𝖢𝖧𝖠𝖯𝖳𝖤𝖱 𝖳𝖧𝖱𝖤𝖤
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𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙣

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗗𝗔𝗬, Maxie made her way to her fourth-period class, AP Chemistry. It was only the second day, but Mr. Abrams had already assigned more homework than any of her other classes combined. The weight of her textbooks felt heavier as she navigated through the bustling halls.

Entering the lab, Maxie spotted her assigned seat, which happened to be next to Maia. Her best friend was hunched over her notebook, scribbling furiously with her dark hair falling over her face. Maxie smiled as she slipped into her chair, the familiar smell of Maia's lavender shampoo wafting over.

"It's the second day and you're already behind?" Maxie chuckled, arranging her supplies.

Maia looked up, her expression one of pure exasperation. "Well, not everyone likes chemistry, Maxine." She sighed, pushing her notebook away. "I had like 20 pages of math yesterday."

"It was not 20 pages," Maxie said, shaking her head.

Maia rolled her eyes dramatically. "Well, it felt like it!" She rubbed her temples.

Maxie sighed, pulling out her well-organized notebook. Sliding it over to Maia, she said, "You owe me."

"You're a literal lifesaver!" Maia's eyes lit up as she quickly began copying Maxie's notes. "I don't understand how you do this stuff so quickly."

Maxie shrugged. "Well, I had a lot of time yesterday because someone decided it was a good idea to skip out on our session."

Maia groaned. "Will you get over that? We've already established he's a dick."

"Yeah, a dick I'm being forced to tutor," Maxie muttered, her tone filled with resignation.

Their conversation was abruptly cut short as Mr. Abrams began his teaching. Yesterday, he had greeted the class with a box of donuts. Today, however, he greeted them with a dense lecture on Understanding Chemical Equations. As he began writing equations on the board, the classroom door flung open with a loud bang.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Maxie rolled her eyes as Ethan walked in.

Maia, who had just finished copying Maxie's homework, looked up and chuckled. "This is so great," she whispered, earning a light smack from Maxie.

"Sorry, I'm late, sir." Ethan handed Mr. Abrams a slip of paper. "Guidance switched around my schedule."

Mr. Abrams gave him a soft smile. "No worries, Ethan. But let's not make it a habit."

Ethan nodded and started to head towards the empty seat beside his best friend, Jordan Hayes. However, Mr. Abrams held up a hand to stop him. "Yeah, I don't think so." He scanned through his seating chart, erasing and rewriting names. "Maia."

Maia's head shot up. "Yes, sir?"

"You'll be seated next to Jordan." He pointed to the jock, who sat directly across from where she was currently seated.

"But-" Maia started to protest.

"Now, please." Mr. Abrams' tone was stern, leaving no room for argument. Maia groaned as she gathered her belongings and moved to the empty seat. Jordan greeted her with a bright smile, but she responded with a scowl. Maxie's eyes widened as she realized what this meant for her.

Maxie's eyes widened as she realized what this meant for her. "Ethan, take a seat next to Maxie," Mr. Abrams instructed. Maxie groaned internally. This was not how she had intended to spend her semester.

As Mr. Abrams continued his lecture, Ethan made his way to his new seat. "Hey," he whispered as he settled in. Maxie kept her face forward, quickly scribbling down anything she deemed noteworthy. "Psst," Ethan tried again.

She ignored him, focusing intently on her notebook.

"Look, I just wanted to say I'm sorry, alright?" Ethan's voice was low, almost pleading.

She didn't move.

Ethan scoffed, "Fine, stay silent. But this would go a lot smoother if you'd quit acting like a jerk."

It was Maxie's turn to scoff. "Oh, I'm the jerk."

"And she speaks!" Ethan exclaimed, a little too loudly.

"Need I remind you that I waited over an hour for you yesterday?" Maxie shot back.

Ethan sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I already apologized for that."

Before Maxie could respond, Mr. Abrams shot the two of them a look. "Ethan, Maxie, if you have something to share with the class, please do so. Otherwise, let's focus on the lesson."

Maxie shot Ethan one last glare before turning back to her notes. Ethan sat back in his seat, clearly frustrated but remained silent.

Mr. Abrams continued his lecture on atomic structures, writing intricate diagrams on the board. Maxie tried to focus, but she could feel Ethan's eyes on her, and it was distracting. She forced herself to concentrate on Mr. Abrams' lecture.

"Alright, class," Mr. Abrams announced, breaking her concentration. "We'll be doing a prelab today. Please pair up with your seat partner." He handed a stack of papers to the people in the front of the class, who began to pass them down.

Maxie's stomach sank. She turned slowly to face Ethan, who was already looking at her with a resigned expression. "Looks like we're stuck together," he said with a sigh.

Maxie nodded curtly and took the paper from Kelsi, who was seated in front of her. "Let's just get this done," she muttered.

They began working through the prelab questions, each scribbling furiously in their notebooks. It quickly became apparent that Ethan was struggling. He kept frowning at the paper, his pen hovering uncertainly over the questions.

"Ethan, do you even know how to start this one?" Maxie asked, trying to keep the frustration out of her voice.

Ethan sighed heavily, his shoulders slumping. Maxie took a deep breath, interpreting his silence as a 'no'.

"Alright, let's go through it step by step. This question is about balancing chemical equations. Do you remember the basic rules?"

Ethan shook his head. "Barely. I mean, I know you're supposed to have the same number of atoms of each element on both sides, but that's about it."

"Okay, that's a start," Maxie said, softening slightly. She drew a simple equation on the paper. "Look, here's an example. Let's balance H₂ + O₂ → H₂O. You start by counting the atoms of each element on both sides."

Maxie walked Ethan through the problem, explaining each step in detail. She could see the gears turning in his head as he tried to grasp the concepts.

"Okay, I think I get it now," Ethan said after they balanced a couple of practice equations. "Thanks."

"No problem," she replied. "Just keep practicing. It gets easier."

They continued to work through the prelab, with Maxie explaining concepts and Ethan trying his best to follow along.

As they wrapped up, Mr. Abrams walked around, checking each group's progress. "How's it going over here?" he asked.

"We're getting there," Maxie said, giving Ethan a slight nod of encouragement.

Mr. Abrams smiled. "Good to hear. Keep at it."

The bell rang, signaling the end of the period. Students began packing up, but Mr. Abrams called out, "Maxie, Ethan, a moment, please."

They approached his desk, both looking apprehensive. "I wanted to discuss the tutoring arrangement," Mr. Abrams began. "Ethan, I know you've had a rough start, but I expect you to take this seriously."

Ethan nodded.

"And Maxie," Mr. Abrams continued, turning to her, "I know you're reluctant, but I believe you can help Ethan. You're one of my best students."

Maxie smiled.

"Alright," Mr. Abrams said with a smile. "I expect to see improvement. Now, off to your next class."

As they walked out of the classroom, Ethan turned to Maxie but before he could speak, she beat him to it. "Give me your phone."

"What?"

"Just give me it. I got to get home."

Ethan hesitantly handed her his phone.

Maxie quickly typed in her number. "Now you have my number, so if you have another 'practice' you'll be able to let me know beforehand."

Ethan took his phone back, "Alright, thanks."

"Text me your schedule and I'll text you mine. I'm working all week, so we won't be able to have any sessions this week." Ethan nodded.

Maxie left without another word. She met up with Maia and Kelsi in the hallway. "What was that about?" Maia asked.

Maxie sighed, "This is going to be a long semester."

"I feel you," Maia rolled her eyes at the thought of the football player she had been forced to sit beside. "He wouldn't stop talking about football, and usually I can get behind that but his favorite team is the Titans. Like, come on man, the Eagles are right there!"

Maxie chuckled. "You're really going to judge someone based on their football team?"

Maia shrugged. "Hey, team loyalty is important. And besides, he was just so... obnoxious about it."

Maxie shook her head. "Well, at least you don't have to tutor him."

"Thank god," the two girls began walking but quickly noticed their pink-haired friend hadn't followed them. "Kels, you coming?"

Kelsi, who had been lost in thought, snapped out of her reverie. "What?"

The two girls sighed in unison. "Again, Kels?" Maxie asked rhetorically.

"They just broke up," Kelsi sighed, repeating Maia's words in her head.

Benjamin Lockhart and Lorelei Montgomery. The definition of what you'd expect to be high school sweethearts. The two were the most beloved couples in the entire school — which severely pissed off Rebecca Chambers who expected it to be her and Ethan. Benjamin and Lorelei (or Rory) had broken up about two weeks ago. No one knew why, but everyone wanted to know.

Kelsi had been in love with Benjamin since middle school. They were friends, and that's all they'd ever be. But, it didn't make Kelsi like him any less. She knew it was wrong, but all she wanted was a chance, and the universe had finally given it to her.

"Whatever, let's just go find Wyatt," Kelsi deflected, leading the way to their friend's classroom.

Maia and Maxie exchanged a knowing look, catching up to Kelsi and linking their arms with hers. "Did you see Jenny's hair?" Maia diverted the conversation, steering away from the topic of Benjamin and Lorelei. "I swear she changes her hair color every day."

Kelsi chuckled softly, grateful for her friends' distraction. "I wouldn't be surprised if she's the reason we run out of hair dye," she replied, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Says the pink-haired girl," Maxie joked, nudging Kelsi playfully.

Kelsi grinned, her pink hair catching the light as she glanced back at her friends. "Hey, pink is timeless. Jenny's just exploring her options," she retorted, her tone lightening further.

Maia laughed, shaking her head. "Fair enough. But if she ever goes bald, we'll know why."

INEZ SPEAKS
heyyyyy it's been way too long. but it's finally summer meaning more chaps! but i also leave for a month so then again maybe not.

we got a quick hygtg cameo 👀

also! i didn't take gr11 chem so i'm getting all this shit from google, i'm completely aware it makes no sense they started with balancing equations but it's late and i just wanted to write. it also doesn't make sense that ethan's in AP but again who cares!

here's a seating plan i made for absolutely no reason!