Chapter 11

“Oh come on, Bel, it'll be okay!” 

“No, it won't!”

“The bus is going to get here in seven minutes! We have to get to the bus stop!” Gabe loudly knocked on the bedroom door.

“Go away!” I yelled from underneath my pillow.

I could hear him groan and walk down the steps.

I stood up and stared at myself in the mirror. The big red dot laid right in the middle of my forhead- my first zit. 

Gabe stomped back up the stairs. “Annabel, we'll just get you some cream or something from my mom, but right now we have to go!”

I flew the door open making the wind blow my hair back and stared at him right in the eyes. “Gabe, do you SEE this thing on my face?” I questioned angrily. “Look at it! Look at it!” I grabbed his hand and brought it to the zit, “See? It's as big as your fingertip!”

“Annabel, it's really not that bad. Everyone gets zits sometime in life.”

“Ugh!”

“Bel, we really have to go! We already skipped yesterday! We have three minutes! Get dressed!”

I slammed the door and threw on a pair of gray sweatpants and an old shirt from Goodwill. My hair was thrown into a loose pony tail with whispies hanging everywhere. I really couldn't do much with my nearly white pin-straight hair. It just sat there hopeless with what to do with itself. 

Gabe and I barely made it to the bus stop. The school bus almost sped away, but we sprinted and started yelling, “Wait up!” We caught up, and the grumpy redhead busdriver opened the door for us and rolled her eyes. “Thanks.” We tried to say politely, but we were nearly out of breath.

Gabe and I slumped in the green leather seats at the back of the bus; He always let me sit closest to the window. It was cloudy this morning; the gray clouds blanketed the sky. No sun or yellow shimmer was gistening through the fluffy wool blanket.

I sighed and wrote with my fragile fingertips on the wet fogged window, “Sorry.” 

I nudged Gabe's shoulder, and he drew his eyes to the window and smiled a pleasant smile. He reached over the write with his finger, “It's okay,” a friendly smiley face was after the, y, making my head swoon and my day get nearly two percent better.

I flashed him a smile even though I hadn't brushed my teeth that morning. 

Gabe laughed and smiled a gleaming smile back while taking a Scope® mouth rinse out of his smallest backpack pocket.

I lightly hit him in the arm as I took a swig of the mouth rinse. I spat it out the window and gazed as the aqua liquid flew back far behind us.

As soon as we got to school, Gabe walked me to my locker and helped me carry some of my textbooks. The veins in his arms when he carried the load were so precise you could probably see them from a mile away.

“Thanks.” I said as he set the books on my desk.

“No problem, Annabel.”

My stomach bursted out a flock of butterflies as he smiled my favorite crooked smile and went to his classroom.

This was Lanuage Arts class- possibly the worst class on the planet because ONE: It was the morning. TWO: Gabe wasn't in any classes with me except biology because he was in ninth grade and I'm in eigth. And THREE: I had to sit by this smug perverted little geek who finds anything facinating. Like me, for intstance.

“Hey Annabel,” he snorted, “I missed you,” Leon the nerd said with his man b***s nearly drooping to his knees.

“Sorry, kid, I'm not a huge fan of little boys who don't wear bras yet.”

“I'll get right on it!” He snorted again.

“Alright, class, we're going to start talking about adjectives! Does anyone know what and adjective is?” Miss Wildersnorp the quirky language teacher asked the class. Bethany, The total prep in the front of the room shot her hand up in the air and shook it frantically. 

 

The rest of the class was a drag. Leon tried to “accidentaly” drop his pencil and “accidentaly” brush my butt as he was doing so.

Bethany, of course, kept raising her hand. Her long golden locks flew back behind her as she'd brush it back every time she got the answer right.

I met with Gabe in the hallway as soon as first period was done.

“So that was hell,” I retorted.

“Mine too.”

“You would not BELIEVE what I told Leon today. So his pants were, like, especially high, and I said, 'I'm not interested in guys who don't where bras yet', and he was like, 'I'll get right on it!'”

Gabe started cracking up and started telling me his funny story. “Well, on my way to trig, this random girl literally pinned me to the wall like this," Gabe pinned me to the wall and acted all flirty and girly, “'Wanna come to my house tonight, babe?'” he quoted. “Then I was like... ummm...” Gabe went on.

As soon as I was about to burst into laughter, a strong hand tapped Gabe's shoulder. He turned around and noticed that it was the principal.

“My office, you two. NOW.”

I looked at Gabe in shock, wondering why we had to go to the principal's office.

Gabe shrugged and followed behind Mr. Berns.

Once we got to the office, we sat in the cheap burgundy leather chairs 

Mr. Berns seriously folded his hands on the wooden desk. “Now, kids, there is no kissing in this school.”

“We,” Gabe and I both tried to finish, but Mr. Berns cut us off.

“I know young love is a great thing, but this just isn't acceptable at our school. For this, you two are getting a half day suspension. Call your parents right now.”

My heart skipped a beat what he said to call Phil. Call. Phil.

He'd totally believe Mr. Berns because he thinks of me as a rotten liar!

Gabe obediently dialed his mom's cell phone, and of course she totally understood and would pick him up in a few minutes. 

I dropped my face into my hands and started to silently cry.

Gabe opened his arms willingly and gave me a warm hug.

Nothing was going right. My dad was abusive, I didn't have breakfast in the morning, My relatives were all somewhere in prison, I just got my first zit, and now suspension!

Gabe unwrapped his arms from around me and said goodbye.

 

I knew that the girl kissed him; it was totally obvious because of the red lipgloss on his lips. 

Really though, I wish I was that girl.