𝑬𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝑴í𝒂 | ᴮᵒʸ ᴹᵉᵉᵗˢ ᵂᵒʳˡᵈ

32: So Fast

"So my mom says,"Why don't you try being polite for just one day and see if people don't notice? "" Cory said as we walked down the hall.

"Hey, for what it's worth, Cor. I think you're polite." Shawn said. "Then again, polite in my family means wearing a tie for your arrangement."

"I don't know. I think a random day full of random kindness can really change a person." I said. A kid walked down the steps with Feeny. The kid was covered with the foam from a fire extinguisher.

Mr. Feeny grabbed a tissue from his pocket and sneezed in it. "Oh, bless you, Mr. Feeny." Cory told him.

"Oh, thank you." Mr. Feeny replied. "Mr. Matthews, that's surprisingly considerate." "Good. Tell my mother." Mr. Feeny looked at Cory for a moment before walking away.

Eric passed us. "Now, watch as I shift into turbo-polite." Cory said. Shawn and I leaned against the lockers. Cory pushed open the bathroom door. "Eric, allow me." He said.

"Okay?" Eric replied, confused. "Is there anything else I can do for you?" Cory asked. "No, I'll take it for here. Thanks." Eric answered. "Alright, tell mom I offered."

As he turned to walk away, he bumped into a girl and knocked the book out of her arms.

"Hey!" She said. "Oh, sorry." Cory said, picking up the book. "You okay?" He asked, extending it to her. "I don't know." She replied, grabbing the book and throwing it back onto the floor.

Cory picked it up again. "Whoa. Twice in a row. You're a very polite fella." She complimented. "Thank you." Cory replied. "And your smile is kind of engaging." "Yeah, I used the toothpaste with swirls." He answered. "Humorous, too. You got possibilities. Turn around. Let me look at you."

Cory did a spin. "I don't usually go for a velcro heads, but on you, I don't know. It's working for me. You got a name?" "Uh... Cory." "I'm Theresa. My friends call me T.K."

Cory extended his hand. "Nice to— Oh, gosh, I knew this was going too well." T.K. clicked her pen and wrote on Cory's hand. "Chill. It's a pen." She said. "Keep in touch."

She gave him a wink before walking away. Shawn and I walked over to him as he looked down at what she had written.

"Nice score, Cory." I said. "That girl. She wrote seven numbers on my hand. What could that possibly mean?" Cory asked. "It means you should call her." I answered. "Adriana-Camila, how can I call her when I don't even have her—" Then it clicked. "Ooh!" He said.

♥

"Last night, T.K. and I talked on the phone for like two hours. I mean, it beats my previous time with a girl by like... two hours." Cory told Shawn and I while we waited for Mr. Turner.

"She even asked me to the movies this Friday night." "She asked you out?" I said. "Yup, and I just might let her take me." Cory replied.

"Alright, homeroom, announcements. Uh... stay awake." Mr. Turner said as he entered the room. He leaned against his desk before reading the paper in his hand.

"Item one– chess squad. All students interested in trying out for the fast-paced world of—" He looked at his unamused class.

"Yeah, let's see. Jumping to relevant stuff– uh, item eleven, due to a freezer mishap, fish kebabs will not be served in the cafeteria today as scheduled." We all clapped.

Mr. Turner walked to the other side of the room by the door. Shawn stood up. "Thank you, thank you." He said. "I don't wanna know." Mr. Turner said as Shawn sat back down.

"Uh, item fifteen—" The TK girl from yesterday cut him off as she stood in the doorway. "Hey." She said. "Hey, back." Mr. Turner said.

"Ahh, there he is. There's my guy." She said, looking at Cory. "You know, it's funny, I got this thing here called homeroom." "Yeah, this note covers it." She said, handing the paper to Mr. Turner.