Vesper // Paul Lahote

Chapter 6: Shock

Olivia's laughter rang in my ears, and her words cut my soul like a knife. "Aw, Paul, if you were scared, all you had to do was say something."

My heart skipped a beat and I threw the dodgeball harder than I meant to, knocking down a boy with greasy hair and untreated acne.

"Seriously, Paul, don't worry, this crybaby will protect you."

Thwack!

I threw another ball, this time hitting Courtney, a girl I had slept with a few months ago. She landed roughly on her ass and she growled my name. But I didn't pay any attention to her, all I could think about was Olivia Swan.

What happened to the crybaby that I ran into all those years ago? She no longer stood on wobbly knees, but with a fiery confidence; when challenged, she didn't shrink, instead, she held her head up high and smiled. It didn't make sense.

Sam and Jared had told me to be nice, and I was...to an extent. Did I provoke her on purpose? Yes, but in my defense, I had to in order to understand her. Course, her reaction was not what I had expected, and that just showed me how little I knew of her. Olivia was more than I expected, and I had to admit, I was intrigued.

Coach Lewis blew his whistle and the tall, slim man jumped into the middle of the gym. "Everyone, hit the lockers! I'm sure the principal can smell you from her office."

He blew the whistle once more and everyone hurried to the locker rooms. After taking a quick shower and changing, I made my way to the cafeteria. Sunlight poured into the room, illuminating the purple and silver flags that hung from the ceiling's wooden beams. The white floors glistened under a fresh layer of wax and a few lunch ladies were busy wiping down the rows of rounded tables.

I gave them a polite nod of the head and I grabbed a damp lunch tray. Ms Ross, the senior lunch lady, who was standing behind the counter, looked at me and sighed. "Paul, the bell hasn't even rang yet."

"I'm only," I glanced at the clock, "two minutes early."

"And by the time bell rings, you will already be back for a second helping."

"Yeah, and?"

Ms Ross tucked a strand of hair back into her hair net bonnet and she grabbed a spatula. "What do you want?"

"Spaghetti with extra meatballs and parmesan cheese."

The bell rang, and after getting a second helping from Ms Ross, I made my way outside. The lunchroom was too crowded on a normal day, and seeing how it was nice outside, I figured Kim, Jared, and I could eat under the sun. There were five picnic tables spread out on the lawn and I grabbed the one farthest away.

The sun soaked wood creaked under my weight and I popped a meatball into my mouth while I waited for my friends. While I ate, my mind began to wander. What was Olivia doing right now? Was she also eating lunch, or was she still stuck in class?

The food in my mouth turned sour and I began picking at my food with a dinged fork. I wanted to see Olivia again, but I did't know how to go about it. We weren't friends, hell, we were barely acquaintances, and I didn't have a history with her like Jared had. It wasn't like I could just walk up to her and strike up a conversation...or could I?

"Hey," Jared said, sitting his tray down, "how long have you been out here?"

"Not long," I replied, twirling the spaghetti around my fork.

Kim sat next to Jared and the couple began talking about their day; Kim had a pop quiz in physics, which I had next, and she was kind enough to tell me the answers to the questions; Jared had burned a cake in home economics, and he had to stay after school to scrub out the oven.