Degrees of Seperation
an excerpt

“I’ve got enough on my plate without having you to deal with.” Alex Wainwright said with a shrug of his almost-broad shoulders. “I mean, I just started my job at Starkey’s.”
“That’s understandable, Alex. I mean, being the store manager is quite a demanding job.” Hanna replied thinly, her sea-foam green eyes sparkling with disgust and unshed tears. “I cannot compete with a job that pays seven dollars an hour, considering the cost of gas these days.” She added, turning toward the entryway of St. Brennan’s, spotting a lone figure in the parking lot beyond the doors.
“So… it’s over, right?” Alex asked anxiously, eyeing the pay phones at the end of the hallway and jiggling the loose change in his pocket.
“Yes.” Turning sharply, Hanna strolled slowly, leaving St. Brennan’s with a heavy heart. Entering the parking lot, she smelled cigarette smoke, and her eyes landed on the source. It was Squire, leaning against Kirstan’s new mustang convertible, gleaming in the sunlight, if a car could be snotty, that car was snotty.
“You look like shit.” He remarked, letting out a stream of smoke, as if putting emphasis on the curse word. Laughing softly, Hanna nodded silently, trying not to let any tears fall.
“Could I bum one?” she asked, gesturing toward a cigarette behind the tall boy’s ear. “I’ve had quite an afternoon.” She remarked, feeling the need to make an excuse for her unusual request. Silently, Squire handed her his cigarette, proceeding to light up a new one for him. “Thanks.” She moved to stand next to her tall companion, gazing absently at the cheerleaders practicing on the football field adjacent to the parking lot.
“Kirstan should be finished soon.” Squire remarked dryly after a few moments of smoke-filled silence. “She’s pretty angry if I don’t take her home in her nice new car.”
“Oh, heaven forbid.” Hanna replied crankily, snorting out a lungful of smoke. “She could sprain her ankle walking home or some rot.”
“Need a ride, or some company? I can always come back for you?”
“No. I’m fine, this will tide me over.” Hanna replied cheekily, waving her cigarette slightly. “It helps.”
“It does.” Squire replied after a moment, choosing to extinguish his half-smoked cigarette under one of his well-worn Dr. Marten combat boots. Nodding with silent agreement, Hanna followed suit, using her black canvas Converse high-tops to extinguish her own cigarette. Hanna cringed as she saw the ever-so familiar hourglass silhouette of Kirstan Cannon moving rapidly across the football field toward her and Squire. She knew if Kirstan arrived, there would be hell to pay again, for being in the presence of Squire Rickman VII.
“I should get going.” Hanna replied, not wanting yet another altercation with the perfection Queen, not after the discussion with her now ex-boyfriend Alex. “Thanks for the help. Give my love to Trent.”
“I shall.” He replied, moving forward to greet Kirstan, his dark eyes glinting slightly with a faint glimmer of fear. Hanna headed out of the parking lot quickly, her messenger bag slung awkwardly across her hip. Her sneakers slapped softly against the pavement, while she wondered why exactly she felt a kinship with Squire, after sharing only a cigarette and two-second conversation. If one counted the slurpee event back when they were thirteen, she could probably call Squire a tentative friend. It felt nice, calling someone friend, especially after the nasty break-up with Alex. Honestly, what was he thinking, a minimum wage job at the local supermarket being a handful? Shaking her head with irritation, Hanna glanced up at the cloudy sky, wishing vaguely she had a car. The clouds darkened ominiously, and a breeze started up. Gritting her teeth, Hanna made a mad dash down the street, racing toward her Grandfather’s shack. She prayed hotly she would make it inside before the downpour began. Shivering under her school blazer, Hanna let out a long shudder as she lunged inside, fat raindrops striking the back of her neck.
“God!” she was soaked, head to toe. She could count her blessings that she hadn’t been with Squire at the moment; her white oxford was soaked through, showing off her cream-colored bra. “Why, of all days, did it have to rain?!” grumbled Hanna as she dropped her book bag next to the door, blinking slightly at the presence of Trent and Sean, both boys flushed slightly, shocked at the sudden appearance and intrusion of their privacy.
“What?” Hanna snapped, brushing the rain out of her hair with her lithe fingers. “Haven’t you seen a drowned rat before?”
“Um.” A blushing Trent murmured slightly, adjusting his loosened tie, trying to smooth down his perpetually unruly tawny- blond hair.
“Yes?” Hanna asked, her eyes finally connecting with her brain. Oh, thought Hanna after a moment of awkward silence. Taking in Trent’s rumpled appearance; Hanna smiled broadly for the first time in months. “Does Mom know?”
“No! I’d prefer to keep it this way.” Sean whispered furiously, a dark flush spreading from his cheeks to his forehead. Nodding, Hanna blew a kiss to Trent, picking up her bag. “Thanks.” Sean whispered, letting out a long sigh.
“That's fine, as long as you don’t tell her about my little filthy habit.” Hanna replied with a wink, taking out a bottle of body spray, making sure she smelled decent before entering the house. There would be a death in the family if Mom or holier-than-thou Margot ever found her pack of cigarettes.
“Of course.” Trent said with a grin, his arm moving around Sean’s shoulders in an affectionate gesture of agreement. Hanna giggled lightly, leaving her brother and his boyfriend in the shed. She wondered fleetingly if Squire knew about their relationship. Tossing her bag on her bed, she decided that Squire must have known, and he was a good friend for keeping Trent’s private life private from the noses of the other students at St. Brennan’s.