That Girl Next Door [ON HOLD; EDITING]

Chapter 2: Let's Be Rational

Nina

Nina always knew that her short-temper wasn't exactly something to be proud of. On more than one occasion she could recall her face turning beet red and a large ugly roar erupting for everyone to shut up. Like for instance, when she was a wee little third-grader, she remembered her teacher asking a simple math problem. At least, to her it was.

"Now class, can you tell me what eight times six is?" asked Ms. Maycomb in a sugary sweet voice.

Nina raised her hand high and tall, waving it like a flag.

"Uh...49?" answered Chepi, clearly confused.

"Close," encouraged Ms. Maycomb. "Does anyone else know?"

Nina jumped up and down in her seat, trying to get the teacher's attention.

"It's obviously 46, genius" replied a smug voice from the back of the class. He was tilting his Nintendo this way and that, his tongue stuck out in extreme concentration.

"Now Theo, what have I told you about playing your Nintendo in class? Give it to me; you can pick it up later after class."

By this point Nina could hold it in no longer. She was aggravated by her classmates' general stupidity and the fact that Ms. Maycomb wouldn't call on her when she was sitting directly in front of her.

"IT'S FORTY-EIGHT! GEEZ! HOW CAN YOU GUYS NOT KNOW THIS! THIS IS THIRD GRADE FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!" Nina shouted, part frustrated and mostly annoyed.

Ms. Maycomb moved her line of sight so her prime focus was on Nina. Her once honeyed smile replaced with a twitching eye.

"Nina, go sit in the corner and reflect on your rudeness. I will be sending a note to your parents."

In all honesty, Nina thought Ms. Honeycomb hated her especially because her math levels were far beyond the curriculum level for third grade. She wouldn't let her skip a grade because her behavior "needed improvement". Pah, as if! she grumbled to her self.

She put her science books away and closed her locker, relieved that her last period was her stress-free elective----art.

She was making her way to her art class when she couldn't help but notice the commotion coming outside. Nina peeked around the corner of the building. Two lanky figures were brandishing fists at each other, waiting for the other person to make the first move. People were slowly gathering around, the tension clearly palpable. Then, the dark haired figure swung his fist. Crack. You could hear the collective intake of breath. However the light-haired kid didn't take that. He swiped the blood dripping from his nose, and reciprocated the harsh blow to the dark-haired guy. Chaos ensued shortly after that. People were rooting for their favorite person, while the two teens punched each others' now battered faces. Even the tiny Justin Case broadcasted the brawl, commentating on every move. Nina spotted Jonathan Marchelle (dark-haired, rumored drug dealer; no surprise there) and Chance LaPointe (blonde guy; that's surprising) in the middle of the crowd. She couldn't believe that Chance of all people would actually mind getting his hands dirty over something "petty" as this. She leaned against the wall, shaking her head in disapproval. Those nincompoops are gonna get in a heap load of trouble, she mentally chastised. But even she couldn't resist the fervor of the rare spectacle. From her hidden position, she silently cheered on her favorite contender. Well, until the vice principal arrived at the scene, that is.

Ashley

Ashley hated math. With a passion. Her math teacher, Mr. Davitz, was an old retired veteran who put half the class to sleep. He would point his finger at random sloppy numbers on the whiteboard and launch in a monotone discussion about formulas. His chicken-scratch penmanship certainly didn't help her grade either. It was embarrassing enough that she was the only junior in her geometry class. She had failed geometry last year and had to retake it because it was a "requirement" for graduation. Ashley couldn't see the point in it---she had used a calculator for nearly every single homework assignment. Heck, the only thing she learned from algebra was English + Numbers = Shit, I'm screwed. Maybe her distaste for math was due to her long history of horrible math teachers. They sure were hella entertaining though, she chuckled to herself.

The only perk to her class was that she could see Brian Chang leave his AP Calculus class next door when the bell rang. Oh stop it! He'd never like a dumb girl like you. Ridding her head of her gloomy thoughts, she stared out the window. She saw the vice principal shepherding two visibly bruised guys. Wait a minute...is that...Chance?! Ashley nearly leapt out of her seat in surprise. She could scarcely believe the new rich kid got in trouble already. Then again, his dad could probably buy his son out of trouble. Perks of having money, she thought wistfully. Ashley focused her attention back on the board. She was seriously starting to believe at this point the numbers on the board were purposely taunting her. It seemed as if those numbers knew she couldn't calculate whatever arrangement they were in. I need a tutor, she thought, as she sunk in her seat resignedly. As if she had spoken her thoughts aloud, her teacher requested her to stay after class for that very same purpose---to find a tutor if she ever wanted to pass geometry.

She knew it would come to this point, so after the bell rang for the end of the school day, she bolted to the head of the tutoring department. It was almost like Ms. Flanchovich (eccentric as her name) had expected her.

"Welcome, welcome, Ash-uh-ley!" she greeted cheerfully in the middle of doing a yoga pose.

[okay, before we continue the story, let's debrief Ms. Flanchovich, shall we?
Age: information not permitted to be shared
Occupation: school psychologist, head of the tutoring department, and part-time yoga instructor
Something that sets her apart from other teachers: she knows the students better than they think she does, so don't even try to deny it]

"Err, I was wondering if I could apply for a tutor, 'cuz well, I'm pretty shoddy at math."

"Well you've certainly come the right place! Hmm...let me look through my files...aha! I found the perfect tutor for you! He happens to be our best one as well," she boasted proudly, puffing her chest like a proud peacock.

"Thanks! Who is my tutor?"

"Your tutor for math will be..."she paused for a dramatic effect,
"...Brian Chang!"

Ashley nearly had a heart attack.

"Well now you can 'get some', as you youngsters would say," Ms. Flanchovich hinted innocently.

Right then, Ashley could've sworn that her face turned at least 50 shades of red.

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AN (author's note):
If you got the chapter title reference, then you sir/madam/it/unclassified specimen should congratulate yourself. You truly are a math nerd XD