After Math(15)

He walks backward down the hall. “I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye.”

I didn’t have my morning coffee at home in anticipation of meeting Daniel so I head to the coffee shop without him and wait in the line to place my order.

“I heard he’s actually seeing someone.” A girl in front of me says to her friend. “He was supposed to go to Scott’s party on Saturday night, and he never showed.”

The second girl lowers her chin and lifts her eyebrows. “Tucker Price skipped a party? What? Was he in jail?”

My ears perk up at the mention of Tucker’s name, but I try not to look too interested.

“No, he stayed home. Jason said he was doing homework. On a Saturday night. How insane is that?”

“Was he with someone?”

“He stayed home. You know he never takes girls to his place. And Jason said he was at his place. All weekend.”

Tucker’s alleged activity this weekend goes against everything Caroline is always telling me as well. And who’s Jason? I know he’s the dark-headed guy who talked to Tucker at the gym, but is he Tucker’s roommate?

I spend the rest of my time before Arabic trying to study, but I spend more time thinking about Tucker, and the gossip I overheard. What does it mean? Why should it matter to me? But Tucker and I are friends. He even admitted it. Doesn’t that give me the right to care?

The rest of the afternoon flies by in math lab, and I’m exhausted when I leave ten minutes late. Tucker’s standing in the shadows in the hall. He grins when he sees me.

“Tucker, what are you doing here?”

“We did it, Scarlett. We got a B-plus.”

I stop in front of him, my heart bursting with pride. “No, you did it, Tucker. You got a B-plus.”

He turns serious. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

Shaking my head, I smile. “You could have easily had another tutor help you. This was all you. You just needed to have the steps explained slower.”

“Well, thanks.” He hands me a brown gift bag he had hidden behind him. His shoulders hunch as though he’s worried I’ll refuse.

My heart flutters, and I feel lightheaded. But not in the way I usually feel when I’m anxious. This is pleasant. “What’s this?”

“A thank-you for helping me.”

I look up at him and smile. Other than Caroline and Tina, I can’t think of the last time someone has given me a gift. The bag is heavier than I expected. “What is it?”

“Open and see.”

Gifts make me awkward. People watch while I open them, and although I’m used to Tucker staring at me, he’s waiting for my reaction. That makes me more anxious than usual. I pull out the white tissue paper and start to transfer it to my other hand, but Tucker takes it from me, his mouth pressed into a tight line.

He’s nervous. Confident Tucker is nervous. Why?

Tilting the bag, I look inside and pull out a rounded object. It’s an alarm clock, but the face of the clock has equations in place of the numbers.

“I saw it and thought about you. It’s kind of stupid…”

I glance up at him, smiling. “I love it.”

“Really?”

“Really.” I can’t believe how happy I feel right now. It’s such an unfamiliar emotion that I barely recognize it. “You didn’t have to do this, Tucker. The university is paying me to tutor you. Besides, we’re friends. ”

“I know. But I wanted you to know how much I appreciate you.”

I’m nearly speechless. “Thank you.” I finally get out.

“You’re welcome.”

We stare at each other for a couple of seconds. I have no idea what he’s thinking, but I’m amazed this thoughtful guy is the same person who fuels the university’s gossip. I’m so grateful he’s part of my life.

“So what are you doing now?” he asks.

I take a deep breath. My nerves feel like they’re about to jump out of my skin. “I’m meeting someone from my Arabic class at Panera to study for a test on Wednesday.”

“Panera should give you some kind of frequent-customer discount.”

“Yeah,” I laugh. “Where are you off to?”

“Training. Then some quality time with Western civ.”

“That’s right. We have another test coming up next week.”

“Maybe we could...” Tucker shakes his head, rubbing the back of his neck, then releases a long exhale. “When do you meet your friend?”

“At six-thirty.” I shift the strap of my bag on my shoulder. “I need to get going.” My clock is still in my hand, with the handle of my bag looped over my fingers. I should put the clock in the bag, but I can’t make myself do it yet. I still can’t believe he’s given me a gift, let alone such a perfect one.