Cowboys and Mustangs

Number 12-Chayni

"Chayni what did you get for number 20?" My college algebra teacher asks me, making me look up at him at his desk. I was nervous because before he called on me, he called on others and they all had the wrong answers, and I had no idea if mine was correct.

"Um, plus or minus the square root of 42 plus x plus 25?"

"Correct.. I won't give you guys any homework tonight because I know you won't do it over the weekend." He says as he aggressively sets our homework on his desk. The boys of the class slightly cheer, but I just put in my headphones and turn on my Spotify. I know the bell rings when I see people pick up their stuff and walk out the door, with me following them.

As I walk down the hallway, I keep my line of vision straight forward and keep to myself. My math class was only down the hall from my English class. After that one day in English class where I read my passage, Mrs. Brookes recommended that I take AP English. I was hesitant at first, but then I gave into her persuasion.

The thing was that only a few students had chose to take AP English, so there wasn't a class for it. The teachers just assigned more difficult assignments and graded more intensely on your work. So I'd be staying in my same class, but just doing different things than them.

Instead of taking my headphones out as I came through the door, I decided to keep them on until I got settled in my desk. When I sat down I took out my notebook and pencil and placed them in front of me. "Hey Chayni." I heard a voice behind me. I turned around enough to see Jesse giving me a small smile, with his eyebrows slightly scrunched. He was wearing a dark blue denim jacket with a shirt on underneath, he looked really good. I took out my headphones, signaling he could talk. "What ya listening to?" He leaned over his desk for me to hear better.

"Down Here by the-"

"Turnpike Troubadours." He finishes for me, recognizing the tittle. I smiled at that. I don't find much people with the same music taste as me, so this was pretty cool.

"Yeah." I said with an impressed smile on my face, making him smile. I turned back into my normal sitting position and put my phone away as Mrs. Brookes started to teach.

Ever since Monday, Jesse and I have talked everyday. Sometimes it might be after English, during English, or after school. They're short conversations, but they're good. Each conversation gets less awkward and we grow use to each other, especially when he makes me laugh. Which is a lot.

The topics of the conversations vary. They go anywhere from school to our favorite kind of hat. I liked talking to him. He was funny, relateable, smart, nice, and he remembers little the stuff I say. During our talks, he'll surprise me by bringing something up that I had said before and tie it back to our current topic. It was really nice to know he was actually paying attention to me.

I love Fridays. During the day everyone is in a good mood because they know they don't have to do any homework for the next day, and they have the whole weekend to themselves. You don't have to worry about tests, quizzes, presenting in front of the class, or seeing people you can't stand. You can stay up late, sleep in, and just stay in bed all day. It's heaven.

And Fridays are the reason people are running in the hallways when the last bell rings. It is total chaos in the school. Everyone wants to get to the parking lot so they won't be stuck in the traffic getting out. Mostly, people just want to get out of the building. Seeing real light and not constantly smelling B.O. in the hallways.

As I step out of the building, I realize it is a really nice day. Really sunny and the perfect temperature. I hoped I'd be working out in the stockyards and not just working on the computer and doing paperwork.