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Chapter 5 - A Day and a Game with Marcus Aurelius

By the time the doorbell rings, I'm dressed and done with all my chores. Mom is in the kitchen doing some work, and Don is up in his room talking to Dad. Mom starts to get up from the kitchen table to answer the door, but I bolt past her.

"I got it," I say, slipping my bag over my shoulder.

"Who is it?" she asks.

"August."

"Tutoring him?"

"No. Hanging out." Mom arches an eyebrow. I keep my hand on the doorknob and look back at her. Should I have asked first? "Is that okay? We kind of just decided this morning, so--"

Mom's eyes widen, and she waves her hands in front of her. "No, no. You're fine. I just didn't think you would end up hanging out with him outside of tutoring."

She doesn't elaborate, but I have a feeling she means because he hangs out with Marcus. At least that's where my mind goes. And I'm not stupid enough to share the thought in case Mom isn't thinking the same thing.

"Me neither, to be honest," I say with a shrug. "But it's okay, right?"

She nods. "Yeah. Just let me know when you think you're gonna be home."

"Got it."

She settles back down at the kitchen table, giving me one last glance. I can't tell if it's just a casual glance or a loaded one. But I shake it off. I'll deal with it later. I open the door, and August turns to me, a smile on his face.

"Hey," he says. "Ready?"

I nod, stepping outside. I shut the door behind me. "What're we doing?"

He turns and walks down the steps towards the sidewalk, and I match his pace. "I thought we could go to the history museum."

I arch an eyebrow. "I thought you said we weren't gonna do anything school-related."

"This isn't school-related. It's Ashlyn related."

"I--What?"

He laughs. "You can't tell me that it's not Ashlyn related. You'll totally enjoy going to the history museum."

I smile. "Well, yeah, but that doesn't mean you're gonna enjoy it."

He shrugs. "I might. Maybe I'll just enjoy hearing you go on rants and explaining things to me in that stupidly blissful way of yours."

"That's school-related," I point out.

"Not if I don't take notes." Is that even how it works? "Besides, we'll do something afterward."

We pause at the bus stop. "Like what?"

He shrugs. "Haven't decided yet. But we'll figure it out."

I nod, glancing away. "Okay. If you're sure."

I turn to look at the road, but out of the corner of my eye, I see August's eyes trained on me. "I am."

He says it so confidently, I don't have a doubt in my mind that he means it. But that doesn't stop me from thinking that he might change his mind. So it should be an interesting day.

And the moment we walk through the doors, I know it's also gonna be a good but chaotic day. Good for me. Possibly chaotic for August.

I try my best to suppress a smile, but I can't. August catches it. He gives me an amused look and ushers me past all the fossils, already knowing I prefer the scenes set up with actual people. He trails after me, that amused look always on his face every time I turn back to face him after pointing out a particular scene whether it's of wax mannequins or a painting. Sometimes I speak too loudly, and he has to shush me after glancing around.