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A little poke on his shoulder awakened him. His elbows were aching from the constant pressure of being in the same position and he was pretty sure he couldn't feel his hands anymore.
Avery groggily opened his eyes to look at Aurelie frowning down at him. His face cracked into a grin.
“Somewhat of an Edward Cullen, aren't you Miss Carver?” He teased her. Her lips turned upwards and that classic amused face of hers came out.
“What can I say, I know where I can get the most blood.” She played along. A bark of laughter escaped him.
“Is that what I am? A big meal?”
“A particularly large noodle, yes.”
He gasped in fake offense,”I will let you know that I am a snack.”
“I'm sure that's what you tell yourself.” She dumped a pile of papers on the edge of his desk.
“What's this?” He asked, eyeing the very big stack. She nudged his elbows away from the center of his desk and placed the papers there.
Avery readjusted his arms so one elbow was on the table and the hand supported his chin.
“This is your work for this week.” She informed him. His jaw dropped.
“What do you mean this is my work!?” He asked incredulously as he read the top of the pile. ‘Carnival Budget’ it read.
“You were the one who volunteered to be my Treasurer if I became Student President.” She shrugged, she knew very well that he had merely given that offer to encourage her to run, but now his offer was biting him in the ass.
Avery gaped at her. “But but…” he spluttered.
“No buts,” she said with a grin, placing a finger on his lips to shush him,”You thought you could get away with enjoying the free air conditioning, huh?”
She walked over to her desk, opposite to Avery's and sat down.
“We’ll work together if that consoles you.” She gestured to her own pile of papers.
“Why are mine way more in quantity?” He accused her.
“Cause I wasn't lazing off the entire week Avery.”
“Hey! I wasn't told that I had paperwork!”
“Really? Almost as if you didn't notice the sticky note on that pile next to your desk that said ‘Treasurer’s Work”.”
“Hey, in my defense: you told me to just show up in the office everyday.”
“Oh really- wait a second, why am I getting riled up? You're trying to distract me.” His lazy grin confirmed her suspicion. She ignored him and focused on her work.
As the lazy afternoon of after school work passed within an hour of pencil scratches and paper shifting, Avery looked up to his companion who had been awfully quiet.
With a neat pile of papers arranged in a transparent folder, Aurelie had fallen asleep on her desk, hair loose from the usual bun. Avery chuckled, oh how they turned tables. However, unlike him, she had completed all her work and was probably waiting for him to finish.
Avery got up from his seat and dragged a chair alongside him quietly next to her. After sitting on the seat, he laid his head down on the table, one arm cushioning it.
He came face to face with Aurelies face which was dozing off. Genuinely and with pure warmth, Avery smiled. Aurelie Carver was one of the most hardworking people he knew, she had far too much on his plate with school, her internship, and now presidency of the student council. She was working on her ambitions and he had tremendous respect for her.
Not to mention, she was the only one with enough patience to deal with him, stern yet playful and above all, professional when she needed to be.
Avery sighed dreamily while looking at her, he would follow her to the end of the world. He pointed his index finger towards her and let a gentle gust of wind fan her.
“Rise and shine Prez.” Her reaction was incredibly cute.
There was nothing quite like relieving all your worries with a good smoke.
Aurelie had once warned him of the side effects of smoking, even going as far as buying him a vape, but he never listened. By now she had just accepted it as a fact that he wasn't gonna quit.
Standing on the top of his apartment building, Avery felt like a king. It wasn't because of the height, after all, he was the tallest person in miles. It was about how away he was from those below him. Their eyes constantly looked and judged and any moment, his secret could be revealed.
Avery drew a single cigarette out of the pack and placed it in the back pocket of his jeans. Placing it between his lips, he rummaged his duffle bag for the lighter.
He sighed in disappointment. Of course he had forgotten his lighter at school where that monster PE teacher Mr. Yakanaho had confiscated it.
“Searching for something?” A voice came from behind. Avery shrieked and cursed,’SHIT!’ as he jumped into the wall, effectively hitting his head.
Aurelie burst into laughter, clutching her stomach. Avery pouted and nursed his head, it probably didn't even bruise but ego sure did.
“Do it again, I don't think the old lady downstairs registered a girl's scream.” She teased.
“Why don't I leap down the building at this point?” He fake wept, self-pitying.
“Hey, I'm not taking your corpse to the mortuary myself. You're heavy. Die in front of your friends.”
“I'm feeling the love Aurelie.”
“You should be, it's all you're getting.”
“Ouch.” He put his hand in front of his heart for dramatic effect. Aurelie rolled her eyes and took something out of her pocket. She snapped it open with a jerk and placed it under the tip of his cigarette.
She smiled up at him and said nothing. This was an unspoken agreement they had mutually made, once the cigarette was lit, the mood would get more solemn.
“What were you thinking about?” She asked him as they looked at the city skyline. He shrugged and took a drag.
“Random things,” he said as the smoke cleared out, “Imagine if someone else had my radar abilities.”
Aurelie’s smile faded a bit,”Avery….”
“Can't help but think y'know.” Avery gave out another puff. The next few minutes they were silent until she turned to face him.
“Everything's gonna be fine.” She promised, giving him a wide toothed smile. Avery stared at her, unable to break away his gaze.
“I'm gonna go down to your flat and make myself some coffee alright?” She told him, he blankly nodded and watched her leave. He couldn't stray his eyes from her, she had so much faith in him, in the promise that everything was gonna be better.
He stabbed the butt of his cigarette against the trashcan next to the door, letting it fall into the can. He groaned out loud as he looked down the staircase waiting for him, he always hated this part. He began his long journey down the stairs.
The scratches of pencils were not irritating, but they were nothing to quell his boredom. Trigonometry sucked, and not because it was hard for him, oh no the reason was far worse. The tests were given too much time. Those 10 questions were not worth an hour but why would Mrs. Ryans ever listen.
The loud clicking noise of a calculator broke his attention from the clock. Next to him, Harry Redish was trying to input something into his calculator. However the guy just kept on pressing the same buttons.
“Mate, it's just sin inverse, how is it so hard to press?” Avery asked. The tips of Harry's ears turned red and he muttered a ‘shut up Avery’.
“Avery!” Mrs. Ryans barked from right behind him,”Focus on your own sheet.”
“But I'm donee.” He whined, scooting his legs further under the table. “Free me of this torture please.”
“No.” She stated and turned away, probably to check on the kids at the back. Avery turned his head and looked at Aurelie who was taking her sweet time, if Aurelie were done by now, he'd be out.
Aurelie was chewing the back of her pen, eyes fixated on the sheet of paper. Avery leaned forward and placed his jaw on his hand which was propped up by an elbow on the table.
He truly drank in the sight of her. She had tied her hair up into a bun, a few strands going loose and fringing her face. Her teeth would occasionally bite the edge of the pen but then retreat into her mouth, her lips mainly pushing into the pen.
Avery felt his ears burn up. Oh this wasn't good, this wasn't good at all. Yes, his best friend was beautiful, but he wasn't supposed to be attracted to her. His blush spread further and the rest of the world faded as only Aurelie remained in his vision.