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Everyone's found out about Alice's dad the next day. "You know your friend Delaney? His dad is in jail!!" is the first thing Jessica says at lunch.
"Criminal tendencies run in the family, I guess," Mike says darkly.
"Mike, be nice," pouts Jessica. "It was for abuse!"
"Doesn't that run in families too," Lauren says; it's not really a question. "Bella, I dunno if you're sleeping with him yet, but don't have his kids, right?"
"Bella's not sleeping with Hammond!" exclaims Mike stridently. This exclamation is not less annoying for being true.
"You're not, right?" Eric asks Bella. She rolls her eyes and shakes her head.
"Grow manners," says Jessica. It's not clear to whom.
"Grow eyes," snorts Lauren. "Delaney wants to bang her worse than you do, Mike, and I read the paper too and now he's got millions of dollars."
"I do not - I haven't - you're -" sputters Mike.
Bella has no idea why these people still sit with her. All she did was plunk down next to Angela and Angela's new boyfriend Ben. She remains stoically silent.
self_composed
self_composed
"You must've deserved it," says Mike. Angela, meanwhile, is going quite pale and trembly.
"Mike, shut the hell up," snaps Bella. "Jesus."
"Don't tell me to shut up!" bristles Mike.
"You're telling an abuse victim he deserved it, you have officially thrown polite discourse out a fortieth-story window and watched it go splat -"
"Yeah, Mike," says Jessica unexpectedly. "Just - shush, okay? Go sit with Bill or somebody."
"Mike, shut the hell up," snaps Bella. "Jesus."
"Don't tell me to shut up!" bristles Mike.
"You're telling an abuse victim he deserved it, you have officially thrown polite discourse out a fortieth-story window and watched it go splat -"
"Yeah, Mike," says Jessica unexpectedly. "Just - shush, okay? Go sit with Bill or somebody."
edgeofyourseat
Alice shrugs and takes another cookie, a cute little gingerbread heart.
It cracks in half in his hand.
He didn't think he was that upset, but it turns out that he in fact was.
It cracks in half in his hand.
He didn't think he was that upset, but it turns out that he in fact was.
self_composed
Mike doesn't seem inclined to go. But for the moment he is out of things to say.
Bella splits her paper plate, dumps the cookies onto the clean bottom half to be devoured, picks up the Tupperware, and puts her hand on Alice's elbow and steers him away to another corner of the cafeteria. She bought lunch today; given that she's full enough, she can leave everything and Angela will probably get it for her if no one else does. "I do not know what is wrong with him," she murmurs. "Here." There's an empty couple of extra chairs, not associated with a table, in the corner. She sits him down.
Bella splits her paper plate, dumps the cookies onto the clean bottom half to be devoured, picks up the Tupperware, and puts her hand on Alice's elbow and steers him away to another corner of the cafeteria. She bought lunch today; given that she's full enough, she can leave everything and Angela will probably get it for her if no one else does. "I do not know what is wrong with him," she murmurs. "Here." There's an empty couple of extra chairs, not associated with a table, in the corner. She sits him down.
edgeofyourseat
"That guy is gonna grow up to hit his wife," Alice remarks as he sits. It's not a fully serious prediction, but it is a comment on what he has seen of Mike's personality.
self_composed
"He has other characteristics, and his behavior at age seventeen isn't a life sentence, but I do worry you're right," Bella murmurs.
edgeofyourseat
"Yup," says Alice. "Whatever, though. He's a fuckup but he's his own fuckup."
And just like that, he still hurts but he is no longer angry about it. Mike is not his problem, even if Mike apparently wants to be.
He would kind of like to be petted, but he isn't going to ask; it seems like the kind of thing Bella might not want to be doing in the corner of the lunchroom.
And just like that, he still hurts but he is no longer angry about it. Mike is not his problem, even if Mike apparently wants to be.
He would kind of like to be petted, but he isn't going to ask; it seems like the kind of thing Bella might not want to be doing in the corner of the lunchroom.
self_composed
[Yeah, that wouldn't do anything to convince anyone that I'm not sleeping with you,] Bella says. [It annoys me generally to have people believe falsehoods about me that I didn't put there on purpose.]
edgeofyourseat
[Okay,] he says agreeably. [Think I'll blow off the rest of the day and go hang out in my lair. Tell Finch I said hi?]
edgeofyourseat
[Yep,] says Alice.
Which will be a pity! But right now he really wants to do something intensely sensual, and since he doesn't feel like getting someone to beat him up and probably couldn't find anyone to have sex with him, his lair is the best place to go for that.
Which will be a pity! But right now he really wants to do something intensely sensual, and since he doesn't feel like getting someone to beat him up and probably couldn't find anyone to have sex with him, his lair is the best place to go for that.
self_composed
[Have fun. I'm going to Bio,] Bella says. She does pat him once on the head, when she stands up, like he's a support.
self_composed
Bella sighs and puts the tupperware in her backpack, and proceeds to class.
Bio goes by and she heads for gym. Time to learn to play badminton and then play it like she was born for it. "Hi, Ms. Finch."
Bio goes by and she heads for gym. Time to learn to play badminton and then play it like she was born for it. "Hi, Ms. Finch."
edgeofyourseat
"Hi, Bella."
She doesn't even ask about their mutual friend.
"Still feeling cured, I hope?"
She doesn't even ask about their mutual friend.
"Still feeling cured, I hope?"
edgeofyourseat
"Yes it does," says Ms. Finch. "Congratulations." She hands Bella a racket. "Now let's see if we can add to that store of knowledge."
She provides a thorough and concise explanation of the rules, punctuated with occasional humour of that dry sarcastic kind she seems to like so much.
She provides a thorough and concise explanation of the rules, punctuated with occasional humour of that dry sarcastic kind she seems to like so much.
self_composed
Bella giggles where appropriate. "Sounds simple enough," she says. "Do we get assigned partners or do we pick them?"
edgeofyourseat
"You pick them," says Ms. Finch, "unless that takes too long or involves too much adolescent politics. So far this class hasn't been too bad about teams, though."
self_composed
"Okay. I just haven't met many people in this class besides Alice - oh, he asked me to call him Alice awhile ago, it's kind of weird - and he's not showing up today, so I'm not sure who to go with," Bella shrugs.
edgeofyourseat
"Alice," she repeats. "Funny. Well, if you can't find a partner once class starts, make pitiful faces at me and I'll get you straightened out."
self_composed
"Will do," Bella agrees. She experimentally swings her racket a few times. She spends a pentagon on general athleticism so she won't be terribly exhausted by suddenly adding cardio to her day, and one on skill at racket-based sports in general after discovering that "all sports" is too general. She gets a birdie from the pile and starts tapping it up into the air, over and over. "Hee."
edgeofyourseat
Well, some people are naturally talented. Ms. Finch doesn't find Bella too suspicious, and she is shortly distracted by the arrival of the rest of the class, anyway.
self_composed
Bella partners with someone who she vaguely thinks might also be in Government with her and who doesn't seem to like badminton much.
Her partner doesn't have much to do.
Bella grins so hard her face hurts.
Her partner doesn't have much to do.
Bella grins so hard her face hurts.
self_composed
After class, Bella has no reason to stick around; she puts her equipment away and runs off to call her dad to come get her. (Her car should be fixed soon. If only she'd thought to magic it fixed when it first broke - sure, magic was scarcer then, but it might have taken only a square -)