WHO: Ethan and Casper WHEN: A random Friday afternoon, Junior Year WHERE: Crows Landing High art class WHAT: Flashback WARNING: Language, Preciousness, Casper being as cuddly as she is physically capable of being.
Even with her massive headphones on, Casper could tell the people in the hall were snickering at her as she walked by. Moving around CLH at lunch hour was like trying to navigate your way in a cage-free zoo-- or that town in Jumanji after the big stampede scene. She felt a soft, damp object smack her in the back of the head as she passed the jocks but didn't bother to turn around or even show a reaction on her face. It was another half-eaten apple, the same thing every day. She reached a hand into her pocket and twisted the volume wheel on her MP3 player, which she imagined was still warm from the recent addition of Squid's music library. Christine York would not have stood for such satanic noise under her roof. At the moment she was listening to Cannibal Corpse's I Cum Blood.
She knew high school was a big joke. Everything she'd learned from everyone who wasn't a complete moron said that literally nothing that happened in those years made any difference once you got out. The bullies were forgotten, the friends were ignored and all the horrible days faded away to a place where they could never hurt you again. That was all well and good but since she was still there it didn't help much at the moment. The things that maybe helped a little were her aggressive music, her chronic weed habit and her art class-- which, luckily, was exactly where she was headed.
Casper took the stairs by the shop classes because there was never anyone in there and walked into the classroom ten minutes before the bell. Mr. Hrkash was reading a book and finishing up his lunch at the desk; he never seemed to have a problem with her coming in early or reeking of pot but he also refused to acknowledge her presence when she did.
Taking her usual seat at the long tables, which were arranged in a rectangle so no one was sitting in front of anyone else, she pulled the little bottle of Visine out of her pocket and put two drops in each eye, wiping the spilled-over beads away with a tissue before they could ruin her eye makeup. She plopped her messenger bag on the seat next to her so all would know it was taken (not that anyone would want to be next to her) and rested her chin on her folded arms so she could watch the door. She'd already decided that if Ethan didn't show up for class she was just going to go home early. It was that kind of day.