Chapter 6: Wednesday Morning, 11:35AM

“I still can’t believe they let you park in the faculty lot, A.”

“Where else would I park?”

“Right, I forgot. Damn, your car is so much more comfy, too, it’s been a while since I always drive. Now what’d you make me today, wifey?” Ayanna fluttered her lashes at her friend from the passenger seat.

“Wifey, huh? Weren’t you the one saying how you didn’t see me that way last week?”

“A, if you’re cookin’ for me every day even I’d be persuaded to switch teams. Maybe. I’d think about it depending on what you were making.”

Alaina rolled her eyes. “Get over yourself,” she said, suppressing a laugh. “I should have said no.”

“C’mon, stop torturing me! I’m starving! And I gotta run in a couple hours!”

“Alright, here.”

“A salad? Really, A?”

“I didn’t want you getting fat since it’s track season.”

“Oh. Um. A, when I said wifey, I really didn’t—”

“I’m never cooking for you again if that sentence doesn’t turn out to be that you really didn’t appreciate me enough.”

“I really didn’t appreciate you enough,” Ayanna said contritely, bowing her head.

“That’s what I thought. And since you can admit it, I don’t mind sharing this with you, too.” Alaina pulled a foil-wrapped object out of her lunch bag and placed it in a cup holder between their seats.

“I think I’m in love,” said Ayanna, staring. She smacked her lips. “With that sandwich, I mean.”

Alaina snorted. “Salad first, Ay. I’ll give you half of this after if you can get through lunch without any breaks.” She tweaked the volume of the radio slightly. Need this to be a tiny bit louder from what Will said.

“Fine, fine, Mom.” Ayanna pulled open her plastic container. “And now that we finally got to Mom, I wanna know everything. How’d last night go? Better or worse than with Spencer?” She stuffed a plastic forkful of lettuce and veggies into her mouth.

That’s a tough question. “Um...” She chewed, then swallowed. “Both?”

Ayanna eyed her suspiciously. “Whaddaya mean both?” she said while chewing. “How’s that work?”

“My mom knows Will’s father. She, um ... She doesn’t think very highly of him? And she thought Will was going to be a chip off the old block.”

“Knows him how?”

“He ... Well, he sort of tried to hit on her at work a few years ago. And she made him wash her floors at the hospital for like, a whole year afterwards as punishment.”

“Wait, wait, she made him? Isn’t Will’s dad a big shot?”

“Ay, you remember that time we took you to a track meet freshman year and had to take a big detour because of construction?”

“Yeah, I was late and Coach chewed me out—”

“Until Mom went off on her because we had to sit in the car for a half hour in stopped traffic with no air conditioning because it was broken.”

“That brings back memories. I was tryin’ to run hurdles but I was too short. And your mom made Coach lose her shit and hide in a porta potty until the coaches from the other schools dragged her out.” Ayanna started to chuckle. “The look on her face! I wish I knew what she said, I just saw her waving her hands and lookin’ angry.”

The signs were always there that Mom was a little different, now that I know what to look for. I can’t wait to get home and ask her more about her Class. I can’t believe Will was still trying to stand up to her even when he had blood leaking out of his fucking eyes. She was so scary last night. She shivered at the memory. “Yeah, exactly. She can be pretty scary if you get on her bad side.” But also kind of awesome? How many moms can actually breathe fire?

“Yeah, true. She also flipped out on my mom that one time, and Mom wouldn’t come outta her room for hours. Kept asking ‘Is she still here?’ over and over. Kinda funny, even though it was my mom. Alright, so your mom doesn’t like Will’s dad. This mean you’re gonna admit you’re star-crossed lovers from feuding houses?”

Alaina stopped chewing and stared down at her salad.

“You like my Romeo and Juliet reference? Been brushin’ up on my Shakespeare—Uh, you okay? You got your I’m thinking really hard face on.”

Maybe? This is so weird, I’m never indecisive like this. Alaina continued chewing, then swallowed. “Can I...” She picked at the last couple bits of her salad. “Argh, Mom is so annoying sometimes!” She stabbed a cherry tomato viciously and brought it to her mouth.

“Uh oh, she embarrass you during dinner again?” Ayanna eyeballed the foil-wrapped sandwich.

“No,” said Alaina. “I mean, yes, but that’s not why I’m annoyed. After Will left, Mom and I talked for a bit before she went to work. She was asking me all kinds of questions about how Will and I got so close...” She looked over at her friend. “I started thinking about it after she left, how he’s been doing all these things to help me lately. He even had someone drive out to replace my flat tire last night before dinner.”

“Wow, that’s pretty nice of him. You must’ve felt pretty relieved to not have to deal with it yourself, I bet.”

“Yeah, I was stressing out about it all day. And he didn’t tell me he was gonna do it, either.” Alaina sealed the lid of her plastic container and placed it into her lunch bag.

“You woulda told him not to.”

“Yeah, I would have. And he knew that, so he did it as a surprise. I think he even timed it so they’d show up right when we got back to the house. He could have just had it done during the day, but he wanted me to see it. He wanted to see my reaction, I think. And...” she trailed off, looking down at her hands fidgeting with her lunch bag.

“And what, A?”

Alaina took a deep breath and looked back at her friend.”I think ... I think maybe he likes me?”

Ayanna stared. Then she began to laugh uproariously. “A, of course he likes you.”

Alaina gave her an annoyed look. “No, Ay, I mean I think he likes me. Like not just as a friend—however good a friend I thought he was.”

Her best friend laughed harder. “Alaina, stop, please, I can’t breathe!” She wheezed, her black braids shaking. “This is what you’re annoyed at your mom for? I’m actually dying.” She leaned into her seat, head thrown back as she continued to laugh, and the seat reclined until the taller girl was fully horizontal and actively rolling with laughter.

She already knew? “He told you? Was it Friday, before he came to the FCF?” She frowned.

“I love that about you, A. You’re so oblivious! Why would he need to say anything to me? Anyone with half a brain could tell by how he’s been lookin’ at you the past couple days; they don’t gotta be a fucking [Observer] to know. I thought I was gonna get diabetes from watchin’ you two make faces at each other in History yesterday.”

Alaina blushed. “I was just trying to make the time pass. You know how boring History is!”

“Adorable,” said Ayanna. She pulled her seat back upright and flicked a braid away from her face. “And also not something Will White does. I’ve seen him sleep through more classes than I can count over the years. There’s a reason all he ever brings to class is a pencil, and it’s not because he’s carefully memorizin’ everything. He usually just zones out and waits for the period to end.”

He does do that! Argh, I always hated him for slacking off in class, too!

“Even ignoring that,” her friend continued, “when he came into History yesterday and spotted you, his whole face lit up. Like Ken’s does when we haven’t seen each other in a few days. He’s got it bad for you, A.”

I didn’t notice that. He always seems like he’s grinning when we’re together. She flushed bright red. Oh, no, is he grinning because we’re together? “But why?” she said. “I mean, yeah, we’ve fucked a couple times and it was fun, but I thought it was just fun, y’know? It was weird enough thinking about being friends with him over the past couple days after spending so much time disliking him...” She sighed.

And after hating him all last week ... Fuck, now that I think about it, his stupid Trait was working on me then, wasn’t it? So of course he could tell I was turned on and practically eye-fucking him when he first came in. I spent so much time being angry at him about that, but if I’m honest... She tapped her finger against her fork. If I’m really honest, I liked it a little. Ugh, no, it was more than just a little with how fucking horny it made me knowing he wanted me that much.

“I’m gonna get started on my half of this while we talk,” said Ayanna, beginning to unwrap the sandwich. “But I don’t think it matters why, A. Or, at least, it doesn’t matter to me.” She folded the foil back over the remaining half and took a bite of hers. “Oh. My. Fucking. God. How do you make these so good?” She moaned, savoring the taste.

“Here’s the thing, A,” she continued while chewing. “I don’t wanna be an asshole about it, but I don’t care why he likes you. Doesn’t really matter, does it? You always get too up in your head thinking about shit. Now that you know, how does it make you feel? Are you happy? Upset? Afraid?”

Alaina picked up the remaining sandwich half and began unwrapping it. How do I feel? That’s a stupid question. I... She paused, the sandwich hovering in front of her mouth. Wait, how do I feel? She absently took a small bite of the sandwich, staring off into space.

It was so confusing when he came in like a knight in shining armor at the FCF on Friday. Would anyone besides Mom or Ay ever commit a felony for me? Or even help me or be nice to me at all if I wasn’t the student council president or valedictorian or whatever at school? I’m pretty sure Will doesn’t care about any of that...

So ... I feel like ... I like him. He’s a friend. A really good friend after the past few days. Maybe even a great friend? Especially after what Mom put him through last night. Ugh, of course he’d only be that cool after Mom flipped out on him if he liked me as more than a friend. How did I not think of that before! She leaned her head against her window, taking slow bites of her sandwich without tasting anything.

“You don’t have to make a decision or anything now, A,” Ayanna said in a gentle tone. “You don’t even have to tell me if you don’t want to, I’m not gonna push you. I know it’s hard for you to let people in, but Will seems like a pretty good guy. He’s been there for you a lot over the past week, right? You don’t wanna be lettin’ him get his hopes up if you know you’re not gonna feel the same way, right?”

Fuck, she’s right. I don’t want to lead him on like I apparently did with Spencer, that would be cruel. Even if the cases are completely different. She popped the last bite of the sandwich into her mouth and dropped the foil into her lunch bag for later recycling. “I don’t know how I feel,” she said after another minute. “I spent the rest of the night after everyone left trying to figure out if he liked me. And then if he did, why. Is it just the sex? I mean, things have gotten pretty out of hand there on more than one occasion...”

Ayanna sighed. “You really can’t get past that, can you? Okay, okay, let’s try it your way. When you guys are together—like yesterday, you were driving around together for a while, right?—do you talk? Or is he just eyeing you like you’re an all-you-can-fuck buffet?”

Alaina giggled. “All-you-can-fuck buffet? What do you imagine we do when—Y’know, never mind. Yeah, we talk. We talk a lot, actually.”

“You like talking to him?”

Do I like talking to him? What kind of question is that? How could I be friends with someone I don’t like talking to? “Yeah, it’s fun. He’s always ready with a comeback that makes me laugh, even if I don’t want to admit it to him. And sometimes when I get mad he starts stuttering and stammering and it’s so...” she trailed off, smiling.

“A, what are you thinking about right now?”

“I was remembering yesterday morning when he was acting really timid and fumbling his words. It was funny and cute and it cheered me up.”

“That’s a big smile for someone who says they don’t know how they feel.”

The smile disappeared. Alaina’s eyebrows rose, and she looked over at her friend, frantically shaking her head. “No, no, I was just—It was a little tough that morning, and he started bumbling around—It just cheered me up then, I’m not...” Her eyes widened further. “Why am I defending myself?” She started breathing faster. Oh fuck, don’t tell me I like him, too? This is way too fast. There’s no way. No, no, no, no!

“Whoa, hey, relax,” said Ayanna, putting her hands up in front of her. “Relax, Alaina. Breathe.”

“I am breathing, Ay.” She looked out the windshield of the car. Fuck, I can’t like Will like that! Can I? He’s been really nice the past few days, though. Argh, but he’s still Will. I can’t compete against a girl like Carla! Or even someone like Tiff, who’s been close to him a lot longer than I have and is so adorable. Wait, why am I thinking like this? I don’t want to date Will! ... Do I?

“Alaina, c’mon your head’s gonna explode if you keep that up.” Ayanna grabbed her friend’s shoulder and squeezed. “You don’t have to make a decision or anything this second, right? You can chill for a bit. Get to know him better. All I meant was you should stop worrying so much about the why and start trying to figure out what you want—assuming you don’t hate the idea of it.”

Alaina opened her mouth to speak, then closed it without saying a word. Twice. I never spent this much time thinking about whether I like a guy before. When Spencer asked me out he was nice enough and hot, so I said yes. And I only let him stew for a day so he wouldn’t think I was easy. But I never spent this much time thinking about it. Why? Is it... “I think it’s because of my Class,” she said.

She looked over at her friend again, nodding as she spoke. “Yeah, that must be it. It’s like ... It’d be a conflict of interest, right? Because I have to have sex with this guy, so my mind is like, um, doing one of those Stockholm Syndrome-type things where it’s trying to make the best of the situation by making me like him.” Her brows creased. “That ... That makes sense, doesn’t it? I mean, most of the times we’ve done anything it’s been because I was going crazy from my Quirk. I don’t really wanna date Will...” She gripped her lunch bag.

Ayanna gave her a look filled with skepticism. “Stockholm Syndrome is for prisoners, isn’t it? You a prisoner, A?” Her expression hardened. “If you wanna tell me he’s been hitting you or threatening you or something, anything, I’ll get out of this car right now and beat the shit out of him. I’ll get the whole track team, everyone I know, and we’ll make him regret being born. That how it is, A?”

“No, don’t do that!” Alaina said quickly. “He hasn’t—I mean, he wouldn’t do that!” Will’s too nice to do anything like that!

“You sure, A? Because if he’s doing anything to coerce you—”

Will? If anything it’s more like the other way around lately. “No, really, Ay, he’s not! He’s been really nice and sweet—”

“Hah, you’re too easy.” A big grin spread across Ayanna’s face. “Nice and sweet? You hear yourself sayin’ these things? You, Alaina Bishop, calling a guy sweet? Alaina, you’ve either got the worst case of Stockholm Syndrome in history—worse than people who have been beaten and starved for years—or you’re full of shit.”

Alaina turned scarlet.

“And I know you’re not gonna tell me any of the good details, but when your Quirk is going nuts, I’m guessing he’s not the one who drags you off to the bedroom, is he?”

Fuck, fuck, fuck! I don’t think I’ve ever been this embarrassed in my life!

“Also you said most of the times it was your Quirk. So when you’re totally fine and in control of yourself, who’s the one that initiates? He like a dog, always begging you for it? Nah, that doesn’t seem like Will, does it, A?”

Alaina bit her lip. I kept blaming it on my Quirk when we got back home on Monday, but it doesn’t work like that. That was all me. I was the one who wanted him. And last night again, I was teasing him. I wanted to know that he wanted me. “No, it doesn’t,” she said quietly, looking anywhere but at her smirking friend.

“You past the why part now?”

The still-blushing girl nodded.

“Oh. Uh, I thought it was gonna take a lot longer to ... Well, whatever. I’m not sayin’ you should run off and throw yourself into his arms this second, okay? You go at your own speed.”

Alaina fidgeted. “But ... If we did get closer, I’d have to tell him about my Trait at some point, wouldn’t I? About ... You know ... How could I ever trust that he wouldn’t take advantage of it? If he knew that I’d do anything sexual at any time for him, that I had no choice because of this stupid Trait...”

“Okay, okay, that’s moving pretty fast there, A. You don’t gotta get married tomorrow or anything. If you don’t trust him enough now, don’t rush, okay? It’s not like that’s something you gotta tell him right away, is it? Or ever?”

The light-skinned girl frowned. “I wouldn’t want to date someone seriously that I’d have to hide things from forever. Even if it’s ... Weird.”

“A, you’re thinking way too far ahead,” Ayanna said in exasperation. “C’mon, stop being so you for a sec and be more ... Well, be more you. I can’t go picking out bridesmaid’s dresses and planning the wedding with you while track is in season.”

Alaina blushed again. That’s probably ... That’s a good point. It’s not like we’re even dating yet. Ugh, why does just thinking about that make me so nervous? I need to take a step back. Or ten. “So I should wait until summer break to pop the question?”