Unwritten: The Parker Allenton Chapters (Part 2)

It's back! The return of Brooklyn Pieper and Parker Allenton! Last time I wrote, the two were tolerating each other at best as lab partners for psychology. A month into their bizarre partnership, though, Brooklyn realizes Parker might not be the hot-shot jock Skye and the rest of the school made him out to be.

Disclaimer: all characters in this short story are fictional/creations of my own imagination. Sights and locations are based on real cities/towns/National Parks located in the Western United States.

Later that month...

“Ugh!”

A thud echoed throughout the library as Skye plopped into the chair across from Brooklyn. The sound of her backpack clanking on the old oak desk warranted a shush from Mrs. Douley, the school and county librarian. Apparently, the rumors were true about the old woman’s hearing being sharp as a bat. Her head didn’t even pop up from behind the circulation desk but her shush was heard deep in the back corners.

“Meeting with Shelby go that bad?” Brooklyn didn’t really need the answer. She knew what was coming. It happened every Tuesday like clockwork. Skye finished her psychology lab report with Shelby then joined Brooklyn at the library for a vent session, frustration oozing from every pour in her body.

“She’s, like, a bigger idiot than I, like, thought.” Skye’s gravelly voice jumped three octaves as she impersonated a real life Barbie. “Seriously, she’s the worst lab partner in existence.”

As though beckoned by Skye’s complaint, Parker Allenton sauntered into the library surrounded by at least twelve students, most of them female. Brooklyn wouldn’t go as far as to call them his posse. They were more like groupies, following Parker from class to class, drooling over every step he took, clearing the hallways of clutter (aka fellow unworthy students). They announced his presence well before cologne did, though at least Parker didn’t dose himself in body spray. Whatever Parker used, it was subtle, a woodsy smokey flavor rather as opposed to the sharp, acid smell boys wore like a badge of honor.

Not that Brooklyn ever noticed.

“I take that back,” Skye said, looking on as Parker bro hugged one of the football players near the front desk. “Shelby’s dumb, but at least she’s not a dumb jock.”

“He’s not that bad.” Brooklyn returned her attention to a stack of flashcards, trying to keep her answer as nonchalant as possible. Skye was always looking for dirt on her old best friend, and there wasn’t much Brooklyn could give. Parker wasn’t a terrible partner. Sure, he constantly flirted with her during lab, but he did the work and showed up on time. That was all Brooklyn asked for.

“Oh come on,” Skye leaned in, a mischievous grin on her face. “Shelby at least tries to write sentences.”

“Parker’s fine.” Brooklyn knew her casual, nonchalant answer wasn’t enough to satisfy Skye, but flashcards for their psych exam weren’t going to make themselves.

“Skylar.” A lean shadow crossed the desk, darkening the white flashcard, making it near impossible for Brooklyn to see her gel pen or the words she was attempting to write. It made sense that Parker Allenton would choose that very moment, taunting Skye by calling her the very wrong name.

“Patrick.” Skye’s response was the same as always. Monotone, accompanied by a demure yet tight smile. The greeting was the same as always. Wrong name, worse wrong name, though Parker always addressed Skye as Skylar. It was as though they were locked in a competition to see who would react first. It was hard for anyone, let alone Brooklyn, to think they were inseparable.

“Pieper.” Parker turned his attention on Brooklyn, ignoring Skye's response all together. Frustration flared through Brooklyn's body, but she buried it. She hated when Parker referred to her by last name only, as though she was inferior. He could never find out, though. Not in a million years.

“Allenton.” Brooklyn turned her attention back to the cards, though she forgot exactly what she was writing before his intrusion.

“You ready for the exam?” “No, you can’t borrow my flashcards or cheat off my test tomorrow.”

Brooklyn could hear the smirk on Parker’s face, but she refused to look up. She kept her eyes on the flashcards, willing him to disappear. He should be leaving for practice soon anyways. It was a long drive to Denver.

“See you tomorrow.”

Just like that, Brooklyn’s wish was granted. Parker took her hint. With nothing more than a wink in their direction, the young hockey player left the side of the table and headed out the door, oblivious to the wandering eyes of every student in the library. Brooklyn could feel glares of jealousy hot on her back. She became the most loved and hated girl in the school the minute Mr. Smithers assigned lab partners. All because she was stuck doing experiments with Parker Allenton.

Did either Parker or Skye notice the glares and stares? Of course not. As one walked out of the library and into the winter Colorado air, the other prattled on about her partner woes. Brooklyn was oblivious to Skye's complaints. Instead, she watched Parker transform before her very eyes. His bravado clung to him like glue until the minute he stepped outside the school doors, where he thought no one could see him. That was when he shed the various layers of Parker Allenton, the hotshot hockey player. For a moment, his shoulders relaxed and the rest of his body followed, as though he was taking a moment to just be. To exist without the glitz and glam of being the town of Estes Park's pride and joy.

Then, in an instant it was gone. The sly smile returned to his face. The cockiness oozed from his stance, and gumption and gall played in the corners of his eyes. But only Brooklyn, it seemed, saw the moment of solace, and it contradicted everything she knew about the boy.

“Brooklyn?”

“Yeah, what?”

Skye laughed as Brooklyn came out of her trance. She hadn’t heard a word of Skye’s soliloquy, but Brooklyn could easily play it off as being distracted by the exam.

“I asked if we were still on for tomorrow? The return of Criminal Minds?”

“Uh duh! Do you even need to ask?”

“Just making sure.” A devious look crossed Skye’s face, “Maybe we could go over the psych test too?” “No.” Brooklyn’s finger flung in the air before Skye could make further suggestions. Mr. Smithers announced their first exam of the semester would be over the “A” and “B” periods, giving the entire class extra time to complete the exam. One group would take the test while the other was in lab and visa versa. Brooklyn had the honor of taking the test first. “Nuh-uh. No way. I’m not telling you the questions on my psych test tomorrow.”

“Oh come on.” Skye wined, earning the first Mrs. Douley glare of the night. “You know Smithers won’t actually write two tests. No teacher is that dedicated.”

“It makes no sense for you to only study the topics on my version of the exam,” Brooklyn reiterated, grateful for her analytical brain. “Would you do it if we were all taking the exam at the same time?” “Ugh.” Skye slumped in her chair, “You’re no fun. I’m still coming over early though, especially if your dad is there.”

Brooklyn rolled her eyes. The struggles of having a hot dad.

***

Brooklyn and her classmates waited a week for the results of their first psychology exam. Smithers actually kept his word, writing two different tests for the “A” and “B” classes, and Brooklyn kept her word, forcing Skye to study everything, not just the material on her test.

“Alright everyone, settle down.” Smithers stood at the front of the classroom the following Wednesday, a thick stack of stapled papers in his hand. Half the class, including Skye, was busy conducting experiments in the science room, but Brooklyn, and Parker, were anxiously sitting in the classroom, filled with anticipation. “Yes, I have your exams, and yes, you all did fairly well.”

One by one, Smithers walked around the classroom, dropping paper bombs in his wake. Pages thunked against desks, causing more noise and destruction than they should have. Groans and gasps filled the air as people looked at their test scores, most shocked by the results.

Brooklyn wasn’t worried. She studied. She knew the material. By no means did she expect to get a perfect score, but she did well. That much she knew. No nonsense getting worked up over a grade.

Yet, when Smithers dropped her test on the desk, Brooklyn hesitated. A moment of self-doubt. She couldn't look at the test for fear of failure. For the first time in her life, Brooklyn wondered if she actually did enough. If she was smart enough.

"Well done Brooklyn."

Mr. Smithers broke the trance. Brooklyn processed his words and looked down. A neat 100 was circled in red ink, an A+ dashed across the top of her page. Brooklyn knew the test went well, but she didn't think it went perfect well. She smiled, her self-confidence re-established and brimming.

"Alright, before we start today's lesson, I have some additional work for you and your lab partners." Mr. Smithers stood at the front of the classroom, oblivious to the groans emulating through the classroom. Whether or not it was because of the tests of extra homework, Brooklyn wasn't sure.

"This is a list of activities I want you and your partners to do together." One-by-one, Mr. Smithers passed out a new sheet of paper, this one covered in single lines of text and type. "There is one for every week remaining in the school year. I'm sure you'll do one every week and not procrastinate whatsoever."

Another groan, and this time Brooklyn joined. Spending time with Parker Allenton was already miserable enough. Not that it was completely hell. He was actually tolerable the one night a week they met to finish the lab reports, but more than one night would be pushing it. At least, in Brooklyn's mind.

"The assignment is simple. Do the activities with your partner and write a reflection. You'll have to turn all twelve reflections in and complete all the activities by the day of the final exam."

A flurry of hands shot into the air, Brooklyn's not included. She was too busy staring at the list of activities in her hand. They blurred her mind and her ears. Brooklyn missed the entirety of Mr. Smithers' lecture, lost in a trance somewhere between "do your partners favorite activity" and "get outside your comfort zone."

The bell rang, but Brooklyn remained a zombie, her perfect test and lecture long forgotten. She went through the motions of packing her bag and leaving the classroom, but her mind was elsewhere. It was stuck on the extra time she would have to spend with Parker Allenton. The private parts of her life he might become privy too. Her own vulnerability, something she often tried to hide from everyone, Skye included.

“Hey Pieper, wait up.”

Brooklyn’s exasperated sigh joined the muffled conversations of her classmates as the hallway filled with high school students retreating from their latest class. There were two options for her at this point. One, Brooklyn could pretend she never heard Parker in the first place, or she could just hear him out and get on with her day. She didn’t necessarily like the second option, but it was better to get the conversation out of the way.

“What do you want Allenton?” Brooklyn stopped in the middle of the hallway, breaking the cardinal rule. Never stop in the middle of the hallway between classes, especially on the overly popular floors. Conversations happened by lockers or in an alcove somewhere, but never in the middle of the hall.

That rule didn't apply to Parker Allenton though. No one glared at either of them as they walked around the roadblock. It wasn't even an inconvenience, and Brooklyn realized there were a few benefits to being popular with Parker.

“What are you doing Saturday?” Brooklyn’s eyes focused intently on the boy standing across from her, scanning for anything suspicious. “Nothing. Why?”

A genuine smile broke across Parker’s face, and Brooklyn’s heart legitimately stopped. It wasn’t the cocky grin or knowing smirk he constantly threw in her direction. No, this smile was wide, and big, and caused little dimples to form at the corners of Parker’s mouth. Brooklyn hated to admit it, but she felt a little weak in the knees.

“I thought we could knock some of those partner projects Smithers assigned off the list.”

“Oh yeah.” Brooklyn might have imagined it, but for a moment, she thought Parker looked almost sheepish, maybe unsure of himself. He briefly looked to his shoes, but the next second he looked up, that confident glimmer back in his eye. “Don’t you have games though?” “Nah,” Parker ran a hand through his shaggy hair, and Brooklyn heard someone behind her swoon. “No games this weekend”

“So it’s your bye weekend?”

Parker nodded, shocked by Brooklyn’s answer but impressed, “You know your hockey.”

“I know sports,” Brooklyn casually glanced at the clock behind Parker’s shoulder. She had two minutes to get to the other side of the building for advanced algebra, though the teacher probably wouldn’t mind if she straggled in late. “So where should I meet you?”

“I’ll pick you up. Say nine o’clock?”

Brooklyn gulped down her shock. Parker knew where she lived, obviously. They worked on their lab reporters at her house more than anywhere else, and Sam liked Parker to an extent. So it wasn’t weird for Parker to show up at her house, but to Brooklyn, somehow this felt bigger than just working on a lab report.

“Sure,” she choked out, trying to sound cooler than she felt. “Do I need to bring anything?”

“Just yourself.”

Before Brooklyn could respond or ask more questions, the first bell rang, indicating hallway stragglers needed to find their way into classrooms. The inner good girl, the one who never skipped class and always did her homework three days in advance, told her to get moving, but Brooklyn couldn’t move.

Parker didn’t have the same affliction. He merely winked at Brooklyn and walked in the opposite direction, leaving Brooklyn alone in the hallway with her thoughts.