The Love Equation (#2 How I Fell in Love Trilogy)

Math Mishap

"I feel like I've been in school forever." Sophie complained, resting her head in her hands. Dex threw a sideways glance at her. 

"Tell me about it." He sighed, raising his pencil to jot down notes they were supposed to be taking. 

"I know we just had break, but I'm done. I think I have senioritis." 

"Let me tell you, I've had senioritis since the fourth grade." Keefe stage whispered from his spot in front of Sophie.

"I don't think that's possible." Dex muttered. Keefe widened his eyes. 

"Mankind can be forced to do some impossible things..." Keefe warned. 

"Sophie, would you please work out problem twelve on the board?" The teacher, Mrs. Candace, called.  Sophie made a feeble sound only Dex and Keefe could hear. 

"Good luck." Dex mumbled. Sophie made her way to the front of the class, where a dauntingly bare whiteboard loomed. She copied down the problem, and began her humiliation. 

"Does anyone know how to do this?" She muttered. 

"Smart people do," Stina quipped unhelpfully from the front row. Of course she was in the front row. 

Sophie cast vision into the sea of faces, searching hopefully for a lifeline. Keefe mimed fainting, nodding as if it was the best option. Dex mouthed the answer to her but, unfortunately for Sophie, she couldn't lip read. 

Keefe raised his hand. 

"Yes Keefe?" The Mrs. Candace asked. 

"Shouldn't we give her a harder one? I feel like everyone knows it's zero, and to be honest, I think Sophie's a little put off that you'd give her something so easy." 

"Is that so? Well then, Keefe, why don't you come up and do a problem?" She motioned for Sophie to sit down, and wrote out an extensive math problem. Sophie watched in horror as it stretched across the entirety of the white board. 

Keefe sauntered up, uncapping a marker with sass. He examined the problem. He then bent over and began writing furiously. 

"What is he doing?" Sophie asked. 

"Saving your hide." Dex replied, attempting (and failing) to smirk. 

After a couple of minutes, Keefe straightened and circled part of his work. 

"The answer is 3." 

As soon as he stepped away, the whole class laughed. Keefe's scratch work had created a very accurate picture of Mrs. Candace, complete with a drooping scowl that sent shivers down a couple of the students spines. 

"How..?" Sophie questioned, incredulous. Mrs. Candace's scowl matched Keefe's masterpiece. 

"Mr. Sencen, go to the principal's office immediately!" She hollered. Keefe strutted out, winking back at the class when Mrs. Candace wasn't looking. The bell rang a few minutes later. 

"Wow, that was gutsy!" Dex exclaimed, as soon as they were out of earshot. 

"What was gutsy?" Biana asked, catching up to Sophie and Dex. It was now time for lunch, so most students were in the halls, congregating towards the cafeteria doors. 

"It's too loud here, I'll tell you once we're seated." Dex replied. 

Soon, they reached their regular table, where Tam and Fitz were already seated. 

"So, what happened?" Biana pushed. 

"Keefe was doing a math problem on the board, and-" 

"Wait, I thought the teachers didn't call him to the board anymore." Fitz said. Sophie had gathered (from various references) that Keefe had done something freshman year that had made the teachers agree to avoid calling him to the board. She only knew vague details, and that it had something to do with iced black tea. 

"They don't, but Keefe totally triggered Mrs. Candace." Dex explained. "He saved Sophie from a math problem." 

"Oh, I see," Biana sang, eyebrows dancing. Sophie shook her head. 

"Anyway, as I was saying, Keefe was solving a math problem, and he arranged his scratch work i  such a way that is looked like Mrs. Candace. He should sketch more, it was really good." 

"I'm guessing that's why he's not here?" Tam inferred. 

"Yeah," Sophie confirmed. "He got sent to the principal's office right before class ended." 

"Ooh, that's harsh." Fitz commented. 

"Yeah, it's too bad." Dex said. 

                                                                                               *** 

"Looking for me?" Keefe guessed. Sophie whipped her head around. 

"There you are! What happened?" 

Sophie had decided to wait around after school, and had decided to leave right just as Keefe found her.  

"I had a heart to heart with good old Principal Leto. Then I was threatened with a parent meeting, which totally straightened me out." Keefe rolled his eyes. "And now I have detention for the week." 

"Huh. Could be worse I guess." Sophie reasoned. 

"Yeah, I could've gotten lunch detention." 

"So much worse." Sophie said sarcastically. 

"Oh yeah." 

The two fell silent. 

"Thanks though, for saving me. That was really nice." Sophie said. 

"Well, I can't help it if I see a damsel in distress." Keefe joked. 

"Maybe I'll get detention so we can be together, to pay you back." Sophie mused. 

"Oh no. We are not pulling a Romeo and Juliet!" Keefe objected. 

"What?" Sophie asked, confused. 

"Wait, you've never read Romeo and Juliet?" 

"And you have?"  

"It's a classic." Keefe explained. "I meant the part when you said you were going to get detention, so we could be together. That's like when Romeo kills himself when he thinks Juliet is dead."  

"Aww, that's so sad!" Sophie remarked. 

"And tragic." Keefe added, eyes saying it would be anything but.

"Yeah, and tragic. But that would be kind of fun, being tragic together." Sophie looked up at the sky. 

"I think I'd like being tragic with you." Keefe told her, looking her in the eye. 

"Me too," Sophie whispered, yet it felt like they were saying something completely different. 

Can I just say I wish I was an artist? I have so many things in my head. Things I imagine, things I can see. But every time I try to put it down on paper, it looks like a kindergartner's scribble. So I guess writing will have to suffice. 

Question of the week: If you could have a magical item, what would it be? 

I don't know if any of you have read it, but I love the book Caraval, by Stephanie Garber. It's really good, I highly recommend. Anyway, the main character is given a dress that transforms by itself into different dresses. It almost has it's own character, but it's hard to explain.  

Anyway, I think I'd like an enchanted dress. I don't wear dresses, but I totally would if I had one like the one that's in Caraval. (Seriously, it's a really good book. And the third book is coming out this spring!)