cool » l. hemmings

xxviii.

I was beyond thankful it had stopped raining by this morning, because even if I do like rain I wasn't prepared to walk into school looking like I got thrown into the ocean. Not that it was that far of a walk; I just hate going to school in the rain.

And exams were today, which I wasn't looking forward to. Even with Luke being nice and telling me I knew everything, I guarantee he was just doing it because he was my friend.

We were both walking along the pavement, sometimes avoiding the puddles left behind and other times soaking our converse from the inside out. When I kicked water from one of them over to Luke, it hit his pant leg. "Seriously, the only thing you're absolutely horrible at is Chemistry. We only started helping you a few weeks ago but still. You'll do fine, Michelle," he told me, attempting to get rid of the feeling of soaking wet jeans clinging to his leg.

My hand ran through my hair nervously, and I tried not to mess it up under the beanie that held it all back. "We have Chemistry last period, if I completely flunk its your fault--"

"You told me that already," he chuckled, dropping his head down and shaking it after looking at me.

"--and its your fault if I cry."

Luke's eyes rolled, pulling me across the street just as a car passed by. "Oh, believe me, I'll cry with you. Final exams are absolute shit."

"Well you're reassuring," I said.

A grin stretched across his face and he swung his arm around my shoulders, bringing me closer. "I am."

"Luke," I whined. We were five minutes away from school now, though the mist from the humidity wasn't allowing me to get a clear view of the old building.

Our feet moved sloppily next to each other, and after laughing at me tripping over a crack in the pavement, he replied nonchalantly, "Hmm?"

"You can't do that." As much as I enjoyed it.

"What?" Luke's hair was also hidden behind a beanie today, which I was looking forward to because when ever he took it off his hair went all flat and I found it incredibly cute.

"This!" I waved my arm in a motion I'm not too sure was even directing to an exact thing.

"But you said--"

"I said after the month is over."

"Whatever," Luke muttered, obviously not liking the fact that I was right. "We need to go to class anyway."

I hated that whenever we seemed to land on the topic of the two of us, Luke really didn't see how bad it would actually be if Brooke had the knowledge of me holding hands and cuddling with her boyfriend. Not only the consequences for me -- because I doubt she likes me enough to not doing anything -- but also for him, even if all he wanted was to end it with her. I wasn't going to allow him to end it with this.

"Morning, Lucas," our teacher, Mrs. Adams, smiled. "Michelle."

Both of us waved a small wave to her and I went to go sit at the very back in the corner. I wasn't expecting Luke to follow (and I don't know why I wasn't), but he sat directly next to me.

"You're good at English at least, right?" Luke turned to me, pulling at the strings of his hoodie.

I nodded, actually confident that this is one exam that I would definitely make it through. At one point I wanted to study to become an editor, since English was something I enjoyed and so was writing.

Luke was looking at me, with me not knowing exactly what to do. He chuckled, "Your face is still fun to look at. Your nose twitches like a bunny sometimes."