Chapter XXVI – Midterms

Midterms finally arrived, the week that everyone was anxious about. From Tuesday to Friday, each day would have two exams totaling eight by the end of the week.

With strict regulations and a no cheating policy, the tension was at an all-time high. Teachers patrolled between the students which tried to ace their tasks. Communication between students outside of class once a test was over remained bare minimum. Nobody had time to think about how they were doing so far, and instead, they went home and prepared for the next day.

Sitting in the classroom in silence, having finished his English exam early, Arthur closed his eyes and listened to the feedback made by countless pencils. It reminded him of the military academy he attended in the past. He decided to wait for Irene to finish the last question or two. English was their final Midterm test.

Arthur didn’t care too much for his grades, and he knew he would at the very least pass with above-average scores. However, out of respect to the others, Arthur refrained from dragging them away from studying. Sophie even missed out on morning runs just to get extra sleep.

The plus side to exam week was that the students would finish school earlier. Ending just before the lunch break, most went home right away rather than stay in school the extra hour.

These few days made Arthur realize just how much he grew used to everyone's company. Now, his days felt longer and less fulfilling.

Their grandpa tried supporting them the best he could be waking up earlier and cooking breakfast every morning. It was a kind gesture, but Sophie and Arthur preferred him sleeping longer due to his long work hours. A man of that age should take better care of his health.

Max and Tjay stayed with Don constantly studying. Arthur didn’t wish to invite himself, and they assumed he’d be studying with either Irene or Sophie. Nabi stayed with her family and had tutors come over for extra practice. He didn’t ask about Ari, but Sophie and he had different tests due to the year gap between them, so she’d close herself in her room and study alongside music. It was only Irene who found time to talk to him, but for the most part, the two texted each other nonstop.

Students who were done with their test could turn them in and leave the classroom as to not disturb others. Irene finished the English test in record time and getting up from her desk Arthur followed. With the two leaving the classroom more than half an hour earlier, they had plenty of time to grab a drink while waiting on others. It was their final midterm exam.

They kept quiet while walking through the hallways as to not disturb others who carefully read each question and tried to get maximum scores. Irene could not help but elbow his side giving him a glance with a proud smile. Finally entering the courtyard, Irene stretched her back along with a deep yawn.

“Man that sucked. . .” she complained.

“I’m presuming you’re not talking about the English test. It was relatively easy. . .”

“Of course not. I was referring to the overall midterms!” she grabbed Arthur’s hand and began dragging him. “Come on, I want to get some soda.”

He smiled and followed along.

“Now that it’s over, we can all finally hang out,” Arthur said glancing at his hand being held.

He couldn't help but notice how soft her hands were.

“I just wish they gave us all the exams in a single day. They just dragged it out for no reason at all.”

“I mean. . . Wouldn’t people most likely prefer to get extra time to revisit what they had learned?”

“I’d rather have less time than stress about it for so long. Besides, if you haven’t prepared on time, I doubt an extra day would make a difference.”

She finally let go of his hand as they reached the vending machine.

Without asking him, she got him the same drink as last time remembering that he liked it. He also drank loads of it during their study session, but she switched to coke.

“How come you finished so fast?” Irene asked Arthur knowing fully well that her time was impressive. “Let me guess, you didn’t listen to my advice at all and just turned it in without checking a single question twice for mistakes?”

“You know me too well it seems. I might need to start keeping secrets,” he teased.

“Ugh, you’re unbelievable,” she sighed. “Even if you know everything, it’s good practice to check for any mistakes you might have made or if you overlooked something. I hope you don’t lose any points over that.”

“I just can’t be asked to look over something that I’ve done and interests me not. I’m sure I made a few mistakes.”

“So what do you think you’ll get overall?”

“Hmm. . . It should generally be within the 80-90% reach, except for computer science which most likely will be in the 70%. Luckily it was theoretical questions and not a practical exam. Though that made half my prep pointless.”

“Didn’t the teacher specify that beforehand?”

“Probably, but I easily lose focus during that class and prefer to rest my eyes a bit.”

“You’re hopeless. . .”

The two walked back to the bench they sat on last time. It being Friday, they were in no rush to go anywhere.

“What’s taking everyone so long?” Arthur asked.

“Unlike you, it is common for others to stay till the last second and analyze how they have done. . .”

“What about you then?”

“It’s English, so I can’t really sit there for so long. I know the material after all. . . Besides, I knew you were done so I thought I’d keep you company.”

The two had grown closer over the past week. Irene was the only person Arthur talked to daily that wasn’t a family member. He let her talk for a while as he just kept an eye on her. Her talking was relaxing to listen to.

“-and so I have to go over to my uncle’s again in a few days. . .” she finished her long monologue.

“Hey, Irene. . .”

“Yeah?” she turned to him curiously.

“Since you just came back to Seoul, I wondered. . . Do you have any other friends here?”

“Am I that annoying?” she awkwardly chuckled.

“No, no. . . Don’t misunderstand. I was just wondering to see how different we are in that regard. Ever since the accident, I’ve made friends with you guys but I’ve had no old ones, and the last few days we didn't really hang out much. . . Guess I enjoy being around people huh.”

She turned her whole body towards him, lifting both legs up on the bench and crossing them. Her expression was serious yet gentle at the same time.

“I know a few people, but I haven’t kept in touch. Mostly wanted to avoid them,” she answered his question. “I get where you’re coming from. Being in my apartment all alone isn’t really as exciting as I hoped. While I do enjoy the freedom to do whatever, it does get lonely. Sorry that I didn’t find the time to hang out these past few days. . .”

“No need to apologize. You’re not obligated to keep me entertained,” he chuckled. “Guess I just got used to everyone’s company.”

Irene smiled shoving Arthur gently with one hand.

“You ain’t so bad yourself,” she teased. “Besides, as you said. Now we'll have loads more time for all of us to hang out. I’ve been thinking that we could go to the mall on Monday after school. I have some things in desperate need of being purchased.”

“Sounds fun,” Arthur said tilting his head back and closing his eyes.

The two sat in silence for a bit before Arthur was surprised by a sudden unknown feeling on his thigh. Opening his eye and glancing down, he saw Irene who laid down on her back and placed her head in his lap with her eyes closed. Arthur observed her before sighing.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

It was the first time he had such an experience.

“Enjoying a light nap while we wait?” she answered without opening her eyes but with a smile on her face. “You don’t mind me using you as a pillow, now do you?”

“I guess not. . .”

“It’s comfortable. You should try it sometimes,” she advised him finally glancing up towards him.

There was no special meaning behind her actions, other than showing how comfortable she’d become around him. Obviously, this wasn’t something she’d do with just anyone.

“I might just do that. . .”

Time flew by quickly, as Ari and Sophie both finished with their test as well. Korean history took them a lot longer than they expected. Some of the other students started making their way outside as well.

“Hey guys,” Sophie called out to them as the two approached. “I see you’re done with your tests.”

Arthur opened his eyes and glanced towards them. Irene slowly got up as she rested for a bit but noticed that Ari was looking at. However, she quickly averted her gaze when Irene’s eyes met hers.

“Hey you two,” Irene spoke up. “How did the test go?”

“It went great!” Sophie answered enthusiastically. “I got lucky and had some questions that I’ve read just last night!”

“See. . .” Arthur teased Irene about her prior statement in regards to having no benefit from last-minute cramming.

“Oh shut up. . .” Irene pointed her tongue towards him before turning to Ari. “What about you?”

“Oh, I? I umm. . .” she stumbled on words. “I did well enough. I just hope my grades are good enough for my parents to be pleased.”

“They strict?” Arthur asked.

“No, but they care enough to nag me about it every now and then. I don’t like disappointing them. . .”

“Anyway, we’re about to head out now. Ari and I got plans for today that we must attend to. You two have fun!”

“Yeah. . . Have fun,” Ari mumbled with a quieter voice before Sophie grabbed her and pulled her away.

With just the two of them left, Arthur glanced towards Irene and chuckled.

“What was that all about?” he asked.

“I don’t know, but Sophie did mention being busy,” Irene said before pressing down on the can of coke with her foot. “Do you think I can throw it into that bin from here?”

Arthur glanced towards it. It was roughly around five meters away.

“Low chance, but there is a chance.”

“Low chance? You underestimate me!” she chuckled. “Want to make a wager?”

“What would we wager?”

Irene pondered for a bit before a mischievous grin made an appearance.

“How about if I make it, you have to carry all the stuff I purchase on Monday and if I miss, I’ll try one outfit of your choice. Deal?”

“Deal,” he said with confidence.

“Oh so quick to say yes. Do you already have ideas? I hope it’s nothing improper. . .” she teased.

“Oh shut up and just throw,” he laughed.

Grabbing the pressed can, she took her time to aim. The throw was perfect as it landed cleanly in the bin.

“Yes!” she cheered.

“I really should stop gambling. . . I lose every time,” he sighed knowing he spoke the truth.

Regardless of what the bet was, once something was on the line he never once won. It wasn’t all bad though. He met her due to losing a bet, so complaining wouldn’t really be fair.

“What are you so excited about?” Nabi asked with a smile as she and Don came from their flank unnoticed.

“Oh, Nabi! How did the test go?” Irene asked while still enjoying her victory.

“I did well. Should get high rankings. What about you?”

“Oh, you know. . . I did fine,” Irene answered vaguely.

“Don? You ok?” Arthur asked as he glanced over towards him apparently looking a bit down.

“I’m fine. . . I just messed up pretty badly on the test.”

“I thought you’d do well. What happened?” Irene asked.

“English isn’t my best subject, and I was too focused on helping Tjay and Max the last few days. . .”

“I told you to ignore them,” Nabi sighed shaking her head.

“But they asked me so nicely. . .”

“Nabi’s right,” Irene cut in. “You should have looked out for yourself a bit more. However, I’m sure you did better than you expected.”

“I hope. . .”

Nabi and Don didn’t bother asking Arthur since they assumed he did well. It made him feel a bit left out, but at the same time, he believed that maybe it would sound like bragging if he spoke up about it himself.

“I killed it!” Tjay yelled in the distance.

Max was following behind him shaking his head.

“Here comes the idiot squad,” Nabi joked.

“Aren’t they closer and closer as friends?” Irene asked curiously.

“Yeah, they seem to be on more friendly terms recently. I wonder what made them finally hang out so much,” Nabi commented.

“Hey guys,” Max said as the two arrived.

“If you guys haven’t heard already, I killed it today!” Tjay kept on bragging.

“Don’t get your hopes up,” Max sighed, but nothing was going to kill Tjay’s vibe.

“If he did so well, there might be a chance of him getting into college,” Nabi commented.

“College? Who’d want something like that?” Tjay asked.

“You don’t plan to go to college?” Irene joined in.

“Does he look capable enough to study for so many years?” Max teased. “If it wasn’t for Don, he’d most likely fail every class.”

“It was nothing. . .” Don whispered.

“What do you mean it was nothing? You helped us out tremendously dude. . . We owe you big time!” Max reassured him.

“If he was such a big help, maybe you should be more considerate towards his scores. . .” Nabi cut in hitting Tjay on the shoulder.

“What?” Tjay looked at her confused. “Don, did you do poorly today?”

“Nah, I just messed up a bit when it came down to English.”

“Ah, dude! You should have told me. I’d help you out!” Tjay said grabbing him around the shoulder. “I might not look like it but. . . ‘I very good English!’ See?”

Everyone began laughing.

“And he said he killed it today. . .” Max struggled to stop his laughter.

“Hey! The bet is still on,” Tjay said. “You’ll see! I’ll get better scores than you.”

“Tough chance!” Max responded competitively, after what he heard he gained a new surge of confidence.

Irene’s phone vibrated interrupting her focus on the conversation. Glancing over at her text, she looked back at Nabi.

“Hey Nabi, we should get going.”

“Sure. . .” Nabi responded positively but was a bit stiff.

“Where are you guys going? I thought we could hang out,” Arthur asked.

“We have unavoidable plans. But we’ll hang out soon I promise!” Irene explained.

“Yeah. We’ll talk to you guys later. . ."

Irene grabbed her bag and approached Nabi grabbing her around the arm. The two left without any delay.

“I guess it’s just us guys,” Arthur shrugged his shoulders.

“Sorry Art, but Don and me also have plans,” Tjay mentioned with a low voice.

“Right. . .” Arthur whispered turning to Don who shrugged his shoulders. “Max?”

“Don’t look at me dude. . . I told my sister I’d spend time with her today.”

“I see. . .” Arthur mumbled disappointedly.

“Well let’s get going Don,” Tjay said. “The sooner we finish, the better.”

“Right. . . See you guys,” Don mumbled.

With only Max and Arthur left, Arthur let out a sigh.

“Sorry dude. . . We all looked forward to hanging out, but sometimes other plans must come first.”

“I get it,” Arthur glanced towards him.

Somehow it felt like he was being left out. They were all acting strange towards him recently, but he didn’t really bother asking.

“But hey. . .” Max spoke up. “I actually wanted to ask you if you’re free tomorrow morning. I wanted to ask you something and it’ll take a bit more time than I could afford right now.”

“Oh? No worries. Sounds good to me,” Arthur responded with his mood lifted slightly. “When do you want to meet?”

“How about tomorrow at ten in front of the school?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Well, in that case, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The two said their goodbyes as Arthur remained alone in the school courtyard, left wondering what was going on.

Chapter End.

Thank you for reading.