Lunch sucked. Usually, at least. The teachers had gotten so used to Lip sneaking off that they barred all his exit plans. Now he was forced to actually sit in the lunch room instead of smoke around back of the school. It was too loud to really study. Sure his house was loud but it was a different kind of loud. It was predictable and familiar. It was the sounds of his beloved siblings.

Lip sat at a table in the far end of the lunchroom. He hunched over two different textbooks, attempting to read them and take good notes. However the noise prevented him from focusing like he wanted and needed. Every couple of sentences he’d have to go halfway back and reread everything.

Fed up, Lip huffed and leaned back in his chair. Maybe taking a couple minutes would reset his brain. As his eyes naturally drifted across the room, he eventually caught sight of you.

You were somehow one of the most popular people in school despite having only transferred there a couple of weeks ago. You had all sorts of friends and connections. Currently you were sitting at a table, laughing and talking with your friend group. Lip must have been staring too long because you practically felt his eyes boring into your back and turned around to see who you could feel staring. You noticed him, alone in the corner. Was he left out or something? You turned back to your friends but the guy wouldn’t leave your mind. Without realizing you were up, telling your friends to excuse you for a moment, and making your way over to him.

Lip sat in his seat dumbfounded. You. You were approaching him. For what reason. It was practically against the laws of nature for this to happen. Sure it would make sense in private, asking him to take a test for you, but why here? Why in front of everyone? It wasn’t normal. It wasn’t the way things worked.