What she had been lied to about was anybody’s guess. Since I had already sworn to lay off assuming things–because it was making a complete ass out of me–I didn’t bother to offer any perspective of my own. All I knew for certain was that she had shown up to this club with a bunch of fliers and the expectation that neither one of us was going to be present. In that regard, she was a lot like me.

“You decided to take a break from chasing after Luke?” Nicole closed the novel and placed it on the table again, staring a few feet in front of the doorway where Aubrey stood. “I’m sure that’s a big relief to him. It’ll be nice for Emma to not have to worry about constantly fending off a skank for a few hours too.”

The fliers crinkled as she did her best to cross her arms over her chest. “I didn’t come here for your same old tired shit. Either of you.”

I felt the emphasis on ‘either’ was pointless. It wasn’t like I had said anything. Furthermore, I had no desire to have anybody here other than me, myself, and I. Actually, nobody wanted the others here, which once again raised the question of how Miss Halsey had determined this worth pursuing. It must have been the hope that ran through the lifeblood of every teacher, apathetic or otherwise. Their sworn creed, beginning during their earliest course at college, was to turn a bunch of miscreants into reasonable, well-adjusted adults. It was a shame that this wasn’t some Hollywood production like Breakfast Club. No amount of movie magic was turning us into fast friends.

“Well, you obviously know where the door is. Don’t let it hit you on the ass on your way out.”

Yep, definitely not going to be fast friends anytime soon. A good thing then that I needed their friendship about as much as I needed a damn hole in my head. While that option was looking more appealing the longer I was stuck in this club, I figured I still had a decent amount to share with the world. Those Wikipedia articles about Magical Girl: Rising weren’t going to write themselves and so many people were still ignorant of the greatness of the slice-of-life and high school romance/drama shows. Who else was going to lead the ignorant masses on the internet to enlightenment other than me?

She turned her back to us, huffing loudly. “No need to tell me twice. I only came here because Miss Halsey suggested I ask for help. Didn’t say anything about the two of you being here.”

I grumbled a complaint to myself, knowing there was more to it than that. “What exactly did she say?”

“She said you two flaked on her, and that the Volunteers Club was using this place for now. That sounded like the exact opposite of what you would ever agree to”–I gave a quick nod in appreciation to her recognition of the fact–“so I came down here to ask for help hanging these up around the school.”

“Did you know anything about this?” I asked Nicole, curious to know if I had tuned out a big update.

She simply shrugged. “No idea. I figured we were going to go the route of a literature club or something similar.”

Now that sounded like a good idea. That would be a perfect excuse to blaze through my huge collection of novels that had been collecting dust. It also would give us the perfect excuse to never talk, interact, or engage in anything other than maybe the smallest of pleasantries on occasions. To hell with this Volunteers Club bullshit. Being altruistic was all fine and dandy, and I respected anyone who donated their time or money to good causes, but wasn’t I the charity case in this equation? Just a poor boy plunged into a club that got worse and worse by the day. Maybe it was more appropriate to say it got worse with each girl that kept showing up?

Nicole decided she had enough and made her way over to the door. Had she been wearing a suit, she would have looked like a butler, bending her left arm at a ninety-degree angle and pointing at the exit with her right. “Later. You won’t be missed.”

“You’re a grade-A bitch.”

I interrupted before another insult could be flung. “Did she say anything would happen if this Volunteers Club refused to help?”

“She did. I thought it was a little weird, but I figured they could be picky with who they helped out.” Aubrey cleared her throat, mimicking a fairly accurate depiction of our teacher’s voice. “They know the drill. If they refuse you for any reason, just let me know. I’ve got some phone calls to make about graduation requirements today anyway.”

I jumped to my feet, not willing to chance whether that was a bluff or not. “And all of a sudden I feel rather motivated.” 

My old man receiving a phone call from the school about me declining to join a club until my very last semester was the last thing I needed. It would be worse since I had lied to him about it and promised him that I had it taken care of already. Him learning the truth would ensure a painful death. My obituary would be plastered across the front page of the newspaper, alongside the article of my dad’s confession to the murder. I could already see the headline: ‘Dumbass decided graduating high school was optional.’ The judge would probably let my dad off easy, knowing that he did what was best for society in the end.

“Is half fair?”

“Works for me.” 

“Are you going to offer to suck him off afterward as thanks?” Nicole asked. “He might not reject your advances, unlike a certain someone.”

Her eyes flashed dangerously behind me while I accepted the portion of the fliers she held out to me, deciding the conversation was beyond me at this point. “Disgusting pig.” 

“A pig or a female dog. I wonder which of those is worse?” 

The door slammed, leaving the rhetorical question hanging in the air as I pulled it open, my shoulder brushing against the frame. “I’m guessing you don’t have any interest in helping out?”

Light from outside the window dimmed, casting a dull shadow of hers over the adjacent wall. It fell and rose before picking up the book and distorting its form entirely. “That has Luke written all over it. I wouldn’t be caught dead with you two outside of this room or doing anything for him. It’d be smart if both of you did the same.”

Now this felt more par for the course, rather than whatever uneasy peace we had cultivated between ourselves earlier. Without wasting another syllable on her, I walked out into the halls and swung a hard right.