Hi guys. This chapter goes out to TheLike aka korrashmorra (on tumblr) who kicked my A into G and is the reason I'm updating now. Granted a week later than when I said I would.

"She isn't going to know what hit her." Danny muttered his dark eyes alight with internal musings, it would seem. This was extremely strange to Burr, who was pretty sure Danny had no lights on upstairs, of any kind. "I mean she doesn't even know she wants it. She doesn't even know." All the while his eyes followed the Asian girl with ebony hair from the door to her seat. As if he didn't already have his plate full with girls who actually wanted his attention, Danny seemed unable to speak of little else. Burr saw Erin around school a few times, even helped her by grabbing a book off a high shelf the other day. He remembered she smiled in thanks, her eyes meeting his for a moment. He'd handed her the book before her expression turned to one of recognition. His fingers itched to sketch the way her lips parted slightly.

"You were one of the guys in the room that I accidentally walked into on my first day."

Burr had nodded, before turning and crouching down to grab the book he'd been after. "Um, I'm Erin by the way." He hadn't realised she was still standing there. The thought that she needed another book off the high shelf again crossed his mind. Burr's hand was still on the shelf near a copy of Hauaga: the Art of John Pule when he looked up. "I know." He noticed she seemed a bit taken aback and he wasn't sure why, so he had grabbed his book and stood up again. "Did you need another book?"

"Uh, no- I just-" She stammered slightly, her face going slightly pink, clutching the book he'd gotten down to her chest. Burr didn't understand why she was becoming flustered. However before he could ask if she was okay she smiled brightly. "Thanks again." She turned and walked away from him without another word, glancing back as she rounded the corner.

Burr hadn't thought anything of it until now. But she seemed nice.

"We should change your last name from McCone to McBone." Peter said, bringing Burr back to History to watch Peter reaching across the table to high five Danny.

"Or McRapey." Jay, who seemed to have had a headache for the past week, sat across from Burr, cradling his head in his arms.

Danny scoffed, "You're just jealous of my skuxx deluxe status."

"Okay man, seriously?" Jay sat up, the circles under his green eyes prominent as they trained on their less than pleasant friend. His hair was still wet from his quick shower before class. Burr was well aware that Jay's behaviour of late had little to do with alcohol lust and more to do with trying to get through the first anniversary of his mother's death. Last year around this time Jay's mum was in a fatal accident, leaving him with a distant father and a confused younger brother. Burr understood what it meant to lose a parent suddenly; he couldn't really remember his own father. Only flashes of memories remained, a rumbling laugh, the feeling of being propelled into the air and caught again. Sure their situations were a little different but he remembered wondering for a long time when his father was going to return. And when he understood what had happened, he spent more time wondering why. That proverbial 'why' which, after years of being told to stop asking, by teachers, peers, his mother and even family, forced him to start internalising a lot of things. He knew it unnerved some people, the ease with which he did not speak. But Burr understood a lot of things in his general silence and one of those things was the fact that life wasn't all that great for Jay right now. He was also aware of the fact that his friend didn't know how to deal with grave emotions in a non self-destructive way. For the past few days, Jay was going out, getting drunk and stumbling back in just in time to get ready for form class. He was wagging a lot, not doing work and talking back in class and although some teachers were aware of Jay's circumstances they were getting pretty fed up with his poor attendance and disruptive behaviour. Burr reined his attention back in, focusing back on Jay, rounding on Danny.

"Skuxx deluxe? You're way too white to be trying to pull off sayings like that." Jay continued, his voice barely containing his disgust.

Peter laughed, but Danny sulked for the remainder of the class, saying nothing until the bell rang for lunch. "You're a dick, man."

"Yeah, and you're a skuxx deluxe." Burr grinned at that, Jay was an asshole but he had a point. Danny had a penchant for acting like a douche. Sure they were well aware of his personality when they befriended him, but his one good quality seemed to outweigh all of the bad ones. At this very moment Burr was unable to recall what that one good quality was.

"Whatever, Jay. So lunch, we going to McDs?" He looked up at Burr who shrugged, before he seemed to see something behind Burr that made him stand up straighter.

"Hey! Erin! You made any friends yet?" He pushed past Burr to block the poor girl's exit.

"I don't know how he ever gets laid." Jay muttered into his chest, leaning against the wall as he closed his eyes.

Peter folded his arms, nodding at a few girls that walked past, "Oh he doesn't." Burr raised an eyebrow, "Our boy's still a boy." Peter confirmed. "He talks a hard game, but he hasn't really sealed the deal with anyone."

Burr turned his head slightly to hear how Danny's conversation with Erin was going. "Excuse me?" He heard Erin's soft-spoken voice go from confused to a little affronted. The conversation was not going very well, apparently.

"Come on, don't be coy." Burr wanted to laugh, but it would seem mean; for both people involved. "I would be a great friend. I have so many benefits."

"Please don't tell me he's trying the subliminal message thing." Jay looked over, "if anything he's much more explicit than he thinks he is."

Danny stepped to the side as Erin tried to sidestep out. "You could benefit so much, from being my friend." Burr pulled out a twinkie from his pocket and started opening it.

"I don't-" Erin began,

"Mates rates. I can offer that. I can be a great friend, I come with benefits."

Burr looked from Jay to Peter, "Yep."

Peter sighed, "Someone should stop it. Danny really doesn't know how to take a hint." A slow grin spread across his face as he inclined his head to the side, "I've gotta say, though. Danny has a point. I mean, look at that." Burr followed Peter's gaze, "Don't tell me you wouldn't want to sketch that."

All three boys were now focussed on Erin, who pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. Burr contemplated her physical attributes. She had a nice oval face; her almond shaped eyes seemed to convey more than one emotion at once, if that were possible. Her hair fell around her shoulders, and he did feel the need to attempt to sketch how her fingers wrapped around the pen she was holding at her side. She wore uniform well, he supposed, her white blouse was fitted and the navy school skirt ended just above her knees, showing off her toned calves to match her uniform clad toned body.

He nodded; "Symmetrical." was all he said.

"Erin?" A blond haired girl walking down the hall stopped, offering Danny a smile that bordered on a wince. "Are, you okay here?" She looked over at them, making an 'are you guys seriously standing there watching this without doing anything?' expression. Jay and Peter shrugged simultaneously and Burr finished his twinkie.

It appeared, however, that Erin was far too polite for her own good. "Uh Darren,"

"It's Danny."

"Right, sorry, Danny was asking if I had made any new friends." Lucky for Erin, Trina Smiths wasn't polite to people she didn't feel the need to be polite to.

"Well you have made friends and Danny can leave you alone now." Trina looked over at Burr and rolled her eyes, soliciting a grin from him. They knew each other from a few classes together, this year for example they had chemistry together. Mr. Helpner still believed in alphabetical seating plans so they'd been lab partners for the past few months too.

"Trina, come on, you fully just interrupted a conversation here." Danny turned from his prey to address the interrupter; it was interesting to note that Trina a little taller than his dark haired friend. If you asked Danny he would have blamed the heels of Trina's shoes. Burr knew this wasn't the case, Trina, like most people, was just taller than Danny.

Trina looked back again, smiling brightly, "Jay, Peter." Jay grunted in response, Peter tipped an invisible hat, she turned to Burr, who nodded when she said "I'll see you class."

Trina grabbed a hold of Erin and tugged her away,

"I am in." Danny was nodding as Peter shook his head. "In I tell you."

Jay started walking off without another word, muttering something under his breath. Burr glanced beyond Peter and Danny, catching Erin's gaze. She immediately looked away, seeming a little embarrassed about something, before looking up and laughing at something Trina said. Burr turned his attention back to his friends, who were still discussing Danny's chances with Erin.

"You couldn't score her if your life depended on it." Peter was informing their less than deterred friend,

"I'm already IN, I don't know if you noticed, but we were vibing. She was sending me vibes." Burr's lips quirked up slightly at Danny's positive outlook.

Peter let out a bark of laughter, "Yeah, 'get the hell away from me' vibes." He slung an arm around Danny's neck, "You're about as smooth as a hedgehog's bum."

"And you're about as attractive as one." Danny responded.

Burr left them to it, pulling his pencil and sketchbook out of his backpack, before walking down the hall in the direction Jay went.

I'm going to stop there. Mostly because I said I would update and I (try) not to break my word. I really do try. Haha.

Hope you guys are reading, but mostly, stay classy.