Another exam week started, so Valentina and Luca were quickly back in business, selling a ridiculous amount of answers for students. They got requests left and right, so Valentina had to be in the bathroom at least once during each break, making Odette think she had a cold or some other infection that caused her to pee so much. Despite her knowing about her business with Luca, she still didn't want to tell her the number of times she was selling stuff. It was better for her not to know, she was already probably disappointed.
She and Luca were constantly discussing their earnings and how many people they dealt with through text, and it was getting rightfully tiring for Valentina after a while. She knew it was only the first day which was a frenzy since that was when people realized the exams were happening soon, and they had to get their hands on answers as soon as possible.
Except there was a grade which they didn't have any answer sheets for. Since the tenth graders started having exams after a mutual agreement among teachers, neither Luca nor Valentina had the answers. Which meant whenever a student from that grade came to them, they couldn't provide them with anything. There were many of them, as they were clearly intimidated by the new system they were thrown into.
Then one day, a student walked up to Luca and offered twice the money they were usually paid to get their hands on the answers. Luca was thrilled, Valentina not so much, but all she could think about was the extra pocket money and the bills she could pay with it which they were still behind on.
So, Luca and Valentina came to an agreement that they needed to get those papers somehow. Luca promised Valentina he would come up with a plan that wasn't very risky, and since she trusted him with all her heart, she didn't question him, just agreed and went back to class after their short meetup.
When lunch came, Valentina was distracted. She felt like she was transported back to the time when she had to steal answers for Odette because she blackmailed her. Her chest was heavy, and her anxiety was flaring up. She knew Luca would come up with something smart, there was no doubt about that.
He even swore off selling cigarettes after his suspension and, to Valentina's knowledge, even completely stopped smoking those occasional cigs. He was apparently dealing with some other stuff at the moment, while Valentina sat at her usual table in the cafeteria across from Ray and Sasha, who were in a deep discussion about something. Odette was off at the populars table next to the queen, Angelina, talking about something among themselves. Matt was at her side though, keeping a close eye on her, which Valentina was always surprised about.
During the break before her last class, Valentina called her dad to let him know she would be studying over at Odette's since the exams were coming up soon. He simply let her because he knew Odette and because he wanted her to do well academically, so Valentina secured her lie. To stay after school with Luca, who still didn't let her know what he was planning exactly.
It was only when classes ended that Luca texted her to come and meet her at their usual spot, so Valentina didn't even go to her locker, just took her books with her to the top-floor bathroom. Luca was in there already, waiting for her, but he wasn't smoking this time, and she couldn't smell anything on him either. She was glad he was quitting.
"Hey," He smiled, but it wasn't very genuine. It scared Valentina a little.
"Hi. What are your plans?" She got straight to the point, and he grimaced instantly.
"We might need to stay overtime today. If you don't mind..." He trailed off, scratching the back of his neck. "We can only get into the student council room after Ray leaves. Which might take a while, depending on how much paperwork he has."
"Well, it's fine with me. I told dad I would be studying at Odette's." She shrugged. "I guess we should settle down somewhere, right?"
"Sure. We could go to the couch area and check in on Ray once in a while," Luca offered.
YOU ARE READING
Business And Hopelessness
Romance"Your hair is full of snow," He chuckled as he looked at her, reaching out to push a strand of hair behind her ear. Some snow successfully fell off her, but he didn't withdraw his hand. He cupped her cheek, wiping away a few snowflakes from it. She...
