Fate {Thiam}

{5} Getting to Know You

It took Liam ten minutes to just find the library. Even though Beacon Hills High School is smaller than Devenford, the place was hella confusing. When he finally steps inside, the first person he sees is Theo Raeken. The boy seemed to just sense that he came in, because Theo looks up at him as soon as he passes the entrance to the room.

Theo smiles at the younger as he anxiously walks towards him. "Hey, Liam. Ready to start your tutoring session?"

Liam swears, his heart could beat right out of his chest with how fast it's going. He knew he liked Theo, but not this much. "Yeah, totally. I'm ready to study. And do nothing else. Just study. For Biology." He gives him an awkward laugh. And let's just say, it was not a pretty one.

Theo gives an awkward raise from the corner of his lips and sits down on one of the wooden chairs. Liam rolls his eyes once Theo looks away. How stupidly in love is he! He just met this boy, and he has his heart beating like a bass drum!

Liam sits down in the seat next to Theo, dropping his bag off and setting it next to him. Theo reaches into his own bag and brings out a bunch of books, notebooks, and even a biology textbook.

'Damn,' Liam thinks, 'he came prepared.'

Theo notices the expression Liam was wearing and laughs. "I know it's the first day of school and everything, but I know how Ms. Finch works. She gave me loads of assignments on my first day of Biology."

Liam scoffs. "No kidding. I have a pretest I have to take, vocab cards due Friday, and I have to give an overview of myself so my classmates get to know me." He puts quotation marks around the words, 'get to know me'.

"What's so bad about that?"

Liam gets a little caught off guard by the question. "What do you mean?"

"What could be so bad about getting to know you?"

Liam didn't know how to respond. Seriously? Theo wanted to get to know him? Is that what he was asking? "Um, I don't know if getting to know me is exactly what you want to do. I mean, I'm not exactly perfect."

Liam's gaze is now on his own set of notebooks as sadness starts to overtake him. He was just meeting Theo. The last thing he wanted was Theo to know what happened back in Devenford or all the years ahead of that. It was hard to have everyone else except him. Who knows if Theo will feel the same way?

"No one's perfect, Liam. Come on. You can't have as weird a life as me."

Liam couldn't believe he just said that. "Seriously? I hardly believe that?"

"What do you mean? You just met me? Is there something that you know, that I don't." Liam could tell he didn't mean any harm in those words. He did have a little chuckle when he said it.

"I mean. I've heard a few things from my friend Mason. How you're literally perfect! Perfect grades, perfect school attendance, captain of the football team, absolutely handsome." He freezes when he says this. He looks over and can see the smirk on Theo's face. "His words, not mine."

"Uh huh, sure. How about this? I'll tell you one interesting thing about me if you tell me one interesting thing about you."

Liam ponders over the idea. "I thought we were supposed to be studying. I mean, my dad is paying you to do that."

"Technically the school is."

"Technically my dad is a part of the school."

Theo laughs at the stubborn boy. "Come on. Here, I'll go first."

"Wait, Theo, you don't need to -"

"Science is my favorite subject."

Liam lowers his hands and gives him a scowl. "Are you kidding me? That's your big reveal! You like science! You're my biology tutor, of course you do."