Class

[Owen Cup]

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Friday, last class of the day, and Owen was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. He was a different man in the afternoon, especially at the end of the week. Friday mornings, even, he seemed like any other crotchety old teacher just sitting behind his desk offering grunts up for answers to the student's questions. But at the end of the day? One would think he was six years old. Six years old with a sugar high and possible on crack.

By now, Owen had plenty of paint and charcoal smeared up his arms. He'd long removed his sweater and was currently wearing what was probably a very smelly white tee shirt. Or, used to be white as it was now splattered with red and yellow oils. He'd also taken off his shoes at some point... and remembering, he went to look for them. Wouldn't want to be stepping on anything sharp. That'd be a doozy.

After finding his shoes, Owen went to the sink to wipe off most of the 'art' on his forearms. The oil paint had already started to stain his skin a bit, but the charcoal (which was all over his fingertips) came off right away. Smiling at how clean he now looked, Owen stepped towards his desk and opened the first drawer from which he removed a bag of flaming hot cheetoes. "Ah yes," he grunted, tearing open the bag and taking a few of the fiery little devils between his fingers. After eating a couple handfuls, Owen plopped down in his chair and put his feet up on his desk. His classroom door was wide open and since the class bell for last period had rung about three minutes ago, a few kids were wandering in.

"HelLO, my children!" he greeted the few through mouthfuls of cheeto. "Grab your work, jus'nother work day t'day. Paintin's, drawin's, whatevs. Free day, ja'feel?"

[Kyle Stockholm]

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Kyle wasn't bad at art, but he certainly wasn't good either. Regardless, he didn't mind art class. He might've, but he loved Owen. The guy was a total badass and he was probably the nicest person Kyle had ever met. Well, the nicest twenty-something-year old Kyle had ever met. He just had this cool vibe about him. Made Kyle wanna hang out with him on the weekends. Which was weird.. but he liked it anyway. The guy was just a sick bro. And Kyle dug sick bros.

Almost always, Kyle was early. He came from math, which was literally around the corner, so he was usually the first person to arrive in art. Not today, though. Today, Kyle had made his way to the restroom and spent a little too much time in one of the stalls just thinking. He'd originally gone in to, y'know, use the toilet. But afterwards, he'd just sort of sat there, thinking. About nothing, really. Sometimes his mind just liked to wander, finding patterns in the stall graffiti and often adding his own poetic scribbles to the mess. So, accidentally, Kyle was actually late today.

Well, not technically late. He still arrived three minutes early. But compared to his usual seven, he was late in his own mind.

Owen didn't seem to notice, but it was bothering Kyle already. "Huh. Not the first one here this time," he commented, catching a glare from Owen when he looked up from.. were those Cheetos? Owen just smiled and shrugged, because the man probably honestly didn't care whether or not Kyle was the first one to class. It sort of messed with Kyle's internal schedule, though. So he spent the next fifteen minutes sitting at his table, staring at his hands. He only moved from his trance when Owen put a hand on his shoulder and suggested he grab his drawing. Kyle did so, but returned to his seat only to go back to staring at his hands.

[Rachel Reed]

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It shouldn't have been too much of a surprise to anyone that Rachel's favorite class was art. She was almost always doing something creative like doodling in her notebooks during other classes and any other free time that she had. She'd been working on something for the cover of her new notebook and she actually thought that it was coming out rather nicely. She'd gotten inspired by her one and only fabulous boyfriend. How had she gotten so lucky? She looked at him sometimes and just felt fascinated by every little piece of him. Had anyone ever told him that he had really beautiful features? Not even just the obvious ones like his eyes but every tiny one. She'd never met someone before who actually had cute ears before him. How did that even happen? It was like the least attractive part of a person's body!

She knew that it was silly to spend so much time thinking about him when they certainly wouldn't last but she just couldn't help it. Shouldn't that be even more reason to spend every possible second making someone else feel good? She didn't have an unlimited amount of time and she wanted to make him happy even just for a second before they did break up. She'd been up all night trying to 'perfect' a chocolate chip cookie recipe only to find out that she would rather bake him something more meaningful like a sugar cookie. She frosted it with just a plain white icing before decorating it with little mini m&m's so it said 'Kyle'. Had she probably put too much thought and effort into something that he was just going to eat? Yeah, but she didn't regret it and she wouldn't even if he didn't eat it.

One of her biggest flaws was that she put too much into her relationships. She was so focused on making sure that she was the best girlfriend that she never made her own wants or needs clear. She scarified what she would like to ensure that the other person was happy only for them to find someone else who made them happier which left her with really nothing to show. She didn't mind though. She walked away from those relationships feeling like a good person and that's all that she really wanted to be. She didn't want to be the selfish girl who broke some poor guy's heart! Especially since she wasn't the girl who put out... She figured that was going to be a tough one to explain to Kyle.

She was trying to make up for that disappointment by painting him a beautiful picture for him to hang on his wall. Do people put pictures of themselves on their walls? She didn't but she also didn't have any paintings of herself to hang so she didn't know if that really counted. She found herself nearly skipping down the halls and into Owen's class. She was always happier when she knew that she was going to be seeing Kyle. She waved and greeted Owen with a polite smile before casually slipping Kyle the plastic ziplock bag containing his cookie. "I hope you like it, Snuggle Bear." She pecked him on the head like a gentle butterfly landing on a flower before taking her drawing and getting into her seat. How much staring was socially acceptable? She just couldn't help but glance over at Kyle.. He was too beautiful to not look at.

She just figured that it was fine as long as he didn't notice.

[Trista Kline]

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Art. It was the only thing Trista could do to keep her mind sane. It stopped her mind from wondering about to dwell on demons. But lately… she could only stare at a blank canvas through blurred visions and crushed hopes. It was like her ability to put thoughts into images had been ripped from her, just like her heart. It left her only with a mind that couldn’t settle and hands that ached to create visions. Today was the day she’d use her hands for more than just wiping away tears.

The walk to the class was painfully slow. She loved art, but the people she’d be spending it with, it hurt. Kyle was in that class along with his new girlfriend. Another dull ache in the chest at the thought. It didn’t hurt as much anymore, a part of her wishing to simply forget all together. It didn’t make sense to bury herself in such misery as this, but wasn’t that part of the healing process to a broken heart. Broken. Damaged goods. Perhaps she just needed a little time; time to accept the reality of things.

Trista had taken every back route possible to avoid anything and anyone. There were a few people doing the same, but she didn’t pay attention. In the silence of the halls her thoughts echoed in her mind. She was usually very prompt with her arrivals, always wishing to see Kyle, but things change. She wasn’t avoiding him, no. She still interacted with him behind a false persona of being happy. She was happy for him. It was just when Rachel was there with him did everything seem to ache, even her bones.

She stopped outside the door closing her eyes for a moment and collecting every ounce of energy to just take a step into the room. She avoided looking into the room initially, not wanting to know exactly who was there. Owen appeared as he always did, and she could only nod at him and walk quickly past his desk without even looking up at him. She seemed to be avoiding everyone lately. It was then that she looked up to see who was sitting where. There they were, two perfect human beings together. Trista tried to keep her pace even, not wanting to draw any unwanted attention.

She used to sit next to Kyle, and the two would muse over things and she could draw with freedom. When she was with him, her mind was at ease and the will to do anything was possible. Not now, not anymore. She wouldn’t place herself at the table, not because she didn’t like Rachel, but because she didn’t want to intrude on their happiness. She looked for a seat, anywhere. The window side for once wasn’t dismal, or so she reasoned with herself. So, not too far from the new couple, she sat by herself. It was better this way. Here she could be alone, just like before. The lion man had found a new beautiful lioness. He deserved nothing but the best.

[Kyle Stockholm]

Kyle was a bit startled when he felt something atop his head, and didn't even process the words that floated through his ears. He jumped, but quickly collected himself when he saw the cookie before him and realized it was Rachel. He smiled at the cookie, then turned to look at Rachel and offered her the same smirk with an added wink of 'hello'. "Hey, we match cats," he said, pointing between his chest and hers, stopping a moment to look down at his shirt a little longer. He really liked the colors, and was sure to tell her that. "They just go so well together," he said, running his thumb over a section where the light blue and purple met.

When Trista walked in, Kyle didn't really notice. As sad as that sounds... its really not sad at all because honestly, Kyle doesn't notice anything. He's always so caught up in his own mind. But when she took a seat NOT at his table, he did notice. "Tris," he said softly, not really noticing that she might not hear him. "Trista," he tried again, a little louder with his hand beside his mouth. "Why're you sitting so far away?" As he waited for her reply, Kyle looked back down at his cookie and smiled again. He hadn't really looked at it very long and hadn't noticed that it said his name. Looking at Rachel again, he smiled wide and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. "Thank you," he said sweetly, then turned his attention back to Trista.

Oh.

That's why she wasn't sitting here.

[Rachel Reed]

Rachel actually blushed when Kyle kissed her on the cheek How had she seriously gotten someone who could make her feel so warm and fuzzy? He was like a magical force in her life who could make her smile even when she was feeling sort of sad. She didn't really have very many serious sad moments though so maybe that was why. She was easily cheered up by little bitty things like the sight of a butterfly happily floating through the sky or a bird chirping in the distance. She appreciated every small thing about nature and humans which was why she was thinking about Kyle's cute ears and not getting a nice ride on the penis express. She'd been thinking about it lately and she wasn't sure if she'd ever want to have sex with anyone.

Why tarnish the emotional bond by focusing so much on the physical? Children would be lovely, yes so maybe she'd change her mind when the time came for that discussion. She didn't plan on having tiny humans until her early thirties at the soonest anyway so it was really rather soon to be even thinking about the when/how/why of the situation. "You're welcome, muffin." She purred affectionately as she leaned over to give him a kiss on his beautiful lips. He always tasted lovely, too. She just felt like she saw something inside of him that other people might not. She knew for a fact that some of her friends thought that he was gay and didn't understand why she would want to waste her time when he was just going to end up leaving her for Rory as soon as he got the chance to.

"I don't think that you've ever looked more gorgeous in your whole entire life." She mused as she reached over to hold onto one of his hands. "Has anyone ever told you that you're incredibly amazing and in general the perfect boyfriend ever?" She didn't know if that was actually true. He wasn't a bad boyfriend but he wasn't perfect.

If she wanted to be the perfect girlfriend then she knew that she was going to need to get Trista to come over to his table and hang out with him. She didn't mind him having female friends and she certainly didn't want to cause a rift in their relationship so she motioned for the blonde to come over and called a soft, "Trista! Would you please sit with us? I'm sure it'd be fun and I have extra glitter." She had no clue as to why that wasn't acceptable to ask.

[Trista Kline]

[The Lion: media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/c8/47/93/c84793f3316392c7eba48ec5e6fbd37f.jpg ]
The room was quiet, too quiet, but through it all she could still hear their conversation. Kyle’s voice, it cut through the air. She’d know that voice from anywhere. From her journal she couldn’t help but watch them. They seemed to get along so well together. When Rachel kissed his head though, it hurt. She’d kissed that forehead multiple times, she couldn’t even count. No, she couldn’t watch, she wouldn’t let herself do this again. She flipped through her journal to find an incomplete work. It was something she’d been working on for a while, a lion, for Kyle.

She’d done nearly everything but the eyes. As she looked at it, something didn’t feel right. She set quickly to work to finish it. She stared down at her lion and it stared back with sad eyes. She wondered if it they were Kyle’s eyes staring at her, or her own. She couldn’t tell the difference anymore.

She could hear him talking about cats, and she glanced up to look at his shirt. How fitting. If only he knew how much the lion really meant, or what it even symbolized to her. Rachel was simply too sweet having brought him a cookie. She’d never given him anything; no material thing could ever show him how she truly felt. She looked back down at the lion which seemed to be communicating what she really felt inside. Every time he spoke, she would listen. She’d heard him call her name the first time, faint as it was. Tris. His nickname for her, simple. She didn’t want to respond, she wanted to pretend her heart didn’t skip a beat when he spoke her name. When he called out the second she looked up slowly just in time to catch him place a kiss on her cheek.

In return Rachel kissed him back. Pained eyes could only watch in silence as her mind went back to the woods. Those lips. She knew those lips very well, every inch of them. The last time she’d felt those lips… she had said her goodbyes. It was like the world was mocking her right before her eyes without a care. It took everything in her power to not walk away. She wanted to leave, not look back. Surely Owen wouldn’t care if she slipped out without a word. Would anyone even notice her gone? It was sad to think about, and even more so when she thought no one would. Kyle was clearly too preoccupied with the beautiful female beside him to do a thing.

Trista didn’t even notice how she hand hunched over slightly, hands gripping the opposite elbows again slightly. The position felt vaguely familiar, like she was holding herself. Be strong. Be strong. Be strong. Rachel was wrong. He’d looked more gorgeous under the illumination of the moon where the fire reflected off his beautiful chocolate brown eyes. When his face had been cradled in her hands and their breath mingled together. He’d looked perfect. He was perfect, she had told him so. Rachel wouldn’t appreciate the demons behind his eyes or the troubles he had. But none of that mattered, not anymore.

It was hard not to analyze them, and her only answer was to stare blankly at her journal. She wanted to will herself to draw beautiful creations again, but her muse was gone. No, her muse was taken. She had the tip of her pencil resting on the paper, waiting for anything to come about. When Rachel spoke to her the tip of the graphite snapped, and she blinked blankly at the Ombre haired girl. “No, thank you,” she said softly, looking from Kyle (even though Rachel was the one who had spoken to her) to the paper,” the window is providing some exquisite lighting. It’ll make for great drawings.” Another lie. It was practically becoming natural to force a few words and smile at the world.

[Kyle Stockholm]

Kyle chuckled when Rachel complimented him, but only answered with a shy "thank you" before crossing his arms on the table before him and looking down at the wood. Owen had suggested he get his drawing, but he couldn't bring himself to move. He just.. nope. Wasn't gonna move.

When Trista said she'd rather sit over by the window, Kyle looked up and cocked his head to the side. He understood lighting: that was an artist thing. But he did wish she'd come sit by him.. even if he knew why she really wouldn't. It wasn't hard to tell anymore. It was like back in the forest they'd connected or something. That or he was just really good at picking up on the fact that she, for some reason, didn't like Rachel. Regardless of the situation, Kyle shrugged it off and figured it was best not to push her. That might end up just pushing her further away.

The bell finally rung and Owen was up and moving around the room. He stopped by Trista first and complimented the lion drawing before her, giving her a pat on the shoulder. From there he swooped to the holding room from which he removed a painting he'd long been working on. Then, holding it above his head, he came to Kyle and Rachel (after passing a few others) and noted the cookie. "Can I change my name to Kyle and have that?" he asked, nodding at the cookie which Kyle quickly grabbed.

"No, mine!" he said with a crooked smile before pressing the cookie into his backpack. Owen smiled, set up his painting on an easel, and turned to face the class.

"So like I said.. free work day. Imma put on some tunes, you guys get to work.. lemme know if you need anything or don't cuz I'm also working. Ready... BREAK!" And with a clap of his hands, the class was suddenly moving. Students were grabbing their materials and rushing about, but Kyle stayed still. "Rachel, can you get me my drawing while you're up?" he asked, not wanting to move.

[Rachel Reed]

It was actually disappointing that Trista seemed to dislike Rachel so much. She didn't understand what she'd done to upset the other girl! Had she done something rude to her that she couldn't remember? Had she and Kyle been in a relationship? She'd never heard anything about it but she supposed that was a possibility if they'd just kept it very secret. She didn't want to ruin his friendship with the girl so she made it her mission to try and figure out what she'd done wrong and fix it even if that meant spending less time with Kyle so he could spend time with Trista. She didn't want to be the girlfriend who comes in and expects the guy to stop having any opposite gender friends! She bite down on her bottom lip as she tried to imagine the ways that this could work out.

What if she tried becoming friends with the girl and then it ended up in some brutal fight? She was just going to have to get to the bottom of this! Was she allergic to baked goods? Maybe she thought that she was trying to kill her. She was snapped out of those thoughts when she heard Kyle asked her if she would bring him his drawing. "Oh what? Oh yes sure, of course." She didn't have any issue with that. She brought him his drawing before moving to sit by miss Trista Kline. "Hey.. This is going to sound really strange but is there a reason that you don't like me?" She didn't know the just right way to explain what she was trying to say so she was just speaking from her heart.

"I know that you and Kyle are friends or at least you seem like you were and I would never want you to feel like I'm trying to take him from you and if you need me to then I'll back off so you two can spend more time together. Kyle shouldn't stop having fun with you just because I'm his girlfriend. I would never imagine wanting to replace one of his friends like that and if you feel like I am then I'm so sorry." She already knew that she was going to get him and Trista tickets to see a nice show and make him a picnic to bring her to.. Maybe arrange for fireworks to go off. She didn't even realize that she was basically planning a perfect date for them in her head.

She trusted her boyfriend not to do something that would hurt her.

[Trista Kline]

When Kyle didn’t seem to respond she just accepted it. It was hard not to feel disappointed. What had she been expecting? Something. Something that would indicate this wasn’t okay. It never came though, her eyes soon found her work again. Her hands had fallen into her lap and her hair around her face. Well, this was going to be a long class today. She was slowly starting to block out the world around her, something she’d learn to do when her mind needed silence. She didn’t even notice Owen walkup until his hand was on her shoulder. She jumped lightly and felt just a small poke of pride at her drawing.

It was enough for her to turn the page in her notebook and run her hand over the blank space. She could do this. She could move on, leave Kyle and Rachel to their happiness. She needed to stop thinking about that night and become the best friend he thought she was. She had told him she was happy, told him she was fine with it. It was very hard to keep up with the lies and not trip over the web she’d created. She hated that she lied about the smallest things, but she was lying for him. She didn’t want him to worry about her. She was fine, really.

Trista had picked up her pen and her hand moved on its own accord. She found that her mind was settling down, and the furrow of her brow was only in concentration. She wasn’t even sure what she was trying to do until the figure of a skeleton. It wasn’t just a skeleton though. It was a skeleton that was free, almost without a care. To anyone else who could’ve represented multiple things, but to her, it meant so much more. The skeleton was representing Kyle, free from his muscles, free from his disease. Drawings like this that couldn’t be decoded so easily helped her hide away.

She continued her work, delicate hands placing the lines on the paper with care. When Rachel sat at her table she looked up and blinked blankly at the beautiful girl. She was extremely confused and sat back in her seat slightly to give a little distance between the two. “I… what?” She squeaked softly trying to place Rachel’s words into sense. She was trying not to panic, and eyes flickered across the table in front of her to find something to focus on. Trista wasn’t good at these things. She didn’t handle confrontation well and it was stressing out.

Taco Trista felt awful that Rachel felt the need to come talk to her. This wasn’t what she had wanted, not at all. She wanted the two to be happy, and now that Rachel was here she couldn’t escape. She couldn’t look up, she didn’t want her to see how frightened she really was. Kyle had been the only one she could really talk to, along with Erik, and now Rachel was running some sort of intervention of sorts? “I don’t dislike you,” she said softly, fingers tapping softly on her kneecap. This couldn’t think, she wasn’t handling this well. It was easier when she could sit alone and think, and now Rachel practically had her backed into a corner. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. She didn’t even know what for anymore. Sorry for making her feel the need to say something?