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FINNEY PUSHED THE DOUBLE DOORS OPEN!
He'd taken the bus to the large mall far outside his suburb. Cherry didn't have to confirm his thoughts. They were so far out of their area because she didn't want to be seen with him.
The first part of her helping Finney stop being a loser plan had been to get out and socialize more with people. He'd done that, and shockingly, did fine.
Better than fine, actually.
Just the day before, he'd sat with Donna at lunch. He'd had a crush on Donna since 6th grade.
It felt good, if not kind of strange, to be getting along and socializing with new people. It was especially nice being able to sit with someone who wasn't Robin for once.
Cherry's advice was starting to work, despite how much he didn't want to admit it.
Finney vaguely remembered words of Cherry being nice, but clearly, there'd been a shift in that energy. At the beginning of the school year, she'd at least shown up for class every day.
Sometime around January, she'd just stopped showing up. It was like she only went when she was forced to.
What was so important that she had to do instead that led to her ditching every day? How did she expect to pass?
She was putting in the effort while he tutored her, and she was learning, but she still wasn't showing up to class. It was a little ridiculous, honestly.
She was clearly smart enough to pass her classes, she just didn't want to.
He almost wanted to ask why, but she'd probably rather die than give him a straight answer.
As unkindly as Cherry's advice came out, it helped, it really did. So, even if he didn't want to spend his Saturday in a mall with her, he'd shown up anyway.
Finney spotted the girl in the food court, ordering a smoothie. He made his way over to her side, glancing around the food court.
"You know, I'm surprised you haven't ditched me yet." He spoke.
"I'm surprised too." She commented, handing him her plastic cup. "Will you hold this?"
It was less of a request and more of a demand as she pushed it into his hands, turning to pay the cashier. She slipped into a polite persona so easily with service workers, but not with anybody else.
Cherry didn't seem to care about anything except herself. At times, she didn't even notice that he was sitting beside her.
After paying, she turned back to stare at him with her usual scrutinizing gaze.
