Rewriting 1998

Chapter I: Just Another Tuesday.

To anyone else, it was just another Tuesday. To Levi Montgomery, it was just another endless cycle of dodging the hallway bullies and watching the classroom clock practically tick backward.

"I swear, this class gets longer every single second." Levi muttered, his head resting heavily against his palm.

"I told you we should've skipped." the orange-haired boy sitting next to him muttered back from the next desk over, looking just as dead to the world.

Levi sighed, keeping his eyes glued to the whiteboard. "As much as I hate being here, I'm not ruining my perfect attendance, Austin."

"Well, excuse me for trying to save your sanity." Austin replied, rolling his eyes with affectionate sarcasm.

"Are we still on for the battle of the bands next week?" Levi asked, his attention completely checked out of the lesson.

"Are you kidding? Of course!" Austin fired back. There was no real bite in his words, only pure, unfiltered excitement. "It's what we've been waiting for all our lives."

"Mr. Harrison and Mr. Montgomery!" the teacher snapped, her voice tight with irritation. "Do you care to share your conversation with the rest of the class?"

Austin didn't even blink. "Just saying that you are an absolute inspiration, ma'am." he said, his voice dripping with pure, unadulterated sarcasm. He slowly clapped his hands together, wearing a smug grin. "Thank you for enriching our minds with your infinite wisdom."

Levi stared at him, a slow smirk tugging at his lips. "Wow..." he muttered, thoroughly amused.

The classroom immediately erupted into laughter at Austin's shamelessly sarcastic response.

Before the teacher could even retaliate, the loud, harsh ring of the school bell cut through the room, signaling the end of the period. In an instant, the tension vanished. Students stood up in unison, unzipping their backpacks and stuffing their notebooks inside. The quiet room was suddenly flooded with a chaotic wave of chatter about after-school plans.

"Alright, you know what the bell means." the teacher called out over the noise, her voice dropping into its usual bored, exhausted drone. "Don't forget your book reports are due next week."

She gathered her own files, gave the chaotic room a final tired glance, and stepped out into the hallway.

As the two boys packed their things, a girl with short wavy hair, striking gray eyes, and a pair of headphones dangling around her neck approached them.

"Hey, guys." Cassidy said, her voice low, soft, and accompanied by a warm smile.

Levi took one glance at her and his mouth instantly shut. He was completely tongue-tied, too stunned by how effortlessly beautiful she looked standing there. Cassidy noticed his deer-in-the-headlights expression and let out a soft, amused chuckle.

"Oh, hey, Cassidy." Austin replied casually, saving his best friend from total embarrassment. "We're just getting ready to go practice for the battle of the bands next week."

"Oh, you two are performing?" Cassidy asked, tilting her head as her gaze shifted to Levi.

Levi still couldn't find his words, his sudden shyness completely taking over.

"Isn't that right, Levi?" Austin nudged him, a smug grin on his face as he bumped Levi's arm, knowing exactly how flustered he got around the one and only Cassidy. "We're gonna go out there, rule the school with our music, right?"

"I—yeah. Uh-huh." Levi stammered, a burning blush creeping up his face.

"That's awesome!" Cassidy laughed, her eyes lighting up with amusement.