/kəˈlän, (ˈ)ka¦l-/

♡♡♡

Being called weird is like being called Limited Edition.

It means you're something people don't see often.

♡♡♡

"Wait, so you make a hole?" Her father asked, scrunching his nose in disapproval as he shook his head. "Why would you do that?"

"Then how do you think the ring will go in Dad?" Rose asked, stifling a laugh at his confused expression. "It's called a nose piercing for a reason - you pierce your nose."

Her Dad shook his head. "Then what about if you blow your nose? Will the piercing go away too?"

And she couldn't hold that laugh in any longer.

"Dad-"

"Or while you take a shower, doesn't your pores open and the piercing can fall off?" He explained, scratching his temple as he sighed. "I thought they were stickers or something."

"There are fake ones," Rose said, smiling at her Mom when she entered. "You just stick them on."

"Okay alright," Peter said, taking a slow sip of his coffee as though he was still in thought. "But what about-"

"Can we please stop talking about nose piercings over breakfast?" Helen snickered, placing a plate of toast on the table as she sat down and let out a sigh. "It's uncomfortable and disturbing."

"But I want one on my lip," Rose interjected, instantly making her parents snap their wide eyes towards her, and it was as if Peter was going to go into cardiac arrest.

"Just kidding!" She said, laughing at how her parents took their first intake of breath before her Mom said. "That wasn't funny. I thought my daughter was a punk for a moment."

"It was to me," Rose shrugged, smiling at how her Dad quirked an eyebrow.

"For a minute there, I actually believed you. What the bloody hell is wrong with me today?" Peter said, taking a sip of his coffee before his wife smacked his arm.

"No cussing around here," She said sternly, irritation bubbling in her brown eyes as a huff left her lips.

"Sorry," Peter mumbled, rolling his eyes at her childish behavior before he took a bite of his toast.

"Alright I'm gonna head to school now," Rose smiled, getting up as she kissed both her parents on the cheek. "And probably come back with a nose piercing."

And she swore she could hear their hearts stop beating when she left the room.

✿✿✿

"We didn't need anything for Algebra did we?" Lana asked, her blonde curls bouncing up and down as she continued walking. "Because my bag is pretty much empty."

For a new girl Lana was confident and very outgoing -something Rose wasn't even close to- and it was a miracle on how they clicked.

She was the first friend Rose had in a very long time, and truth be told, she wished she did this earlier.

Because it felt nice sharing lunch with somebody.

"Yeah we didn't," Rose said, smiling as she shut her locker. "But we did have homework yesterday."

"Shit," Lana cursed, a sigh escaping her lips as she continued. "I'm screwed."

Rose shrugged. "Don't worry, Mrs. Emery doesn't really bug the new kids that much,"

Lana let out a huge breath. "Oh thank God,"

Rose then smiled - she liked having Lana around, there was something in her hazel eyes that made her all happy on the inside.

This is what having a friend feels like, Rose thought, internally squealing as she took a deep breath.

The last thing she wanted was to scare her away.

"Alright, I have Biology now," Lana said, snickering as a sad sigh left her lips. "Let's just hope for the best."

"But biology isn't all bad," Rose reasoned, giving her a small smile as Lana looked blankly at her.

Okay, no more sweet talk about biology.

"Like I said, let's just hope for the best," Lana said monotone, making Rose stifle the giggle that was tickling her throat. "And I'll see you in English!" Rose said, smiling before dashing to her class.

It wasn't as if Rose had anything better to do - she had a free period now and Chase also had a class.

A mischievous grin marveled her lips while her eyes lightened up in playfulness, maybe now was the time to do it?

She nodded her head to herself, a small giggle escaping her lips and echoing through the empty halls.

She shushed herself up, and then started walking towards the back door - no one could see her there right?

She grinned as she reached the foot ball stadium -which by the way was as empty as her conscience seems to be- and sneakily took a seat on one of the seats.

She made sure she took a seat right on the corner, where even if someone happened to pass by, they wouldn't be able to see what she was doing.

She was going to get into so much trouble, but it has been at least 3 months since she has had any.

She took one more look around before putting her back pack on her lap and then carefully unzipping the zipper.

Won't it just suck if Chase saw her now?

He's in Calculus, she reminded herself, smiling as she could already feel the cold metal against her palm.

It's been 4 long months.

She grasped the thermos around her palm before slipping it out of her bag - an obvious grin tickling her lips as she internally squealed.

She then one last glance around herself before unscrewing the stopper, and taking a small gulp out of the flask, and she could already feel her adrenaline going.

Coffee was something Rose was precaustiously restricted from, and God knew what would happen in her little body when she as given any.

It was that it could potentially kill her (That was a little side effect), it was that she was a hyper mess when she took just a tiny sip of that caffeine-infected drink.

And everybody knew it - her Dad, Mom, Chase, Teachers, Mothers of other kids, and even the Janitor knew when Rose had just one drop of coffee.

She has been suspended (Well almost) due to her insane outbursts when she came anywhere near that God forsaken drink.

Her mother cleared out the entire house of any coffee (She could still remember when she couldn't even find one of those '3 in 1' packets), and the only coffee they had at home was decafe.

As if that was anything.

It was even personally requested by her Parents themselves that the teachers use decafe as well -they really didn't want the risk of her sneaking into their staff rooms and over dosing herself on that stuff- and some teachers happily agreed while the rest (Which was about a good 65%) disagreed, but reluctantly agreed to Principal orders.

That's why random teachers glare at the poor girl in the hallway.

And one beautiful day (She literally felt as though God was shining his own light on her), she thought why not do this secretly?

She made it a regular habit to snag a Thermos full of her favourite coffee, and drink it in small portions (She really didn't want to get busted), until the delectable liquid was finished.

So here she was on her second sip of coffee as she grinned, swallowing the sweet yet bitter liquid as it sent a rush of satisfaction (Mostly adrenaline) through her blood.

And when she was about to take her last and final tiny sip -

"What the hell are you doing?"

And she accidentally added a bit more than she should have - gulping probably a quarter cup more than planned.

And when she swallowed, she let out a little squeak.

"What the actual fuck?" Aaron said, giving her a weird look as he eyed her suspiciously.

She could already feel how dilated her pupils were, and she couldn't stop that kinda creepy smile from appearing on her lip., "Aaron! How you doing?" She asked, with way more energy than intended.

To anyone, she seemed absolutely wasted.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Aaron grumbled, his eyes shifting to her hands and when he saw the Thermos. "Did you add scotch or vodka to that?"

She looked at the Thermos which was tightly clenched in her palm as she shook her head. "Don't be silly, silly!" She giggled, unstably swaying from side to side as another giggle escaped her lips. "It's coffee!"

"Then why do you look stoned and drunk at the same time?"

"I don't silly!" She giggled, clutching her stomach at how hard she was laughing. "Gosh, you're really funny did you know that? Like really really funny," She commented, another laugh escaping her lips before she continued. "You make my tummy ache really bad, but it feels really really nice."

He quirked an eyebrow, noticing how legitimately drunk she looked. "I saw some off your stuff on the floor," He said, cautiously taking out her notebook from his bag. "Here you go,"

"Thank you so much!" Rose said, gratefully taking it from him before she stood up and wrapped her arms around him (With the damn Thermos still in hand). "I really really like this notebook! Thank you for the awesome gift!"

He immediately stiffened under her touch, furrowing his eyebrows when she said 'gift'.

Nobody could know what in God's name was happening to her body right now.

And when the bell rang, she immediately detached herself from him, a huge beam garnishing her lips as she said. "Alright, we have class now!" She took her bag and carefully placed the Thermos back in its hiding place (Which was right behind her fat biology text book) before she slung it over her shoulders.

"See you in Chemistry!" She practically screamed as she giggled, running across the stadium leaving a dumb founded Aaron behind.

"But we have English now dumbass,"

✿✿✿

She was literally shaking in her place - a huge beam on her face as her feet continually tapped the ground while her legs kept on shaking.

To any sane mind, she would've looked excited - really really excited.

But the moment Chase entered the room, he abruptly froze in place - his blue eyes still taking in the sight he just saw.

"Shit," She could hear him mumbled, which abruptly caused her to snap her neck to his direction (He was suprised on how she didn't twist it).

"Hey Chase!" She said excitedly, waving her hand continuously as the hyper activity practically radiated off her (If her tone wasn't obvious enough). "Did I ever tell you how tall you are?" She said, grinning at him as she winked. "You're like really tall, like this tall." She said, extending her arms all the way up.

"Rose," Chase said, cautiously watching her. "What did you drink this morning?"

"Tea silly!" Rose replied, her eyes brightening as she saw Mrs. Lory walk in, waving a frantic hand at her as she continued. "Like I do every morning!"

"Okay class settle down," Mrs. Lory smiled, watching as everybody took their seats, but her eyes instantly settling on the empty chair beside Rose.

"Rose where is Aaron?" Mrs. Lory asked her, crossing her eyebrows on how jumpy she looked like.

"Oh don't worry about him!" Rose replied, smiling as her eyes re-assured Mrs. Lory. "He'll be fine, he's a big strong boy." She said, grinning as she nodded her head to herself.

All everyone could really do was stare.

"Okay...." Mrs. Lory said, hesitantly nodding her head before taking out her board markers, rolling one of them between her fingers as a small smile made its way to her face. "Alright class today we're going to be doing a little speaking quiz."

But before the class had even a chance to groan. "And before you all decide 11 ways to kill me, no, this quiz isn't marked. It's just another fun activity I thought of." She explained, shutting the mouths of almost all the students. "The drill is that I ask you a question, and then you answer. As simple as that." And when she saw the nods the students were giving, she beamed and said. "Alrighty, let's get started!"

Mrs. Lory started calling out names one by one, making each students stand as they said their answers. (Which made Rose even more excited)

Apparently, some guy named Dylan claimed that he saw a ghost when he was seven years old and never tried to sleep with the lights off. (Even though Mrs. Lana asked him what was one of his wonderful experiences, and his response surprised Rose even more)

And a girl named Anne was actually half Finnish and Danish which actually blew everyone's mind -Well everyone except Aaron- on how fluent she actually is in both languages.

Rose was so engrossed in their answers that she didn't even notice Aaron sitting beside her let alone entering the class.

And when it was finally Rose's turn, she could see Chase uneasy face from the corner of her eye before skipping -literally skipping- to the front of the class with a bright beam plastered on her lips.

"Okay Rose," Mrs. Lana smiled warmly. "What do you want to be when you are older?"

By now the adrenaline flowing through Rose's body was the most she has ever experienced, and she was pretty much jumping on her seat as this grin crossed her lips.

She took a moment or two to think and then widened her brown eyes as an answer graced her mind. "Oh I know this one!" Rose said enthusiastically, making a weird expression cross Mrs. Lana's features. "I wanna be a PIMP!"

And before anyone could react she continued. "But can you feel that?" She then whispered so that only Mrs. Lana could hear. "There is a disturbance in the force,"

She was literally acting like a 7 year old high on sugar.

Which in a sense she kinda was.

"So I'm probably going to grow some wings and fly out of here," She said, smiling as she looked over her shoulder -assuming magical and fairy dusted wings were going to pop out of them- and then looked at Mrs. Lana's confused expression. "What's the next question?" She asked bubbly, practically about to jump off her seat.

"Uh.... Anything you want to add to that?" Mrs. Lana asked hesitantly, curiously watching Rose's body movements.

"Well I have been an alcoholic for 3 years now." Rose said, nodding her head to herself as she beamed.

Mrs. Lana's eyes grew wide. "What?"

"Oh stupid me!" Rose said, a giggle escaping her lips as she added. "I thought I was in Alcoholics Anonymous." She said, shrugging as a laugh escaped Chase's lips.

Even he couldn't take her seriously.

"Alright....." Mrs. Lana said, awkwardly nodding her head as the weird expression never left her face. "Umm, Aaron would you mind coming here? It's your turn now,"

Rose then said. "Thank you for having me! It was a pleasure answering your questions!"

And Mrs. Lana gave her an awkward smile in return just as Chase stood up.

"Mrs. Lana do you mind if I take Rose to infirmary?" Chase asked in the most sincerest tone he had -he knew it worked on all the ladies- "She hasn't been feeling well lately, and it kills me to see her like this." He added, a look of sadness and concern crossing his baby blue eyes.

And anyone with a sane mind and heart would melt on their knees,

Well everyone except Aaron.

"Why of course!" Mrs. Lana said, her soft gaze shifting to a jumpy Rose. "I knew there was something wrong when she gave me those answers! Awe Rose, dear please take care of yourself." She said softly, concern crossing her grey eyes as she watched Chase take Rose by the arm -immediately making a giggle escape her lips- as they left the room.

"Okay Rose," Chase said, a sly grin on his face as he continued. "Why?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Rose beamed, giggling as she clutched onto his arm. "I didn't do anything."

Chase quirked an eyebrow. "How much of it did you have?"

"Of what?" She asked, furrowing her eyebrows as though she tried to remember. "I have no clue on what you're talking about,"

"I must say though," Chase said grinning. "That was the most awesomest thing I have ever seen you do in public."

She then fluttered her eyelashes. "Awe stop it you,"

He then let out a chuckle, his chest vibrated as he continued laughing. "Sometimes I really love what coffee does to you."

"What do you have after this?" She asked, grinning before a pout settled on her lips. "Oh wait we don't take the same class. Don't you think this is terrible? I mean we have known each other since we were seven and practically grew up with each other and now we have to take out separate ways? I mean as best friends, aren't we like supposed to do everything together? Like we even shared our own clothes in sixth grade so why in God's name can't we share classes? Like why did you want to be an accountant and take accounting instead of Physics with me? And why did you just randomly decide to drop Chemistry last year leaving me there all alone? Oh I know what they could do! They could like make a special class entirely dedicated to best friends! Where all childhood best friends would go to and they would never leave each other! And then we could even play pranks on the teacher like you always wanted to and even ditch!"

That was another issue, the word vomit.

It wasn't really something she could control, but it wasn't something that Chase liked either.

He then sighed. "Yeah sure Rose, maybe one day we can,"

"Esahc," She said grinning, wiggling her eyebrows as a giggle left her lips. "That's your name backwards by the way,"

He then sighed. "We're going to have to do a lot of work,"

✿✿✿

"No sir," She protested, shaking her head. "It's against my religion,"

"She's not usually like this sir," Chase interjected, scratching the back of his neck as he sighed. "It'll wear off in a couple of hours,"

Mr. Len looked at the two curiously, quirking an eyebrow as though they were calling his bluff.

"Conflict and Argument" was written on the board in Mr. Lens' square handwriting -he couldn't even write on a straight line- and judging from the capitals he used, and the double underlining, it was a pretty crucial lesson.

Mr. Len was a skinny young man - his fire red hair definitely made him different from all the other, and no matter how much he tried to flatten down his hair with his hands, it somehow always managed pop back up.

He was always dressed in a suit and tie, but everything else about him was pretty much plain.

He had a pale face: pale blue eyes, pale skin, and even the slight drizzle of freckles were a pale brown colour.

He wasn't a bad teacher, but he had his fair shares of detentions and what not.

He then faced Chase, quirking an eyebrow before he glanced at Rose again. "What's wrong with her?"

But before Chase could even explain-

"Sir I have some remedies in my locker," Aaron said all the way from the back seat casually. "If you want I can give her some."

Mr. Len thought for a moment before nodding his head. "Very well then, you can go get them,"

Aaron sighed before he got up, heading to the door -

"And Miss Rose, you can also go along with Aaron." Mr. Len continued, pushing his specks further up the bridge of his nose. "And I wish you the very best," He added, giving her a small smile before opening his log book.

"Alright!" Rose said excitedly, beaming at Aaron as she got up. "Thank you sir," She said, smiling at him as she exited the class room.

And she could already hear the groan that escaped his lips.

"Hi Aaron!" She said happily, a laugh escaping her lips. "Thank you for taking me out of there! I was actually kinda getting bored." She explained, grinning at him.