Jade has always liked going to math. She liked the class, she knew what he was doing and if she had to help Michael out every so often that didn't really matter to her. But ever since Charlie joined the class there has been this weird tension floating around the table. Jade could tell it was something to do with whatever Michael and Charlie had going on between them.
Sometimes Jade would be looking up and see Michael staring at Charlie when she was working or she would look up and Charlie was staring at Michael when he was attempting to work. It was all very strange for Jade.
"Jade," Charlie whispers. "Did you get six over five for eleven C?" She leans over to look at Jade's jotter.
"Yeah." Jade nods back and Charlie smiles proudly at herself. Charlie was smart and really good at math. She would still ask Jade for help sometimes though,but she wouldn't actually be wrong, she would just be making sure Jade knew Charlie had gotten the right answer.
"Wait, what?" Michael whispers with a sudden panic. "I got twelve?" Michael scratches the back of his head and furiously looks over his work.
"I can check it, if you like?" Charlie smiles sweetly at MIchael already going for his jotter. That is before he quickly snatches it up and throws it in front of Jade.
"That's fine, Jade can check it." He says cooly and leans back in his chair.
Charlie looks a little bit disappointed and lets her shoulders fall a bit. Her bright smile she usually wears disappears but soon after its gone its back again and bigger than ever. "Oh, okay." She chrips and gets back to her work. Not before giving Jade a quick glance and giving her a weak smile.
Jade didn't like being put in the middle of things. She often found herself getting put between Michael and Charlie though. It was extremely irritating. They would always get into some wierd whisper arguement that Jade wouldn't really pay attention to or hear and then somehow she would feel like she was in the middle of it. She didn't even know these people. She wasn't there friend. They should go cry to Luke and Ashton about whatever relationship issue they were going through with.
"You forgot to add three at the very beginning." Jade tells Michael after giving his work a short look over and handing it back to him.
Michael groans and slams his head onto the desk, loudly. And what looks like painfully. This draws some attention from others in the class, oncluding the teacher. All he does is roll his eyes and Jade is pretty sure she hears him call Michael an idiot under his breath.
"Michael?" Charlie shakes her head at him, but Michael doesn't answer. He instead pulls up his hood and keeps his forehead rested on the desk. Charlie continues to shake her head and chuckles a little bit. "He does this when he is frustrated." Charlie whispers to Jade.
"I know." Jade tells her. She has seen Michael to this multiple times in math. He wouldn't be able to do a question or he would get it wrong and then he would just, kind of, shut off.
"Ah, right." Charlie nods once again before her eyes go back down to her jotter.
Just as Jade feels as though she gets back to work without any distractions the bell goes off, signalling lunch. She sighs and begins to put her stuff in her bag. Michael seems to have stopped being frustrated and also begins to, agressively, shove his stuff back into his bag as well. Charlie is already all packed to go and goes over to the door and waits there. Probably for Michael. They sit at the 'popular' table for lunch so even though they might have a weird relationship together they still walk together to lunch and from class to class just so they aren't alone.
Jade heads over to the door too and as she walk past the teachers desk he calls her over and reminds her about tutoring tonight. How could Jade forget? After Ashton drove her home last time he hasnt really said much to her. He hasn't said anything to her, actually. Even Calum doesn't seem to be bothered by him anymore. To be totally honest Jade wasn't sure why she was so bothered by Ashotn not paying much attention to her. It's not that different from what it usually is. It's not like they were friends or anything. He only offered to drive her home because he was going the same way. That was it. So it wasn't the big deal Jade was making it out to be.
"Jade." Charlie says as Jade walks past her at the door.
Jade thought she would just walk past Charlie without anything really being said to her. She would just go to the cafeteria and sit at her usual table, with and eat her lunch. Like normal. So why was Charlie stopping her?
"Are you going to lunch?" Charlie asks.
"Uh, yes." Where else would Jade be going? Actually the real question is: Why does Charlie care?
"Cool, I'll walk with you." Charlie smiles brightly. She flips her hair over her shoulder and begins to strut down the hall, with Jade being able to do nothing but follow her. "I like this school." Charlie announces as they make their way to lunch together.
"Oh, okay." Jade doesn't know how to respond. She just knwos that she is walking to lunch with Charlie Collins, a popular, pretty cheerleader, whose friends wouldn't usally look Jade's way without it being for help in math. Or if you are Luke Hemmings, to give her the creeps.
"I mean this place is much bigger and nicer and just... yeah." Charlie sighs.
Jade has noticed that Charlie talks with her hands a lot. She is always waving them about. That or using them to play with her long light blonde hair.
"Hey!" Someone says from behind them. It's clearly Michael and Jade hears his loud running feet get closer and closer. Right until he is on Jade's other side so she is inbetween the two of them. This is one of the weirdest things that has happened to her. Well this week. Being in Ashton Irwin's car was a pretty weird experience too.
"You both going to lunch?" Michael asks and Jade keeps her eyes focused on her feet and lets Charlie answer for the two of them.
"Yeah, you?"
"Of course. You know me." He says.
The two of them go silent and by doing so make Jade feel very uncomfortable. She can't help but feel that Michael and Charlie are having a telepathic conversation over Jade's head. This is why Jade hates to be noticed, because then she starts wondeiring what other people think and say about her.
"Hey there Cal!" Michael calls and imediatly Jade looks up. She sees Calum at his locker puting books away before heading to the cafeteria. At first he looks afraid but then when he sees Jade he just looks confused.
Jade picks up her pace to reach Calum before the other two and maybe give a quick explantion as to why she was with them. She didn't even know herself, really. It just sort of happened.
"Uhm..." She says to Calum as he just stares back down at her in shock and confusion.
"What?" He says, looking for an explanation as to what exactly was going on. Jade wishes she could give him one. But unfortunately Michael was standing by the two of them.
Michael rests an arm on Calum's soulder and smiles between the two of them. "So," He says. Charlie goes over to Jade's side and raises her eyebrows. She clearly did not know about Calum yet, or what Michael, Luke and Ashotn do to him. "How you been Cal, long time no see." Michael says.
"Uh... y-yeah." Calum stutters. Michael was acting as if Jade wasn't even there. Or at least he was acting like he didn't just have a conversation with her not a minute ago. Well, they sort of a had a conversation.
"Me, you, Luke and Ashotn should meet up again. We always have a lot of fun when we meet up, don't we?" Michael says to Calum with a cruel smile. Jade knew what he was meanign by 'meet up'. He meant kick the living shit out of him then laugh their smug little asses off about it. Charlie still looked confused but Jade wasnt sure what it was she was confused about.
"Um..." Calum says quietly and Jade could see his brain trying to think of a response. He was probably trying to think of something witty or smart but under this pressure he wasn't able to. His eyes quickly dart to Jade's, asking for help. But Jade is a a loss as well. Calum knows of she could think of something to say she would, but right now, nothing is coming to her.
"Whatever." Michael lets out a cold laugh then roughly shoves Calum into the lockers. There is a big clang noise and everyone in the hallway at the time looks over at us. A few smirk and some actually let out laughs. Jade's cheeks heat and Calum's turn red. Calum looks extremely shocked. Jade can't blame him. Michael lets out another big cold laugh before he is silenced by someone smacking him in the back of the head. It's Charlie.
"Ow!" Michael yelps in pain, his laughter ceasing and he begins to rub the spot Charlie smacked. "Charlie?!" He yells whilst pouting. Jade find it funny, actually. Calum seems to as well but they both try to control it so Michael doesn't have an excuse to actually beat Calum up.
"That was mean." Charlie tells Michael bluntly before shoving him towards the cafeteria. "Sorry." She quickly apolgizies to both Calum and Jade, shooting them a little smile and walking Michael into the cafeteria. He was grumbling at her to let him go but he doesn't actually try to do anything to make her release him.
Calum doesn't say anything to me and instead slams his locker shut and storms away in the direction of the library. Jade guesses they aren't going to the cafeteria for lunch again today.
She follows after him as quickly as possible but his legs are a lot longer than Jade's so he is able to walk at a much faster pace. She's practically running, trying to catch up to him. He's mad. The steam is practically coming out of his ears.
"Can you slow down?" Jade calls to him as they near the library.
"Can you speed up?" He counter backs with. He didn't even turn to look at Jade as he said it. It takes a lot to get Calum mad. Not even Ashton, Luke or Michael really make him that mad. They just make him feel bad about himself.
Calum roughly shoves the door open to the library and takes a seat at one of the tables. Jade follows him and places her bag on the table. Calum has already got his lunch out and also chemistry notes.
Jade cautiously takes a seat next to him after getting her own lunch out before saying, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." He grumbles back. He begins highlighting things on small cue cards but Jade doesn't think there is any purpose other than it being a reason to ignore her.
At first Jade thinks Calum is mad because Michael pushed him into a locker but this isn't the usual reaction to it. It sounds bad to admit it but because this stuff with Michael and the others happens so often Jade knows when it does. She knows what type of mood Calum would be in when it happens so knows when it does happen. This is definitely not the mood he usually goes in. He normally just doesn't speak for a while or even look at anyone really. He was mad at something else. Possibly Jade. Probably Jade.
Jade eats silently as she watches Calum study. He doesn't ask for her help with anything once which means he is definitely mad at Jade. She can't think what it could have been other than her walking from class with Charlie and Michael. But she wasn't really talking to them and definitely didn't plan it.
"I'm going to the bathroom." Calum says abruptly and stands up. Pushing his chair back from the table so that it creaks and he goes red again and quickly rushes off to the bathroom. He is gone before Jade even gets the chance I say anything back to him.
So now she is alone. She doesn't like it that Calum is ma at her. What would she do without him? Calum is her bet friend, and her only friend. She didn't like the idea of being without him. He's the not person, other than her parents, that she's got. They never argue and so Jade has no idea how to make it up to him.
Jade thoughts are interrupted when a math book is put in front of her and someone clears their throat. She looks up to see Ashton standing over her, his lips pressed together in a thin line and his hood up. He was in the library again, studying. Last week was weird enough seeing him in here but for a second time...
"I need help." Ashton says sitting in the chair the other side of her.
"That's what I'm here for." Jade replies back quietly and hoping Calum takes a while in the bathroom. This would not be a sight Calum would see and immediately make him feel better.
"I don't get this tangent and angles stuff." He explains, his eyebrows furrowing together. "What even is a tangent?"
"Ashton, this is geometry. We are studying calculus right now." Jade looked at him. He shouldn't have been looking at the geometry section of the textbook just yet. He should be focusing on getting his calculus a lot better than it was before even thinking about geometry. She was going to walk him through it when the two topics met. "I'll go over it with you when you need it."
"But the text book says I need it now." Ashton says pointing at the page he was on.
"You shouldn't be on this page yet. You should have been working in the calculus stuff first." Jade explains.
"I... uh... I finished it." Ashton says quietly and not loud enough for Jade to hear.
"What?" She asks.
"The calculus stuff." Ashton flips a few pages back in his jotter. "I finished it all."
Jade peered over to his jotter before seeing the rows and rows of equations and answers he has noted down. She quickly takes the jotter away from him and begins flipping through the pages. Almost seven while pages of more answers and work. Jade just glanced at his work but it all looked correct and done to a pretty high standard. She knew it! She knew he would be able to do it. She knew Ashton had potential and she knew as soon as he had it explained to him he could do it.
"Ashton this is great." She tells him and looks up just in time to see a huge smile appear on his face.
"Really?" He looked so proud of himself. His eyes were bright and Jade was pretty sure he was holding back a cheer.
"Yeah." Jade tells him. "This is really impressive." Her eyes scan over all his answers. He had maybe two or three wrong but that was actually only because he copied the question down wrong. "You should be really proud." Jade says and places the jotter back down.
"Thanks." Ashton says. Jade saw a small blush creep into his face. She had no idea why he was blushing but for some reason Ashton blushing made Jade blush and so now the two of them were sitting in silence staring at a math textbook blushing.
"I'll go over the geometry of it all later today." Jade says quietly. "After school." Jade was suddenly very aware that Calum should be back soon.
"Right." Ashton says. At first he doesn't look like he is going to leave but he very quickly stand up from the table and picks up his stuff mumbling 'see you later.' To Jade and going to a table in the corner were his bags were.
Almost at the exact same time Calum sits down next to Jade again. Hopefully he didn't see her talking to Ashton. Calum doesn't say anything and just continues highlighting stuff. That could either mean he did see and is more pissed than before or he didn't and is still as pissed as he was.
Jade looks over to the table Ashton was at and sees him pack up his stuff in his bag and go to the door of the library. He doesn't look Jade's way once as he leaves. He doesn't even smile at her. Jade just sighs and chooses not to think to much about it.
~~~
"Calum! Wait up!" Jade calls as she runs through the student car park, trying to chase down Calum. She hadn't planned in actually leaving the building when she originally intended on going to speak to Calum. But he had practically sprinted away and towards his car.
"What?" He calls over his shoulder at Jade, not even slowing down.
"Please, slow down." He does eventually but only when he reaches his car. It's a little red, beat up thing but it gets him where he needs to go.
"Yes?" Calum says impatiently and crosses his arms over his chest.
"Geez!" Jade wheezes out. She was never great at running or any type of sport so she was quickly out of breath. "What's wrong?"
"Wrong?" Calum looks over Jade's head back to the school. "Nothing's wrong, okay?" He snaps.
"Right, okay I was only asking." Jade raises her hands up in defense. "You were acting weird all day."
"Well when Luke Hemmings and Michael Clifford threatens to beat you up after school, you tend to be a bit more jumpy." Calum says quickly and quietly, looking down at his feet. "Also it doesn't help when your best friend is walking is walking to lunch with one of them."
"Calum..." Jade sighs out. "I wasn't walking to lunch with Michael."
Calum's head snaps up. "Oh really?" He says sarcastically.
"Listen," Jade tells him. "I was going to walk to lunch by myself but then Charlie started talking to me and then Michael just kinda joined in." Jade shrugs
"Charlie...?" Calum says, nodding his head slowly.
"The blonde girl that smacked Michael after he shoved you." Jade doesn't think Calum knows who Charlie is.
"I know who she is." He says with an annoyed tone of voice.
"Oh, right." Jade nods.
"I mean," Calum says a little but more relaxed. "Everyone knows who Charlie is. Anyone who is friends with that group is known about."
"Yeah, I guess." After Jade says this a moment of silence falls over the two of them before Calum clears his voice and speaks up.
"Shouldn't you be tutoring?" Cars were beginning to pull out of the parking lot and students were on their way home.
"I just wanted to check you were okay." Jade tells him.
"I'm fine." He says quickly to her again. "Just have to get my ass of campus before Luke or one of the other two see me." Calum chuckles a little bit but still looks over Jade with a worried expression.
"Oh, well, what're you doing tonight? After I have to tutor." Jade asks. She wanted to spend some time with Calum tonight seeing that he was mad at her earlier.
"I'm tutoring too, remember?" Calum says to her like she is stupid.
"Oh right." Jade nods her head. Calum had mentioned to her last week that he was now tutoring on Wednesday as well. "Well can I still come round?"
"Uh..." Calum hesitates. "I dunno."
"Come on." Jade pleads. "You might be done by the time I am as well." She pouts. "Please, I'm your best friend." Jade decides to play the best friend card.
Calum looks at for a minute before not being able to resist. "Fine." he sighs an smiles. "But bring candy." Calum then adds.
"Of course." Jade says and laughs but stops when senses Calum's eyes grow wide.
"Shit." He mutters. "Now I really have to go. See you later." He says quickly, unlocking his car and Jade turns her head to see what Calum saw.
Luke and Michael making their way into the parking lot. A stupid smug grin on each of their faces. Talking and laughing at something but not seeing Calum starting up his car.
Jade starts walking away and towards the school again. She keeps her head down as she begins to get closer to the other two boys who have stopped walking and just seem to be looking around the parking lot. It isn't until she is walking directly passed them that they take notice of her. Well, Luke does anyway.
"Hey Jade." He nods his head at her and bites his lip. A smirk was making it's way into his lips.
"Hi." Jade mumbles back and keeps walking past them.
"You haven't seen Calum have you?" Luke calls after her and starts following her back in the direction of the school.
Oh god! Jade thinks. He needs to leave her alone, like now. "No sorry." He says back as casually as possible. She was also trying to not sound too quiet but definitely think she was far too quiet.
"No need to apologize." Luke says charmingly. This is probably how he gets girls to fall at his feet. Just by pretending to be nice, even of he does beat up their best and only friend. Luke catches up to Jade with no problem and walks in front of her and stops, making her stop as well. "If you see him though, let me know. Yeah?" He smirks at Jade.
"Sure." Jade replies with no confidence.
Luke's eyes travel up and down Jades body and she feels the need to hug her arms around herself protectively to stop his gaze over her. It was feeling really uncomfortable and really creepy. luckily it doesn't last long.
"Okay, I'll see you then." Luke says to her and walks past her back to Michael with his chest puffed out and with perfect posture. He must think he is the king of the fucking world.
All Jade wants to do now is go into the math class and help some kids out and more importantly see Ashton.
That came out all wrong. She wants to help Ashton out more than the others there because he is doing so well and she really believes he can pass this year. She doesn't just want to see Ashton. Why would she just want to see Ashton? No, she just wants to help him out and get him to pass this year. Ashton is an ass who beats up Calum, or at least doesn't try to stop it from happening. He is lucky Jade is even trying to help him. She doesn't recently like him that much. Not even as a friend.
Jade reaches the class and walks in. Her eyes immediately go to were Ashton always sits with his head bent over, reading the book. He then looks up when she takes the seat across from him.
"Hi Jade." He smiles at her.
"Hi Ashton." She replies with.
Yep, no feelings of friendship or anything else towards him. Just being a nice person.
~~~
"That's all?" Ashton asks in disbelief.
"Yeah," Jade shrugs, checking over he own work just checking she has done it right. "But that is very basic geometry." She explains. "We will go onto the harder stuff tomorrow." She tells him.
"Jade." Ashton says seriously.
"Yeah?" Jade was suddenly co screened as to what it was that changed Ashton so quickly.
"You haven't helped out any other people today." He suddenly smiles at how funny that sounds.
"I still have time." Jade shrugs. She didn't even realize she had spent the whole time going over basic geometry with Ashton and trying to help him understand it even though he is a senior and should know it. But she didn't judge. Everyone learns at their own pace.
"No you don't. Times up." Ashton is smiling gain but this time less subtle. Jade is pretty sure she seas his lips move again but he is too quiet for her to hear him. It's like he is talking to himself.
"Oh." Jade looks away from Ashton and all the work they had done in the past hour to see everyone getting ready to leave. "Right."
Jade can't believe she spent the whole time talking only to Ashton and only just helping him out. Fighting off a blush she begins to hand him over all the notes she made up for him to look over.
"Thanks." He says, putting them in a folder he has began to organize all his math stuff into. It impressed Jade a lot how seriously he was taking it all. "Do you need a ride?" He asks her.
"Oh." Jade was a little surprised by his offer for some reason. "Yeah that would be-" She then stops herself from saying yes because she remembers she promised she was going to Calum's.
"What's wrong?" Ashton asks.
"I'm going to my friends house." She shrugs. "So thanks but I'm not going that way."
"Oh." Ashton looks down disappointed. He is actually disappointed. "Well what friend? Where do they live? I can take you."
At first it didn't quite sink in with Jade that Ashton was offering to take her somewhere other than her house, that wasn't just across the street from his, so this meant it was out of the way for him.
"It's fine." Jade waves him off. "It's the same distance walking to my house but just in the opposite direction." She yells him. "You can go ahead. I need to tidy away stuff here anyway."
"Are you sure?" He ask her. "It's no trouble."
"Thanks, Ashton." Jade thanked him again. "But I'll be fine."
"Okay." Ashton doesn't quite leave just yet and instead asks., "What friend?"
"Calum." Jade replies with and goes around the classroom picking up the textbooks people were using.
"Alright." Ashton says shortly. He doesn't seem disappointed anymore he now just sounds annoyed. That's because he is. He is annoyed and jealous. He is annoyed because Jade isn't going home and instead going to Calum's. He is jealous for the same reason why he is annoyed. Jade is going to Calum's. If he had a less fucked up home maybe she could go back to his house one day. But of course Jade had no idea Ashton felt this way at all.
"I better go." Ashton says.
"Oh okay." Jade was sad to see Ashton go but knew he probably wanted to get home. "See you." She says.
"Bye." Ashton says back and walks out of the class.
Jade finds herself letting out an involuntary sigh when she sees Ashton disappear put the door. She didn't know what the sign meant but it still happened.
Weird.
~~~
She had texted Calum when she got out the school that she was on her way but he didn't reply. She stopped off at a store to get the candy he wanted and was now pushing the gate open and was in his front yard. She went to knock it on the door but it opened before she got the chance.
Stood before her was a girl just a bit shorter than Jade, with long blonde hair and pale skin. Charlie Collins was standing in the doorframe of Calum's house.
The only thing Jade could think was why the hell was Charlie Collins in Calum's house.
"Hey Jade." Charlie smiles sweetly at her.
"Hi." Jade manages out. Calum appears begins Charlie and his eyes go wide when he sees Jade.
"Jade." He says quickly.
"I was just going." Charlie says to Jade, who was still very confused.
"Yeah, yeah." Calum mumbles. "Yeah." He repeats. "She was just going." Calum's face was going very red.
"Okay, well." Charlie chirps. "I'll see you later Calum." She turns around and gives Calum a hug. Jade takes a little step back in confusion and Calum stiffens at Charlie's hug. She clearly did not see how confused and awkward both Jade and Calum were feeling. "Bye Jade." Charlie walks past Jade and out of the front yard and to her white car parked a little bit up the street.
When Calum is sure Charlie's car has pulled out of the street he speaks up. "Hi." He says timidly, giving a small stupid wave.
"Hi." Jade copies his action.
Calum opens the door up wider for Jade and steps aside. "Come in."