Something Beautiful (An Aaron Carpenter Fanfiction)

Chapter 9

**Cali's POV**

Saturday morning I woke up with a sigh. Aaron had left last night for New Jersey, and I had to find someone to help me with geometry. And quick. Obviously my first choice would've been Aaron, but he's not an option. I rolled out of bed and ate breakfast, then picked up the phone to call Maia. She picked up on the third ring.

"As much as I love when you call me, must it be at 9am on a Saturday? I need my beauty sleep." She said when she picked up. I laughed.

"Sorry Maia. But I need a favor. Could you come over today to help me with math? Please? I desperately need a tutor."

"You know I would love to help, but I sorta have a date later..."

"A WHAT?"

"This cute kid in my biology class asked me to hang out at the park later..." I heard her sigh over the phone. I squealed in response.

"That's great!!! I'm so happy for you!!"

"Thanks! Sorry I can't help you though."

"It's okay. Do you know if Hayley's around?"

"She's at her grandparents house." I sighed when I heard this. This was turning out to be harder than I thought.

"Well I'm screwed." I told her.

"How about you ask Gavin?"

"Gavin? He hates math!"

"Are you kidding? He's a genius. He may say he hates it, but last semester he got a 98%. He's maintained a high A all year."

"Hm. Well I might have to call him then. Thanks Maia! Have fun today!"

"Okay! You too!" We hung up and I immediately dialed Gavin's number. He didn't pick up, but his mom did.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mrs. Parks? It's Cali. Is Gavin there?"

"He sure is hon, but you know him. He's still sleeping. Was there something you wanted me to tell him when he gets up?"

"Well actually, I was wondering if I could have some help with math. I'm not doing so well, and I heard he is."

"Oh sure honey! I'm sure he wouldn't mind at all. I'll send him over to your house after lunch?"

"Okay! Thanks Mrs. Parks!"

"No problem!" She said, and hung up. Yes! Maybe Gavin would help me actually understand my geometry work. I skipped upstairs to get dressed and to tidy up the house for later.

•••

At about 1, the doorbell rang.

"I got it! It's Gavin!" I called, letting my mom know. I opened the door to let him in. "Hey!"

"Hey Cali. You know you're totally wasting my Saturday with this math stuff." He said jokingly. I shoved him.

"Shut up and help a friend out." I told him, and went upstairs to get started.

•••

Two hours later, I was finally starting to get it.

"So...if you subtract 6 from both sides of the triangular formula, you can solve it just like a 2-step equation?" I asked. He nodded. "Wow! I get it now! That's easy!"

"Glad I could help. Can I go home now?" He asked. I playfully punched him in the arm. "Relax!" He said, rubbing his arm. "I'm kidding. I don't mind helping you out. Anytime."

It was only now that I realized we were sitting pretty close together. It was awkward. And then, before I could do anything, he quickly leaned in and pecked me on the lips. I kinda sat in shock as he realized his mistake.

"Oh god. Cali, I didn't mean that. I'm sorry."

"Then why'd you do it?" I asked, confused. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"I've kinda always had a crush on you. But now you're dating Aaron and..." He paused. "You guys are happy, so I'm fine. Besides, there's a cute blonde in my history class." He said with a wink. I knew he was trying to joke around, but I could still see he was still hurt that I didn't feel anything towards him. How could I? He was my friend, and Aaron made me the happiest girl in the world. I looked at the ground.

"I'm sorry, Gavin." I told him.

"It's okay. Like I said, as long as you guys are happy, I'm good. I'm glad I could help you with math. Uh...see ya later Cali." He said, and then walked out and left.

What was I going to tell Aaron?