"Is this normal for you?" Link asked Carter. "Finishing the project half way through the period?"

The classroom was alive with the sound of student's mutterings and hushed arguments. Carter was slumped on her stool, leaning against the table. She nodded.

"Pretty much," she said.

She looked around, taking in the frustrated scowls, glazed eyes and lost expressions.

"What do you do then?" Link asked.

He sat beside her, bouncing a pencil against the table's edge.

"Sometimes, I do other homework assignments. Mostly, I just watch everyone else and laugh."

Link gave her an odd look.

"Why?" he asked.

Carter pointed to a set of partners two tables over.

"See those two?" she asked.

Link glanced over and nodded.

"She is taking this class to bump up her college application," she said. "He is taking it because his parents signed him up for it. They have the best interactions. Watch."

They watched silently as the boy and girl worked. A few minutes later the boy knocked something over and the girl rounded on him.

"Randy!" the girl shouted. "For once in your pathetic existence can you please try and care about doing something right?!"

"If I did, would you make out with me?" Randy asked.

The girl glared at him and turned back to the experiment.

"You are so immature. I can't believe I got stuck with you," she said.

Randy shrugged and examined the inside of a beaker. Link looked back to Carter and smiled.

"I see what you mean," he said.

"One time, she told him he should apologize to the world for being alive."

"Do you know something about everyone?" Link asked.

Carter shrugged.

"Mostly. Yeah."

"Even the teachers?"

"Sure. They are even easier to read than the students sometimes." Carter nodded her head to the front of the class. "Mr. Miller has taken up running in the last three weeks."

Link gave her a skeptical look.

"How can you possibly know that," he said.

"He's lost about 7 lbs and he has running shoes hidden under his desk. Those were not there three weeks ago."

"Okay what else? What about our PE teacher, Mr. Danes?"

"He is recently divorced and sees his children on Wednesday nights."

"How do-"

"He still has a tan line from his wedding ring. We have a James in our class that every Thursday he calls Jamie, his son's name."

"Mr. Philips?"

"He used to be in politics and studied it in college." Carter shook her head and made a face. "Something happened though. I think he was black balled or something."

"Why do you think that?"

"You don't study politics and then not go into it. I know he studied it because there are times when he has gone into depth about certain administrations. Also, he assigns a lot of essays on the topic."

"The black balled thing?"

"That is easy. Although he understands politics really well, when he talks about it, he scowls. It's just a guess, but he's too young and has too great of an understanding of that world to have really opted for being a high school History teacher."

Link nodded. "Interesting."

Carter shrugged. "Sure."

She perked up, a grin spreading across her face. Link looked at her and frowned.

"What?" he asked.

"Want to see something really interesting?"

He hesitated, the frown deepening.

"Why do I get the feeling that what you are about to do might end with someone's arm broken?"

Carter laughed.

"Because you are a wise man. But don't worry. Not this time."

Carter moved over to the supply closet and pulled out a couple ingredients. She walked back to the table. Link eyed her warily as she combined two powders and put them on a mesh square. Carter gave Link a wink as she put the mesh on top of a tripod with a circle at the top. Link took a cautious step back when Carter pulled the bunsen burner closer to her.

"Should I duck and cover?" he asked.

Carter pulled out a pair of sunglasses from her bag and slid them on.

"Not at all," she said, in a careless tone. "This won't hurt you one bit."

Carter turned on the burner and a blue flame burst into life. She looked at Link, still holding the burner.

"You might want to close your eyes though."

Link paled slightly and she grinned. As Link cringed and closed his eyes, Carter put the flame underneath the tripod, burning the bottom of the mesh. For a second, nothing happened. Then a flash of white light filled the classroom. The room exploded with students crying out in shock.

"What was that?"

"I can't really see!"

"What happened!"

"Was it lightning?"

In a second, Carter had the burner turned off, switched with another student's and her sunglasses tucked away in her bag. She tapped Link on the shoulder and he opened his eyes. Looking around, he smiled at all the dazed and confused students. Carter glanced back and saw Donovan blinking his vision clear. When his eyes focused, they landed on her. She smirked and tipped an imaginary hat to him. Mr. Miller stepped into the middle of the classroom, banging his leg against a table on the way.

"Everyone, calm down," he said. "It was just a mishap. Nothing to be alarmed about. Continue with your projects, you still have a few minutes left of class."

As Mr. Miller finished talking, Carter swept away the last of the evidence, leaving the table clear. The students turned back to their tables, but no one returned to their work, their conversations filled with speculation over who had caused it. Mr. Miller moved over to Carter's table.

"Ms. Owens," he said, his tone even.

"Mr. Miller."

"If I touch your bunsen burner, what will I find?" he asked.

"A cold bunsen burner I expect," Carter said.

Mr. Miller held his fingers inches from the burner. After a second he tapped it cautiously. Upon finding it cold, his expression fell flat.

"Crazy what happens in chemistry sometimes," Carter said.

Mr. Miller merely looked at her and turned away. Carter winked at Link and grinned.

*******************

Carter slammed her locker closed and joined the tidal wave of students flooding the hallway. She pushed through a set of heavy wooden doors into the library. The thundering of footsteps and the storm of voices muffled as the door swung shut behind her. The librarian at the desk looked up, small round glasses perch on the edge of her nose.

"Hi Patty," Carter said, leaning against the desk.

"Hello Carter," the librarian said, in a soft voice. "You haven't been writing your opinions in the margins of my books have you?"

Patty gave Carter an accusatory look. Carter smiled.

"Only in pencil."

"Carter!"

She raised her hands.

"Just kidding," she said. "It was in pen."

Patty's expression turned horrified.

"Okay, that was a joke," Carter said. She shrugged. "Besides, I would rather force my opinions down people's throats than put them somewhere they could be ignored."

Patty shook her head, letting loose a few strands of graying brown hair.

"You are an interesting girl, Carter," she said.

"Wow, that's new," Carter said. "Mr. Miller still has a thing for you, by the way."

Patty blushed and suddenly found an intense interest in neatening the papers on her desk.

"How could you possibly know that?" Patty asked.

"His cologne," Carter said.

Patty looked up, confusion written across her face.

"He doesn't wear cologne."

"Today he is," Carter said. "Which leads me to believe he is also going to ask you out, today. He also bought a new shirt."

Patty gave Carter an amused smile.

"Is that so?"

Carter nodded.

"I advise you say yes," she said. "He's been working out and eating healthier."

Patty gaped at Carter.

"How do you-"

"His belt."

"His belt?"

"Yes," Carter said. "He's tightened it by two holes. Instead of his usual snickers bar, there has been an apple on his desk every day this week and last."

Patty looked away, her face becoming impassive, as she stacked books.

"He could be doing this for some other woman," she said.

Carter gave her a flat look and turned to the doors.

"Sure," she said, "and that's why he's coming to talk to you right now."

Patty spun around, toppling her stack of books as Mr. Miller pushed through the doors. He stepped up the the desk, absentmindedly brushing down his tie.

"Hello Patty," Mr. Miller said.

Patty blushed and adjusted her glasses. Carter smirked and rested her chin in her hand.

"Andrew, hi," Patty said. "Is there something you need?"

"Yes. I was looking for a biography on Tesla. Do we have one?" he asked, his gaze moving over the library, but returning to Patty.

"We do," Carter said. "Second level in the far back corner, where it's dark and quiet."

Patty shot Carter a look and Carter's smile widened.

"We do," Patty said. "I can show you, if you like."

"Yes," Mr. Miller said. "That would be great. Thank you."

Patty stepped out from behind the desk. As they started walking, Patty looked at Mr. Miller.

"Is that a new shirt?" she asked.

Mr. Miller glanced down, then back at her.

"It is. Do you like it?"

Patty nodded.

"Yes, it looks very good on you."

Carter chuckled and moved away from the desk, finding an empty table. The bell rang, quickening the ocean of students beyond the doors. Carter tossed her bag on the table and plopped into a seat. She sat there mindlessly staring about her for a few minutes before she stood up and stepped into a random row. Carelessly, she wandered from one aisle to the next.

As she came to the end of a row, she paused, listening to a low set of voices.

"...what can you tell me about him?" a male voice asked.

"Sophomore. Left handed. From a well to do family," a deep, even male voice said. "They have a house maid that irons his clothes, but he has nervous and untidy tendencies. See how his collar is stiff, but the rest of the shirt is disheveled. As well as his hair, it's neat on one side and not the other. He runs his hand through it when he's concentrating."

Carter leaned against the bookshelf, her ear turned to the conversation, the voices sounding familiar.

"He's about a B average student and that's only because he studies as much as he does. He struggles with understanding the material."

"How do you know?" the first male voice asked.

Carter smirked recognizing Link's voice and knowing the second voice was Donovan's.

"He has been on the same page for the last ten minutes," Donovan said. "I would bet the same paragraph as well. He studies, but doesn't know how to do it well. His parents aren't overly involved in his life or else they would have noticed his struggle and hired a tutor."

"Right," Link said. "What do you make of the blonde?"

Carter glanced around the bookshelf. Both guys had their back to her. Donovan rested against the book case, his hands in his pockets, Link beside him, his arms crossed.

"There's a deep-rooted hurt in her that has her looking for acceptance in others," Donovan said. "I would wager this comes from a childhood occurrence. She's beautiful and that is easy to see, but she can't see it herself. That's why she mimics that looks and trends of girls around her, becoming copies of them. Not only does she want their stamp of approval but she also seeks the approval of guys."

"How-"

"She approached me after A.P. Lit."

Link nodded.

"Okay. What do you-"

Donovan shot a hand out, stopping Link as Carter walked down their row. She smiled as she passed them.

"It's her father, by the way," she said, looking over her shoulder. "Abandoned her when she was eight."

Link looked at Carter with an expression of surprise, while Donovan forced his face into a mask of indifference. Carter pulled out a book and started walking backwards.

"If you're looking for a girl to flirt with, go with the red head in the far corner. Smart, but not too needy," she said.

She turned and stepped out of the row, making her way back to her table. Moments later Link and Donovan emerged from the shelves, books in hand. They walked over to their own table as Carter bent her head and started reading.

A loud thunk, that shook the table, jolted Carter from her concentration. Link smiled as he slid into a chair beside her. Donovan gently settled his books down, before taking a seat at the end of the table. Carter watched them both as they flipped open their books and started working. She nodded.

"Alright, so we're adding that to the list of things we're ignoring, are we?" Carter said.

"Yup," Link said, without looking up.

Carter eyed them for a long moment. The doors to the library opened and a group of girls walked in, talking in low whispers. Link did a double take as the girls passed their table. His gaze followed them as they took a table three rows down. Carter leaned back in her chair, her focus shifting between the girls and Link. A smirk slowly took over her face as Link glanced up every few seconds to look in their direction.

"The one in the middle is in our history class," Carter said.

Link jerked his head to her, his expression surprised.

"What?" he asked, forcing an innocent tone.

Carter pointed to the girl in the middle with glossy black hair, a thin, porcelain face and a playful laugh. Link followed Carter's finger, his eyes holding the girl for a long second. He turned back to Carter and shrugged.

"Oh," he said. "That's interesting."

He dropped his head and continued working. The girls' laughter drifted towards them, breaking Link's concentration and pulling on his attention. Carter pushed her book aside and leaned against the table, watching Link. A few seconds later laughter burst out again and Link hurriedly looked up. Carter fought back a smile. Her gaze shifted. The smile won out as she noticed the slight curve in Donovan's mouth, his head bent over his textbook. When Link looked up for the fifth Carter tossed her hands on the air.

"Link, just go and talk to her already," Carter said.

Link looked at her, his face flushing with embarrassment.

"As much fun as it is to watch you lift your head up and down every five seconds like a bobble head, just go talk to her," she added.

Link pushed up his glasses and shifted.

"Why would I do that?" he asked. "I know nothing about her."

"A problem easily solved," Carter said.

Donovan raised his head. Picking up her pen, Carter stood. Link gave her a startled look.

"What are you doing?" Link asked.

"Getting you information on Maddy. You know, the girl you have been shamelessly staring at," Carter said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I haven't..."

Carter started walking away and Link whispered yelled out her.

"Carter. Don't."

She looked back and gave him a wicked grin. Tucking her pen in her pocket, she lowered her gaze and started scanning the floor. For a minute Carter moved through the tables, listening. The group of girls went quiet as Carter reached their table and dropped to the ground. She pulled out her pen and raised it triumphantly.

"Found it," she said.

The girls looked at her with a mixture of surprise and amusement.

"Sorry," Carter said. "I knew I dropped my pen somewhere."

"I'm glad you found it then," Maddy said.

As Carter stood she glanced at the papers sprawled out in front of Maddy. Maddy studied Carter's face, her expression turning thoughtful.

"I know you," Maddy said.

Carter nodded.

"Most likely, we have history together," Carter said.

Something sparked in Maddy's luminous black eyes.

"You were the girl who helped me with Zac." Maddy gave a small laugh. "By dislocating his shoulder. Thanks for that."

Carter shrugged and slid her hands into her pockets.

"No problem. He had it coming and I was bored, so it all worked out. Good luck with the calculus homework." Carter pointed to a one of the bookshelves. "The calculus textbooks are in the back."

Maddy gave her a puzzled look. Carter gave her a nod and walked back to her table. Link leaned forward, his eyes darting to Maddy before settling on Carter.

"So?" he asked.

Donovan rested back in his chair, crossing his arms.

"Her name is Maddy Hooper," Carter said. "She's a senior. Right handed. Organized and neat. Smart but struggles with Calculus so that's your way in. She's taking French, A.P. History, A.P. Lit. and physics. At least one parent is a journalist because she takes notes in short hand. She prefers cats over dogs. Doodles hearts on the edges of her paper. Doesn't like being pushed around and puts up a decent fight. And currently does not have a boyfriend."

Link just stared at her, mouth partially open. Before Link could say anything Carter nudged him to stand up.

"The calculus textbooks are on the top shelf in the back of the seventh row. Go take one down and look through it. She will come to you," Carter said.

"What?" Link said, giving her a strange look.

Maddy pushed her chair back. Carter nudged Link again.

"Go now, you idiot. You understand calculus, offer to help her," she said.

Link still didn't move, his brow furrowed. Carter punched his arm and he jumped into action. He stumbled away as Maddy stood, saying one last thing to her friends before heading towards the bookshelves. Link entered the row next to her's, hurried to end and rounded the corner. Carter slumped in her chair, crossing her arms.

"The boyfriend info?" Donovan asked.

"They were remarking on the attractiveness of Lucas Harding, a fellow senior. She declared that she would say yes if he asked her out."

"Puts up a decent fight?"

"I helped her out of a conflict with Zac. She had been holding her own fairly well before I entered and popped his shoulder out of its socket."

Donovan nodded and dropped his head, fighting back a smile.

**********************************************************************

Sup homeslice? (What does that even mean??)

Alright! So a picture fell off my wall the other day and the glass broke, freaked the heck out of me. What does the short story have to do with anything? Nothing whatsoever, but as well as being weird I have moments of being completely boring. You just experienced one! Congrats! Love you!

Vote, comment, follow, or whatever you want to! Honestly be free!