I Think I Like You

Chapter 1: So I Guess I'm the New Vice President?

I like sitting in the back of the classroom.

It's the perfect place to be completely ignored by the teacher as well as classmates. The place where I can just set up one of my various textbooks in front of my head and go to sleep without any awkward stares or rude interruptions.

Well... most of the time.

WHAM.

My head flies off of my desk, a nice drizzle of drool coming up with it, to be face to face with the devil himself.

I look up to see Mr. Ozpin, my homeroom teacher, holding his cane down across my desk. I give a meek smile and scratch the back of my head out of embarrassment as I hear a few snickers throughout the class.

"Miss Rose, I do believe nodding off in class is against my policy. Especially when someone so important is speaking." He gestures to the front of the room.

I stiffly turn towards the front, sleep still invading my limbs, and there stands this year's student council president, Weiss Schnee.

I have heard a few rumors about her, even though it's only been a few weeks into the school year. Some students are saying nasty things, like calling her the Ice Queen or saying she won't give people in the lower classes the time of day.

What I've picked up is that she's basically a stuck up, prim and proper know-it-all that would sooner spit in the cafeteria food than serve it. That being said, I personally haven't had any interactions with her, but from the glare she's giving me right now, I'm not sure I'd want to.

Beside her is the student council secretary, Blake Belladonna, whom I know because Yang is good friends with her. Along side the secretary is this year's treasurer, Pyrrah Nikos.

And all three of them are glaring daggers at me. Well, all except Pyrrah, who's giving me a more impatient look than anything.

Wow, Ruby, off to a great start in your last year of high school. Only a few weeks in and you've already managed to piss off the entire student council by the looks of it.

I mentally kick myself as the president clears her throat to resume speaking.

"As I was saying, it's quite unfortunate that the vice president we elected at the end of last year has moved over the summer holiday." She looks over the class, eyeing us like we're some sort of bait. "That's why I've suggested we put the next vice president to a vote."

Weiss clasps her hands together behind her back and offers a nod to Blake, signaling it's her turn to speak.

The girl's voice is so low and monotone that I have trouble hearing her when talks. I've always had this problem whenever Yang brings her around but I eventually just gave up trying to have conversations with her.

"Before we put it to a vote, who in here is interested in the position?"

An airy silence stretches across the classroom. Even my best friend Penny, who sits a seat in front of me, stays quiet.

Ozpin walks away from my seat and sits back down in his cozy desk chair as silence fills the room for an uncomfortable length of time. The student council members whisper to each other briefly until Weiss steps forward with an annoyed look on her face.

"Well, I was not planning on disclosing this with you, but you're the last homeroom that we've asked, and no one in the others have taken us up on the offer either."

Weiss takes a deep breath and pulls at the cuffs of her uniform's jacket. I attempt to sink lower in my chair, knowing where this is probably going.

"I understand that it's a difficult position, and an extracurricular at that, but we need someone to take it on." She lets her hands fall and rest tensely on her hips. "So, do any of you have any suggestions as to whom we should choose?"

Immediately, Penny turns around in her seat and gives me a sneaky smile. She points at me then gestures to the front of the room with her head.

'You wouldn't.' I mouth at her.

She just continues giving me that knowing smile, and raises her hand.

"Yes! Penny! Do you have any suggestions? Or perhaps you want to join yourself?" The president gives a hopeful expression.

I don't blame her, Penny is known for her smarts after all. It's actually kind of scary how sharp she is. Sometimes we joke that her photographic memory is almost like a robots.

"Unfortunately, I am unable to because of my busy schedule with yearbook, but I think I know the perfect person for the job!"

Weiss tugs nervously at her collar and raises an eyebrow.

"...And who would that be?"

If possible, Penny's sly grin grows wider and I feel my palms grow sweaty.

"Ruby Rose!"

I might have seen wrong, but I'm pretty sure Weiss's mouth drops open. A few kids turn to me and give me curious glances, almost like they were sorry for me. Not willing to accept my cruel fate so easily, I jump out of my seat, causing the chair to clatter.

"I OBJECT!"

"I would have to object as well." Weiss quickly agrees. "This position is no joke. It requires someone who's willing to put in the work needed t-"

Penny cuts the president off.

"But Ruby is willing! She's a great student, it's why she skipped a year, and she's also super available since she is not in any clubs. Oh, you would be lucky to have her!"

Oh, kill me now.

Weiss makes a face somewhere between reluctance and disbelief. I'm left standing helplessly at my desk, gaping at the council like a dead fish and trying to think of anything that could get me out of this. The class stays mostly quiet except for the occasional whispering; no one wants to risk being called on.

However, that silence is broken by a laughing Ozpin.

"Well, I think it's a brilliant idea!" He says between chuckles, taking the opportunity to readjust his circular glasses back onto the bridge of his nose. "Maybe, Miss Rose, it will teach you some responsibility. That responsibility includes being able to stay awake for at least five minutes after the bell rings."

This gets a couple of laughs from the class. Usually, I would be pretty embarrassed and sink into my desk, but I'm still standing and trying to think of something, anything, that could possibly get me out of this.

"I'm pretty sure your sister is in the council as well, is she not?" Ozpin goes on.

Think, Ruby, think.

"Perhaps I could even count it as extra credit."

Ugh, there's no making this easy. The sad thing is, I'm pretty much as lame as Penny described me being, a geek and a brainiac that isn't a part of a club and has nothing better to do with my life than play video games and sleep all day. There's no logical reason for me being unable to join the council, and it makes me feel like I'm grasping at a ton of invisible straws.

The president squints and gives me a wary look, our eyes locking across the room in what feels like an intense display of discontent from both sides. Weiss breaks away first, letting out a deep sigh, and looking back towards the class.

"Is there anyone else that would like to volunteer?" She tries once more.

But again, the classroom is silent.

"Alright then, Ruby it is."

I'm about to complain again, but the president gives me a sharp look, making me close my mouth immediately. I reluctantly give a huff of defeat and plop back down in my chair.

"Fine."

The president starkly nods and the council members all move to take their seats. The other students resume their talking, almost as if they don't give a care in the world that my senior year has been ruined in a matter of five minutes. Penny turns around in her desk to give me a thumbs up.

"You know, Penny, I thought we were friends, but clearly I was mistaken." I roll my eyes at her.

"Oh, come on. I think this will be just wonderful for you! I'm just trying to look out for you. You are pretty reclusive after all, and you don't have many other companions."

I grunt and lean back in my desk, making the old thing creak.

"Gee, thanks for pointing that out." I say, trying to sound sarcastic. "Not to mention I'm gonna have to work with the schools Ice Queen. I've heard she's done some pretty harsh shit."

Penny gives me a disapproving look and taps a thumb to her chin.

"You really shouldn't judge people before you get to know them. Maybe that's why you have a hard time making friends." She suggests with a shrug.

"Yeah, 'cause you'd know all about making friends."

Penny opens her mouth, about to say something, but then her eyes widen and she quickly turns around. I look confusingly at the back of her head until, over the class's chatter, I hear the clicking of footsteps coming my way.

Someone stops at my desk, and I slowly look up to see a pair of blue eyes burning a hole into my skull. Seeing her up close, I notice the president has a faded scar running down her left eye. It looks very out of place, given how pristine the rest of her features look.

"I'm just as unhappy with this arrangement as you are." She lets out an exasperated sigh, and holds a hand to her temple as though she has a bad headache. "Look, just meet us in the student resource room after school. It's where we hold our meetings. Don't be late."

I feebly nod my head and Weiss gives a curt nod back before walking away; her heels making a loud clacking noise the entire way back to her desk on the other side of the room. Penny turns back around in her seat and grins at me.

"This is so exciting! You have to tell me everything tomorrow!"

I just groan and slam my head onto my desk.

Six classes later, and I'm heading down the hallway to the student resource room.

I would be lying to myself if I said that I wasn't feeling a bit nervous, and intimidated at that. I've never been very good at meeting new people, let alone interacting with them, and all the people in student council just seem so cool.

The secretary, Blake, is extremely quiet and calm. Yang's gotten to be pretty good friends with her and has talked about how mysterious and placid she is. I've never been able to figure out why they're such good friends, I mean, they're basically complete opposites. Despite her quietness, and lack of interest whenever I've tried talking to her, she seems friendly enough.

And Pyrrha is practically the coolest girl in school. Not only is she in student council, but she's also the captain of the track team and everybody looks up to her. She doesn't have a mean bone in her body and she also gets perfect grades from what I've heard. She even helps tutor some students in lower grades that are falling behind.

As for Weiss… well, the jury is still out on that one.

Don't get me wrong, she seems plenty capable as a president, and she's the top student in school. There's a rumor going around that she got a perfect score on the SAT, but no one's been able to prove it. She's also beautiful, everyone thinks so. Regardless of her coldness, she has admirers in every grade and people that would practically do anything to get her attention.

However, something about her seems a bit too perfect to me. Off-putting. Gorgeous, rich, popular, she's like the main character in a cheesy teen movie star film.

I've gotten so caught up in my train of thought, that I don't notice a certain someone sneaking up behind me, that is, until I'm pulled into a chin lock and lifted off the floor.

"Oh my god! I heard the news!" Shouted straight into my ear. "My baby sister is going to be the new vice president! I'm so, so, proud of you!"

I try wiggling out of her grip, but it's no use. She stars using her fist to muss up my hair and spinning me around like I'm a toy. A few of the remaining students in the hallway give us some odd looks and I attempt to squirm out of the strong grip holding me in place.

"Yaaang, put me down!"

She just laughs, but drops me back onto the floor anyways as I attempt to fix the tangled mess that is now my hair.

"Please don't ever do that in public again." I groan, fixing my backpack strap that's now falling off my shoulder.

"No promises, Rubes. I just couldn't contain my excitement! My little sister is following in my footsteps and becoming part of the student council! You're gonna love it."

I feel the uncertainty I've been feeling all day bubble up to the surface again, making me feel queasy.

"I didn't exactly volunteer for this." I mumble, hanging my head towards the ground and training my gaze at my shoes. "I just don't want to make a fool of myself."

Yang gives me a knowing smile as we stop in front of the student resource room's door.

"Blake gave me the gist of what happened." She says. "I know you'd rather be at home playing video games and eating cookies, but I think this'll be good for you, Sis."

I feel myself pout and scuff a sneaker against the school's ugly tiled floor.

"I'm pretty sure they all hate me already."

Yang leans over and scruffs a hand through my hair, making me whine in protest.

"Look, I know how Weiss can be." she inquires thoughtfully. "She gets a bad rep sometimes, but she's just really serious about her position. She won't hold any scary vendettas towards you, I promise."

I scoff, thinking about the icy tone she used towards me this morning. If there were any way to redeem myself, it was lost as soon as I chose to fall asleep this morning, rather than actually pay attention to announcements.

"I wouldn't count on it." I mumble.

"Oh, come on. you get to work side by side with one of the most beautiful and smartest girls in school, how bad can that be?"

Yang elbows me a few times and lifts her eyebrows. I turn a shade of red and mutter at her to shut up. I've never liked when my sister jokes with me about these things.

Just then, the door to the resource room swings open, a peeved looking Weiss scowls back at us.

"Would you two quit dilly-dallying and learn how to get somewhere on time?"

Yang scratches the back of her head guiltily. "Sorry about that pres, just showing Ruby the way."

"I don't care about your excuse. Just go sit down."

Yang walks in and I follow silently behind her, trying my best to avoid eye contact with the angry president.

The room itself is fairly big, about the size of an average living room I would assume. One wall has a white board on it, while another, that faces towards the football and track field, has two huge windows running across it.

Other than that, there's another door at the back of the room, which I can only assume to be a closet. All the other available wall space is filled up with bookshelves and filing cabinets, along with some cork boards that were all stabbed thoroughly with papers and sticky-notes.

However, the most noticeable feature in the room is a big rectangular table. It's made of a dark, thick wood, and it rightfully sits in the middle of the room.

At one end of the table are two chairs, and there are three chairs on both of it's sides respectively, all of which are filled up, except for one.

Yang strides over to the empty seat and plops herself down next to Blake. The other seats are occupied by Pyrrah, some scraggly blonde boy, a girl with orange hair, and another boy who has long black hair with a purple streak in it.

Weiss goes to one of the seats at the head of the table and motions for me to take the one next to it. I quickly make my way over and sit down, trying to avoid eye contact with anyone.

I don't want to be on the presidents bad side any more than I already am, so I feel it's best if I don't argue the seating arrangement, not that I really care anyways.

Weiss clears her throat and gets a serious look on her face.

"Good afternoon, everyone. As you can clearly see, we now have a new member, who is as well our new vice president, Ruby Rose."

There are hello's said around the table and I offer a demure wave back to them and a quiet hello of my own. The girl with the spiky orange hair, who is also wearing her uniform in a more... risqué way, leans forward and starts bouncing in her seat.

"Oh, she's so cute! What is she, a sophomore?"

Weiss gives her a look of distaste. "Nora, please, control yourself."

Yang bursts out laughing and Blake elbows her in the shoulder to make her stop.

I meekly shake my head. "Well, I should be a junior, but I skipped a grade, so I'm technically a senior."

Nora's face morphs into one of surprise and she leans back into her seat, giving the boy next to her a forceful shove on the arm.

"That's adorable. Oh my god, Ren. Isn't she just adorable?"

The boy with the streak in his hair - Ren - rolls his eyes. "Just adorable."

Pyrrha, who decides to cut in from her spot across the table, clears her throat and gives me a thoughtful look. Seeing her now, she seems to me like the responsible, yet playful type, and judging by the rest of the council, that might be a valuable thing.

"Well, I think it's very admirable of you to be taking on this position." She says.

I feel myself blush at all the attention I'm getting, and in spite of the shyness I'm feeling, I smile. Yang, however, happily goes along with Nora's antics and continues to embarrass me.

"Oh, I know! Isn't my baby sister just the cutest thing you've ever seen, she's like a fun size panda bear!"

Blake just rolls her eyes, looking disinterested. The blonde boy across from her looks a bit frightened and his eyes widen to look at her.

"Panda bears are kinda scary aren't they?" He asks, raising his eyebrows.

Yang shakes her head and leans back in her chair, propping her feet up on the table while doing so.

"Oh shut it, Jaune, you're scared of everything."

"I would have to disagree." Pyrrha speaks up. "I think Jaune is plenty brave."

Weiss gives an annoyed sigh and takes a seat while the rest of the council start talking and bickering among themselves. She holds a hand to her temple, eventually sliding it up and through her hair to brush some bangs out of her eyes.

"Is it always like this?" I ask her.

She glances over at me, and under the gaze of her murky blue eyes, I almost feel like she's looking through me. I feel more unbidden heat rise in my cheeks as I look down at my shoes and start twiddling my thumbs together.

"Sadly, yes, this is it." She gives an eye roll and lets out another long breath of air. "Welcome to the student council."