The girl's bathroom was smaller than I remember it being.
I had run into the bathroom the moment the class was dismissed. I felt exposed. And I did not appreciate all the stares I had been getting.
The door opened and Jenny walked in. "What're you doing in here? Go strut your stuff." She smiled at me.
"If you slap me again, I just might hurt you," I warned.
She gave me a sheepish look and kept her hands to herself. Good. She needs to keep her hands away from any part of my body.
The door opened again. A couple of girls shuffled inside. "Love the look," one said.
"It suits you."
"More like it suits her body."
"You are really pretty, girl."
I rolled my eyes. There was nothing more boring than girls complimenting other girls. Oh, a new lipstick color? Gee, is it coral colored? How about sinfully seductive? Bleh.
The bathroom felt packed. I pushed past the other girls to get to the door. I didn't want to be in here when even more girls arrived.
Waiting across the hall from the bathroom was Cho. I closed my eyes and held my breath, debating my options. Go back into the bathroom or face the brunette? Or Option C, run?
I think I'd rather go back into that bathroom. I couldn't outrun Cho. He ran daily in the gym. I ran when I wasn't busy. Which wasn't that often. I liked to keep myself busy.
My decision made, I turned on my heel to reenter the bathroom. However, I never made it as someone had gripped my wrist like iron. I was about to yell at Cho before I caught a glimpse of him walking swiftly down the hallway.
I looked up into familiar bright eyes. His twin was nowhere to be seen. Did he come here alone? Where was Leo?
"You're giving me a lot of mixed signals, you know," I teased.
He didn't reply. He didn't say a word as he dragged me through the hallway. Always from zero to one hundred with this boy. If I acted this way I would probably give myself whiplash.
"Where are we going? Where's Leo?" I asked. Once again, he didn't answer me. Maybe I should start bringing a microphone places?
"I still have classes today."
No reply.
Missing classes was different than Extracurriculars. I could just say I didn't make it because I had to study or I crashed. There was no excuse for missing a class. Being trapped on campus did that to people.
Jaxson backtracked, yanking my arm behind me. I twirled around and frowned. "What's going on?" I pressed.
We stopped before a door. He swung his fingers at the lock on the knob and it clicked open. He pushed his palm forward without touching the door and it creaked forward. Jaxson pulled me into the room beyond, shutting the door the same way he had opened it.
"Wh-"
"Shh."
He shushed me. Were we in an old library or something? I looked around the room. It was too dark to see anything. I shuffled around the wall for a scanner for the light switch.
Something clicked against metal and light washed over the room. I saw Jaxson holding a metal chain linked to an old lightbulb. We were in a small room that had stacks of textbooks and writing utensils.
He took me to a closet. How original.
"Jaxson?" I whispered.
"Hm?"
"Why are we standing in a closet with an outdated light source?"
He shrugged. He sat on top of a stack of textbooks and grabbed a pencil. The pencil was a regular wooden one. I hadn't used one of those for years. Mechanical had quickly become my preferred pencil. He started to tap it against his leg like a drummer would a drumstick.
"Do you get letters?" he whispered softly. If it hadn't been deathly silent in here I wouldn't have heard it.
This was the second time I had been asked this. Were they really taking away people's letters? That shouldn't be allowed. Maybe a student is just taking them and will get caught eventually?
"No," I replied.
"Recently?"
"I've never gotten letters. From anyone. Not even one from the woman who gave birth to me."
"Oh. That sucks." His expression didn't change from his usual neutral one. I was filled with relief to see he hadn't felt pity after hearing that.
"It's whatever."
"No, it's not."
I shrugged. I sat beside him and watched him play with the pencil. He outstretched his hand with another pencil. Hesitantly, I took it from his palm.
"Drumming helps. With anything. Energy, emotions. We -Leo and I- got a letter once that told us that our father played the drums. I picked it up. Even though music is scheduled for Pisces and not Gemini. Leo just dove into more languages."
"Do you like drumming?" I asked.
He lifted his head and his eyes shone with unshed tears. "No. I hate it. It's loud and it is a lot of exercise."
"Then why-"
"Because I hate Language and Communication even more. It's boring and I have no use for German or Japanese or Russian. Everybody I care for speaks English."
"But you're supposed to be a translator or something when you become a Zodiac. That's why they have you learn those. So you can speak with the Zodiacs from other countries."
"I don't want to," he hissed. The pencil stopped tapping. "If I become a Zodiac I'll throw myself out."
"What? Why?"
"They don't want to help us, Aqua. My parents were thrown out of the academy For stupid reasons. I don't want to follow their rules."
The nickname had thrown me. He had never spoken this much to me before -not even at the Gemini club- and now he was giving me a nickname? Why was he telling me all of this?
"I don't... I don't know what to say."
The drumming started up again. "Leo doesn't care. He wants to become a zombie for them."
"What do you want?"
He licked his lips. His gaze slid away from me for a moment before zipping back. "I want to leave," he whispered.
Rebellious. He was being rebellious. I had to tell someone. What if he corrupted other signs?
Doing something against the rules only brings you to be thirsty for more.
"Jaxson," I whispered.
He was giving me the most adorable look I have ever seen. He had told me this in confidence. I couldn't break his trust. I had to keep it to myself.
But this was against the rules. He shouldn't even be thinking about such things. How could he even feel this way? They treated us great here. I don't understand; I don't know what to do.
"Ah, and I think," he paused. His facial expression started to change.
"What?"
He licked his lips again. "You look good today." Not a second after the words left his lips, he stood and started toward the door.
I stood as well. I wasn't sure if I should follow him. Did he want me to follow him? I walked out of the closet. Following him was probably a bad idea.
Before I could decide anything for sure I heard footsteps walking quickly in my direction. Please don't be a professor. Or Cho.
Jaxson rounded the corner again. What did he come back for? The dorms were that way along with his next class. He approached me again and wrapped his hands around my shoulders.
"Can I kiss you?" he whispered quickly.
I stared at him. The question took its time to register in my brain. Something tugged at my stomach and my face felt hot. "What?" I breathed.