Hello, Friday

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Friday heard her feet pattering beneath her as she stepped inside of the school, it soon mixed with the obnoxious sounds of chatter and yelling from across the halls, footsteps from every direction, and the clatter of locker doors slamming closed filled her ears. It buzzed through her head as she closed her eyes, begging for the halls to silence.

The ringing in her ears grew louder as a shoulder brushed against hers, knocking her to the side.

"Sorry!" The person exclaimed, a phone pressed to their ear and a smile plastered on their face as they ran down the hall. Every voice blended into one, separating her from reality. Friday felt her breathing increase, her chest tightening as she stared at the chaos in front of her. The tears soon stopped brimming her eyes as she stood there. The world around her began to feel fuzzy as the ringing in her ears died down. Her panic turned into numbness, and she inhaled.

Every day was the same.

She shut down. It was the only way she knew how to cope on a school day, the only way she knew how to cope when the panic began to take control over her senses. She took slow steps into the narrow school hallway, lowered her head, and made her way into her classroom. Numb.

——•——

After school had finished she waited for Silas, she waited for the warmth of him to come back to her. Her fingers gripped onto the sleeves of her coat- well, Silas' coat, the one that drowned her in his scent and warmed her arms like he would do if he were there with her. Her lips tugged into a small smile as his car pulled up in front of her and she walked quickly towards him. She tugged open the car door and jumped inside, rubbing her cold hands together as she settled into the warmth.

"Good day?" Silas asked, almost instantly pulling out of the school and pulling back out onto the road.

Friday's smile slowly fell from her lips and she frowned, recalling her day filled with hiding in bathroom stalls and covering her ears as rowdy teenagers yelled across her desk to their friends.

Silas glanced over to her small frame- small compared to his anyway. "How about we go get milkshakes?" Silas asked, noticing the way her shoulders had slumped. He reached over, reassuringly squeezing her hands in his.

Friday forced a smile to her face as she gazed up at him, squeezing his hand back. "It's too cold for milkshakes, Silas."

"I'm from England, love, this is summer weather."

Friday shook her head, a grin slowly pulling at her lips and Silas returned it, happy he could make her smile.

"So, milkshakes?" He asked once more as Friday pursed her lips in thought. "Going once, going twice..."

When she still didn't respond, he squeezed her hand tighter and repeated his words.

"Going once, going twice..."

Friday shook her head, a laugh beginning to rip from her throat. "Fine!" She exclaimed, hiding her face in her free hand as she laughed.

"Sold! Milkshakes for the pretty lady in my coat!"

His comment made her blush, looking down at the way the sleeves covered her hands.

After a while the car fell into silence, a small smile settled on both of their lips and Silas spared glances at Friday every once in a while. She was clearly lost in thought as her lips twitched upwards every few seconds and he took the time to take in the small dimple in her cheek that dented whenever she allowed her smile to grow bigger and the small creases by her dark brown eyes.

Friday grinned upon noticing the diner come into view and her eyes trailed along the bright pink bubble writing above the doors before eying the small cartoon logo of a man with a bright toothy grin and large shining eyes, a milkshake with an unrealistically long straw held in the cartoon man's hand.