The Milton Hillside Library

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Andrej noticed the how some of the others were showing their claws, but still playfully, like cats testing their strength, but not in real attacks. Teenagers. In fact, he was doing the same, though his weapons were different, like his unnecessary classy pose. He was liking this group, and was slightly sad when Catie stood up, seeming worried. It was ending so soon! But he smiled when she said she was going back the next day. It was another thing that never happened before. Customers usually just come and go without giving any advice, following their own schedules and needs. "I'll be here tomorrow, to help if you need." he answered her. He felt the need to specify why he would be there, to avoid the impression he was just appreciating the visit, seeming useful... He would be there anyway.

Just after the sudden coughing fit that attacked Jessica, she also stood, nervous, and Andrej's mood saddened a bit again. But she would return, too! When she bumped slightly at him, he also felt a very discrete burning feeling touch his usually pale skin. "I'll be more than glad to help you find the book." He said, satisfied, before the girl almost darted to the door. Oh, he had probably their age, but everyone seemed so full of energy compared to him! Probably the others were thinking he was 30 years old.

The boy turned to the others still on the little study chamber. "If you need something, you just need to ask. I'm sorry if I have interrupted your work." He continued there, though, as if waiting for an excuse. Maybe, if the others didn't need him at all, he would just pick a book and start reading there... if that was not completely weird. Probably it was. Oh, my...
 
Kat caught Paul's glare out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head to look at him, sticking her tongue out. "If it makes you feel any better, I'd be more than willing to help you out for a few free pizzas," She added with a chuckle, rolling her eyes at him before settling her gaze on Catie, who was stood and announcing her leave. A small frown made its way on Katarzyna's face before she shook it off and replaced it with a smile.

"Bye Catie.." Jessica got up just as Kat was speaking, planning to leave as well. A twinkle of displeasure entered Kat's blue eyes but the smile remained on her face. "Bye Jessica!" She called out as the other girl left in a flurry of red hair.

Katarzyna crinkled her nose playfully. "Hey, Andrej, when exactly does the library close?" She asked, standing to turn her chair back around to face the study desk. Might as well do her homework now; Paul didn't seem too impressed with her, Andrej seemed as though he were about to leave too, and Kat's parents were most likely arguing still. She didn't want to be at home if they were yelling, so she figured she'd milk all the time she had left at the library before heading to the park like every other night.

Katarzyna remained standing, waiting for Andrej to answer her before she sat down.
 
"No way," Paul said to Kat, wrinkling his nose as well. "I can do my own homework." He said it as though he actually wanted to work on this assignment. Now that he'd gotten most of the research out of the way, the rest would be cake -- at least, he hoped -- so the fact that everyone seemed to be leaving so soon after he'd found a worthy distraction was a little disheartening.

"It's open pretty late, isn't it?" He glanced up at the clock again, trying to remember what time it was the last time he was kicked out for staying too long. "I was planning on being here all day to work on this..." He waved theatrically at his Macbook, clearly not too keen on the idea.
 
---
Approaching her household, Catie had the distinct feeling that something was off. The first clue was the lights. Harsh fluorescents streamed out of her front window and bathed the sidewalk in a pale glow. The second clue was the peculiarly unlocked door, Catie was sure she'd swabbed it with her key before leaving. The third clue was the woman sitting pointedly at the breakfast bar, glaring down at a coffee-stained mug with a cigarette burning between her fingertips.

"Hi, mom," Catie whispered, clicking the door shut behind her and tugging off her flats. Her mom was never home this early.
"It's past your curfew. Bed. Now," Her mom replied in a strained voice, immediately sucking on her cigarette after speaking. Catie'd thought her mom had quit smoking in June. Apparently not.

Catie stared at her mom with her mouth slightly open, unsure what to say. It had become so unfamiliar to receive orders from an adult, especially one who clearly cared so little about her. Her mom pressed her fingers into her temples, singing her silky blond hair with the tip of her cigarette. Catie watched as smoke curled towards the ceiling and vaporized under the inset lights.

"Catie!" Her mother turned towards her now, her watered down eyes meeting Catie's for the first time in forever. "I told you to go to bed. You understand what I mean, don't you? Now you'd better listen to me or your father's going to hear about this," Her tone was patronizing in the way one spoke to a child. Catie was no longer a child, and she no longer felt she could call her mother her parent.

"You can't control me, mom," Catie said, so softly she almost couldn't hear herself.
"What?" Her mom responded, putting out her cigarette.
"You can't expect me to obey your rules when you don't even take care of me. You don't deserve my respect anymore- I wouldn't have been out so long if you didn't expect me to maintain a 4.0 and make myself dinner every single night," Her voice was rising with anger.
"Got to bed." Her mother said, lighting another cigarette.

Catie obliged.

---

The next morning, the house was quiet again. Catie went about her routine, getting dressed in a blue collared blouse and matching ruffled skirt, brushing her teeth, putting on the barest trace of makeup, scrounging up a breakfast, folding some laundry, and eventually making her way to school.

School was Catie's safe haven. She truly excelled at academics and felt generally more comfortable and serene under the old schoolhouse roof. She and her teachers mutually respected each other, the other students didn't bother her and the homework was a pastime she took pleasure in doing.

After yesterday at the library, however, school strangely paled in comparison. The library had had something that school lacked, and that was friends. Or, potential friends, at the very least. She'd felt so joyous alongside those people and longed for the day to pass so she could see them again.

In the halls, Catie would see a flash of red hair and wonder if it was Katarzyna or Jessica, but there was no way to be sure without calling out. And that was not going to happen. The only thing Catie could do was wait.
 
The tall boy adjusted his glasses before answering. "The library is open until 22hrs, and it starts the day by 6hrs. There is a project to make it non-stop, closing only a few hours through the week for cleaning and occasional maintenance." He didn't mention he was among the ones supporting this idea. "It's not approved yet, and there is not enough staff to keep three or more shifts everyday." he twisted his lip. We wanted to be officially a worker there.

"I'll be just at the end of this corridor, close to the secretary's desk. If you need me for anything, feel free to call me." He said, before leaving, with a professional smile. No one could guess he was only a student. There was no proper uniform for the librarians, and he was too familiar with the place to be just a visit. Though he was not exactly a visit... he was nearly a dweller.

As he said, he passed the rest of the night beside the secretary, sometimes talking in a very low voice, answering the phone when no one was nearby, helping other visitors with their needs, but mostly reading. He was there until the very end of the day, the last person to leave, and still on the sidewalk when the large key closed the heavy doors. Then, he had to go. With slow steps, he got to the bus stop, and the whole route passed without him even noticing it; despite the late hour, it seemed too soon when the house appeared in front of him. "His house".

"You're coming too late today, little boy." The blond man told him when he opened the kitchen door. He was his father's cousin, and not a bad man, but maybe too immature. The house was oficially his, but was frequented by his sisters, cousins, brothers-in-law... almost the whole family. As usual, he was slightly drunk, his blue eyes a bit reddish over a smile of sympathy, despite his words.
"I'm coming this late everyday. For months." Andrej replied, not paying too much attention. That was the main rule of the house. Don't pay too much attention. If it's not very clean... if the garden is full of weed... if there is too many clothes and alcohol through the house... don't pay attention.
"If you keep doing this you're going to have problems in school." the man said, and paused, thinking for a moment, before exploding in a drunk laughter. "No, you're not. Not you! Just... be wise, 'kay? Don't mess with the girls... or boys, whatever." he gestured with his hand before drinking from his glass. "Be a wise boy, right?"
"Don't worry." Andrej said, before going upstairs. He bathed and went to his room, closing the door. He still had some time, but was not in the mood to read more. He kept thinking about this day... and the people on the library. He just lied on his bed, looking at the roof, trying to ignore the laughter and occasional scream coming from downstairs, after an unknown female voice arrived.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, he made his way to school. He thought it would be wise, because he already skipped too much. The day was just as expected, with long boring or noisy classes, occasional episodes of violence. He was lucky, never being attacked; many students were helped by him with appointments, tests and essays, and he got some kind of 'protection' against physical bullying. The harsh words never stopped, though, something normal even among friends in that school. Their fame was incredible. Many boys and girls would finish their studies just to become drug dealers a few weeks later.

Andrej was an island there. Of course not the only one. But he never linked to the others... never made an archipelago. He was that solitary island that, despite the location, was part of another country. And so he waited, and just after school headed to the library. There, he took out his uniform, putting on the long shirt he brought on his bag. He was on his right place again.
 
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She nodded her head when Andrej answered her before settling back down into her chair with her lazy posture. Like every other normal high school kid, Katarzyna hated homework. It was unappealing. Who wanted to do work during the few hours of freedom they were granted? Not her, but it's not like she did it. She was friendly enough to have some people willing to help her with it or let her copy before the class, that way she could keep up her good grades. It was school policy for athletes to maintain a C average in order to participate in official contests, so Katarzyna did what had to be done in order to play.

"Thanks, Andrej," She said to him before he left to do whatever else he had to get done, flashing him a quick smile. Once he was out of sight she forced herself to focus on her work. Several notebooks were withdrawn from her backpack as well as several text books and a novel that she was independently reading for her English class. Deciding to save the more important work for school so she could copy, Kat grabbed the novel, flipped it open to the dog-eared page and began reading where she last left off.

"What're you working on, Prince?" She asked in the midst of her reading, not once looking up from her book as she addressed Paul.
 
"Extra credit," Paul said offhandedly, turning back down to his work with a defeated sigh. He pushed his sunglasses further up on his nose and started typing out quick notes about the sites he'd found, a research tactic that he'd had drilled into his head by his father. Find lots of sources, take notes, compose an outline, write the paper. It was a process, and Paul couldn't argue with his and his dad's previous successes. "I'm writing a paper about the Cartesian coordinate system for stats." He didn't mention that he was failing the class, or for that matter that he was only doing the paper to save his grade. He preferred that the girl think he was just being studious.

Between keystrokes, Paul realized that he hadn't actually caught most of the others' names. Looking up from behind his shades and raising an eyebrow, he asked, "What did you say your name was?" He could faintly remember it being something foreign, but that was it.
 
Katarzyna hummed in acknowledgement, blue eyes trailing over the page of the book, taking in every word she read. "Sounds positively thrilling, though I can't say that I'm jealous." She had yet to actually get to know Paul, but from their first encounter she could tell they were going be butting heads whenever they were together, which would be a feat considering how big his was. The room settled into silence, or what silence there could be with the sound of Paul's fingers tapping away at his keyboard. It was annoying. "You doing it because you're failing or because you're a suck up?" She questioned, raising a brow and glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. It wasn't necessarily an attempt to be friendly, rather an attempt to get him to stop typing so she could focus on her book.

"My name is.. Kat. Just call me Kat." Telling him her full name would be unnecessary—he'd probably forget it anyways—so she settled with Kat. Three letters, one syllable, he could handle that. "…What's your name?" A smirk found its way onto her pink lips; Katarzyna watched him out of the corner of her eye, curious to what his reaction would be.
 
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Jessica ran to the daycare center where her three younger siblings stayed after school. "I'm so sorry I'm late, come on guys lets get home in time for dinner!" She said quickly as she thanked the ladies that watched her siblings and she started walking them al home, a short distance from here. As they passed the library Jessica's mind started to wander to the group of misfit kids that ended up there today and wondered if she'd ever see them again.

Jessica and her siblings arrived home and Jessica unlocked the door and pushed it open as her siblings shoved into the house in a flurry of backpack and sneakers that went flying. Jessica sighed and began to organize the shoes and backpacks as her mother came out of the kitchen. "Jess, help me set the table please sweetie" Jessica sighed again and did as she was told. Yet again her father was not home, no surprise. He was probably out selling drug again, the scared expression in Jessica's mothers eyes was always the same. The danger that he faced daily was no different then any other drug dealer, but it affected Jessica and her siblings. She knew her dad was careful and did what he did for her and her family to survive.

Jessica and her family ate dinner as her siblings told her mother about her day. And after dinner and bed Jessica sat alone on her bed as she read her book. She decided to go to bed and get ready for her day tomorrow. So Jessica settled into her bed, drifting off to sleep as the smell of weed drifted into the house, followed by a door slamming.

~~

The next morning after walking her siblings to the elementary school she went to school herself. She ran to class after class as a wallflower but noticed as she ran by the she thought she saw Catie. She meant to stop and say hi but she couldn't make herself muster enough courage to actually do it. Maybe she'd see her at the library tonight again.
 
Paul shot the redhead a glare, but it wasn't a particularly serious one. He knew she was just messing with him. After all, he'd already introduced himself, and he really hated people forgetting his name. He assumed that Kat wouldn't dare. "It's Paul," he said with a dry half-chuckle, ignoring her first question entirely. "But you can call me Prince if you like." He had to admit, he kind of liked the nickname. Whether it was born of a joke as his expense or not, it felt fitting. "Prince of Pizza"...Maybe someday when he took over the family business, other people would call him that too.

The two of them spoke in this way for another few hours, with Paul typing away between snippets of conversation and Kat throwing in the occasional lighthearted jab. She might not have seemed the ideal person for the Pizza Prince to make friends with, but he found himself warming to her no-holds-barred attitude. When his stomach started to rumble and his work ethic had wound down, he got up from his seat and told her that he'd be back again tomorrow, fully expecting her to be there as well. Maybe this extra credit project wouldn't be so bad after all.
 
Katarzyna chuckled, finally looking up from her book. "You can bet I will, Prince." She shoot back, giving him a quick wink before looking down at her book. Who would have thought he would like that nickname? It was initially a sarcastic joke meant to rile him up, but he if liked it then she'll gladly call him that. The rest of the night was spent in a similar fashion. They talked, Kat would add a few witty remarks every so often, and Paul worked away on his extra credit assignment. He eventually left after a few hours, but Kat stayed back for one more before she finally left.

When she got home the house was silent. Like always, her mother was sleeping in the master bedroom while her father was crashed out on the living room couch in one of the most awkward sleeping positions ever. The couch was extremely uncomfortable for it was chosen as a decorative item rather than one that would be used. She felt bad for him, she really did. Kat snuck her way past him, gently running her fingers through his thinning hair, and went upstairs to her room. The second she laid down on her bed she was asleep.

-=+=-​

The next day was school. Her parents were already gone for work so Katarzyna contemplated skipping altogether so she could sleep in but decided against it. There was an important volleyball practice that night in preparation for a tournament that was being held over the weekend that she couldn't miss or her playing minutes would be docked – which was bad for the team because Katarzyna had a gnarly spike, which almost always resulted in the majority of the team's points. So, after a long hot shower, Kat promptly got dressed in a plain old pair of jeans and t-shirt, ran a brush through her long hair, and got breakfast before she left the house. As a result from her unnecessarily long shower, Kat was five minutes late to her first class. Luckily she did all of her homework last night otherwise she wouldn't have had time to copy from someone.

The school day was passing by too slow for her liking; she was looking forward to going to the library that night. She'd have to start bringing her library card so she could check out some books.
 
Catie had a small, red-velvet covered notebook that she used as a planner. The entire first half was crammed from margin to margin with notes about homework assignments and other school related topics. She kept the small organizer in the most easily obtainable pocket and never left a class before recording the necessary notes on their allotted pages. It was her final class of the day, Calculus. She'd breezed through pre-calc and wasn't particularly concerned about what her teacher was saying. She leafed through her organizer until she found the page with today's date. She'd already penciled in all of her homework assignments in neat, even cursive that rarely deviated from it's flowing form. While eying the clock, Catie managed to calculate that she could get all of her homework done at the library and still have at least an hour of free time in between.

When the final bell rang, Catie bolted from her seat, her unfastened backpack swaying frantically from one shoulder and her planner gripped in her opposite hand. Her only destination was to make it to the library. There was no need to stop at home, where she knew an empty kitchen awaits, and she couldn't bear to eat another package of sushi. All she had to do was walk the mile downtown and through the wide, heavy doors of the library and she could finally enjoy her evening.

She was the first one to arrive, that is, as long as Andrej wasn't lurking somewhere between the bookshelves. He had such a pleasant and mysterious air about him that had taken Catie by surprise. It was the fact that he reminded her of her favorite book character, perhaps, that caused him to linger on her mind.

Catie sat down in the same seat she had sat in before and pulled out her planner, furiously getting to work.
 
Everytime the large doors were crossed by someone, Andrej would unwittingly raise his eyes from whatever he was looking - be it a book, the library's records, or a person he was aiding somehow - to see the new person who just arrived. None of the other students were there, and the little study place continued empty, as if it was reserved for the group. It was a strange sensation, have an expectation towards an event, something he didn't know was missing. The school had so little surprises (most of them unpleasant), and nothing home could do much towards his mood. Until now, the only episode that really surprised him was a quick visit of his father, months before, something that didn't last more than four hours. And it was enough.

A flash of golden hair caught his attention, and finally he noticed the first known face: Catie headed directly to where he expected. To give her some time and finish 'his duties', he guided the young engineer accompanying him to the wanted section, and even gave some tips about what the different topics: modern materials? A guide about how to sketch the building foundations? Calculus and geometry?

Finishing the help, he went back to the small room where he left his bag, picking up his English and Literature book, and a dictionary. He had his own homework to do that day, and he thought it would be nice to share the same activity with the others. He adjusted his glasses (out of habit) and the black shirt buttoned until the neck; it made him look a little like a priest. The long hair was only half tied that day.
"I'm glad you came." he said to Catie, his voice like an echo between the shelves, the very books talking to the girl. He hoped he would not startle her. "Welcome back." he smiled, sitting in another chair with his things.
 
When Paul got home, tossing his stuff on the couch, he found a note written in his father's impeccably neat script telling him that Mr. Derickson would be working late and that Paul should fix up his own dinner. Plenty familiar with both the situation and the kitchen, Paul shrugged and fixed himself up some stir-fry. He planted himself on the couch, hat now stuffed in his bookbag and sunglasses sitting atop his head, passing the time until his dad got home well into the night. The two chatted briefly about their respective days before Paul's father went to sleep, followed by his son an hour later.

School the next day was fairly average, save for the stats teacher riding up Paul's ass about his grade, again. He assured her that he'd made nice progress on the extra credit paper and that he'd have it in by the deadline for sure. Having seen how Paul reacted when given large assignments with early due dates, the teacher was less than convinced. Bitch. As soon as the final bell rang, Paul headed for home, swapped out his stuff, and put on his lucky cap, same as last time, then walked out to the library.

He weaved through the bookshelves, knowing exactly where he was going. He was hoping that he would be the first one there, but it seemed unlikely since the school was a fair ways away from his house. A familiar voice coming from one of he shelves confirmed it. What was his name? Andrew? Paul remembered seeing him a lot during previous visits; he wondered if he worked at the library. "Hey," he called out as he approached the study area, seeing Catie already there as well.
 
Jessica sighed when the final bell rang for the end of the day. "Finally.." she muttered to herself as she there her books into her backpack and headed to her locker. She opened her locker and grabbed her homework for the day. Checking her phone for the time and then grabbing her jacket she closed her locker and headed right for the library. She tugged her jacket on as she exited the high school and turned to start down the street.

The fall winds blew against her face making her bright red hair fall away from her face as she fought the wind currents. Upon entering the corner where the library was located, she saw the pizza place that Paul had been talking about. She decided on her way back with the kids she'd stop and get dinner for them, since her parents were fighting again and probably wouldn't be home tonight anyway. Jessica smiled slightly as she saw the huge building come into view and pushed open the heavy wooden doors.

As she made her way though the maze of books shelves and furniture, she saw the comfy corner in the way back of the building. She smiled as she saw Catie and Paul. "Hey" She said as she sat down at the same chair as yesterday. Surprisingly the chairs where still in the circle formation that they had left them in yesterday.
 
After school Katarzyna headed to the gym where volleyball practice would be held and changed into her practice clothes. They started off doing simple warm ups, then progressed to doing drills, and ended the practice with what was supposed to be a motivational speech that involved a lot of 'killing'. 'Kill your opponents. Show no mercy. Kill the tournament. Win all your matches. Kill. Kill. Kill.' Their coach was very… passionate.

Once practice was over Kat took a quick shower in the locker room and changed back into her school clothes. Like she had done the day before, she tied her hair up into a high ponytail and drove home in her car. Unlike the night before, her home was silent. Her father's car was parked outside but her mother's was nowhere to be seen. Kat unlocked the door and went inside, immediately greeted by her father making something in the kitchen. He loved cooking, and Kat loved eating.

"Witaj w domu, moja ukochana córka. How was school?" He asked, switching from Polish to English just like Kat always does.

She shrugged her shoulders. "It was good, but I've got to go to the library to do some homework. Pożegnanie." Kat dropped off her duffel bag filled with her practice gear into her room and left the next minute. This time she decided she'd drive in an attempt to get there faster. She knew she was going to be the last one to arrive.

Katarzyna grabbed her backpack, locked her car, and went into the library, heading straight for the little oasis in the back. Everyone was there already, just like she predicted. Taking a seat at the desk she sat at the other day, Kat nodded her head in greeting to everyone. "Co się dzieje?" A pause, a mental facepalm. "Przepraszam—Sorry. What's up?"
 
Andrej smiled, sincerely satisfied. The group was really there, all of them. He bowed his head as usual to each student, showing the empty chairs like a host receiving visitors at his living room. "Welcome back. This Library does not receive this many young visitors so often." He commented, not exactly placing him among the others, even if he was not the oldest one in the group. He didn't know that yet. "As yesterday, I'm here to help if needed. I'm just getting rid of my own activities too, but that certainly won't take much time." he lifted his book for a moment.

"I fear I'm not familiar with Polish, Ms. Katarzyna. Przykro mi!" he turned to Kat, lifting his shoulders. In fact, he only remembered that word that very day: when facing a language he didn't know, Andrej made sure he knew at least how to say Thank you, I'm sorry and Help! "But it was a pretty... normal day. I like this weather, and... the classes were fine." He added. Being completely unused to talking except for presenting in class, his conversations could tend to the most terrible 'elevator scene with random strangers', unless someone mentions a subject he really loves.
 
"I'm not that young," Paul said, folding his arms in mock irritation. "And this weather sucks. Bring back the sun, y'know?" With that, he took the same seat as last time and took his Macbook back out, ready to get started on his paper once again. He'd made a fair amount of headway last time, but his conversation with Kat had distracted him. He swore he'd be more studious today and at least get started on the paper so he could use the next day to finish it up.

As much as he wanted to work hard, however, he found himself distracted by Kat once again, looking to learn more about her. The Polish was just too intriguing. "Hey Kat," he said, looking up from his screen before he'd even begun, "is your family Polish too or do you just really love the language?"
 
Catie greeted each person individually with what she hoped was an airy and friendly voice. As the group rejoined, she found it harder and harder to find space to speak, and eventually just stopped altogether. She completed the entirety of her homework before Katarzyna had even sat down, and now doodled in the margin of her AP Physics notebook.

Perhaps if Catie was someone else, which she wasn't, but perhaps if she was, she would speak up and get some sort of full-group conversation rather then the small side ones, and find herself involved and hopefully amusing. Instead, she outlined the silhouette of a young girl's face, paying extra special attention to the details of her eyelashes. Catie knew the power that beautiful eyelashes could bring, and often contemplated gluing on fake ones. Her naturally long lashes didn't really need the extra volume, but it was something she'd considered.

Watching the interaction between Katarzyna and Paul, Catie quickly picked up on some well-hidden flirtation. Masked in endless banter and ruthless teasing, of course. She wondered if they had connected last night after she left- it seemed impossible to connect to someone as uppity as Paul, though. Although she could be misjudging him. Perhaps Katarzyna saw something in the pizza descendent that was desirable, or maybe she was attracted to his conceit. Regardless, it was really none of Catie's business and she quickly turned her head the other way.
 
Katarzyna gave Andrej a bright smile, thoroughly impressed by his pronunciation. Letting out a small huff of agreement, Kat nodded her head, allowing her eyes to drift close for several seconds. "I've got to agree with Prince on that – a little more sun would be wonderful." Her eyes opened, and after a quick glance at Paul she continued speaking. "Just fine? Milton Hillside High School is a fine institution built solely to cater to the educational needs of its students. Each attendee, be it student or teacher, must be willing to learn! We will not tolerate anything less! Your classes need to be better than fine, that's one step below average. You can't settle for average, or good, or great. They need to be… Elite! If you are not willing to learn then Milton Hillside High School isn't the place for you!" As her little monologue progressed her voice took on a lower tone as she presented her take on the principal's speech she'd been given that morning for being late, altering a few things to apply it to the situation. A fist slammed into an open palm when she stopped speaking, a playful glare in her eyes. After a few seconds a smile broke her serious façade and she leaned back in her chair with a slouched back, chuckling to herself.

Bright blue eyes settled on Paul as he spoke to her. Her smile faltered ever so slightly at the mention of her family, but she was quick to cover it up so they wouldn't notice. "My dad and his parents moved here from Poland when he was a kid; my mom is a local, born and bred in this luxurious city." Kat pulled several textbooks out of her bag—homework—and set them carelessly on the desk she was seated in front of. "I originally wasn't going to learn Polish, but because my dad switches back and forth between the two they decided that I needed to learn it. I'm going to Poland this summer to meet that side of the family, it's going to be so cool."
 
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