Dane

Friday is here. Getting to pet Elmo had relaxed me a great deal, and I'm not sure how I can thank Mackenzie properly without looking or sounding like an idiot. How she'd figured out something that would help me actually chill a bit was beyond me. Practice had felt better than it had in days after being at her place, wrapping up another computer science assignment, and getting to talk to her about something that wasn't school. Plus, tonight we had a party, and I was hoping I could just relax and have a drink and hang out with my team mates, and maybe Amy wouldn't ruin this one for me.

Computer science is finally starting to make sense. As I sit in class, I get what our professor is saying and I can follow along as he talks through some new concepts. I don't really believe in God, but I thank him anyway for Mackenzie's help.

Before I know it, our hour is up. Since I sit near the back, I'm the last one out the door.

"Mr. Sawyer." My professor's voice stops me. I step back one step and turn to him.

"Yes, professor?"

"You've done a lot better on your last two assignments." He tells me. Something about his tone makes me slightly nervous.

"Yes." I agree.

"I have to ask. Are you cheating?" I stare at him, because I've never been accused of cheating. "It's just that, you did so poorly on your first assignments. One of them you got a 5% on, I was considering kicking you out of my class." He's not wrong, I did absolutely awful on some of the assignments. Before Mackenzie, I hadn't gotten above a 35% on any of them. "To go from that to a perfect score on your recent assignments, I have to wonder--" He trails off.

"I got a tutor." I blush a little as I say it, because I'm not used to admitting that I need help at school.

"Oh!" He claps his hands together. "That's great news. May I ask who?" I can tell he's still suspicious, perhaps that I'm paying someone off, just like Mackenzie had said I wanted to do.

"Mackenzie Brooks?" I say, hoping that he knows her name.

"Oh, yes, Ms. Brooks." He breathes a sigh of relief. I would have never thought that name-dropping Mackenzie would cause a professor to get off my back. "That is--" He pauses, trying to think of words. "Excellent. She is--" He takes a deep breath. "Excellent." I try hard not to laugh.

"Yeah, she's great." I say. It comes out kind of lame.

"Well, since it's Mackenzie--" My professor looks me in the eyes now. "I know how important it is to keep your grades up, for baseball." I nod. "I can't let you retake your quizzes, but, I am willing to let you redo your first six assignments. For a maximum score of 70%, if you do perfectly." I stare at him, thinking that this must be too good to be true. This is a game changer, because our assignments are a massive part of our grade, and failing the first six was already putting me so far behind where I needed to be that I had been calculating how well I needed to do on the final. That's what had contributed to my mid-week breakdown.

"70%." I repeat, just to make sure I hear him correctly.

"Yes. If you do them right."

"Professor, thank you."

"Due in a week." He adds. My heart drops a little, because that's a lot of work to get done so soon, but I'll do it, if it means that I can get my grade up. I'm currently sitting at an F, and I've got three weeks to get my grade back up before Coach has to take disciplinary action.

"Of course. I'll make it work. Thank you so much."

"Thank Ms. Brooks." He says, and turns and snaps his laptop shut. "She's one of the best students I've had in years that wasn't a comp sci major. Honest to a fault. I know she wouldn't let you cheat." He's not wrong.

"I will. Thank you, professor."

"You're welcome, Mr. Sawyer. Email me your assignments as you complete them." With that he tucks his laptop under his arm and walks out of the room. I'm left staring after him, feeling a wild mixture of emotions.

We're having a baseball party tonight, but one of the other baseball houses is hosting it. Six assignments is a lot of assignments to redo in a week, on top of all of my other homework, baseball practice, and lifting. I hate myself as soon as it occurs to me that I'll have a lot more work time if I just skip the party and work on this instead.

The real trick will be convincing Mackenzie to give up her Friday night to help me. As I jog across campus to make it to my next class I pull out my phone.

D: I've won the lottery

M: Does that mean you can pay me more per session?

I chuckle at her response as I fling open the door to the biology building and sprint up a flight of stairs. Luckily, this is another lecture and I am able to secure a seat in the back of the room.

D: Not that lottery

M: Seems like you lied to me then

D: Comp sci prof is letting me redo my first six assignments

M: Nice

D: I need your help

M: Of course you do

D: Please

M: Ok

Mackenzie is literally a godsend, but I'm still not sure she's going to be willing to give up one of her only free times of the week to help me with this.

D: What are you up to tonight?

M: Being the lamest roommate 🙄

D: Which means?

M: Newspaper editing

D: Think you can spare some brain cells for me?

M: Don't you have a party tonight?

D: I've only got a week to do these assignments

M: Damn, prof g is brutal

M: You're going to miss a party for comp sci?

D: I'm failing

D: No baseball if I fail

M: Makes sense

I can picture her nodding along with my reasoning. I'm weirdly excited to get her help and get this done. Partying is fun, but Amy has been at every party I've been to so far this year, and she's either necking Grant, insulting me, or trying to throw herself at me. I can't decide which one is worse, only that it's making parties considerably less fun.

I glance up at the board and scribble down some notes. Luckily, today is a review day for our first test.

D: If I bring you dinner, can you help me while editing?

M: Sure, better be a good dinner

M: No shitty student center pizza

D: You name it, I'll get it

I'm distracted by someone actually asking a relevant question, so I set my phone down. I still feel like I've won the lottery. The rest of my classes fly by until baseball practice.

Noah is waiting for me outside of my last class so that we can walk to the field together. He apparently can read my face like a fucking book. "You look like you've got news."

"Prof G is letting me redo all the assignments I failed."

"Bro, that's awesome." Noah claps me on the back.

"They're due next Friday."

"Fuck." Noah draws out the word. "That's a lot of work."

"Yeah." I look at him, trying to find the words to tell him that I'm gonna bail on him tonight.

"Oh no." He says, reading my facial expression. "You're ditching us tonight?"

"Bro, I've got to get my grade up. I'm flat out failing. Coach has already told me that I've gotta figure my shit out." I tell him.

"Is Mackenzie gonna help you tonight?"

"Yeah."

"Bro, you don't deserve that girl's help." Noah gives me a look.

"I know."

"She is far too nice to you."

"I know." I agree again.

"Spending Friday with Mack instead of the cleat chasers." Noah sighs. "What has your life become?" Noah shrugs. "Honestly, Mack is pretty cool. I'm kind of jealous." I glance at him in surprise.

"Do you like her?" I feel like I'm asking for the tenth time.

"Nah, not like that. I honestly kind of just want to be her friend." I've never heard Noah say anything like this before. I wonder if someone has drugged him. "She's just really smart."

"Uh-huh." I agree, giving Noah the look now.

"It's practice time. Focus up." Noah slaps me on the arm as we approach the field, and we drop the ever-interesting topic of Mackenzie Brooks.

Practice is brutal. I'm laying on the field afterwards, basically seeing stars when my phone buzzes again. It's Mackenzie with her dinner order. Before I can reply, Noah steals my phone. "Seeing as you don't have a car on campus today, guess I'll have to drive you to get this." I had totally forgotten that fact. It meant I was going to have to wheedle a car ride home from Mackenzie as well.

Once we shower and obtain dinner, Noah drives me back to campus and follows me into the student center like a lost puppy. It's pretty quiet, since it's nearly 7 on a Friday night. The newspaper office is lit up, and Mackenzie is sitting inside, clearly focused.

When I try the door, it's unlocked, but I don't miss Mackenzie's startled little jump. It's extremely cute. I immediately push the thought away.

"Hey." She says, and then her eyes go to Noah. "Noah!"

Mackenzie stands and hugs Noah, who gives her a huge hug back. I'm mind blown. I've never seen Noah hug anyone except for his mother. I think my jaw may have dropped open, but the two totally ignore me.

"Mack!" Noah pulls away. "I just wanted to come check on you and make sure that Dane hasn't totally ruined your life."

"He has." Mackenzie says with a wide smile. "But don't worry, I'll get him back one of these days." Noah laughs. "God, I haven't seen you at all this semester. Other than you torturing me biking in the gym. How's Professor Harris? That class is supposed to be brutal." I don't even know who Professor Harris is, and I live with Noah.

"Oh man, so rough." Noah shakes his head. "Last week, he kicked Chloe out of lecture for chewing her gum too loud."

"Oof." Mackenzie winces. "I don't envy you in the slightest."

"Hey, you and your roommates should come to our party next week. Our house is hosting." Noah says this like it just occurred to him, but I'm sure he's been planning this for a while. "Give you something fun to look forward to after helping this idiot all week." Noah slaps me on the back and I glare at him.

"Yeah, that could be fun." Mackenzie doesn't sound like she believes what she's saying. "I'll ask my house."

"Sweet." Noah gives her a fist bump, and then gives me a punch in the shoulder. "See you two later." He shuts the door behind him on the way out.

I finally realize that I'm just awkwardly standing there, our food in my hands. I set down our milkshakes and then the two bags of food. "Sure you got enough?" Mackenzie asks me.

"I've got a big appetite."

"Uh-huh." She rifles through the bag until she finds her chicken sandwich. "Which one is mine?" She looks at the shakes.

"This one." I push the chocolate shake towards her as I sit down.

"What did you get?" She looks at my shake.

"Mint chocolate chip."

"Ooo. I've never had that one."

"You can try it." I push it towards her as well. Mackenzie takes a long slurp. "I didn't say you could drink the whole thing!" I try to grab it from her, but she rolls backwards in her chair, away from me, giving me a smile with the straw still in her mouth.

"Good try." She tells me.

"Fine. Fair is fair." I grab her shake and take an equally long drink out of hers.

"Hey!" She leans forward to reach for her shake, but I pull the same trick that she did and push away from her. "That's not a very nice way to treat your tutor." She tells me. I give her a pointed glare and then look down at the shake in her hands.

Mackenzie, being the better person, extends the shake out to me. We trade and Mackenzie sets her shake down far from my reach. I can't help but smirk.