Page 76 of Faux Real
I narrow my eyes at Kennedy.Hey-hey?
“Kenny!” Felicity screams, joining Max’s side. She grins, her gaze darting between us. “Oops, I think we interrupted something!”
“What’re you doing out here? Le party isinside!” Maxine exclaims, wobbling down the stairs. She frowns as she looks at Kennedy. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing!” Kenny says, standing up. I follow suit, unease gripping my muscles. “We were just chatting, getting some fresh air.”
“Well, stop it!” Felicity says, grabbing Kennedy’s hand. “Fresh air can wait; the party waits for no one! Let’s go! Leon snuck in a bottle, we gonna getfucked up!” She looks over her shoulder. “You coming, Oliver?”
“Of course he is,” Kenny says, smiling at me. Wow, she’s good. A natural. “Right, Ollie?”
“Sure,” I say hesitantly, subdued frustration bubbling in my blood. “I could go for a drink.”
“It’s Peach Schnapps! Delicious!” Felicity says, leading the charge back to the Annex. “Helluva hangover though but worth it... I think.”
Kenny lets out a forced laugh. “It’s never worth it.”
“Like you’d ever know, Ken,” Max snorts. “You’ve never had a hangover.”
“My head hurts enough on the daily,” she says, keeping her tone playful. “I’ll do a couple of shots though.”
“I’ll take it!” Max exclaims, her sumo suit rustling with every step. “You down for the Schnapps, Knight?”
“Whatever,” I mutter, unable to get over Kennedy’s sudden mood swing.
And the girl staysonfor the rest of the night. Smiling. Laughing. Dancing.
Faking.
It must be exhausting, wearing such a heavy mask.
I narrow my eyes, glancing over my shoulder as I stare at Sawyer and Kennedy. I’m surprised she even came to class. Well, that’s not true. Seeing as she’s decided to completely disregard her meltdown last weekend, it’s quite fitting that she’s sitting there acting as if nothing happened.
Sort of.
She can fool herself, but she certainly can’t fool me. If she was sitting any further away fromhim,she’d be in the middle of the fucking aisle. And why is he trying to talk to her anyway? Can’t he tell that she’s not interested? Pathetic really. He’s probably trying to apologize. I hope she doesn’t give him the light of day.
Fucking twat.
“Worried he’s going to steal your girl?” Clifford whispers, drawing my attention.
“Shut up,” I grumble under my breath, quickly whipping my head back to the front of the classroom. “I was checking the weather.”
Cliff blinks, clicking his tongue. “Right, sure you were.” I don’t bother to reply.
She’s not my girl. Not really. But she’s nothiseither.
“Alright, class,” Mr. Takanaki says, changing the slide on his PowerPoint. “Your final assignment for this semester will be a portrait project. This assignment will be done in pairs but you’ll be marked individually.” He pulls up an image on the screen. “Photographs tell stories, and your job for this assignment is to do just that. Now, I trust that you will be able to pick your own partners, yes? Alright—” He checks his watch. “That’s all for today’s class. Portraits are due in two weeks, so don’t wait until the last minute to start. I will know if you did. Selfies will not be accepted, alright? Feel free to use the editing software on the school’s computers if you want, that’s up to you.”
“Wanna be partners—”
I jump out of my seat and head toward Kennedy and Sawyer before Cliff can finish his sentence.
“Hey,” I say casually, leaning against a desk as Kennedy collects her textbooks. I glance at Sawyer who’s quietly lingering between us. “Don’t you have a ball to throw around or something?”
“Kennedy, please,” Sawyer pleads, ignoring me. “Five minutes.”
“No,” she murmurs.
