Untouchable

Chapter 16: Content

Chapter Sixteen: Content

Thump.

I awkwardly twisted in my seat. Will was dutifully working on our muscle fiber project that was due in a week and a half. We had the whole month to work on it, but somehow we had put off most of the work. Will was more diligent than I, and already created the muscle fiber example out of rubber bands and two dowel rods.

I sucked as a partner.

I had an excuse for not keeping up with my work. Not that I was ready to tell him. I just had a gut feeling he wouldn't handle it well. It may have been the whiteness around his knuckles, or the glares he kept sending to Doug Richards that tipped me off to Will's short fuse.

I was probably imagining things. We were just friends, but with a freaky I-can-see-your-soul connection. Nothing too out of the ordinary.

Thump.

I rolled my shoulders, trying to shake off the weird feeling.

Will was willing to help me out on my half of the project. I'd planned on putting together the PowerPoint presentation, and then we were going to split it in half to present to the class.

I hadn't even started.

I was busy with keeping secrets about a crazy mom, psycho ex-boyfriend, and massive confessions. But I'd always been a good student, even amidst the "Jimmy years," so my lack of preparation was frustrating.

Will was being more than gracious. For the life of me I couldn't read him.

Thump.

I hunched over my belly, not understanding the anxiousness I had all period.

"You okay?" Will glanced up at me from his notes, brushing his wayward hair out of his eyes.

"Yeah, I just have a stomachache." I rolled my eyes. I officially think I'm going crazy.

He grinned and pushed his notes towards me to point out what he'd gathered. "I've created a list of all the different areas we need to explain in the presentation. Do you want to get together sometime to work on it? We can throw in diagrams and charts. We can even use animations."

"Sure." I giggled. His geeky side was showing more than it normally did.

"After school today? Tomorrow?" He looked down at his hands as he traced patterns into the black lab table.

"Tomorrow? I have to talk to my dad today." I needed to set up that doctor's appointment.

"Everything okay?"

I smiled. "Yeah, better than okay." I wasn't alone anymore.

"I've been meaning to ask you about Saturday."

"Sorry about that," I apologized. "I...overreacted."

He raised his eyebrows, interest piqued. "Overreacted?" Darn it, I should have said the food didn't agree with me or something.

"Uh, some old memories kinda got dredged up."

"Did you have a flashback? I thought you had to be touched?"

I rolled my head back and forth trying to decide what to tell him. "Well, I did have a flashback, but it was something else from my past. And that was before I got upset."

His face lit up in understanding. "When you dazed off for a second."

I nodded.

"Is this about your ex bothering you?" His eyes flashed and mumbled an expletive I couldn't make out.