Oh senior year, a time where every late high schooler opens a bag of mixed feelings. The majority feel happiness and the need to celebrate- the delusional ones, according to Zarek. The apathetic- those who either don't care or have come to terms with the fact that they'll probably fail anyway. Then, there are the people who actually realize that the easiest years of their life are almost over. "Time's a bitch," proclaimed the black-headed teen. He had his backpack lazily one-strapped around his back, as well as both of his hands stuffed into his jacket pockets. Despite the impression that may give, his walk had a confident step.
"Dude, you're a walking paradox," his friend, Will, nonchalantly pointed out. "You dress like you don't care, you talk with such a defeatist attitude, and yet... you walk like you're going to take over the world." Zarek shrugged and averted his eyes towards the wall.
"I just know who my adversaries are and I know how to deal with them. Like coping with the passage of time," Zarek looked back over at Will, who had a tall thermos of coffee in his hand. "Or you when you're high on caffeine."
"Dude," Will chortled. "Then why do you worry so much?"
"Just because I know how to deal with it, doesn't make it suck any less," Zarek woefully explained as he looked back across the hall. Will sighed and took a long swig of his coffee.
"I'm not awake enough for this," he said, staring into his now-empty cup. "Art's going to be bad enough as it is," he said with a yawn. Zarek blinked and nodded in agreement.
"Sorry. I just don't know if I'll get accepted into college before my parents decide to kick me out. I've got a lot on my mind," he explained.
"Relax, dude, I understand. We'll talk about it later though, alright?" Will turned his head towards Zarek, who was looking far into the distance. "Cheer up, you can take your frustration out by, I dunno, drawing a circle in art class or something."
"Maybe I'll draw you, set on fire."
"Hey, that's not nice," Will chuckled again. Zarek closed his eyes and put on a smirk.
"That's the point." Will dismissed his remark. They remained silent for the short time it took to get to the classroom, where they walked in and sat down together.

Penelope found herself staring at the rather... interesting painting before her. A small framed girl stood at her desk, showing her previous work before class started. The painting itself wasn't terribly bad but.. the subject was... uhh...

...

Questionable.

Penelope found herself staring down at the naked body of a rather well painted anime boy draped over yet another naked anime boy. Penelope fought the urge to laugh and the urge to ask the girl about it. Instead, she tried desperately to keep her poker face. Though, the laughter still came out in small twitches at the corner of her mouth.

"It's... ahm... interesting, Anna, but... I don't think this sort of subject is appropriate for school. Please put it away and refrain from bringing anymore such artwork to class. You have a good talent, but that sort of subject isn't appropriate for school." She explained, again trying her best not to laugh. She also had to fight the urge to ask the girl if she could keep it as memorabilia. It was just too funny!

She coughed as she fought back the laughter and the girl, reluctantly, went back to her seat. Turning, Penelope lifted a hand to itch the back of her neck and laughed silently, bending over just slightly as her back shifted just slightly due to the laughter. After a deep breath, she turned to find that most of the class was in their seats and the bell would be due to ring any moment, the signal that class would begin.

"Hello class!" She shouted, realizing how early it was in the morning for a few of them, a grin on her face. "I'm Elizabeth Wright, but please, feel free to call me Ms. Liz." She explained, winking playfully as the bell rang over head. "I realize that on the first day we're supposed to go over paperwork, but I figure we can save that for out of class. After all, you guys want to get straight to the cool stuff, right?" She asked, waving her arms around excitedly. She spun around before slamming her hands on her desk, suddenly serious. "Today, I'm going to ask you to get into pairs. You will each get a piece of this paper and a few pencils. Try to draw each other best you can. You'll be turning this in at the end of class. It won't be for a grade so have fun with it! If anyone doesn't have a partner, I'm more than happy to join up with you." She explained, motioning towards the supplies on her desk. "Ah, and please put your name on your artwork. It'll be your attendance for today." She finished.

Bubbly and energetic teacher? Check. Zarek turned to look at Will, who was staring at their instructor. Probably captivated by her looks and aptly daydreaming about her, if history were to repeat itself. Zarek cringed and closed his eyes. That's some dangerous ground you're treading on again, she's our teacher, he thought to himself, not bothering to pay attention to "Ms. Liz" at the moment. Both of their bubbles were popped when she pounded her desk, though. Will's face seemed to shatter as he let loose a very quiet gasp. Okay. Maybe she wasn't so cheerful all of the time, hinted by her now-serious expression. Zarek didn't dare miss another word of her instruction in fear that she'd call him out or something. "Draw each other? Now I can actually set you on fire," Zarek pointed out as he pleadingly looked at Will, who blinked and shook his head.
"Yeah, too scary. Sorry to bail out on the sausage fest, but the girls in this class are smokin', Will said as he got up, walking away towards disappointment. Zarek slowly brought his palm to his face, he knew Will didn't stand a chance with any sane girl in this school and that he was going to walk away from this assignment with a handprint on his face. He was never that good at drawing, so any potential partner might get offended. 'I'm not that fat!' While the thought amused him, he was still stuck without a partner because he didn't know anybody else in the class. "So it's going to be one of those days, is it? Whatever," he muttered to himself and stood up, deciding to take the Ms. Liz up on her offer to work with a student. This could be a chance to give her a good first impression on his art skills. Who knows, maybe he could walk away with a good picture of himself if she took it seriously enough. He walked up to the front, moving amidst the other people looking for partners, and took a piece of paper. After taking his mechanical pencil out of his pocket, he looked her directly in the eyes. "Do I still have to put my name on the paper if I work with you?" Zarek asked. Mainly to show off his sense of humor, dull as it may be right now. It was still early in the morning.