Alright.

That was it.

It was official.

She's dead.

Dead. Dead. Dead.

That was the only explanation for this torture.

Lightning scowled deeply as she rested her head in her arms, listening to the teacher drone on in his lecture, just praying for this day to end.

Her head was pounding something fierce, like there was a chocobo jabbing at her with its sharp beak. Sweat beaded down her forehead, making her look and feel clammy. She could see herself the window. She looked pale, with the light reflecting off the sweat on her forehead and cheeks, making them shine. And her hands were no help, every time she tried to wipe away the sweat on her forehead, there was just more and more with her palms being sweaty and gross too. And being unable to completely wipe it away, she just became more and more agitated. She was downright ready to hit her desk in frustration.

Or Snow.

Snow always made a good punching bag.

Though in this state she might not have been able to do much to him…

She growled darkly to herself as she laid her head on her desk, turned away from the window so she wouldn't see. She was tired and achy, and would love nothing more than to lay her head down and sleep. Sleep this bug and day away.

But she couldn't do that.

She was walking on eggshells here in this school.

Beating up a bully was the biggest issue she had here. He decided it would be fun to poke fun at her rare hair color, and laugh when she told him that she was going to be a soldier. When he had to gall to suggest that she would have had a better career "having fun" with him and his friends, was she really in the wrong for blackening his eye, breaking his nose, and hitting his tenders?

Evidently the school did.

They didn't see his harassment; they saw a little pink haired girl beating up a crying boy. And who will they believe, the troublesome orphan or the kid with actual parents that love him and support him and oh dear Etro is was frustrating.

And that was her third "fight" this year.

No more punching, no more kicking, no more fights. The school made it clear.

So clear that everyone was watching her.

Even the janitor.

And while she could go home if she really needed too, if she was going to get into the militia, she should not have any absences. She didn't know if that really would keep her from getting in, she didn't want to risk it.

She wasn't going to skip today.

She even went so far as to… lie to Serah.

Upon the discovery that she was sick, her sister catching on first when she wasn't up at the stroke of dawn like usual; Serah all but begged her to stay and rest, to a point that her sweet sister almost called her middle school to tell them that she wasn't going to make it today.

She had a sister to take care of.

After mom, both became very nervous with any form of sickness that popped up between them. Unlike Serah, Lightning wasn't going to flip out about. She a goal to reach, sick or not, she was going to reach it.

Through gritted teeth she lied to Serah that after she dropped her off, she'd head straight home and skip today.

Only here she was now, miserable in her desk.

Lightning sighed from where she lay, hoping that she would be able to make it home before Serah. She'd be disappointed to find that she went to school anyway, and a disappointed Serah was an annoying one.

But… when a sudden ache, Lightning was starting to think that she may not make it through. This was third period. Two more and lunch she'd have to get through. Could she really make it?

She glanced at the clock. Another twenty minutes… and she'd head to the nurse and get an excuse home. She got half a day in, that was counted for showing; it'll do. It'll be enough. Else she might pass out in the halls.

Wouldn't that be embarrassing.

She glanced at her side when she heard a growl. Sitting beside her was a boy with spiky black hair and frustrated red eyes. He was glaring at an orange he had in his hands; obviously having difficulty with it.

Noctis Caelum, she recalled, one of the school's "cool" kids, and she was the "lucky" one to sit next to him, much to the ire of other girls. She'd admit it, Caelum was hot, but she didn't have the time looking at boys, with taking care of Serah and her and worrying and planning for their future. So most of the time, she ignored him, and he ignored her.

But for some reason, maybe it was because she was sick, but she couldn't ignore him. Her eyes stayed locked on the struggling boy, watching him try to get his thumb in the peel and…

Dear Etro just stab the damn thing.

It was not that hard to peel an orange!

Twitching in agitation at his struggle, she had enough and held out her hand.

He noticed her hand right away, glancing at her suspiciously. She just glared at him. Take it, or leave it.

Reluctantly, he gave her the orange. She set to work peeling it easily. Not even looking at the fruit, she eased away the skin, ignoring him as he watched; she gave the meat back to him while tossing the chunk of peeled skin into the trash bin, thankfully, unnoticed by the teacher.

Her sweaty hands now smelling like orange, she settled with laying her head on the table again, breathing in the scent of the citrus and sighing as it slightly eased away the pounding headache.

She was ready to go home…

Five minutes later, a paper was passed to her. She blinked in surprise, glancing at Noctis, who merely stared up at the board as if nothing was happening. Narrowing her eyes suspiciously, she glanced at the note.

Thanks.

She scribbled a Your welcome and passed it back, ready to be done with this. She was surprised when it returned.

What's your name?

She stared at it, and slowly turned to him, raising a pale brow. Catching her stare, he shrugged sheepishly, embarrassed.

Sighing, she scribbled Lightning. and passed it back.

And it came back again. Evidentially she was having a conversation now, with one of the school's "cool" kids. She couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not. She considered ignoring it and just waiting for this class period to end, only to find herself dragging that note closer, reading and responding to it.

That's an odd name.

She scoffed; It's the only one I'm telling you.

She saw him blink at the statement, before a small smile tugged at his lips.

Feisty. Not something I meet every day. It's refreshing ;3

She raised her brow again at the statement, not too sure how to exactly respond to that. Flirting. Boys don't flirt with Lightning Farron. Not even Claire when she was younger. She was at a loss on how to respond to that.

Well good for you.

…Was that a good response…?

A little unsure, she slid it back, watching him in the corner of her eye, watching as he chuckled at the reply. He jotted something down and passed it back. Just as she slid the paper over to read, she froze when a shadow loomed over her.

Boldly, she looked up to see the teacher glaring down at her. Her agitation sparked and she narrowed her eyes back at him, ready for a fight. "And what are we doing here Miss Farron?" the teacher asked, as watchful as the rest of the school, ready to jump on her for any "bad" behavior.

She leaned back coolly in her seat, crossing her arms rebelliously, already knowing how this was going to end. "Taking notes," she said easily, unable to keep her tone from being snippy and sneering. The teacher twitched, eyeing the note on her desk.

"Oh? Those don't look like notes."

"Sir?" they both jumped at the voice, the teacher glanced at the Caelum boy while Lightning eyed him from the corner of her eyes. She noted that his orange was well hidden from him. "I apologize, I was asking for her help through notes. It's my fault we weren't paying attention in class. Please excuse us," he said charmingly, like the sweetest angel in all of Cocoon.

And of course, the teacher fell for it. He blinked before grunting, "Alright, I'll let it pass for now, but from now on, ask me, after class."

"Yes sir," Noctis promised.

Lightning scoffed and rolled her eyes as the man turned his back to them. Typical. Still, she jotted down something quick and passed it to him, noting that Caelum was a little too eager as he leant over to read.

Thank you.

She was surprised when the note came back with half an orange. Your welcome and thank you. It's nice talking to a girl without them swooning for once… uh, anyway, oranges help with colds.

She smiled, glancing at him from beside her, but he was intently watching the teacher, apparently ignoring her, though there was a slight bit of color on his cheeks. Slowly, she ate the orange happily, the sweet flavor wondrous on her tongue and slightly clearing her aches away. She was feeling better slightly when it was gone, the teacher still droning on.

Who knows, maybe she could make it through the day.

Maybe.