Hurry up! I don't want to be late for practice!
My cell phone pinged with the a text message alert. It was Ivan outside the doors of the school entrance waiting for me so he could take me home. I left my car at home because my mom needed it to drive my brother to an after school recital. I was rushing, searching my locker for the Science textbook I just signed out. How could have I lost it already?
I texted back a reply madly,
Sci. txtbook gone! need for hw
I could almost hear Ivan sigh behind me.
"You can come over tonight and borrow mine." He WAS behind me. I jumped up immediately, nearly bumping my head on the locker. I grabbed my bag and my binder and ran towards him. He was standing at the door, tapping his foot impatiently.
"Sorry," I replied meekly. Ivan sighed once more before kissing me on my head, leading the way out to his car. I stick my tongue out at him from behind.
"You know, you need to be more organized..." Ivan began. Here we go again, I rolled my eyes. Sometimes Ivan sounded like my mother, though really he was like my older brother, always caring for me. My mother was in love with Ivan, always ushering me to make him her son-in-law. I would then always remind her that we were best friends, nothing more.
"I'll try. But Britney tripped me in the hallways today, and I was late for Biology and got DT," I replied.
"Well... okay." Ivan then blasted the radio.
I hummed along to the tune of the song on the radio and then I started to burst out singing after a few verses and soon Ivan joined along. I guess it wasn't bad having a best friend like Ivan.
~~
"No, no! You're doing it wrong!" I grumbled, erasing Ivan's work.
"What AM I doing wrong?" Ivan hissed back. I was helping Ivan with his homework. Another difference between the two of us was that he didn't get as good marks as I did. In fact, if he wasn't good at athletics or theatre, he would probably be kicked out of the school.
"It's 'a' squared!" When it came to Math, it was even more difficult to tutor Ivan. He didn't get the basic, underlying simplistics to Math. I mean, it's fair that you make mistakes then and there, but he just didn't get it at all.
"You should seriously hire that Math tutor." I handed to him my answers. I had finished the sheet in less than five minutes but Ivan was still stuck on question two out of the ten questions.
"I rather have you tutor me." He winked at me with a corny grin on his face.
I glared at him, "no seriously. How are you going to get into college with these marks? Let alone that University you wanted to go into."
Ivan sighed, "I know, I know. But I don't like getting tutored by anyone else but you." He had on his puppy eyes again. I groaned. That always got me.
"Fine, fine. I decided to review my notes with him and show him an example tutorial. Maybe it could help for once-- out of the three times I already tried.
~~
"Hey! I actually got a hundred on my math assignment! THANK YOU!" Ivan pulled me into a tight bear hug, nearly choking the living daylights out of me. I noticed how some girls passed by, fuming at the scene.
"Uhm-- yeah. Your welcome?" I actually spent half the night at the Newton's, reviewing over and over and finally went to the bare basics of Math until he finally understood the concept. Ivan wasn't THAT hard to teach, but he was a slow learner so it took some time and patience. In the middle of the night, when he took me home, he smiled so sweetly at me, I could see it even in the dark. He then leaned in to kiss me on the head once more, but this time I didn't stick my tongue out at him as he left. I just felt my heart flutter for the second before returning to my bedroom, trying hard not to wake my family.
Ivan finally let go, and grinned brightly at me.
"How'd you do on your Science assignment?"
I yawned before replying. "Okay."
"What'd you get?"
"10/10."
"Okay! Let's celebrate! I'll buy you lunch for today."
I looked up at him confusingly. "But we get off early today..."
"Yah, I'll take you to the mall."
~~
We arrived at Sherbrooke Metro Mall's food court. They had rennovated it last summer, so it looked new to those who hadn't been here before but I've been here a hundred thousand times over, so it looked rather old to me. I missed those late summer nights when they opened late and where we would catch a new flick to watch together.
"So, what do you want?" Ivan pulled out his wallet, and grabbed a wad of cash. "I have maybe... fifty bucks."
I giggled. "I don't think we need fifty bucks for lunch."
"Not if a viewing of a film could be included." Ivan winked at me. He looked so whole-hearted today. It wasn't like he was unhappy before, but today there was like a ring of silver light around him. I then followed him to a food kiosk before he would get too far ahead.
~~
We finished our lunch and the viewing of Ninja Power and were now wandering off mindlessly around the mall. Just like those usual summer nights. Ivan and I were chatting about the plot and whether the movie was good or not. I thought the plot was too similiar to those other action movies while Ivan believed that the movie had a twist to it. We were heading to the stage of the mall then realizing that something was happening on stage.
On a banner read, COUPLE CONTEST! WIN A TRIP TO SAN FRANCISCO, A NIGHT AT A FOUR-STAR HOTEL!
Ivan then turned to me with a huge, goofy grin on his face. I knew what this meant.
"No. We're NOT going to pretend to be a couple!"
"Hey! Don't ruin my happy mood." And just like that, I gave in and he dragged me to my peril, up on the stage, in front of the fifty or so spectators.