“Alright class, that's all for today,” Miss Green declared as the bell went off, signaling the end of the class.
A moment later, everyone was already packing up – me included. I practically shoved my books into my bag in less than a second.
Soon after, I was hurrying over to Hawk who was saying something to Kent that was making them laugh.
“SpongeBob, are you ready to go now?”
“Well, I still have to pa…”
But he never got to finish, as I'd already held his bag up to him after shoving all his books in there in one go. “Great! All packed. Now, let's go.”
I didn't give him a chance to respond before holding his hand and pulling him away.
“Friend snatcher,” Kent called out from behind me. I turned to stick my tongue out at him – a gesture he was quick to mimic.
Typical Kent.
Now though, my attention was fixed on the girl in front of us. It’s a good thing she was always the last to leave class. It could be because she just enjoyed packing up at the pace of a turtle, or probably because she usually reserved some of her questions for after the class.
Normally, this was the time when I'd be saying: ‘bye, Miss Green’ and getting the hell out of class.
But today was different. Today, I was a girl with a plan.
“Ok, I have to ask – what's going on? You're acting pretty weird. And you know that means a lot coming from me,” Hawk remarked from beside me, looking pretty amused at the last part.
Despite myself, I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Listen, just go with the flow, ok? Follow my lead.”
I stared meaningfully at him, in an attempt to sink the point in. He nodded, albeit a little confused. Hence, I wasn’t surprised when he asked, “but what exactly are we flowing with here?”
We got close enough to Ria just then, and that was my cue. “What?” I echoed, voice loud, and lips struggling not to betray a laugh at Hawk’s startled expression – not like I could blame him though.
But on the plus side, Ria and Miss Green's attention had been drawn to us, alongside that of the other students who hadn't already left class.
“You think I won't be able to take this assignment seriously?” I asked, adding an ‘angry’ gasp which ended up coming out more exaggeratedly than I’d intended.
But if anyone noticed my shitty acting skills, they didn't show it. They were too immersed in the scene playing out in front of their eyes.
When Hawk didn't say anything but just stare at me like I'd been possessed by aliens, I widened my eyes slightly.
He seemed to have gotten my message because he suddenly said, “oh...yeah, I think that ‘cause uh...those are my thoughts and I have a right to think.”
Huh?
I bit back a chuckle at that. At the moment, I had a scene to finish.
So, I huffed. “Fine! I'm going to show you that I can be serious with my assignment.”
Gosh, could anyone just see through this horrible acting?
But of course, they were too intrigued with what they were seeing to care.
“Oh, yeah? Then fine!” Hawk said, looking like he wanted to smile, but quickly covering it up with a huff.
“And you know what?” I continued. “I'll do it without you. I'll get another assignment partner and then you’ll see.”
“Another partner? That isn't what I want though,” he mused, eyeing me in a way that said: ‘I don't get what we're doing.’ Despite that, the words that left his mouth were: “well, if that's what you want, fine!”
But then he threw me a questioning look that translated to: ‘but is it really fine?’
I threw him a discreet nod in reply to his silent question. But a second later, I was giving an exaggerated huff and stomping towards where Miss Green was standing, looking somewhat concerned.
Poor her. She was probably wondering what went so wrong with what she had presumed to be her perfect pairing.
“Miss Green, can we please change partners?” I asked, using my best eyes that said: ‘remember you told me I was your favorite student last year.’
“But Brooke, I don't think I can.”
Well, there goes the eyes.
“I've already made the pairings, and changing your partner would mean changing someone else's partner. And I can't do that unless they agree to it,” she explained earnestly.
Well, would you look at that? Things were actually going right.
Not wanting to seem too enthused in front of Miss Green, I could only say a small: “oh.” I managed to pull off my best ‘all hope is lost’ look before turning to stare at Ria who seemed to have finally finished packing her bag, and was now standing in front of the class, watching the drama unfold.
“Oh, Ria,” I started, feigning surprise as though I hadn't realized she was there all along.
“I know it’s a lot to ask, but would you mind changing partners? You see, Hawk said I don't take my assignments seriously and I want to show him he’s wrong. Please, help a girl out here.”
I stopped to glance at Hawk who seemed to have finally understood what I was doing, leaving a ghost of a smile to creep on his lips.
I threw him a small wink before turning my attention back to Ria, with my pleading eyes in play.
Though she tried to sound somewhat hesitant, I could practically sense the joy and relief in her voice when she said, “I guess. I mean, it sounds good to me.”
“Great!” I cheered with a small clap, looking over at Miss Green.
“Well,” she started with a small smile. “I'd still have to ask Hawk and Jack if they're okay with this arrangement. Hawk, are you okay with this?”
Miss Green barely got the question out before Hawk was voicing an eager: “yes!” Perhaps realizing he came off too thrilled, his voice dropped notches lower now as he added, “I mean, it's alright.”
“Ok, that's good. And how about you Jack?”
“Sounds cool with me, Miss Green,” Jack piped up from beside Ria, wearing a seemingly carefree smile.
Of course it'd sound cool with him. He probably thought either way, he'd still get off having to do his part. Well, I'd deal with him later.
For now, there were more urgent matters to attend to. “So,” I drawled, staring meaningfully at Miss Green.
“So, I guess it's all good. You and Jack would be partners, and Ria and Hawk would be partners,” she announced, leaving me to bite back a grin.
The verdict had been served, the court session was over. And that was everyone's cue to start trudging out of the class. But a particular redhead was in no hurry.
“Hey,” she started when she neared Hawk – who for the record, looked like a die hard fan who just met Ariana Grande and was struggling not to squeal.
Hence, it was almost a miracle that he managed a reply of: “hi.”
“So, um, I'm going to need your number. We'll need to discuss when we'd be able to meet up for our assignment,” she explained, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
“Oh, yeah. I mean, yeah, cool,” Hawk answered, tittering slightly. “‘Cause I'm a person and I have a number.”
Huh?
I bit back a chuckle at that, and even Ria's usual tight-lipped smile seemed to increase by an inch.
As I watched their interaction, especially seeing Hawk's slightly red-faced smile, I hoped for the first time that he ended up with his Pizza Ria.
However, my eyes soon left the pair to land on a dark-haired boy of about 5 '9, who was bouncing out of the class.
“Hey, Jack,” I called, casually slinging an arm around his shoulder, and leaving him to stare surprised at me.
“Brooke,” he started unsurely. But I simply kept my oh-so-sweet smile on.
“Tomorrow, after school. Make sure to start reading our book before then – and don't even think of skipping.” And throwing him a meaningful stare, I enunciated each word of: “and Jack, not even a minute late, got it?”
“Brooke,” he started with a small chuckle – his usual getaway route. But all he got in reply was my stoic expression.
“Got it?” I repeated.
Cornered, he could only swallow softly before finally saying, “yeah.”
“Great,” I mused, smiling. A little later, we were exchanging numbers, the both of us separating in the hallway soon after.
I needed no further affirmation – he would show up tomorrow.
“Hey, you,” an all too familiar voice suddenly piped up from behind me, arms moving to wrap around me.
“Sunny,” I chirped, staring at her ever bubbly face.
“So, your first couple's fight, huh?”
My what?
And that was when it hit me.
“Oh, yeah,” I said, hoping my voice sounded remotely sad.
“Hawk,” Sunny called out from behind her, drawing my attention to Hawk who was now heading towards us.
“Hey,” he said when he neared us, but I just looked away, feigning indifference.
“Come on, you two. You shouldn't be fighting over something so silly,” Sunny mused, staring between the both of us as she spoke.
I shared a knowing look with Hawk, the amusement in both our eyes clear.
“He started it.”
“She started it.”
“It doesn't matter who started it,” she reasoned, oblivious to the fact that we were trying to hold back a laugh.
Poor Sunny.
She was trying to resolve a fight which did not even exist.
“Well, I'm not saying sorry first. I've done what I have to,” I huffed.
“And I'm not saying sorry now,” Hawk said.
“Did you hear that? You know what, Sunny? I'm leaving.” And with a dramatic show of flipping my hair, I walked away from the duo.
From behind me, I heard Hawk say, “did you see the way she just left?”
“Yes, but…”
“You know what, Sunny? I'm leaving too.” I could almost imagine Sunny’s expression, with her lips half-parted in protest.
Now, though, our hurried footsteps finally made the turn away from her concerned eyes, leaving us to share a look, the same thought on our minds – ‘I can't hold it in anymore.’
We burst out laughing.