Teach Me Something New (Boyxboy)

Chapter Five

Tuesday night, Lawson made damn sure he went to bed at a reasonable time, so when his alarm went off on Wednesday, he actually woke up.

Because of this, he got to Calculus on time, even giving him a few minutes to relax before the exams were to be passed out. In the past, when he got there early for the quizzes, his relaxation time was spent sitting on his phone, but when he walked into class that morning and saw Sean in the seat next to his, he happily accepted the fact that maybe those days were gone.

When he stopped by the end of the table and slid his backpack off, Sean looked up at him, eyes looking very grey that morning due to the color of the shirt he was wearing. "How are you feeling?" He asked Lawson, and in response he gave him a somewhat hesitant smile as he took his seat.

"Honestly? Like I'm going to throw up," Lawson admitted. It drew a small chuckle out of Sean.

"You're going to be fine. We studied for the entire afternoon yesterday, and went over everything on the test," Sean reminded. There was something in his voice that was extremely calming. Lawson nodded and busied himself by removing his calculator and pencil from his backpack.

"I'm just worried that I'm going to panic and forget everything".

"You won't," Was Sean's response, and there was a confidence in his voice, that had Lawson a bit startled. Because did Sean really have that much faith in him?

At the front of the room, the tests were beginning to be passed out. Still nervous, Lawson shot Sean a look from the corner of his eye, which the other boy caught, and responded with a reassuring smile. Nothing more was said, but Lawson felt content.

They got their tests then, along with a warm smile from Blackwater, and Lawson took a moment to think about what Sean had said before bringing his attention to the paper.

***

So far in the course, Lawson had always been the last one to turn things in. Assignments, quizzes, graded notes- whatever it was, he was always the last.

So when he finished the final problem with nearly twenty minutes left in the class, he wasn't really sure what to do. He looked around the room, noting that nearly a quarter of the students were still writing, and smiled to himself.

Sean's seat was empty since he had finished nearly fifteen minutes prior, and Lawson cast a longing look at it, wishing the boy was still there. He wondered where Sean would have gone after leaving the room, and if he could find him easily. A thank you seemed necessary. For the first time ever, Lawson was going to be turning in a math exam that he didn't feel horrible about.

This must had shown on his face when he went to the front of the room, because Blackwater made a surprised face, and then grinned. "Either you've done very badly and are giving up, or you were actually prepared. Since you don't give up easily, I'm guessing it's the second".

It was a flattering statement, so he smiled in return, and then informed, "I'm pretty confident," in a voice far lower than his usual one to avoid alarming any of the people still testing.

"Good," was her response as she reached out her hand and took the exam, placing it to the top of the pile. "I look forward to grading it". It was clearly a dismissal, so Lawson went back up the aisle, stopping at his seat for only a second to pull his backpack over his shoulder.

Once again, his mind drifted back to Sean, and he found himself so lost in his thoughts of the other boy that he nearly wandered past the boy sitting in the chair outside of the lecture hall until his name was spoken. "Lawson". It startled him, but when he turned his head and saw Sean's eyes bright with amusement, he laughed. "I didn't think you'd be done so soon. I was thinking I'd be waiting here until class ended," Sean admitted, tone teasing. He stood from the chair and Lawson thought about how delighted he was with the knowledge of Sean waiting for him to get done.