Page 29 of Something Rad
I look back to Robbie, who hasn’t moved. I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out. Robbie raises his brows at me. I close my mouth again and, ridiculously, snatch my journal from him and bolt in the direction of Ms. Cage’s portable. In the direction of the first class I’ve ever been late for.
Robbie didn’t say anything and still hasn’t, but I can sense him hot on my heels now. I pick up my pace, really testing the soles of my Keds, and make it to the building right as Ms. Cage is closing the door.
She seems taken aback when she sees me. “Ms. Cooper?” Her shock and disappointment in my tardiness makes my face feel hot and my stomach twist in shame. I swallow down the bile rising in my throat as I make it through the doorway, holding the door open as Ms. Cage walks into the classroom in front of me.
“What a surprise–” she continues, but cuts off. “Oh. And Mr. Summers.” I feel a heat against my back as I assume Robbie appears just behind me in the doorway as well. “Much less of a surprise,” Ms. Cage says.
I don’t look back as I let my arm fall away from the door. I can hear Robbie’s hand immediately replace mine on the door but ignore it as I step into the classroom. Ms. Cage’s eyes dart between the two of us, as I’m sure the rest of the classroom’s do as well.
The silence in the room becomes deafening, my and Robbie’s somewhat labored breathing being the only sound that breaks it.
Ms. Cage shakes her head, pulling a notepad out of her desk drawer. “Detention, both of you,” she says, scrawling across the paper.
“Ms. Cage,” I plead, stepping up to her desk. “I’m sorry, but I’ve never been late in my life–”
“Can we take it in the library?” Robbie's voice boldly interrupts me from behind.
“What?” I say, spinning towards him at the same time Ms. Cage says, “Excuse me?”
Robbie slides his Ray Bans off, rubbing them against his striped shirt to clean them. He takes time doing this, like he is having a casual conversation with a friend and not speaking to a teacher. “Our detention,” he says, nodding towards the two slips of paper Ms. Cage has torn from the notepad as he slips his folded sunglasses into his shirt collar. “Can we take it in the library after school with Ms. Rose?”
Ms. Cage raises a brow, looking between both of us and the detention slips a few times. “Well, I suppose–”
“Great,” Robbie grins, snatching the slips from Ms. Cage’s desk. He hands me one of them without so much as a look in my direction. I don’t even remember accepting it, but suddenly it’s in my hand. And then he makes his way down the middle row of desks to take his usual seat.
Well, what would have beenmyusual seat.
But that’s not important right now.
I spin back to Ms. Cage. “But Ms. Cage, still, this is my first offense. At, well,anything. I really don’t think this deserves–”
“Take your seat, Ms. Cooper,” she interjects. I start to argue further, but she’s already turned away from me and is moving to write on the chalkboard.
I let out a sigh of defeat, looking down at my detention slip and gritting my teeth before following after Robbie.
He’s already in his seat when I pass him, and he continues to stare forward, cool as a cucumber, without acknowledging me as I scoot past him and take my own seat with a huff.
“Thanks a lot,” I mutter under my breath as I aggressively flip open my textbook.
I don’t intend for Robbie to respond, and for a few seconds, he doesn’t, but then I sense movement in front of me. I glance up to see him barely looking over his shoulder at me. “I don’t appreciate the sarcasm, but, regardless, you're welcome,” he says.
I bite down hard on the inside of my cheek.
Let it go, Sara.
I don’t let it go.
“Sorry, forwhat, exactly?” I ask, lurching forward in my seat so that Robbie can hear my heated whispering.
He suddenly spins around fully to look at me, taking me by surprise and causing my spine to snap straight. “Seriously, Cooper? I know you’re smarter than this.”
“Excuse me?”
Robbie shakes his head, flexing his jaw. “You’re already going to be in the library.By choice, apparently. I essentially got you out of detention.”
“You didn’t get me out of anything!” I whisper-shout. “This is still going to be on my record, Robbie.”
His brows raise, and he lets out a whistle. “Yourrecord?Oh no. Why didn’t you say so in the first place? On second thought, better skip the library after school and run straight home. The Bay View Police Department could burst through the doors at any minute to haul you away.”
