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She giggled and nodded, "That's perfect! Mom's going to love it! And it's not too big to carry on my bike either!"
She smiled warmly and tilted her head, hair falling into her eyes, "You're good, I'm impressed." |
"It's nothing to be impressed about," he said quietly, a very faint flush on his face. "I'll trim the ends of these so they'll take on water better... When you find the vase you want, go ahead and bring it to the register."
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She smiled and nodded, then went to look around until she found a nice vase. She brought it up to the register and set it down carefully, "I appreciate the help, this is going to be a great surprise."
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Thaddeus nodded and finished trimming the ends, then tied the stems together and wrapped the flowers in tissue paper before putting the cellophane around the bouquet and tying a ribbon around it.
"To make them last the longest, you can put two tablets of aspirin in the water, and change the water every day and a half." He rang up the total and reached into a box under the counter. "Would you like a small card and stand to put inside the vase?" |
She shook her head, "No it's ok, thanks. I'll be there when she gets home from work."
She took the money out of her backpack and set it on the counter, glancing up at Thaddeus, "Thanks again for everything. Will I see you at school tomorrow?" |
"Probably if you catch me in the halls, at lunch, or in class. Though I don't usually pay attention to the other students in class. It can be a little risky..." he told her, taking her money and putting it in the register. Taking out some change, he closed the register and tore off her receipt, handing it and the change to her.
"I have third lunch tomorrow." |
She tilted her head curiously, "I'm sorry, but how is it risky? I'm not sure I understand."
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"He's cursed," came Dexter's voice as the teen walked out of a back room carrying a large bucket full of flowers to refill the refrigerators with. Thaddeus nodded shyly.
"It's a long story..." He looked up just in time to see Dexter sign to him, and he replied back in the same manner, then pulled out a long piece of ribbon, offering it to the girl. "You can use this to secure the bouquet in your basket, if you'd like." |
She blinked in surprise at the other boy coming out of the back, and found herself tensing a little bit. But she glanced back at Thaddeus and nodded, "Thank you... that's a big help. I appreciate everything... Hope I'll run into you again at school... er..."
She paused, realizing she didn't know what his name was, and tilting her head, as if she could guess it by looking at him. |
"Oh," Thaddeus began with a very faint flush spreading over his face, "my name's Thaddeus."
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She smiled, "It's nice to meet you Thaddeus... my name's North... And it's nice to meet you too... er..."
She paused again, then chuckled, "I'm sorry, I don't pick up names unless I'm actually introduced to people..." |
"My name is Dexter," he replied, putting some flowers away.
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North nodded, "It's nice to have... met you both. Thank you again for your help Thaddeus. Maybe I'll see you both tomorrow..."
She bobbed a bit, then took the flowers and vase and went outside, where her bicycle sat. She secured the flowers and the vase in the basket, then got onto the bike, waving before starting to pedal home. The next day, North was sitting at a lunch table during third lunch, eating a small bag of baby carrots and flipping pages in a book. |
Thaddeus and Dexter made their way into the lunch room a little later than everyone else, and sat down at an out of the way table by themselves. Thaddeus looked as though he'd been violently ill not too long ago, and Dexter seemed worried.
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North marked a place in her book and raised her head, looking around. She spotted the two boys and smiled, before noticing Thaddeus didn't seem well. She gathered her things and went over to the table, standing next to it and not sitting just yet, "Hey... you look like you don't feel so hot... you ok?"
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"Some kids have been being mean to him. They think it's funny how he reacts, but they don't understand what they're really doing to him..." Dexter muttered darkly. Thaddeus let out a quiet whimper, folding his arms on the table and burying his face in them - like a cat that just didn't want to be seen.
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North knitted her eyebrows together, then shook her head, "That's awful... They shouldn't be doing things like that..."
She reached out before thinking and touched Thaddeus on the arm, before withdrawing and looking a bit awkward, "Is there something I can do?" |
Two boys walked up to the table, one of them hitting Thaddeus hard in the shoulder. "You're a demon. A disgusting, filthy demon," the one who hit him said, a sick grin on his face.
"No, you're not a demon," Dexter nearly shouted, standing up and grabbing the boy who'd hit Thaddeus. In just a few short moments, the boy was flipped over Dexter's shoulder and slammed against the table so hard that the legs of the table collapsed. "LEAVE HIM THE HELL ALONE YOU ASS!!" he bellowed. The second boy grabbed the first and they both ran for it, the first boy stunned and injured staggering off. |
North yelped and moved away from the commotion, approaching Thaddeus from the side and touching his shoulder, watching Dexter run the other boys off, "Are you ok?..."
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"No," he choked, shaking his head. Dexter pulled Thaddeus' arm around his shoulders and picked up his fallen lunchbox.
"C'mon, I'm taking you home," he sighed. "What about the rest of our classes...?" "What about them? We have good grades, we'll catch up on our homework. You need to get out of here before they start picking on you again, and I need to get out of here before they bring a teacher to deal with me for kicking his ass." |
North knit her eyebrows together, "Do you guys need a ride? Mom lent me her car this morning..."
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"Would you mind?" Dexter asked, looking up at her with desperate appreciation. "We should probably grab our backpacks on the way out."
Thaddeus remained quiet, though was visibly relieved by the thought of leaving before his day could get any worse. |
North smiled and nodded, "It's no problem... We can all just have a homework catch-up party later."
She gently helped Thaddeus up and started heading back to the locker room to get their backpacks, "Do you guys want to stop for a soda or something on the way?" She tilted her head at both of them, hoping a small diversion would raise their spirits. |
"Sure," Dexter said, unlocking his locker. "There's an old fashion soda bar about a block from my place." He shoved his books into his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. Thaddeus - now supporting himself - got into his own locker and retrieved his belongings.
"I just wish they could've given me the chance to eat first," he sighed, adjusting his bag on his back and heading for one of the doors. "Well, you still have your lunch. And you can eat something at my place if you want." |
North nodded, "That'll do then..."
She got her backpack and returned shortly, slinging it over her shoulder as she approached the two boys. She looked at Thaddeus and smiled, "Don't worry, it's going to be fine. Just take it easy this afternoon..." Reaching into her backpack pocket, she pulled out her mother's car keys and held them up, "Shall we, then?" |
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