“Psst.”

 

All it took was the one noise to make her jaw clench and nostrils flare.

 

“Psst.”

 

It didn’t help that Quin had intentionally forgotten her bruised pride over the weekend, only to have it slap her in the face again this morning when she remembered the seating chart.

 

“PSST.”

 

Quinn snapped, her head twisting so hard for a moment it felt like whiplash.

 

“Firstly, do you mind? Secondly, why ‘psst’ me if you’re just going to say it louder than it takes to use actual words?”

 

“Good morning to you, too, Quinn.” Vernon patiently smiled, not at all taken back by her aggression. “Glad I got your attention. Could you pass this to Dino?”

 

She looked down at his desk, seeing the folded notebook paper and rolled her eyes.

 

Yes, even if she was also known to pass a note or two, seeing one in his hand made her think how childish it was, how ancient, how annoying.

 

“You know, I wouldn’t have to pass anything, if you had just picked the seat next to him,” she didn’t move to take the paper.

 

“But I didn’t want to sit next to him. I wanted to sit here.”

 

A sigh of frustration was inevitable. Maybe if Vernon talked like a normal person, she could in turn treat him normally. But he didn’t. He talked like he was always having two conversations: one in which he was saying words aloud and another secret one, inside his head, with different meanings, hidden motives. Quinn didn’t want to participate in undoing the riddles and she’d seen the results of enough girls when they'd tried to do that. It wasn't pretty.

 

It’s not that Vernon dated around, but he certainly didn’t say no to hanging out-no strings attached. Which girls treated as dates in hopes that they’d be the ones that’d solve the mystery. The good girl to his bad-ish boy quality. Quinn wanted something more upfront, less questionable. Not that she was interested anyway.

 

“So…” Vernon said, glancing to the teacher and making sure their back was turned before reaching over and tucking the note in her hand.

 

Quinn couldn’t help but give a small yelp in surprise at the movement. Only the paper had touched her but she still hadn’t expected it. The way his head inched closer with the bending. The sense of confidence and damn entitlement.

 

There it was again. The consuming heat of anger.

 

One. Two. Three…

 

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him stifle a snicker in response to the noise and the turn of heads from their classmates.

 

This is it. This is how I’ll go crazy. Three months of this.

 

That’s how long seating charts typically lasted.

 

Three months of Vernon pssting and possibly invading personal space and laughing and just talking with his stupid voice.

 

Quinn glanced over at Dino, not weakening her glare. Even if it wasn’t his fault. Dino was pretty mild, they’d never interacted so he shouldn’t take the fault for Vernon’s issues but still. If Vernon wasn’t reacting to her anger, maybe Dino would.

 

“From your friend,” she said, “friend” 10 pounds heavy in disgust. She tossed the note on Dino’s desk and watched his hand swiftly cover and open it. Both of them glancing up to at the teacher before he proceeded.

 

His eyebrows furrowed.

 

“It’s blank?” Dino turned the paper around to show her. Yup, no words. Just average lined paper.

 

Quinn’s head snapped toward Vernon for the second time today.

 

He looked relaxed, leaning back in his chair, gently tapping the side of a pencil, and gazing out the window.

 

Quinn cleared .

 

No reaction.

 

Quinn cleared a little louder.

 

No reaction.

 

Quinn cleared once more.

 

“Quinn?”

 

She jumped, looking forward.

 

“Are you sick? Do you need to go to the nurse?”

 

Quinn blushed, at the teacher’s callout and as the kids once again turned their heads to watch her.

 

“Uh…”

 

“Didn’t you say you were feeling a little warm?” Vernon’s concerned voice left her speechless.

 

What the hell was happening?! She hadn’t said that.

 

Vernon looked to their teacher.

 

“I think  is sore too. I can make sure she gets to the nurse safely. You know, in case the fever hits too hard.”

 

“Yes, Vernon,” the teacher nodded.

 

Quinn looked over, desperately trying to catch Irene’s eye and send a mental S.O.S, but Vernon was already bending down and taking her book bag, blocking her from view.

 

Stupid shoulders.

 

She could either leave and kill him in the hallway or stay and embarrass herself in front classmates even more today.

 

She chose to kill.

 

They walked down the hall at an even pace, Vernon still holding their bags.

 

“You’re taking this a whole lot better than I thought you would,” he lightly noted.

 

“Oh, that’s just because we haven’t turned the corner yet,” Quinn smiled sweetly, batting her eyelashes in fake admiration.

 

If only she could’ve filmed his face then, finally a flash of fright? Realization? Regret?

 

The corner had come and her hands were up, batting his side.

 

“Ow, ow, wait, stop,” was there anything more satisfying than watching Vernon’s coolness fadeaway as he tried to shrink himself against a wall and hold his hands up so her nails didn’t scratch his face.

 

Quinn yanked her book bag from his shoulder.

 

“So tell me why you forced me into passing a blank note?”

 

Vernon pulled at the lapels of his uniform jacket and straightened his shirt back up.

 

“For practice. When there is a note with words,” he said as if it made all the sense in the world. “I didn’t realize that subjected me to abuse.”

 

He looked at her, his bangs waving back into their ordinary place.

 

“How is a sweet girl, like Irene, friends with you?”

 

“Sweet?”

 

Vernon nodded.

 

Quinn took a step back, looking him up and down in evaluation, not noticing the rising pink in his cheeks.

 

“So that’s it, huh.”

 

“What?”

 

“It’s not about me. It’s about Irene!”

 

“What’s not about you? What are you talking about?”

 

Quinn paced back and forth in front of the descending stairs.

 

“You sat there to get Irene’s attention. Because you think she’s “sweet”. How could I be so blind?” Quinn began walking down the stairs. “Wow, but you know, she’s really too good for you. I think it’s best to find someone else.”

 

Vernon hurried after her.

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

 

“Look, I’m trying to be nice about it. We’ve had our differences, but I’m not a total . I’m saying, find someone more suitable, similarly annoying and uh, ego driven perhaps?”

 

“This is you being nice?”

 

Quinn stopped walking and Vernon stumbled on the last stair, standing next to her.

 

“I don’t need a player breaking my best friend’s heart so yes, this is me being nice. Back off.”