Learn To: Exist

after zero

“Don’t make me punch you, Diths,” Edith mimicked in a shrill voice. Maculey laughed and they fist-bumped each other, their hands mimicking the motion of an explosion once they touched. “Don’t be such a wuss, James. It was only a push.”

Ben, the tallest and friendliest of the bunch, had suddenly started talking. "Why do I feel like I'm the only mature one here?" 

Sammy laughed and patted his shoulder, "Welcome to the club."

*           *           *           *         

“So, what did you guys get in that Chemistry test?” asked Sammy, her Yorkshire accent seeping through the cracks of her voice.

They were seated at the back of the Dolphin café, the tiny and homey café in the corner of Fairbank Road. At the back, the lights were low and the music was only a mere hum. The five of them liked it there. They would spend their afternoons after school there, chatting and laughing about whatever mundane matter that came up with their lives.  

Leaning back onto the cushioned booth seat, she smiled as she relished in the fact that she had Edith, James, and Maculey, condemned to a wooden stool each, while she and Ben enjoyed the comfort of padded seats. It was warmer on the inside and colour had started to seep into her usually pale cheeks. Earlier, the group had a relatively heated discussion on who had dibs on the booth seats; and in the midst of it all, Sammy and Ben had snuck in and sat on them instead. It was an excellent tactic that the other three idiots hadn't thought of.

“Test? What test?” asked Ben humourlessly. Ben hated anything that had to do with science, and choosing Chemistry as one of the subjects for his A-Levels was a complete mistake. Sighing, Ben reached out for his Caramel Latte and took a quick sip.

“Well maybe you don’t remember the Chemistry test we had last Friday because you were too busy failing it,” replied Maculey. James laughed and they both high-fived each other. 

Ben frowned, "I bet fifty quid that I've scroed higher than you." 

Maculey turned to look at him, chuckling. "You sure about that, Benji? How much did you get?"

Sammy rolled her eyes. "That's exactly what I've been trying to ask you guys." Looking around the groupd, she sighed and folded her arms, "So?"

The answers all varied.

“Sixty,”

“Forty-two,”

“Six,”

“Thirty-nine,” the rest of the group replied simultaneously.

Sammy gasped as her eyes widened at Edith’s answer. “Diths, how much did you get?”

Groaning, Edith buried her face into her wool sweater and mumbled a weak “Six,” for the group to hear. “I failed so hard,” she added with a sigh.

“What grade did you get?” asked Maculey calmly, completely oblivious to everyone else’s shock.

“Uhm, I’ve got a U.”

“U?” gasped Ben. “That’s possible?”

Edith nodded weakly.

“I didn’t know you could even get a U,” Sammy said, taking a bite of her chocolate muffin. “What was the test out of again?”

“Eighty.”

“Eighty!” cried Sammy, the crumbs of her muffin spilling out from the sides of her mouth. “That actually made my day!”

Laughing, James shook his head, “Wait till you hear the percentage.”

“Really?” asked Ben. “What was the percentage, Diths?”