The bell wrung through the building and doors slammed closed throughout the hallway. "Okay everyone" clapped Mr. M from the front of the chemistry room. The murmuring and muttering stopped as the class focused its attention to the front of the room where Mr. M stood behind his large lab bench desk. It was littered with rows of beakers and lab sheets. "As you all should be aware, this is your last class before midterms next week, and I have given you the day to go through the lab that will be 75 percent of your grade. Please note…" he emphasized, looking around the classroom full of Juniors "that the amounts and substances will be changed for the actual exam, so blind memorization will do you NO good". He paused again to look at them all "With that said the mathematics and theory do NOT change, so I suggest you study hard and work out the kinks before Wednesday. Now if you will make an orderly line. One set of chemicals per pair…" he waved and there was the instantaneous sound of stools scrapping across the linoleum and nervous feet moving up to the lab bench.
"I'll get it" Jude sighed, pushing back her stool as she stood up.
"No pink sparkly goggles" Jamie said looking up from his paper that he was already scribbling down notes on. He pointed at her as if to drive home his point, but she just rolled her eyes and filed into the line.
"Hey Jude…" came a voice from her left.
"What?" asked Jude whipping around, removing her eyes from Jamie in that instant. In doing so she banged into another person. "Ooh! Hey, sorry" Jude laughed quietly as she looked at one of the smartest kids in her class. He was a reserved kind of kid. Didn't talk much, and who constantly got made fun of for loving his graphing calculator more than girls. His lab partner was much in the same but Jude mostly stayed out of it. If the jocks wanted to poke fun at guys that would one day be their potential bosses she wasn't going to get in the middle of it. No one else did…
"Hey right" shot back the boy under his breath. Jude just blinked at him in shock. He had purple bags under his eyes as if he hadn't slept properly in the past week. Then again that could be contributed to studying. Everyone was cramming for midterms, and as being friends with Jamie proved, the smarter you are – the more desperate you become to get the perfect grade.
"Eighty minutes!" warned the teacher from the front of the room, and Jude moved to get what she and Jamie needed, but she couldn't help but glance over her shoulder at the boy again. His black sweatshirt hung around his thin frame, and he rubbed his arm through it as he sat down. Then his head slipped behind that of his lab partners as they seemed to whisper something into each other's ears.
"Ms. Harrison, please" came Mr. M's voice snapping her back to reality. Jude hurried forward, realizing she was last in line, and the only one not yet working.
"Sorry" Jude said quietly, feeling small in that classroom under his eyes.
"Look I don't want to fail you" Mr. M said seriously in a low voice so that only Jude could hear "You do have the ability to do this" he said honestly as he held out the chemicals, "so just focus". Jude stared at him for a moment and then nodded her head. "Good" he nodded as well and released the beakers into her hands.
Jude scurried back to her lab bench. She laid down the beakers unceremoniously and let Jamie franticly organize them as she climbed back up onto her stool. They both took a pair of goggles, and then her mind wondered. She looked to her left and noticed that her lab bench was right next to the two geniuses she had been watching seconds ago. Why had she never asked either of them for help? Was she retarded or something, they were right there and…
"Jude, please I need your help" Jamie said snapping her back to reality again.
"What, sorry" Jude said peeling her eyes away again.
"Hold this" Jamie pleaded a little frantically as he screwed in the holder.
"What even is this?" asked Jude as she gaped at the thing Jamie had taken all of three seconds to erect.
"Uh the same holder we've been using all year to heat up the substances over the Bunsen burner" Jamie muttered. The room was filled with the sounds of scratching pencils and muttering between lab partners.
"Right…" Jude nodded, remembering that this had always been Jamie's job. Build it. Do it. Explain it. She had no clue how to do anything. She felt a groan coming up her throat as it all dawned on her. She had been so consumed lately with writing and producing her second album, or trying to win Tommy over, or even just keep him interested for more than a minute at a time! That she had totally blown off most of this class. BUT recording had been going GREAT for the past two weeks! Tommy was so into the music she was making, and slowly she was starting to feel like she was winning over some new side of him. They had a recording session in what should have been twenty minutes, but no, her mother had made her finish at least third period. Which meant Chem was a necessity and then she would be nothing but his…
"Jude pass me that will you…" came Jamie's flustered voice as she realized he was already measuring out dry chemicals to add to their mix.
"Mhmm" Jude said trying to focus as she reached over to pass the beaker by her elbow to him. The beaker made it. On the other hand her binder went sprawling onto the floor. "Shit" Jude sighed, pushing away from the lab bench and getting down on her hands and knees. She moved her goggles off her eyes and onto the top of her head as she tried to gather all the scattered papers.
Some of them had fluttered under the next lab bench and she reached for them, hoping that her burning cheeks weren't giving her away too much. Not only did everyone in this class basically know she was failing – they hated her for being who she was. Famous and still in high school? Losers shouldn't jump the social line. Any of the cheerleaders would have put her in her place if they could. But they couldn't sing so they just had to imagine how much better they'd be if they could be her.
One of the papers was next to the backpack under the lab bench. She watched as the legs on the stool next to her tensed and then looked at her under the desk.
"Sorry…papers" she muttered, grabbing more of them. The boy just stared at her wide eyed. What was his name? Her hand brushed the backpack again and he leaned down and put it in his lap. "Sorry…" she whispered again and then went back to her seat as fast as she could. She didn't look over at them. She didn't look anywhere but at the chemicals Jamie was adding to the boiling water. She had no clue what he had done – she was going to fail Wednesday…oh god.
There was the rattling of glass from behind as a bag unzipped. Jude paid to no heed like everyone else in the room. Instead she tried to help Jamie. "Stir this" Jamie said sensing her sudden ability to help.
"Okay" Jude nodded taking a deep breath and hoping that she could do even this mediocre task without failing miserably.
"And don't worry about James and Thebes over there either" Jamie added in a whisper, so close to Jude's ear that no one else could hear "They've been being strange for the past few weeks…"
"All I did was bump into…" started Jude in a whisper as well. Jamie looked her in the face and shrugged as he rolled his eyes. And maybe that's just how people were when they were used to being bullied all the time. Even a single bump could set them off.
"Just don't feed into their delusion" Jamie sighed under his breath. Jude nodded silently and they both turned back to what they should be doing.
"I'm telling you ten milligrams will do it" hissed a voice.
"Ms. Harrison! Goggles!" boomed Mr. M. Jude's cheeks burned red as she pulled them back down over her eyes. "Must I remind you all once again that…" started Mr. M for the whole class to hear.
Jude glanced over her shoulder at the two boys. Of coarse Jamie knew their names. They were the only two people worth fighting the spot of Valedictorian for in this school. Jude stared at their substance which was now an electric blue color. Surprised she looked down at hers and Jamie's…which was clear.
"Hey Jamie is ours supposed to…" started Jude, as she turned to look at Jamie. At that moment her elbow hit the beaker off the holder and shattered on the floor.
The whole class froze and looked at Jude who stood their stunned, hands up, looking at the shattered glass on the floor.
"Move!" Mr. M said frantically. "Anyone have it on them!" he boomed, looking at Jude, Jamie, James, and Thebes.
"Sir I didn't add the Chloride yet" Jamie said quickly.
"Thank god" Mr. M said, placing his hand over his forehead and then at Jude. "Pick this up Ms. Harrison". She could tell instantly that he was pissed. "Mr. Andrews kindly break down your set up and look on with another group for the end of the experiment. Then he moved onto another group.
"I'm sorry" Jude breathed looking over at Jamie's frustrated face.
"Jude…" he started. Then he stopped and took a deep breath "look I just really needed this to prepare, I'll break this down, clean that up…" He was pissed too, that much was obvious.
Jude nodded anyway. How could this day get any worse? She could just imagine the rumors that would circulate the school next period. 'Yeah you know that Jude Harrison chick? Dumb blonde doesn't even begin to cover it. It's a wonder she can hold a guitar the right way without being told how…'
Jude got down on her hands and knees and started picking up the shards of glass carefully. She glanced up at the smirking faces every once in a while, tying to block out the rumors forming on their lips. Then as she glanced up again she noticed the backpack back under the lab bench right next to the stool that Thebes was sitting on. The same boy she had bumped into, whom had snatched away the bag with haste, who had that electric blue substance.
The bag shifted as the stool moved, and the unzipped main compartment exposed the contents within. A glint of sharp silver caught her eyes so that she froze their on the ground. The glass in her hand remained suspended there as she couldn't breathe, couldn't peel her eyes away, couldn't move from the paralyzing fear washing over her. It was a gun.
Jude ripped her eyes away and looked at the mess still around her. She went to stand when Jamie suddenly appeared at her side. "Here use these to wipe it up" he said in a calmer voice than before. "Look I didn't mean to snap at you…" Jamie started in a whisper as he started wiping up the liquid along with the shards of glass.
"Jamie we've got to get out of here…" Jude started to hiss as quietly as she could. She could feel her heart hammering in her chest.
"…I was just stressed out about exams and…"
"Shut up Jamie!" Jude muttered harshly so that he paused and looked at her wide eyes.
"J what's…"
"Twenty minutes everyone!" called Mr. M from the front of the room.
"There's a gun…" Jude muttered under the cover of Mr. M's voice.
"What?" asked Jamie, obviously not hearing her. He looked confused. "Gum?" he asked.
"Gun" Jude whispered so softly she barely heard it as she trembled.
"Mr. Andrews, Ms. Harrison is there something wrong?" called Mr. M, taking a step towards them. And then it happened. With a swift motion Thebes' hand reached down and went into the bag.
"GUN!" someone screamed across the room and everyone looked up in time to see Thebes point it at Mr. M's chest – aim – and fire.
The room erupted in screams as everyone watched Mr. M stumble back, clutching his blood red chest, hit his desk, and slid to the floor.
"No one move!" Thebes yelled as the room looked at him in horror "No one move". The gun moved over the length of the room as Thebes looked everyone in the eyes, that seemed even more bloodshot as Jude looked at them trembling. The glass fell from her hands with a rain of pings. The gun was instantly on her. "I said don't move" he hissed.
Jude whimpered as the gun remained pointed straight at her chest. "Please…" she pleaded "Please don't shoot me, please". Jamie's hands were next to hers as they both looked up at the gun in horror.
"Thebes put it away…please man" Jamie said holding up is hands as if to surrender "He's not dead…" he added glancing at Mr. M who was shuddering in the front of the room. They both watched Thebes eyes flash to Mr. M. In that moment Jamie lost his balance and fell back against their lab bench. His hand collided with the gas line to their Bunsen burner and suddenly the gas started to spew into the air. James jumped up instantly and Thebes did the same. They moved away from their still bubbling experiment. The class watch confused and horrified as the gun still remained clasped in Thebes hand. That was, everyone but Jamie watched. Instead his eyes were on the blue substance.
"Shit! Move!" Jamie yelled throwing Jude under their lab bench as he stood up to turn off the gas spewing into the air, but it was too late, Thebes and James's lab bench exploded.
Author Note:
What started out as a one shot quickly grew into a 14 page short story. I couldn't resist and I promise (Between You and Me fans) that I'm getting back to my main story - just had to get this out of my system. I credit ER for the inspirtaion, though it really had nothing to do with what I ended up writing. Hope you all like this little treat!
Like my style? Check out my other stories including my current story "Between You and Me", praised sequal of "Secrets and the Lies I Told Him". Thanks!
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