Posted on Wednesday, 18 April 2007

"I've talked to the principal, and he's agreed that you can come in on Saturdays until all the painting is finished." Mr. Harville adjusted his glasses and leaned forward, elbows on knees.

Here comes the earnest, man-to-man speech, Rick thought.

"Wentworth, I'm warning you. You had better stop monkeying around, or you're going to wind up flunking Chemistry, and remaining a senior for a second year. And after spending two years as a sophomore, I'd think you'd want to avoid that at all costs."

Rick pulled himself from a slouch, sat straight and tried to look like he was paying attention to Mr. Harville's dire warning. "Yes, sir. You're right. I want to graduate with the rest of my class."

It was a lie that he cared about graduation. He was certain he could leave school that very day and still do better in practically any profession than most of the other dorks in his class. The only reason he was still in school was that his dropping out would leave his brother in a jam with the social worker, Mrs. Croft. Until he was 18, Rick Wentworth was a prisoner of the state.

"I know you didn't mean for things to get so out of hand during the experiment. It was my fault, I should have put you with a partner who had a better grasp of the concepts."

Wentworth's pride kicked in and he wanted more than anything to inform Mr. Harville that he could have performed the experiment alone and blindfolded, but that would blow the whole deal. He did feel a little badly that the teacher was taking the blame, but after a minute or so he was over it.

"I know, sir. I'm sorry that I'm so dumb when it comes to Chem." Rick glanced at Harville to see if he was buying the oh-woe-is-me act. He sniffed and looked away. That oughta seal the deal, he thought.

Soon, he felt a hand on his should. "Look, Rick, I think if you work hard, and take advantage of the tutor I've assigned you, you'll be able to pull a passing grade." The turn of phrase was interesting, and for a moment Wentworth thought about he might take full advantage of the situation.

"Ah, here she is now. Miss Elliot, have you met Rick Wentworth?" The hand pulled at his shirt and Rick stood to face an angel.

Anne Elliot was perfection in every way. From the leather soles of her flawlessly polished penny loafers, to her navy blue plaid skirt and crisp white shirt; all of this topped off by the playful ponytail in her chestnut hair made her a dream come true.

Most of the guys spent way too much time drooling over her older sister, Elizabeth. Rick didn't waste his time; he figured no girl was worth a case of frostbite. When they weren't doing that, they were thinking of ways to torment her younger sister, Mary. Even Rick had to admit that Mary was pretty unfortunate to have been born with no chin, loads of freckles, and in desperate need of an extra pair of socks.

The other Elliot girls didn't matter, and he thought himself pretty lucky that he seemed to be the only guy who noticed Anne. Well, him and that Musgrove guy. But he was a band goon and no sane woman would look twice at a guy who played the trombone.

Normally, a formal introduction, by a teacher no less, would be shrugged off in a heartbeat, but this was a golden opportunity to make a move. He stuck out his hand. "Hi, I'm Rick."

She turned the prettiest pink he'd ever seen, and then tried to juggle her notebook and the apple she carried. "I'm … Anne," she murmured. Just as their hands touched, the apple slipped and he easily caught it with his left hand. Nice save, Ricky, he thought. He hated handing it back because that meant he was no longer holding her hand. But, her fingers brushed his hand as she took it, so it wasn't a total loss.

Mr. Harville gave Anne instructions. "I doubt you'll be able to cover both the lessons in the lunch period, but if you'd be willing to help Mr. Wentworth tomorrow as well, he'd be very grateful," he said, looking at Rick.

Rick nodded, smiling. "Oh, yes sir, Mr. Harville. Any scientific help from Miss Elliot will be greatly appreciated." He suddenly wondered if Anne would be willing to tutor him in biology as well as chemistry.

Harville hesitated, looking from Rick then to Anne. "Miss Elliot can decide if it will be worth her time after today's tutoring session. Fair enough?" Both nodded. Heading out the door, he began to pull pulling it shut. Looking back at Rick, he made a point of opening it fully.

"I guess he doesn't trust us," Rick said, sliding back into the desk.

"I didn't blow up anything," she said, putting her books down on a desk facing him. "I don't think he trusts you."

Leaning forward, he took the unguarded apple. He smiled, looked into her eyes and took a bite. "Well, I have been a very, very bad boy."

She looked at the bright white spot after snatching it back. Her mouth became a straight line, and she glared at him. Placing the apple on the furthest corner of the desktop, she then opened a notebook and took out papers filled with handwritten notes. "Yes, not only destructive, but very rude as well." Then she made a big show of taking her seat, crossing her legs and then taking a pencil out of her purse. All without looking away from him.

This display of grace and anger amazed him. He'd never seen anyone whose motions were so fluid and sure. For the first time in his life, Rick was not quite sure that he would get everything he wanted from a girl.

He reached out and touched the edge of her notebook. "Look, it was just a little fire. If that dopey Penelope Clay hadn't lost her head and knocked the Bunsen burner off the counter, the curtains would never have been involved at all." He sat back and enjoyed her widening smile.

"You really believe that?" Anne reached out for the apple and took a bite, then realized what she'd done. Covering her mistake, she continued with the lecture. "You don't think that doing the experiment all wrong might have had just a little do with it?" she measured about an inch between her thumb and forefinger. "From what Mr. Harville says, you need lots of help if you're going to pass."

Rick was annoyed again. "For your information, I don't need help with Chemistry." To prove it, he began to rattle off the Periodic Table of Elements. Thinking he had proved his point, he stopped between lead and bismuth. Then, he went on to explain how he'd made certain substitutions to the experiment to cause the flare up that lead to the fire. "It was pretty simple. I even slipped in some mineral salts to give it a nice warm glow."

Anne was silent. She stared at him with her gorgeous eyes, and clicked her teeth on the nail of her pinky. Soon, he was staring at her pretty pink lips, and wanting another taste of apple.

"Hey, throw it over here!" A voice came through the open window from the playfield just outside. This brought them both to their senses. They cleared their throats and looked away.

After some fidgeting in their chairs, Anne said, "I still don't believe that you did that on purpose."

Rick leaned forward again. "Well, you see, I didn't have a choice. It was either do something to get Harville to assign you as my tutor, or wait until Old Babbling Benwick got far enough down his tutor's list to assign you." Leaning back, he stretched out his legs and crossed them at the ankles. "I figured that screwing up the chemistry assignment would be more fun that tanking my American Lit class."

His shocking explanation was sinking in and he was pleased to see Anne's expression match it.

"You mean—now wait—you mean to tell me that you—you played dumb when you're actually smart, and you burned down the Chem Lab just so you could meet me? Whatever happened to walking across the cafeteria and saying hello?" Her voice was rising as she spoke.

Uh oh, maybe she's not as impressed as I thought. He knew he'd better think of something quick. "To be honest, I did this because we both have reputations to maintain."

Her left brow went up and she tilted her head in the most amazing way. "And just what sort of reputation do I have that makes you think good manners aren't necessary?"

Outta the beaker and into the fire. "I mean that if I came up to you in the cafeteria, and you shot me down where everyone could see, … " He hung his head almost as low as when he conned Harville earlier. He could hear her move, and raised his head a little. She was resting her cheek on her hand, still staring at him.

She wasn't buying it and it was time to resort to the truth. Sitting up, Rick said, "Okay, deal is, this place needs a good shaking up now and then. There was no harm done and I'll be the one spending the next couple of Saturdays painting and clearing up. I think it's worth it if you'll go out with me."

Anne's eyes widened and she began shaking her head. He was fascinated that the tip of her ponytail peeped out with each movement. For a minute he was afraid she was mad, but then he realized her beautiful smile was growing wider and wider. "No guy has ever done anything this crazy just to get a date with me." She looked away and began to gather her notes and put them in her notebook. "The truth is, no guy has ever asked."

He reached out and caught her hand. "Well, most guys aren't as smart as I am."

For a moment, she stood still and quiet. He hoped she didn't notice his hand was sweating.

She looked up and smiled. "No … I don't suppose most guys are. And that's why I think it's a tutor's job to encourage and reward intelligence. So, yes, I'll go out with you." She rose, gathering her purse and books.

He wanted to grab her and reward her, but he thought it better to behave himself, for the time being. "So, how about a movie Friday might?" He rose as well and joined her as she moved towards the door.

She stopped and turned to throw the apple away. He took it, purposely touching her fingers, and tossed it effortlessly into the wastebasket across the room. He was rewarded with an admiring smile. "That would be great. But, when you pick me up, you have to come into the house and meet my dad." Just then the bell rang and they were swept into the tide of students returning from lunch.

"No problem." He pretended to be jostled so he could walk closer to her. "Your dad and I will get along just fine," he said, already rehearsing their first conversation.