Chapter 12

(Unedited)

"Morning, Hemsworth," Christian greets as he proudly shows off his makeup artistry as it meshed with a hoodie that had a statement of who must wear the crown must bear its weight. A questionably notable stance at what he was he was trying to state. His faded tan pants conversed in comparison. The all-familiar greeting of Hemsworth always seemed to slide right off his perfectly arched lips. The lips that I knew I shouldn't and most definitely shouldn't be thinking about, even if we did nearly kiss at his house the night before.

"I think," I said as I tried to formulate some ideas as I tried to come up with something I could think of in class today. Aside from overused algorithms, I thought that was enough to be successful. "You should have your uniform on," I tell him as I trace the top middle crack of my lip with my tongue as my confidential strategy slides down to zero again.

"See you in class, Hemsworth," he tells me as he takes off his hoodie, revealing his school blazer as some of his pale skin slides up underneath, as though it were being played out by some Hollywood cliché teen romance drama without the background sound playing. Even if it had, I wasn't sure I would notice. Reality sets in as I realise I would have to get through class first.

Every step I take towards class reminds me of how Animal Farm had been written in total retrospect of irony. The effect that it took for Orwell to speak of nations during World War II as animals that would strike against the cruelty of the farmer who owned them as the roles were reversed. This statement we had learned in English Literature in freshman year, how I could conjure any possible relation towards secret worlds that we're forced to hold amongst ourselves.

The bell announces the beginning of class, revealing that I had just made it as I entered the classroom. Mr Olsten, standing at the whiteboard writing some notes down for the class, placed beside Christian. A marshmallow puffed smile arises on his face, and I quickly look away. Before I can say anything, a set of papers fall in front of me on the best, knowing they can only be the test. Grabbing one, I pass the test back behind me.

My earbuds ring as I listen to the sounds of a popped-up version of Tonight, Tonight as I review notes Christian has been sending me through text. Notes that I hadn't repaired in my brain as I tried to solve the puzzle of physics explanations. Stress and anxiety added to the perplexed misery of what had already been dolled up as physics's mathematical and scientific methodologies are nagging my mind. I worked out what notes Christian and I had worked up. Each moment was piling up until the end of class.

***

"You want to talk about it?" Christian's voice fills up the jeep as I slide in. "You look like someone just murdered Rylo Ken without telling you," he adds. However, I wasn't sure if he was aware of the irony in his statement, happy for the fact he was caught up on his Star Wars knowledge. Or maybe he just knew because the spoiler had been so old now; everyone knew about it before it could ever be confirmed if Kylo and Rey were siblings or not.

"It's Kylo, not Rylo," I corrected him as I tried not to smile at the fact that he had gotten this generation of Vader's name wrong or not. In Christian form, he had probably reached the name wrong on purpose as I lightly hit him on the arm.

"I'm not sure I'm friends with you now," I tell him, more as a pushover excuse than anything else. "I'm more offended by you getting Star Wars wrong," I finished the statement I was saying instead of telling him the real issue I should have ensued. I could have quickly asked him, as I remembered he was taking the class.

"Too late. You don't get to decide that," Christian states as he looks out of his window towards the rest of the students finishing coming out the school as they walk to wherever they are headed to. "That'll be my decision. The world doesn't get to decide it for me," Christian adds, as he slides back into Christian fashion as he heads to a destination that only Christian would know. A mysterious ride that I had gotten all familiar with over time.

It's no longer a mystery as arcade luxury fills the scene. Claw machines with hypnotic music, waiting for those who have no idea what to do to get frustrated as they waste away their money until they've mastered the dynamics of the games. Motorbike machines, moving into this generation's virtual reality, various versions of games add up for player points.

"Welcome to a place filled with nothing but STEM. It's an arcade in easy terms," Christian tells me happily, as he had just been dying to hang out in this place for a while now. As a few other players celebrate victories in games that they had the patience for, a few more players join in on the arcade fun as we stand there wondering where to start.

"I'm horrible at these," I point out as I tell him the truth. It had been a while since I'd gone to an arcade, and the last time was when I got lost with Dryden at the mall once when we were still in middle school. At the time, Dryden and I had decided to check out stores that would sustain our entry to our eighth-grade graduation dance.

That was also when I had secretly wanted to go with Xakery Keeton. Although I knew I had never stood a chance, I never found the integrity to ask him, as I knew he'd attend with someone else if he had even wanted to go at all. After Dryden and I were found, instead of waiting until we got home to receive the scolding, I heeded scoldings in front of everyone present in the store. My dream of attending the dance was crushed and deeply damaged from then on.

"You're in luck because you've got me to show you," he tells me as he grabs my wrist as Christian beelines me to the claw machines. The ones with the tiny fluffy figurines can go on backpacks or bookshelves. He watches me a few times as he watches through the plexiglass window, trying to guide me through to a miniature koala bear, and each time I miss. Finally, seeing how I'm getting annoyed as many players before me, Christian explains how the machines work angles and trigonometry.

"So the trick is the algorithm, the law of motion and time?" I ask though I was sure that I had already been defeated, no longer interested in the koala bear. I just wanted something to prove that I could easily do this, as I set my hand on the directional knob to direct the angle of where I wanted it to go-another miss.

"Hemsworth, you're overthinking it," Christian tells me as he places his hand on top of mine. "Otherwise, you just spent about ten dollars to show defeat," he adds, as his head chin is close enough on my shoulder, I almost all lose focus when the claw lands on a prize. "Now," Christian tells me as I close the award in the mechanical claw, as I hope gravity and engineering keep it closed.

As I grab it, I discover a fluffy apple keychain. I wasn't sure what was happening with Christian being so close to me. My thoughts blurred as his hand rested on my shoulder, and I felt the heat from a blush on my face starting to commence. "Hold this. It's yours. Please." I jumble all my words together as I hold out the keychain to him. "For being a good coach," I add, as I place the apple in his palm before he can say anything otherwise.

"Very well, young Jedi," Christian says as he slides his hand into his hoodie pouch and bows as he tries to keep it warm. I sigh slightly as I relieve some strangled agony simultaneously as we lunge forward and head towards the basketball hoops that are always on timers. Each player knows that they have forty seconds to master velocity and gravity methods, as the timer counts down to put pressure on. Basketball players often use this method to place better at the sport. Most would look at it as a method to throw a ball, whereas people who play with numbers could use it for experience in just that; math.

"Let's shoot some hoops," I tell him as I pertain to the idea in my head. "But there's a catch," I add, as I knew that this would get his interest. He pretends to think about this as he brushes some of his hair out of his eyes.

"Alright, I'll bite. What's the catch?" he asks as he grabs a ball and holds it to his side, already making a plan to win, given the advantage that he's better at math than I am. However, I wasn't sure how good he was at basketball. Maybe, I'd be lucky, and he'd be worse than I was, where I had no athletic ability.

"I win I'll I don't know," I tell him, knowing it doesn't sound at all like a fair trade for something that he'd want, and knowing Christian, he'd tell me that as well, as I grab a basketball to my side, showing that I was ready for this challenge to start.

"You can't pertain a bet if you have no idea what the bet is," Christian stated. "How about this? I win. You get to watch those old school movies in my room," Christian tells me as some onlooking players are looking for other games to play as we hold up the basketball game.

"You're cute, but can we start this game? Others are waiting to play?" I ask as I insert money for the timer to begin. When it does, without hesitation, I aim. My angle was ultimately off as I only hit the chain to my right, Christian already getting two shots in. My counter timing out as I throw another shot, finally making a point. Christian knocked the basketball out of my hand, making it fall to the ground, and I proclaimed that it didn't count, as his count is shown as three compared to my two.

"You don't hate old-school monsters, do you?" Christian asks as I show my defeat. The idea of a rematch pops in my head; as I wonder whether to tell him or not. If I did, I was sure that I'd be able to beat him this time. His eyes meet mine as if we had the same thought.

"Rematch. I'll buy nachos from the food court," I tell him, keeping the same confidence as the Luke from yesterday seems to have gained confidence; the confident Luke who seemed happy around Christian.

"If I win again, I'm not winning a stuffed teddy bear for you to cuddle with," Christian glad announced as a family walked by, most likely judging the primary setting that they were seeing, deciding whether their principals were safe or not. My attention reaches back to Christian as I see his score now stands at two and mine at zero. As I shoot the ball and then chase after Christian, our scores are now even. I hit a second acute angle to place the ball in without another thought, making it a two-one score.

Christian wraps his arms around me from behind me, bracing me in a hug as though he gained the idea from those cheesy movies my mother had been obsessed with watching. "I knew you'd get the idea of it," I hear him announce as we step out of the way of the basketball hoops for others to use, as the echo of a song from one of the Netflix series echoed in the background.

"I still need to work on angles. I don't think I got my angles right," I tell him as I didn't think an acute angle would work in basketball by one person. Of course, my knowledge could still sustain being wrong, and my assumption of sharp angles working is mathematically incorrect.

"Someone owes me nachos," Christian reminds me as we head to the front of the arcade. "However, I have one small thing to do first," He mentions to me as we stop in front of a claw machine with stuffed teddy bears. I stand there, showing silent support as he wins a rainbow glittered polar bear.

"Thought you weren't winning me a teddy bear to cuddle with," I tell him as he places the polar bear on my shoulder, which gains a smile from me. In return, I get his a smirk; something deemed worthy of being considered a smile in terms of Christian.

"I got me an apple," Christian tells me as he places an earbud in his ear, no doubt putting on one of his playlists. Then placed his right hand in his hoodie. Before we leave, he places the other earbud in my ear, a song about broken love playing as we walk together towards the food court.