The 90 Between

Chapter 2: Slushies and Guitars

Qasim

I had reread her message too many times that it was now floating around in my mind every time I closed my eyes.

It was just a few words but for some reason I couldn't stop thinking about it. I didn't even know why.

"The homework is page 161 in the textbook. All 40 questions. And yes, Asim, before you ask, I will be checking for completion tomorrow morning." Our calculus teacher, Mr. Kemper spoke, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Aw, c'mon Mr. Kemper, it's only the first week. I need some time to adjust." Asim tried to reason, batting his eyes for dramatic effect.

Oh boy. I shook my head.

"Asim, if you can't even handle 40 relatively easy homework problems right now, how are you going to deal with a significantly larger and much more difficult workload in university?" Mr. Kemper shook his head.

"Bribery?" Asim suggested making a few chuckles erupt from our class.

Mr. Kemper rolled his eyes. "Qasim, knock some sense into this one."

I smiled. Having already dealt with us for two years, the majority of the teachers in this high school knew that out of the both of us, I was more responsible. Though Asim also had his moments.

"Don't worry, Mr. Kemper, I'm sure his dad will straighten him out before I do." I looked towards Asim as I replied, and he discreetly passed me the middle finger from under his desk.

Mr. Kemper glanced at the analog clock on the wall. "There's still 20 minutes until class ends so you can all get a head start now."

Everyone groaned, but we still all pulled out our textbooks anyway, flipping open to the section exercises. My phone pinged in my pocket, and my heart raced faster. What if it was Waznah? With a shaky hand, I grabbed my phone from the pocket of my windbreaker, tapping on the screen.

Just a reminder from my calendar to buy a slurpee for Sidra api on my way home. I glanced at Mr. Kemper for a moment, making sure he wasn't looking before I typed in my phone password. He had a strict policy against phone usage during class for non emergencies. And don't get me wrong, I loved rebelling, but Baba (Father) would not be pleased if he had to go pick up my phone from the principal's office.

I tapped on the messaging app icon, scrolling to the chat that had been on my mind since yesterday evening.

Thank you for not making fun of my shoes 🐧🐧

I still hadn't responded to the message, not knowing what to say. How did she even get my number? Oh, who am I kidding she probably got it from Asim's phone. Only Allah knew that man was the easiest target when it came to getting hacked. He had literally made his phone password 1234. Unironically.

But the fact that there was a possibility that Asim didn't know gave me both solace and panic. What if he took me messaging his sister the wrong way? I could tell him but then what if he got mad at Waznah? Oh my God, what if he disowned our friendship?

"Qasim."

I jumped in my seat hearing Mr. Kemper's voice only a few inches behind me. He gave a subtle glance to the phone in my hand, and I nodded placing it back in my pocket.

"Remember for question 10 everyone, that you need to multiply by the conjugate to be able to evaluate the limit," He casually spoke as he straightened, walking to the front of the classroom.

"Mr. Kemper, if I get every single problem right will you give me a chocolate bar from your drawer stash?" Asim asked.

Our teacher whipped his head around, eyebrows furrowed deeply as he looked at Asim, jaw slightly dropped. "How do you know about my candy drawer?" He asked, bewildered.