Whoosh. The sound of the bus door opening.
"Leighton~" Some dude placed his arm on my shoulder.
— 7:00 am, Thursday: December 19, 2024 —
He handed me the usual; $5, and I gave him his paper. It's his script for their presentation. For some reason, they stopped pestering me and got to the point.
"When are you going to tour me, Remy?" Arthur spoke, clinging to my arm.
"We got an hour before class, we can do it now," I said. "I'm sure you got the layout already, no?" I added.
"I haven't explored much, catching up in class is harder than I thought. I barely have time to exploree." He said, sulking like a puppy.
"Alright, alright"
We started making our way into the school.
"Welcome to Westlake Boys High School." I greeted him.
"I haven't properly welcomed you, huh." I said, opening the two doors for him.
Like a grand entrance.
"Thank you, haha." He laughed, just happy to be there.
"This is the auditorium, as you know. Right across from it is the reception. You've been here for the most part—nothing important." I said, pointing to the rooms.
"Mhm."
"This is the Jim Dale Gallery, it showcases world-class pieces of art as well as being home to our honours boards—or is what they said to be for," I said, showing the paintings in the hall.
"There are classrooms above, it's all the same," I said, heading towards the other side of the building.
"There's a library on your right, and another building in front of you. That's for Economics and Arts."
…
I toured Arthur around the school, from the main hall, to the gym facilities, to the lab we were in yesterday, to the volleyball court Finn was practising at, until the building where Arthur was studying.
"That's about it, I had to rush it a bit since it's almost time for class," I said, handing him a cold drink.
"Thanks, the school's pretty big," He replied, opening the drink.
"Was it hard on your first day?" He asked, taking a sip from the bottle.
"My classes were not far from each other, and it was fine." I replied.
Looking back at it now, I didn't have anyone approach me at all. It's like everyone had formed groups from their middle school. No one was there to tour me nor tell me interesting facts—not even the staffs where there, let alone the secretary.
…
We sat on the bench for a while, taking a sip from our bottle and staring into emptiness.
…
Rrriingggg! The bell rang.
"I gotta go, see you later." I spoke, preparing to leave.
"See you!"
Just like that, our day started. Later that day, during our Chemistry class, we were assigned to present our results and conclusions.
…
"A pleasant morning to everyone. My name is Jeremy Leighton, and this is Finn Glifford—here to present our project." I said to the class.
I was used to the guys looking at their phones or not listening at all, as long as the teacher listened. Finn was signalling me to let him take over for the presentation, to which I nodded.
…
"Now, before you brace for another monotone chemistry lecture… Relax." He said, walking up to the class, letting me step back.
"No one's getting flash-banged by science today." He spoke, lifting one guy's head to look up at us.
"But—you are about to witness the magic of chemistry~" He said, whipping up a magic wand. Did he have that on him the whole time?
"And yes—actual magic would be less impressive," He added, making a card appear and disappear.
The boys in class started paying attention—or is what I wish I could say, but they only took glances whenever. Which is something I can't do, I'm impressed. I guess he isn't the popular guy for nothing.
"Today's magic trick? Ammonia gas," He said, signalling me to change the slides of our PowerPoint presentation.
"Not in a lab deep underground, not with a Nobel Prize team—this isn't the 'Big Bang Theory'—but just… us! Two students, one experiment, and zero explosions, haha!" He said, moving his hands as he spoke. Impressive hand gestures.
"So here's the situation:" Finn signalled me.
I showed them the reactants we used for the experiments via a PowerPoint presentation.
"We took two fine chemical citizens:
Ammonium chloride, which looks like powdered sugar, but don't eat it, silly".
The thing that amazed me was the fact that he had an example on his hand and was trying to show the actual chemical to the audience. Although one did try to eat it, he pulled away fast enough.
"Sodium hydroxide, which is basically the 'do not touch' sign in substance form." He said, pointing at me. I crossed my arms, forming an 'X' sign."
I don't think he would show the actual chemical, so he made me demonstrate it.
"And when these two meet? Oh-ho-ho." Finn grinned.
"Sparks don't fly—gas does." He spoke—looking like a mad scientist with his palms rubbing together.
I'm surprised he managed to pronounce those. It took us a while for him to even speak those words.
"Our toolkit? Simple:" He said, pointing at the TV. I switched the slides.
"A heat source, a litmus paper, and—two very serious, very qualified scientists," He said.
I sent a glare on his way, not that I care what he said either way, just thought of sending one.
"Haha, I meant one serious scientist. And me." He sneered,
"Happy?" he whispered, looking back at me.
I switched the slide to the methodology.
"So, we heat the mixture. And bam!" He said, imitating an explosion sound infront of one student.
"Ammonia gas makes its entrance!" He threw confetti and applauded.
"How did we know? Well… hey partner, how did we know?" He asked, looking back at me. He did that on purpose, didn't he? I spent hours trying to teach him how the process was made.
I took a step forward and spoke.
"We applied heat to the mixture of our two reactants—ammonium chloride and sodium hydroxide and the result was the formation of ammonia gas," I said, explaining the process.
"The red litmus paper we used turned blue almost instantly, indicating the presence of a basic gas. Which, in this case, was ammonia." I added. I took a step back after my boring explanation.
Finn took a step forward to claim his stage.
"Here's the reaction for reference," He said, pointing at the screen.
NH₄Cl + NaOH —[heat]→ NH₃ + NaCl + H₂O
"Not that I can read it, haha. But for our beautiful chemistry teacher, we made sure to include that for you." He said, winking to our teacher.
The teacher looked impressed, though she gave us a nod and a satisfied look. Finn looked at me and signalled to switch the slides.
"Observations? You bet. Visible gas? Check. Litmus paper said 'I'm blue, da ba dee da ba di?' Check." He yapped.
What does that mean?
"Smell? Ohhh yeah!" He dictated, looking disgusted by the end.
"Let's just say if you bottled this, you'd definitely fail perfume class. Haha!" He laughed.
Finn made a way for me, telling me to take this one.
"This experiment shows that chemistry isn't just about memorising facts. It's about understanding how substances interact and change. By carefully combining the reactants, we produced ammonia in a controlled and predictable way. This wasn't a coincidence—it was the result of deliberate scientific work. And there's something satisfying in that." I said. Just another boring statement.
Finn stood beside me.
"Now, I'm not saying we deserve a feature in the school paper... But, yes, I am." He said, nudging my arm.
"Because this was equal parts experiment and entertainment." He added.
"We didn't just explain chemistry. We made it stick." He spoke, looking all cool.
"Like that one smell in the lab that's still haunting me, haha!" He didn't have to add that, but alright.
"So to wrap it up:" I said,
"We created ammonia from household-ish chemicals," Finn said.
"We confirmed it with litmus paper and that unforgettable odour." He added, covering his nose.
"Lastly, we survived… And learned. And maybe—just maybe—made chemistry cool for five minutes," He finished. Dropping an invincible mic.
He grabbed my hand and lifted it. We took a bow after that. Our teacher applauded, along with some guys who seemed to enjoy Finn's personality more than our presentation overall. While bowing, I sensed a camera flash from outside the room—guess the school board was notified. I'm glad we finished the presentation; it would have been awkward if I had done it alone. Seeing as the boys were a bit interested, I'll give it to him.
"Thanks," I whispered.
"My pleasure," Finn whispered back.
I looked at him while he winked at me before lifting our heads. We head back to our seats, and other pairs took their turns to present their work. The majority of them used vinegar and baking soda, which resulted in carbon dioxide. Nothing really stood out.
Clap, clap!The class applauded.
"That's it for today's class. For those who did not get their turn, you will present tomorrow. Goodbye, class." Our teacher stated.
"Great presentation, Glifford." A guy nudged him.
"Thanks, good luck on yours tomorrow." He replied.
I stood up and approached Finn's desk.
"Thank you," I spoke.
"It's my pleasure."
"Would you like to eat with us?" I offered.
"Are you sure? I don't want to disturb you guys."
"I'm sure it's fine. Think of it as a celebration."
"Alright then." He replied,
"I have to drop off somewhere first, though, you go ahead." He added.
I nodded and left the room.
Rrriiinggg! The sound of the bell—it's lunchtime.
Arthur and I were eating in the cafeteria as usual, that's when Finn sat with us.
"Hello, guys." Finn greeted, carrying a meal tray.
"I see, you got your cardboard?" He added.
"The best cardboard! yes," Arthur replied, munching on it
Even with his cardboard, he'd still ask for my food.
"Mhm, right," Arthur spoke, chewing his cardboard.
"Congrats on your presentation," He greeted, after finishing his cardboard.
"Thanks," Finn replied while eating his meal.
After the exchange of words, the three of us just ate, in an awkward state.
"Oh yeah. I'm coming over to Jeremy's tomorrow, want to come?" Arthur asked.
He never told me that.
"Hm? Oh, I'm fine. I heard he lives quite far too." Finn replied, feeling awkward. He sounded scared.
"Alright then.." Arthur responded, sounding sad yet… satisfied?
"I'll go now, haha. Enjoy your lunch." Finn said, rushing his way out of the cafeteria.
"He sure is weird," Arthur pointed out, eating my food satisfiedly.
Isn't he always like that? I just shrugged it off.
"You're coming over?" I asked, but I don't remember inviting him.
"Can I?" He asked, still eating my food.
"I guess… Sure?" I answered. It's time I introduce my friend to my parents. No matter how awkward that'll be.
"Yey!" He celebrated.
We finished our meal and went on with our days. It was a pretty boring day despite being the last week. Most of them were still focused on their projects, games, and other upcoming performances. Which is why I'm still stacked with services despite finishing my projects. I had closed my service for the week and will be doing the last bit of my service till tomorrow morning. That's what I thought, until…
Until I had approached the exit.
"Hey, um, Jeremy?" A boy approached me.
"Yeah?"
"Can I ask you to write me something?" He requested.
"I'm sorry, my services are closed for the week."
"It's not an essay… More like a letter." He asked, with the softest voice I heard.
"A letter? What for?"
"A love letter.."
"Remy!!" Arthur screamed, approaching from the other side of the hall.
"Ah! I'll text you the details, I'll pay, I promise!" He screamed frustatedly, running away.
"Huh? Sure?" I replied. I don't think he heard me.
"Who was that?" Arthur questioned.
"A customer," I replied, shrugging it off.
"Let's go," I added, walking out of the school.
As we stepped outside, it suddenly started pouring.
"Ah! It's raining!" Arthur spoke.
No shit, Sherlock.
"Do you have an umbrella?" I asked, 'cause I didn't have one with me.
Arthur looked at me slowly, with a face of regret.
"Hehe… No."
"Should we just wait it out?" I asked.
Arthur was removing his coat at that time.
"What're you doing?" I asked.
"Remove yours too, we'll run. The bus will leave us." Arthur ordered.
"Run? You're crazy, it's heavy rain!"
"We'll be fine." He said, removing my coat.
"Arthur!" I screamed, stopping him.
Arthur placed his coat over me and used his bag to protect himself.
"This is fine, right? Let's go!" He said, grabbing my wrist and running towards the bus.
I have never ran in the rain once in my life. I was so worried about the rain that I barely realised we had arrived at the bus.
Screeeechh! The bus door opened.
"You good, boys?" The driver asked.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Arthur laughed so loud.
"Haa.." I panted.
I smacked Arthur on the head.
"Idiot.., the bus could have just picked us up there, why did we have to run..?" I asked, still panting.
"It was fun, though… HAHAHAHA." He laughed, panting at the same time.
"Dry yourselves first, here." The driver spoke, offering a towel.
"Thanks.." I expressed, still panting.
I dried myself off immediately and took my seat on my usual spot, leaving Arthur by the door.
"It was fun though, righttt?" Arthur asked, sitting beside me.
"Sure," I answered, looking into the rainy sky.
"Don't be maddd, come on. Smile!" Clinging onto me, nudging his head onto my shoulder.
Arthur turned my head towards him and forced my mouth to smile.
"Come on, smile. We gotta be the light in the darkness during rainy days!" He shouted.
For once, he said something decent. He looked silly, pfft, cute.
"Ah! You smiled!" He screamed so excitedly.
"You're schizo," I said, turning my head away from him.
"I know you did! Haha." He said, leaning onto my head.
The bus wasn't full, so we had to wait for a while. Arthur ended up sleeping on my shoulder. Huh, it's the usually the opposite. I'd be the one sleeping on his shoulder and he'd be the one watching.., but this is nice too…
…
Ping! My phone made the sound.
Huh? Oh, it's that guy from earlier.
"Can you make a love letter for someone?" Read now.
"I've never written one, so no. Plus, my services are closed." Sent just now.
"I'll pay double, I promise. Just a few words." Read now.
… It's double payment.. I'll take it.
"Fine, what do you want me to write? And in what style?" Sent just now.
"Just write something about my feelings for him, and that I've liked him since. I'm hoping he can reply or get in touch with me." Read now.
"What feelings?" I asked.
"I like him, he looks cool and smart. That the world stopped when I saw him the first time he walked into our classroom." Read now.
This is too cliche, do I really have to?
"Uh, I'll see what I can do. When do you need it?" Sent just now.
"Tomorrow morning?" Read now.
"Alright, I'll give it to you around 7:30. That'll be $20" Sent just now.
"Alright, thank you!!" Read now.
That's just great. It's just a letter, surely, it's not that hard. I even lowered the price since I felt bad. I'll give him that though, nobody makes letters—or ask anyone to, for someone.
…
Arthur was asleep the whole time, even when the bus left.
Screeeechh! The bus door echoed through the empty bus.
"Arthur, wake up." I shook him.
"Huh?"
"I gotta go, see you tomorrow." I bid, leaving the bus.
"Oh… see you." He replied. Trying his best to wake up, he waved at me through the window and went back to sleep.
I got off the bus and watched the bus get further from me as usual. I think I might have seen Arthur lay on the seat to continue sleeping. He's cute. Wait, what? Cute? Don't be ridiculous… I mean. I'll give him that, he does look silly—as in golden retriever silly.