'Aw MAN…Why does math have to suck so much?'
Sighing, the young Junior turned her eyes to gaze out the window.
Gold irises studied the bright foliage and the clear sky, and the fire-haired teen wondered why she was forced to stay inside…
"Tonya!"
Jumping to attention, she zeroed in on the displeased teacher.
"Yes, Mrs. McClain?"
"Would you mind solving this problem for the class?"
Swallowing nervously, Tonya smiled sheepishly as her eyes darted around…
"I'm sure…Lizzy would love to."
The younger girl, meant to be a Freshman or Sophomore, tried to hide in her seat as the attention turned on her.
Brushing some dark blonde hair from violet eyes self-consciously, Elizabeth smiled shyly.
"I asked you, Tonya."
"But I recommended Lizzy."
Tonya pulled a hurt look, putting an arm around her friend's shoulders.
"You never ask HER to solve a problem."
"…I suppose you're right."
Tonya grinned, squeezing Lizzy's shoulder in reassurance.
'SCORE…'
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"Tonya, what are you doing?"
Almost falling out of her seat, Tonya glared up at a pair of blue eyes above her.
Megan blinked, eyes half-closed, before shaking her head and returning to the writing project.
Her long onyx hair fell over her shoulder, creating a curtain between her and the rest of the room.
Grumbling, Tonya turned back to her own paper, studying the strange doodles covering the surface.
Some were of large cats, all with stripes, of swords and colorful blasts and a strange device…
The largest was of a strange dinosaur, like a tyrannosaurus, with a horned helmet and striped, powerful tail.
Sighing, she set the paper aside and grabbed a fresh page.
'I think I need some help…'
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BAM!!!
"Whoa!"
Tonya jumped out of the way, gold gym shorts swaying around her thighs.
"Don't you know your own strength, Steph?"
"Sorry…"
The brunette smiled guiltily, red highlights and bangs shimmering in the sunlight.
Onyx eyes flickered, and her foot came up in a flash, kicking a soccer ball back towards the appropriate field.
Smiling when it was retrieved, she turned back to the net and her volleyball partner.
"I still don't know how I keep getting you as a partner…"
Tonya tossed the white ball into the air, hitting it clear across the net.
Stephanie leapt into the air, spiking it back, and her friend couldn't dive fast enough to save it.
"Jeez…"
Blowing bangs from her face, Tonya sat up, rubbing her knees.
"Can't even give me a chance…"
Smiling as Stephanie offered a hand, she accepted the help, standing.
"Then again, where would the fun be of you did?"
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"Mel!"
Turning, Melanie ran a hand through her light brown hair before smiling.
"Tonya!"
Green eyes twinkling, the brunette enveloped her redheaded friend in a hug.
"I was sure you wouldn't come to class because of the auditions."
"I wanted to be here for you."
Tonya grinned, looking out at the rest of the class and their acting teacher in the seats.
"I know you'll knock the pants off them. Break a leg!"
Smiling cheekily, she pushed Melanie towards the spotlight.
"Thanks…"
Practically beaming, she kept going, stopping in front of the microphone.
"What song?"
"Tell me something I don't know, by Selena Gomez."
The teacher nodded, signaling for the music to start.
Melanie breathed deeply, clearing her mind of everything but the music and the words…
"Everybody tells me/That it's so hard to make it/Yet so hard to break it/And there's no way to fake it/Everybody tells me that it's wrong what I'm feeling/I shouldn't believe in/The dreams that I'm dreaming…"
Tonya grinned, leaning back on a wall as her friend truly fell into the music…
"I hear it everyday/I hear it all the time/I'm never gunna amount to much/But they're never gunna change my mind/Oh!/ Tell me, tell me, tell me/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Tell me, tell me, tell me/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Something I don't know…"
Straightening at the angry face of a blonde girl sitting beside the teacher, the redhead grinned even wider…
'Take THAT, Missy!'
"How many inches in a mile/What it takes to make you smile/Getcha not to treat me like a child, baby/ Tell me, tell me, tell me/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/ Tell me, tell me something I don't know/Tell me, tell me something I don't know…"
Missy seemed ready to chuck something and shriek, which caused Tonya to almost snort in an attempt to hold in her laughter…
"Everybody tells me I don't know what I'm doing/This life I'm pursuing/The odds of me loosing/ Everybody tells me that it's one in a million/More like one in a billion/Or one in a zillion/ I hear it everyday/I hear it all the time/I'm never gunna amount to much/But they're never gunna change my mind/Oh!"
Everyone seemed to be enjoying it, and Melanie seemed lost in the lyrics already…
"Tell me, tell me, tell me/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Tell me, tell me, tell me/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/ How many inches in a mile/What it takes to make you smile/Getcha not to treat me like a child, baby…"
The brunette was winding down already, green eyes glittering in the light…
"Tell me, tell me, tell me/Something I don't know/Something I don't know/Something I don't know…"
Tonya relaxed, seeing the joy on her friend's face as the room clapped loudly…
'Way to go, Mel…'
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"JENNY!!!"
"JENNIFER, GET BACK HERE THIS INSTANT!!!"
Tonya blinked, turning from her magazine to see a giggling blonde hide behind a tree, silver eyes alight with mischief.
"Jenny, what did you do?"
"Nothing…"
"YOUNG LADY, COME HERE!!!"
"Just something involving balloons, oatmeal, peanut butter, and feathers…" The older girl admitted.
"…You got the teacher's pet, didn't you?"
"I got Missy AND the teacher."
Snickering, Jennifer peeked around the trunk, still smiling.
Tonya shook her head in amusement, turning back to her video game magazine.
"So smart, yet so troublesome…"
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Meg led the group of six away from the high school, intent on getting to the middle school as soon as possible.
Jenny seemed happy enough to distract the others by recounting her prank of the day, and the reason she'd had to go to the principal's office…
AGAIN…
"You should've seen her FACE, guys! It was AWESOME!"
"I wish I'd seen it…" Mel mused, looking wistful.
"Th-That was kinda mean…" Lizzy whispered, hugging her books tightly.
"Lizzy's right. You're only making an enemy with Missy like this. Now she'll try to get you back." Steph stated.
"She'll never get THE MASTER!"
The brunette smiled, shaking her head in amusement as Jenny pumped her fists, faking a cheering crowd.
Meg rolled her eyes as Tonya snickered, playfully shoving her Senior friend's shoulder.
"SURE you are, Jen. Just keep telling yourself that."
"HEY…"
"MEGGIE!"
For the first time that day, Meg smiled, hugging the young eighth grader that embraced her.
"Hey, Tammy. Have a good day at school?"
"Yup! And the teacher gave us extra credit 'cause it's the last week of school!"
"That's great."
The little gold-eyed girl beamed in all her thirteen year old glory, and practically started skipping home.
Everyone embraced Tammy Jane as they branched off to their houses in the same neighborhood, and Tonya ruffled her hair.
Turning to her own home, she sighed, walking up to the front door.
'I hope Kat's alright…'