Copacetic (adjective): to be in excellent order

He walked a little closer to hear the boys’ conversation.

It wasn’t eavesdropping, he was just a third, quieter participant.

“I stayed up til 4 a.m. to finish the project,” one of them was saying. The boy’s eyes were filled with miniature web-like lines of blood. Clearly, he hasn’t slept well yesterday… or the past several months, for that matter.

His friend put his hands on his hips. “I was up until 3 a.m., but I woke up at 5:30 a.m. to work on it early.” This boy wasn’t much better. Although his eyes weren’t as bloodshot, his skin was embroidered with countless pinpoints of acne.

“Nah, I’ll probably get a better grade,” the first boy told the other. “I really worked hard on it.”

Defiance gleamed in the eyes of the second boy. “That doesn’t mean I didn’t work hard on mine.”

He continued listening as the boys debated each other heatedly on who worked harder and who got less sleep.

And he felt proud.

This was how they should be. Hard workers, focused on clear goals of getting good grades. This should be how they succeed later in life.

Smiling to himself, the principal left them to examine another group.