Girl in the Hardware Store

Four

The store isn't open on Sundays, so Tweak has some free time to kill. She would spend it with Dashi and Shellington, except they are going shopping for school supplies and Tweak had already got all that the week before, so she's got some free time. Alone.

Sort of.

Of course she's never really alone, she muses, just as Kwazii comes skating expertly around the corner, nearly careening straight into her. Tweak dodges him swiftly, and her best friend turns the skateboard around to face her with a sharp twist of his feet, with a cheery greeting of: "Hi, Tweak!"

Tweak grins at her best friend, who hops off the skateboard easily, flipping it up and grabbing it with one hand. "Hey Kwaz."

"You get all the studenty stuff done yet?" Kwazii asks.

Tweak grins. "Yup."

"Did you decide on a sport?" Kwazii asks teasingly.

The smile on Tweak's face fades slightly. "Unfortunately, yes."

"Which one was deemed the lesser of many evils?" Kwazii is eager to know. 

The girl sighs. "Swimming. With Dashi."

"Hey, that's not so bad..."

"At SIX IN THE MORNING!"

"Oooh..." Kwazii winces. "Now that's not so good. I'm yawning just thinking about it."

"I know," Tweak says miserably. "But I needed something. By the time I had agreed to it, it was too late to change my mind. Dashi then told me about the early wake up call."

"When do you start?" Kwazii inquires.

Tweak sags. "Tomorrow."

"I'd offer to come with you, y'know, but - I'm not braving that six o' clock wake up call," Kwazii admits sympathetically.

"Oh - thanks. That's what Shellington said too," Tweak replies dryly. "Though I'm sure that if Dashi asked him to come, he would be up at five and giving her a piggyback ride to the swimming centre."

"True that," Kwazii grins, hopping back on his skateboard and skating in lazy circles around Tweak. It's common knowledge that their two best friends are besotted with each other, with Shellington doing absolutely anything for Dashi. Therefore it's also the common subject of a joke in their friendship group.

"How did your sign-up go?" Tweak asks.

Kwazii shrugs casually. "Like it always does. I'm taking Sports Studies, Biology, Geography and Graphics, with basketball and cricket on the side, along with Science club."

"You sign up for your extra dyslexia classes this term?" Tweak asks knowingly.

Kwazii hesitates for a moment, avoiding meeting her eyes, and that was enough for Tweak to know instantly what was going on. "Kwazii!"

"Okay, okay." Kwazii puts his hands up defensively. "I didn't sign up for the stupid dyslexia classes."

"Kwazii!" Tweak repeats.

"They just make me feel dumb," Kwazii sighs. "Learning and relearning basic stuff over and over again, endless tests - it's just not how I want to spend my free afternoons."

"But they help," Tweak says quietly.

Kwazii slows on his skateboard, maintaining a lethargic pace. "I know. And you're right, as usual. I just don't want to go to them. Plus last term I was failing on the English resit tests - badly."

"Tell you what," offers Tweak. "If you sign up for those classes, and persevere going to them - I'll go to those stupid swimming sessions. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning. If I can do it, you sure can."

Kwazii still looks unsure. 

Suddenly, a crazy idea springs into Tweak's head. "And -" she says slowly. "If you pass the English exam, even just by the tip of the hairs on your imaginary tail - I will go on a date with you."

An awkward silence falls as Kwazii stares at her. Then, after a long few seconds, he leans forward. "What makes you think I want to go on a date with you?" he asks with a grin.

Tweak feels herself flush red, but she can't back out now. "Because you love me," she insists teasingly.

Kwazii regards her with an unreadable look, before his face breaks out into one of his infectious smiles. "Yeah. Go on then. That gives me some incentive to do it."

"Deal?" Tweak asks, putting out her fist in the space between them.

Kwazii meets her fist with his own unwavering one. "Deal."

"Good."

Kwazii hops back on his skateboard lightly. "In that case, I'm off to go sign up for those extra classes."

"And I'm off to go set multiple alarms for tomorrow morning," Tweak says with a sigh. "I'm gonna need them if I want any chance of actually getting up said tomorrow morning."

"Have fun with those swimming sessions," Kwazii grins.

"Have fun with those dyslexia lessons," Tweak counters.

Kwazii merely laughs, and skates away.