Loose Ends
Three days have gone by since the fight between Zenobia and her mother with thankfully little interaction between them. That was more so on the red eyed daughter's part than anything else because she avoided the older woman like the plague. With the suffocating tension and anxiety the teen felt from her last spat with her mother, she had to.
If she wasn't locked in her room hiding away, she would hide away at school. For all the planning and fretting Zenobia did, it really wasn't hard to avoid her mother. All she had to do was get up before she did, grab an apple or some quick on the go breakfast and then leave. Considering the school opened up before her mother's alarm, she really lacked any sort of problem sneaking out with the older woman being none the wiser until it was too late.
If it wasn't for the study hall periods she had, Zenobia would be getting up early to leave anyways. She stayed home for as long as she did up until now because of Zora. Every day from the moment school started this year she had brought the five-year-old to school and picked her up on the way home. It was a nice routine that kept things simple.
Breaking off their pleasant walk was something Zenobia really didn't want to do. The chance of Zora deciding to throw a royal temper tantrum from it had high chances, especially on that first day. That thankfully didn't happen so long as Zenobia promised to wake her up to say goodbye before setting an alarm so the younger girl could get up on time for school. Never had Zenobia felt as grateful as she did for having such a cool little sister.
The plan for how to deal with the afternoon pick up was a bit of a concern at first too. Her solution miraculously came without any prompting from Ms. Mude. Due to said injury, she was given permission by the principal to get a good five-to-ten-minute start on packing her stuff. Two minutes to reach her locker, one minute to grab her things and she was out the door with seven minutes to spare.
It led to her having to text Phoebie when her classmate didn't see her, but she was willing to pay that price. Especially if the Coralin student was able to relay the message to the boys that due to family issues, she'd be leaving early until her injury healed. Which if she had any say-another day or two max. The best part of it all, the excuse she gave wasn't even a lie, just not something one assumed when told such a thing. At the very least their study sessions went well.
"Zenobia, pack your things." The red-eyed-girl looked up in confusion. Her gaze met that of her geography teacher, Mr. Oaker. A chubby man that loved to wisecrack to both the lovers and haters of his class.
It truly fit with the array of fluttering cloth and abstract red, yellow and purple markings on his jester inspired mask. She didn't really have an opinion on him either way, but the stern violet eyes told her he was serious for once. Definitely a bad sign that she really wished didn't involve her. Though those thoughts did nothing to steer him away.
"My things, sir?"
"You are to go to see Ms. Mude. Something about being picked up early." He jutted his chin, the little bells attached to the fabric on his mask jingled, grabbing the rest of the class's attention. Zenobia sensed their stares on her person as she scrambled to put her assignments away. Everything from her books to her erasers were thrown into her bag before she grabbed her crutches.
"Have a good day, professor."
"Same to you!" She gave a nod of her head before pushing herself out the door. It was only when he gently closed the door behind her that she silently groaned. The day when she wouldn't have to deal with these blasted things couldn't come soon enough. She was tired of hopping around.
The halls showed not a single student other than her, a strange thing since it normally wasn't empty, but not something she had the composure to thing about as she advanced to her destination. Unease crept under her skin the closer she got to the room. For three days she had been avoiding her mother. So of course she had no idea she was going to be picked up, but just the idea of it left her stomach with a lump of dread.
Why was she here? Was she here to make sure she was actually going to school? To lecture her? Humiliate her in front of her principal? Both?
Honestly Zenobia had no clue, no matter what though, she wasn't looking forward to it. The entrance to Ms. Mude's office came sooner than she liked, approximately forty steps sooner. Sighing, she tentatively knocked on the door, signaling her arrival. She heard the faint creaks of the principal's chair, then the soft footsteps before finally the door opened. Familiar warm blue eyes awaited her.
"There you are, Zenobia. How are you dear?"
"Good. I heard I was a pick up?" Instead of answering her slightly panicked question, Ms. Mude moved out of her way, encouraging her forward. Zenobia took a deep breath before hobbling in. She steeled herself, tensing when she looked up at her guest visitor.
"About time you got here. That sprain still not healed huh?" She balked at what she saw. The person who came to pick her up wasn't her mother. It wasn't even a family member sitting in one of Ms. Mude's chairs.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
"Picking you up." It was the boy she met a few days ago. Elias. Who looked way too comfortable with his arms crossed. Way too confident too with the way he spoke just now. So nonchalant with his statement, as if she should've assumed that he was supposed to be there for her. It reminded her of when he pretended to call the cops on his bullies.
"I think there's been a mistake, Ms. Mude."
"Oh? But both him and his grandmother were adamant about you getting checked out for your injury. Even your mother, when I spoke to her, told me you were due to get your sprain looked at." What? Now Zenobia was truly lost, looking between both individuals in the room.
There was no way her mother would have done that. Even then she would not have entrusted that to a random old woman that had just so happened to be the one who took care of Zenobia in the first place. Wait…how did Elias even know she was here? His grandmother lived in Vawushu, a good fifteen minutes from here.
She sent a glare to the boy. Mask or not, she knew he was mocking her. She had too many questions and unfortunately for her, both of them knew he would be the one to deliver them. It didn't help that Ms. Mude seemed completely puzzled by their interactions.
"Is something wrong?"
"Nothing, nothing at all cousin. I'll be escorting Miss. Zenobia out to Nana's car and we'll be on our way." Well…that explained quite a lot…didn't it? The cousin of her principal, whose grandmother just so happened to be a doctor. Guess her mother had no reason to dismiss the request afterall.
Still, Zenobia was still skeptical of the boy. In terms of their masks, he may be the bigger threat, the stronger danger since he knew far more about her than her about him. However; should he try anything, he will discover who the true predator among them truly is.