Thursday March 21, 2016

His shoes scuffed quietly along the sidewalk as he walked. He was tall and lanky, an unshaven scruff covering his chin and cheeks and a cigarette dangling from his lips, a thin strand of smoke swirling through the air around his head. He took a drag, the cherry burning brightly for a moment as he sucked the smoke deep into his lungs and blew out a thick cloud into the frigid early morning air. 

Largent flicked the butt to the side and turned the corner, his high school coming into view ahead of him. There, as always, sitting next to the gate was that same frigid bitch that always refused to talk to him. She had her laptop open and was clicking at something but he couldn't be bothered. He was supposed to be meeting someone. He walked up to the gate, still locked, and ignored her as she ignored him. Reaching up he grabbed the metal bars, long thing fingers wrapping tightly around the cool material and hauled himself up. In moments he was over the gate and dropped down on the other side. 

"Later," he muttered and walked deeper into the school, hands shoved into the pockets of his threadbare jacket. He shrugged, settling his backpack a little more comfortable on his shoulders and headed for the bleachers on the far side of the school that ringed one side of the football field. "Hey," he called into the shadows beneath the bleachers. "We gonna do this or what?" 

A short, stocky kid wearing a letterman jacket came into view from under the bleachers, deep bags under his eyes and a nervous set to his shoulders and stance. He shifted his feet constantly from one foot to the other, eyes darting around ceaselessly. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick wad of twenty dollar bills, all wrapped up with a rubber band. "Here," he said and tossed the wad at Largent. He caught it in one hand, eyeing it carefully for a moment before he nodded and stuffed the money in his pants pocket. He pulled his other hand from his jacket and tossed a sandwich bag filled with various brightly colored pills at the jock who caught them and scurried away before anything else could be said. 

Largent dropped his back pack next to the bleachers, leaned back against them and puled a cigarette from the pack in his jackets inside pocket. A lighter came from his jeans pocket and with a quiet click he opened the zippo and flicked the wheel with his thumb. The lighter sparked to life and he touched the flame to the tip of the cigarette, drawing deeply of the poison laden smoke as he waited for the rest of the student body to arrive and for class to begin. 

____________


"Oh, sorry Mrs. Callahan," Richard said, blushing slightly and shrugging his shoulders as she admonished him. "We're running a little late so I was-" he cut off as a weight suddenly landed on his back and a sweat soaked cheek was pressed against his neck. "Gah!" he cried out and stumbled slightly before he caught his feet. "Good chocolate christ on a cracker. You're a sweaty mess Sophia," he growled. He reached back with one arm and grabbed the back of her thighs, holding her in place, and started spinning as fast as he could, laughing like an idiot until they were both dizzy and Sophia slipped from his back, the both of them landing heavily on the front lawn.

When the world stopped spinning around him and he had determined that his sandwich had survived the impromptu spinning-top maneuver he nudged Sophia's shoe with his foot. "Come on, Soph," he said. "We gotta get moving or we're really gonna be late for school. I'll wait here." He lifted his sandwich and took another bite, waiting for Sophia to get her wits about her. 

[@Thundercrash] [@Ally610]