the point? Cause if she's the type to beat around the bush, she probably wouldn't want you trapping her in a yes or no question." I say, thinking.
He says, "She's blunt sometimes but has her shy moments, I guess?"
"Does she like watching movies?" I ask.
"Probably." He says, shrugging.
"Great! Start with that." I say, wiping down a keyboard twice. Gross. Why is it sticky?
"Like ask her to watch a movie with me?" He asks.
"Start by bringing up a random movie you like. Then focus the conversation on her and ask what movies and shows she likes. If you're lucky, you can find an in to watch a show she likes. Funny enough, my parents watched The Office together before getting together." I say with a chuckle.
"Brilliant. I can see if she's willing to watch one of her favorites with me or if she's interested in something new at the theater." He says.
"Aww, you connected the dots all on your own." I coo.
He rolls his eyes and says, "I hate you."
"Sure you do." I tease, throwing away the dirty wipes. "Oh, I almost forgot. Are you busy this weekend?"
"No." He immediately says. "I mean, why?"
"We have to practice for our presentation since we have to present on Monday. I don't want to get a bad grade since my lowest grade is in that class." I say.
"I'm cool with that. Does Saturday work?" He asks.
"I have plans with Valerie. We plan on going laser tagging. But I'm pretty sure we're gonna lose again." I say, shaking my head.
He laughs and says, "My sister and I are pros at laser tag. One time we were at an arcade, and we were the top two on the leaderboard."
"Let me guess. You were number 1." I say.
He frowns and says, "Second. But only by 10 points!" Wish you had that on your team.
"Hey, do you want to go laser tagging with us? I could use the help." I say, smiling at him. Maybe we could win for once! The twins are pretty good, but you and Colette suck. Hey, it's not my fault I have horrible aim. Uh, it kinda is.
"Oh, I wouldn't want to intrude-" He says before I cut him off.
"No, you would be helping! But I'll text Valerie to make sure it's okay." I say.
"Well, if she says okay, I'd love to go." He says.
"Awesome! Do you have any siblings? They're also invited since Valerie, and I are taking ours." I say.
"Ya, I have a little sister." He answers.
"Cool, I'll text you!" I say without thinking.
"...You don't have my number." He says quietly. You are so dumb sometimes. Shut up.
I awkwardly laugh and say, "Ya, that would probably be helpful."
I grab my phone and let him create his contact. He bites back a smile while typing, and I almost laugh at his goofy expression. He's so weird sometimes. Cute but weird.
He hands me my phone and says, "I have to get back to class before they find out I'm not shitting in the bathroom. You'd think they wouldn't care about your whereabouts in study hall."
"We're seniors. They shouldn't care what we do with the free period. If you ever want to hang out with me, I can have my aunt write you a pass." I say.
"I appreciate it." He says, saluting me goodbye.
*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*
"Do you still need help with presenting? I have work, but if you need an audience to practice with, you can chill at the cafe." I say to Valerie.
"Sure." She says, shrugging. "I need to master this before I go to bed."
"Did you volunteer to go on the first day?" I ask while we leave the building.
"Ya... Harry and I wanted to get it over with, but now I don't want to go first." She says, sighing.
"If it makes you feel better, no one will remember your presentation. Everyone usually dozes off during presentation days until it's their turn to present." I say.
"True." She says, looking less stressed.
"I'll be fine once I present without looking at my notecards. Harry pretty much has the whole thing memorized!" She says.
When I arrive, I go behind the counter and wait for customers. A few minutes later, Valerie comes, and she grabs a seat at a table.
"I'm gonna pull out my notes and see what I still have to memorize." She says.
"Okay," I say, going through my Instagram feed. "Oh hey, can Sebastian tag along on Saturday? He told me he and his sister are pros at laser tagging."
She looks up from her phone and asks, "The one you're trying to set up with his crush?"
"Yep," I say.
"Sure." She says, looking at me with a smirk.
"What...?" I ask.
"So you guys are friends now?" She asks, raising her eyebrow.
"I guess," I say.
"That's all?" She asks.
"Bitch, I'm trying to set him up with someone," I say, rolling my eyes.
"And yet he still won't tell you who. Seems suspicious." She says, going back to reading her notecards.
Sebastian:
She said yes 👍
My sister said she's free to join
You better be joining my team, or I'll kick your ass
I'd like to see you try
You're only taller than me by a few inches
Way easier for me to hide in the game
Maybe I'll join Valerie's team just to hunt you down
You wouldn't...
We'll see how generous I'm feeling this weekend
Maybe I'll protect my damsel and sacrifice my score
Again, I hate you 🖕
"Why are you smiling?" Valerie asks with a grin.
"Oh, shut up," I say, rolling my eyes.
*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*
I finally get home and take a quick shower. Then I go downstairs to eat dinner. I see Ivy and Colette eating, and I ask, "Do you guys want to go laser tagging on Saturday?"
"Yes!" They say excitedly.
I smile and ask, "Where's Eli?"
"Probably in his room sleeping or doing homework," Ivy says.
I walk back up the stairs and knock on Eli's door. "Eli?" I ask quietly, in case he's sleeping.
I hear shuffling, and then he opens the door. "You want to go laser tagging on Saturday?" I ask.
"I can't. I already have plans with Carson." He says, referring to his best friend.
"That's okay! Just wanted to ask." I say, going back downstairs. Hurry up. I'm hungry!
"Eli's busy, so we'll make it a girls' day! Oh, wait, Sebastian and Victor, are coming. Girls' day plus them." I say to my sisters.
"Who's Sebastian?" Colette asks.
"Just a friend from school. He has a sister who's coming too." I say.
"Is he cute?" Ivy asks.
"Ivy!" I say, glaring at their evil smiles.
"You two need to stay out of my love life," I say, shaking my head.
"So it's not nonexistent anymore?" Colette asks.
"Wow, you two are mean," I say. "For your information, I'm helping Sebastian ask his crush out."
"Oh. Well, see if he has any cute friends." Ivy says.
"Don't be weird when you two meet him. He's nice." I say, getting up from the table. Siblings... You love and hate them. Eh, mostly hate.
<~~~~~~~~~~>
Thanks for reading! 🙃
Byeeeeeeeeee! 👋