Mr. Edgerton gave them permission to use the English lab to do their studying after school. He allowed them to do it outside the school area as well, but Hazel thought the English lab was more appropriate because their other options were her house which she felt awkward to invite him to because they barely know each other. Or Marlon’s house which sounds pretty intimidating knowing who his parents were.
Marlon of course had proposed other places they can go to, places that sounds more like a hangout or day pubs where he can drink while studying. Hazel opted for the English lab. A quiet room surrounded with books, one large window facing the soccer field, sound proof where they can hear their own breathing when they’re not talking. The room bore him in less than 15 minutes.
“This place feels like a coffin … can’t we do this outside? By the soccer field maybe? It’s suffocating in here,” he complained.
“We won’t be able to concentrate there, too many things going on … and,” she pointed to a group of girls watching them from outside the room, “They’d want to join in … you can’t study anything out there.”
Marlon raised his brow and gave the girls a wink. They giggled and walked away blushing. Hazel rolled her eyes.
“It’s not like I will do any studying, this is just for show, right? You’ll do it for me, make the report and I’ll repay you for your troubles,” he said lightly and threw himself on the nook by the window.
“Easier said than done … you still need to do the test by the end of the semester, I can’t help you with that … you have to go through this whether you like it or not,” she was opening a book searching for what they were suppose to be studying that day.
He let out a sigh, “Okay … so we’ll do it at your place, or my place next time … I don’t want to spend hours everyday in this tomb … it literally feels like a tomb … I mean look at all these books.”
Hazel scratched her head, she had never heard anyone comparing a tomb with books but she kept her mouth shut. “Fine … whatever … can we do this now? Let’s just take it one day at a time, I have to be somewhere else after this, we don’t have much time.”
Marlon paused, he wondered if she was going to meet up with her boyfriend, of course she was. “Where are you going?” he had to ask.
“I … have to meet someone,” she didn’t want to elaborate. The topic of her personal relationship was much too private to be discussed with him.
“Hmm …” he looked out the window. “I guess we should just get started,” he knew when to stop asking when someone didn’t want to open up.
Marlon was not terribly behind with his studies. He could answer pretty much all the preliminary review questions without a problem. Some questions were more challenging for him, but he was mostly distracted more than he was unable to keep up with lessons.
He seemed distant at times, just looking out the window, his mind was somewhere else. Hazel realized that his brother’s death was only months ago, he could still be grieving or remembering the tragedy. She didn’t want to pry, though she genuinely cared. Maybe it was a topic for some other time when they know each other more.
She wondered if she had to mention this to Mr. Edgerton. From her personal observation, there was nothing lacking with Marlon’s ability to follow the curriculum, he just needed more time to heal from his personal tragedy. That means, he really didn’t need a student guide.
Forty minutes into the session, Marlon was busy with his phone. He was texting profusely, smiling at the screen and giggled at times. Hazel didn’t appreciate the distraction, it was extending their study time.
“Can we focus on this first? You need to do an essay here … just a few hundred words on the climate change, and then we can go.”
He didn’t answer, he was still busy with his phone.
“Hello?”
“Oh … sorry … what?”
Hazel let out a long sigh, she didn’t want to repeat herself every time. “You have to do an essay, 400 words on climate change.”
“Oh, you can do that, right? Easy peasy,” he continued texting.
“No, I have to do the report, you have to do the essay … I have to be somewhere in half an hour, remember?”
He stopped texting and looked at her for a moment, “Right, I have to be somewhere too, my friends from Goldstone are here.”
“What? No … they can wait, this will only take 15 minutes … 20 minutes top.”
“Great, so you can do that after the report … I’ll make it up to you, promise,” he stood and picked up his Balenciaga jacket that was hanging on the chair. She could smell the scent of his expensive perfume.
“You know … I need your phone number, can you type it in?” he handed her his newest Iphone, the screen saver was of him with his entourage at a beach. A very beautiful brunette in bikini in his arm.
She took the phone from his hand reluctantly, she really didn’t want to do the essay for him, not that day. She didn’t know why he needed her number when they see each other everyday at school, but she typed them in anyway.
“Just in case I can’t make it to school … we can do our session somewhere else, or I can text you what needed to be done,” he answered her question without being asked.
“There’s a 90% minimum attendance to pass our level, you can’t skip school too often,” she said.
He shrugged, “Okay.” He sounded like he didn’t mean it. He just simply didn’t care.
She felt like an assistant rather than a student guide, but she knew this was what he expected of her from their first meeting. The phone rang just before she handed it back to him. A picture of a girl who looked like the girl in the bikini popped up. “Mandy” was written on the screen.
He took the phone but his eyes were watching Hazel as if to catch her reaction. She looked away and turned her attention back to her papers. She glanced at her watch, she had less than 20 minutes to get everything done and go to Lee’s house.
“Hey … yeup … I’ll be there in a jiff … nothing, just some boring school stuff, I’m done, I’m on my way to the parking lot as we speak.”
Hazel rolled her eyes after hearing what he told his probably girlfriend.
“Yeah, sure, do you have it? Oh … awesome, I’m totally out,” he continued. The phone was still pressed against his ear when he tapped on Hazel’s shoulder and said, “Later.”
“Oh … no one, student guide helping me with school …” he giggled as the door closed in behind him.
‘No one … helping me with school …’ he really made her feel like ‘help’. What a prick.