When Charlie and Maria walked into the student lounge with intertwined hands and equally flushed cheeks, their friends almost fell out of their chairs.
"Well, would you look at that?" Knox whistled, excitement practically gleaming off of his eyes.
Meeks quickly recovered from his shock and clapped his hands together in excitement. "I knew it! I knew it was going to happen soon," he exclaimed and then pulled a small pocketbook out of his pants. He thumbed through the pages and Charlie and Maria shared similar odd looks and approached their friends.
"That means..." Meeks stuck out his tongue and looked over the writing on the pages, quickly counting on his fingers. "That means... Todd's won the wager! Todd!"
Todd grinned triumphantly, holding out this hand and making a beckoning motion. "Pay up, gentlemen," he said, chuckling.
Maria stared at him, mouth open wide as the other boys dug through their pockets and forked over his winning money. "You didn't..." she shook her head in disbelief. "You actually wagered on us?"
The others shrugged.
"Why ever not?"
"Men can never resist a gamble."
"Of course we did."
Neil, still wearing a smirk on his face, placed a bill into Todd's hands and then rounded on Charlie. He looped his arm around Charlie's neck, pulling him down into a headlock and the two of them wrestled about for a minute before Neil secured the upper hand. "You really couldn't have waited a week longer, Slick?" Neil asked, flicking Charlie in the ear. "I wasted my entire childhood befriending you and you couldn't sense that I needed you to wait a little longer before wooing Maria. I've lost a twenty cause of you now."
Charlie rolled his eyes, shaking Neil off with a shove. "Sorry to disappoint," he replied with a lazy grin. His eyes flicked over to Maria, softening for just a moment before he cast her a flirtatious wink. "Couldn't help myself."
Maria rolled her eyes.
Charlie chuckled, pulling her closer to him so that her back was against his chest. "You know you love it," he said, looping his arms around her. Affection - particularly public displays of affection - came easily to Charlie, even more so when it was toward Maria. He wouldn't deny that it made him feel better to know that all the other boys at Welton could very well see that his girl wasn't available to them any longer.
Charlie had called dibs once upon a time, and Charlie had earned his dibs.
Maria hummed and then smiled slyly. "Lucky for you, I couldn't help myself either," she retorted and tapped her finger against his jaw. "We're just too irresistible, I guess."
Charlie made a cheeky face, pleasantly pleased with this side of Maria that he was now privy to. He moved to wrap his arms around her waist possessively and laid his chin on her shoulder. "You all listen here," he said, to no one in particular, "Maria Keating and I, Charlie Dalton, are going steady. Heed my warning now you bastards."
Their friends cooed, hooting and hollering and mainly teased Charlie as Maria wriggled out of his grasp, growing shy as Charlie played up the protective boyfriend trope.
Gosh, Maria smiled to herself. Boyfriend.
Charlie Dalton was really her boyfriend.
A part of her couldn't believe it - even though just moments ago, they had been up in their room kissing in a way that only a boyfriend and girlfriend would. She blushed, thinking back to how it had felt. She had kissed other boys before - William Lowery in eighth grade Algebra and James Kenneth in the summer just before she left for Vermont, but kissing Charlie, someone who actually was her boyfriend and not just some boy who had taken a fancy to her and decided he wanted to kiss her, was entirely something else.
This was Charlie, her boyfriend, and kissing him was exhilarating.
Charlie's voice pulled her back to the present. "Hey, what are you thinking about," he whispered by her ear, his breath tickling her skin.
"Just you," Maria said softly.
Charlie's face softened at that and he laid a quick kiss to the side of her head. "I like this side of you," he smiled.
"Did you really write that paper, Dalton?" A boy in the lounge perked up, directing his question at Charlie and pulling the two out of their little bubble.
"What happened in Nolan's office?" Another asked.
"Why'd you write it?"
Charlie, always a little too eager for attention, took up a seat - a comfortable seat - and launched into a dramatic retelling of the events. "Well," he began, "I've been thinking, you know. It's 1959, not the dark ages any longer, so why not let girls have the opportunity to go to Hell-ton if they really wanted to? I just couldn't stand it anymore, so I went decided to make a serious statement. I wanted to go over there, to Nolan and -"
Maria interrupted him, playfully rolling her eyes. "Charlie, you make it sound like you single-handedly took down the entire administration."
Charlie looked up at her. She was perched atop the arm of the couch he was sitting on so he could brace his hand on her knee and enjoy the comfort that touching her brought him. It helped to soothe his mind that it was all real - that Maria was really his girlfriend.
"You see, doll. I totally could've taken down the entire administration if I so desired," he said. "I just... don't find it worthwhile."
The group laughed at that and then Charlie urged someone to pass him a set of bongos everyone crowded around him. He hit the bongoes as he lowered his voice into a dramatic range and mimed Nolan's footsteps.
"Creak," Charlie mimicked. "He started walking towards my left. Creak. Creak. Then...'Assume the position, Mr. Dalton-"
Just then the door of the student lounge opened and Keating walked in, startling the listeners. Many of the boys got up from their seats, moving to disperse around the room.
"It's all right, gentlemen," Keating said, waving them down.
"Mr. K," Charlie greeted.
"Mr. Dalton," Keating said. "That was a pretty lame stunt you pulled today."
Charlie blinked, taken back. "You're siding with Mr. Nolan?" Charlie asked, shifting in his seat. "What about Carpe diem and sucking all the marrow out of the life and all that?"
Keating looked thoughtful for a moment. "Sucking the marrow out of life doesn't mean choking on the bone. Sure there's a time for daring and there's time for caution and a wise man -" he looked over at his niece too, "- or a wise woman understands which is called for and when."
"But I thought you'd like it," Charlie said.
"No," Keating said. "You being expelled from school is not daring to me. It's stupid, 'cause you'll miss some golden opportunities."
"Yeah. Like what?"
"Like," Keating started and then suddenly noticed where Maria was sitting and how Charlie Dalton was resting a hand on her knee and he held back a grin. "Like, if nothing else, the opportunity to attend my classes. The opportunity," he nodded at Charlie and Maria, "to date my niece."
Both Charlie and Maria flushed at that and Charlie seemed to then register where his hand was and quickly removed it, dropping it into his lap as red crept up his neck.
Maria looked away, eyes darting around the room and quite expertly avoiding her uncle's grin.
"Got it, Ace?" Keating asked.
Charlie nodded, recovering quickly. "Aye, aye, Captain."
Keating smiled at that. "Keep your head about you. That goes for the lot of you."
"Yes, Captain," the boys chorused in unison.
"And Maria Joanne Keating," Keating called out, not willing to let go of such a precious moment. He had been waiting on the day he could embarrass her in front of a boyfriend and a part of him was almost giddy that the day had finally come.
His niece winced and hummed in reply as Keating put on a stern face, crossing his arms over his chest for the drama. "We'll discuss this later, young lady."
As it was with teenage boys, they couldn't help but voice their thoughts and a chorus of "ooh's" filled the lounge.
Maria sighed, rolling her eyes, knowing full well her uncle wasn't being serious. "Uncle John," she said, meeting his gaze and showing that she in no way believed his tone.
Keating grinned, dropping his arms to his side. "Just kidding," he said and swallowed a laugh at the relief that practically seeped from Charlie's body. Not so fast, buddy. "But, don't get too chummy, Mr. Dalton. I've got my eyes on you from now on."
Charlie straightened immediately and Maria pressed a hand to her mouth, hiding a laugh.
"Aye, aye, Captain," Charlie said seriously.
Keating watched the two of them with amusement, feeling a sense of pride and fondness for them, for this particular group of students, especially - not that he'd ever admit it.
"Well, I'll let you all get back to whatever mischief you were all planning," he said, turning to leave and then scoffed playfully. "Phone call from God. If it had been collect, it wouldn't been daring."
He left and the boys gathered around Charlie once again.
Maria reached down to find Charlie's hand and intertwined their fingers. "Don't take what he says too seriously," she said affectionately, squeezing his hand. "He's just being funny."
Charlie looked at her for a moment, not quite believing her, but brought their intertwined hands up to his lips and kissed the back of Maria's hand. "Okay," he said cheekily. "I'll believe you, doll. Anything you say is bible to me."
Maria smiled at that.
"Now," Charlie said and turned back to the gathered group, still holding Maria's hand. "Going on..."
••●••
Keating bit back an amused chuckle when he noticed the not-so-subtle seating arrangement change in his class that morning. Instead of being posited in the back of the class like the class clown or rebel-wannabe that he was, Charlie Dalton was seated at the front of the classroom like a model student.
However, the class he appeared to be attending wasn't junior English but was a class solely dedicated to staring at Maria Keating.
Keating strode to the front of the room, stopping in the space between Charlie and Maria's desk. He leaned forward, bracing his hands on either desk and addressed the rest of the class. "Good morning, boys, lady," he said, looking around the room. "I hope you all had a good night's rest because today, we're going to be diving into the world of Shakespeare's sonnets."
A chorus of groans followed.
Keating smiled to himself, glancing down at Charlie who hadn't groaned at his proclamation because he was barely paying attention in the first place, his eyes fixed only on Maria.
"Now, I know that Shakespeare's sonnets - particularly his love sonnets - can be quite captivating," Keating said, a sly grin creeping on his face. "But let's leave the swooning for after class, shall we? We're here to learn, remember."
Maria blushed at that, sending Charlie an admonishing expression with which he just merely winked back in response.
The class chuckled and Keating straightened, but his grin was still in place. "Now, let's begin with Sonnet 18," he said, turning to the board and launching into his lesson.
Throughout the lesson, Keating would catch Charlie or even Maria a little distracted, and he couldn't resist the opportunity to make subtle jabs at the two love birds, commenting on their lack of attention or their fixation on one another.
Charlie, took it all with easy stride, grinning cheekily and even playing along with Keating's teasing.
As the class drew to a close, Keating turned to Charlie with a mock-stern expression. "I hope you're taking notes, Mr. Dalton," he said. "There'll be a quiz on this material in the coming week and I assure you there won't be a question on what colour Maria's hair shines in the sunlight."
Maria rolled her eyes at that as the class laughed.
Charlie grinned, leaning back in his chair. "Don't worry, Captain," he said. "I'll be ready."
Keating chuckled, dismissing the class with a wave of his hand. As the boys filed out of the room, Keating leaned back in his seat as he watched Charlie grab hold of Maria's books for her and the two of them walked out, following their friends for lunch.
"Young love," he mumbled to himself, shaking his head in amusement. "Never a dull moment."
He then made a mental note to call Alyssa who hadn't been privy to this new chapter in their precious niece's life just yet. Oh, he could only imagine how excited she would be - absolutely, positively giddy.
He smiled to himself. Love, it was quite precious, wasn't it?
••●••
The group was enjoying their last bit of autumn coolness before the biting winter met Vermont, seated on a thick blanket on the grass, right by the wharf.
They had already finished their homework for the day and so they lounged about. Meeks and Pitts had stopped working on their satellite radio to attempt to develop plans for something else - something they both swore was far more formidable than a simple radio. What exactly they were working on, the group wasn't so sure and they weren't at all inclined to ask, not with that "mad-scientist-like" look Meeks would give them.
Another bout of girly giggles made Cameron look up from his work and frown.
Charlie sat with Maria in his lap, her back pressed against his chest and his mouth by her ear. He whispered something and Maria giggled again.
"Oh, get a room," Cameron muttered, rolling his eyes at them despite the good-natured smile on his face. It was good - he thought - that his friend was happy, but he couldn't bat away the jealousy that gnawed at his chest. What he would give for that too.
Charlie looked over to grin at him. "Sure," he said. "How's it sound if I use ours?"
Maria gasped lightly, her cheeks growing pink as she turned back to Charlie with wide eyes.
He grinned at her, winking. "I can think of a few things that we can do better in the solitude of a room, doll."
"Charlie," Maria let out a scandalous breath, realizing quite quickly that her boyfriend was merely messing with his roommate, and it was just too fun not to play along.
"Absolutely not," Cameron shot back quickly, but Charlie acted as if he hadn't heard him.
"You hear that, doll?" He asked Maria, lifting her chin with his fingers to give her a peak. "Let's take it up to my room. Cameron's practically begging us to. I imagine we could get ourselves a Queen-size bed if we push mine and Cameron's bed together."
"Dalton."
Maria rolled her eyes, laughing at the indignant expression on Cameron's face, and placed a hand on Charlie's cheek. "Oh, my sweet," she said, "don't torture Cameron so."
Charlie smiled at her, reaching up to close his hand over hers and pulling it from his face to place a kiss on the palm of her hand. "Call me that and I'll do everything you say," he said in a low voice. "Absolutely anything."
"Is that so, my sweet?"
Charlie let out an exaggerated breath as Maria fluttered her eyelashes. "Absolutely," he said. He bent down to nuzzle her nose. "Tell the church. I'm resigning my faith and worshipping you only. Everything about you is bible - gospel even."
Maria giggled and she braced her fingers behind Charlie's neck to guide him to her mouth for a kiss.
Cameron, having sensed that the two love-birds had entered their own little world again, rolled his eyes and turned back to his work.
••●••
Neil and Todd were headed towards the wharf, wanting to be some distance away to practice lines. Todd held the play in his hands, eyes following the words as Neil, who brandished a long stick for fun, yelled out his lines dramatically.
"Here villain, draw and ready, where art thou?" Neil said.
"I will be with thee straight," Todd read the next line
Neil gestured dramatically. "Follow me then, to plainer ground," he said and then swing his long stick around in the air, turning to Todd with an excited expression. "Ahh, I love it!"
"What?" Todd asked, looking up. "The scene?"
"No, acting," Neil smiled. "Acting's got to be one of the most wonderful things in the world. Think about it, most people, if they're lucky, get to lead half an exciting life, right? But if I get the parts, I could live dozens of great lives."
He wielded his stick as a sword, swinging it back and forth in the air. "To be or not to be that is the question! Yaaaaaaa, for the first time in my life I feel completely alive. You, you should come to rehearsals."
Todd's eyebrows flicked upwards in surprise. "Oh, I should?"
"Yes, it's the best," Neil said, looking away. His cheeks turned pink. "I know they need people to run the lights and stuff."
"Nah, I don't think..." Todd said hesitatingly.
"Come on... girls, the one who plays Hermia is incredible," Neil said, turning back to Todd. He hoped that would pique Todd's interest.
"Yeah?" What's she look like?"
Neil grinned and shrugged. "What, you're not coming, forget it, forget it, go back, go back, go back," he brandished his long stick, waving it wildly around in the air.
Todd laughed, lounging towards him. "Follow me to plainer ground. Yeah art thou there?"
"What?" Neil blinked.
"Uhh, yea art thou there?" Todd repeated.
Neil screamed. "Put more into it!"
Todd screamed back, amusement shining from his eyes. "Yea, art thou there!"
"That's it, that's it," Neil nodded satisfied. "Follow my voice, we'll try no manhood here."
And then Neil grinned impishly, moving to swat Todd playfully with the stick and Todd began hitting him back with the playbook.
••●••
Back on the grass, Maria leaned into Charlie, settling in as he wrapped his arms around her. She looked towards the wharf - towards the lake - where Neil and Todd screamed and laughed, chasing each other around.
She smiled softly to herself and looked up at Charlie. "When do you think they'll know?" She asked in a whisper.
Charlie's lips twitched and he shrugged. "Wanna start a wager?"