Seventeen

TESSA

Tessa had been working at the bookstore for a total of two hours after school and she was already annoyed out of her mind. That was thanks to Mark and Dale whose favorite pastime happened to be rifling through the shelves and asking Tessa the most random questions.

    "How many works has Shakespeare written?" Mark poked his head through an empty space in between the books on the shelf. Tessa sighed and rolled her eyes while Dale sniggered from somewhere between aisles.

    "Thirty-seven plays and one-hundred fifty-four sonnets, but I know you don't actually care. What are getting at?" Tessa put the magazine she was reading down on the counter.

    "My dearest Tessa, what on earth would we be getting at?" Dale grinned wickedly, coming out from behind a bookshelf with her skateboard in hand.

    "You know you can't ride that in here, right?" Tessa warned and Dale nodded. "And I don't even know, but I know you two are up to something. And whatever it is should probably worry me." Tessa looked back and forth between her best friends, who only grinned wickedly at her.

    "What's the climax of Romeo and Juliet?" Dale's voice chirped as she picked up a copy of the play. The Peruvian girl wiggled her eyebrows at Tessa.

    "Romeo's banishment, Juliet's refusal to marry Count Paris, et cetera." Tessa sighed and rolled her eyes. "Can you guys just tell me what you're trying to take a dig at?"

    "My, my. Ye of little faith. Can we not just be very interested in the brilliant works of William Shakespeare?" Mark said smoothly and rested his elbow on Dale's shoulder.

    "If you two aren't both gonna buy something, then get out." Tessa gestured towards the double doors at the front of the store. Dale smirked and sauntered over to the shelf of knick knacks placed near the cash registers. She picked up a pack of tropical fruit gum and slapped it on the counter.

    "Your turn, Akagi." Tessa looked expectantly at the soccer player. Mark proceeded to turn around, pick up a heavy box of books wrapped in plastic, and slam it on the counter.

    "You want to buy the complete collection of Harry Potter novels and pre-order Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and the entire script of The Cursed Child?" Tessa raised her eyebrows at Mark. "For seventy dollars?"

    "Of course," Mark smiled, but Tessa could see his face pale when she said how much it would cost.

    "You sure about that, Akagi?" Dale teased and exchanged a smirk with Tessa.

    "I am positive, Carnation." Mark said through a clenched smile with a look of agitation on his face.

    "Okay, have it your way," Dale shrugged and popped open her pack of gum, placing a stick in her mouth. "You could have just bought a pack of ninety-nine cents gum."

    Tessa shook her head with a laugh and rang up Mark's set of books, sliding them back across the counter when she was done.

    "Okay. You both bought stuff, now you better tell me what's up." Tessa demanded and folded her arms across her chest.

    "There's a football game tonight..." Dale trailed off.

    "I'm aware." Tessa said and hopped over the counter to fix the display that Mark had messed up when he grabbed the set of books.

    "And Reese and Kaden are going to be there..." Mark continued.

    "Yes, and I wish I could be there to support both of them, but I have to work and I can't bail. Besides, Dale is close with both of them. They'll be happy to see her there with you, Mark." Tessa straightened the magazines near the checkout.