"So, you think we're set?" Felix asked me for the fifth time in the past ten minutes. I rolled my eyes, looking through my computer as he walked about the stand's table.
"They're still on the first person. We're number 26. Chill," I said, trying to calm him down. He sighed, running a hand through his dark hair before heading over to take a seat beside me on the metal table.
"I know, I'm just anxious," he said, resting his head on the table as he watched me read through a document on my computer. I smiled, using my left hand to pat his head, making him let out a content noise.
"Everything will be fine, so try not to worry," I said, feeling him nod against my left hand.
It took a lot of time for the judges to move from table to table, I even got tired of fact-checking what we had a settled for resting my head on the table and running my fingers through Felix's hair as we talked in hushed tones.
I wasn't too sure what people back down were presenting, but from the glimpses I could catch from the people around us, everyone seemed to be amazing. The two girls beside us were presenting an eBay like app, but specifically for homework and tutors. As strained my ears to listen to the girls discuss, I couldn't help thinking about what a great idea it was. It worked with a GPS and could pair you with the nearest possible person that could help you.
Felix and I waited by our stand until the three judges eventually came up to our table. Felix got up, turning his computer the other way so that he could show them what was on the screen. He talked with the judges for a while, showing them how the site worked and I chirped in from time to time.
"This is the fourth social media site we're seeing today, and I'm not even counting the chat rooms," the middle-aged man among the judges said. He was there with two women. I frowned, turning to find that although Felix was still smiling his eyes had dimmed a little.
I get it. It's a bit of a demoralizing statement from the judge's part. "But social networking is at an all-time high. It's only normal that they'll follow the trends," the dark-haired plum lady beside him said as she scribbled something on her notepad. They were probably scores.
"We're looking for innovation, not people riding waves that have already started."
It might have been mumbled, but I heard the man word for word. Gladly, it was while Felix was engaging with the man's female co-workers and answering their questions.
When they eventually left our table Felix let out a sigh as he returned to his seat.
"You heard him?" I asked as I watched him place his head on the wooden surface of the table. He nodded, sighing again as I made to run my hand through his hair.
"He's just a bitter man. We did great, I'm sure the ladies agree," I said as he turned his head to the side to look at me.
"Come on, smile," I said, touching the space between his brows, making him laugh.
"Do you want to eat something as we wait? They have about fourteen more tables to attend to," I said, smiling when he agreed to my offer. We got up and headed out of the hall before walking into the open area. We found other people walking around, some people had even settled down on the grass with their computers as they ate junk food.
"Let's get ice-cream," Felix said, pulling me towards a stand surrounded by people of all ages. After waiting for a while we got popsicles and munched on them as we walked about the area.
We started going back to the hall when we noticed people were doing the same. They gathered beside the small stage that the talks had been held on. There were two people on it at the moment. A young woman, and the middle-aged man that had been part of the judges today.
"Okay, so we'll call out the winners to come up, then close the program," the woman said with a smirk on her red painted lips.
"Coming third is Felix Freeman and Benjamin Maxwell." Felix let out a gasp at the mention of our names. I smiled, pushing him forward as I followed him up the stage. We're didn't expect it, from what the judge had said we thought the site was too generic to be considered. By the time we calmed down and turned, we noticed the lady had also called the second runner-up — a skinny guy in glasses. He looked nervous and seemed like he was trying to blend in with the stage.
"The winners are Jessica and Lovet Mendes," the woman said, and I turned to find the two girls that had their table beside ours. They were hugging themselves as they grinned. They eventually broke it off and headed up the stage to stand with us.
"These are the winners," the lady said, gesturing to us. She continued to talk as we stood behind her. I cocked my head to the side as I tried to guess what the third place prize was. I knew the company that held the event bought the first place app.
"It's a small cash prize, I think 2000 dollars?" I heard Felix say, making me turn to him with an 'oh.'
"I'm just really happy that we won something, are you excited?" he asked, making me nod in response.
Eventually, the crowd by the stage diffused and we were left on stage with the Lady and a handful of other people that had climbed up the stand. The coordinators came around to give us handshakes, one of them took the girls aside to talk to them.
"Did you two design the site by yourselves?" a middle-aged man asked as he rubbed his white colored beard.
"Yes," I said, looking straight at him. On closer inspection, I realized he was the man that has been talking on stage when we got back into the hall.
"It was amazing — on a professional level. It would have won if it wasn't a generic concept — where did learn how to do that? Code that is," the man asked.
"I'm self-taught, but he took up most of the complex code," Felix said, turning to me. I stared at him, a bit shocked before nodding.
"I do know some things..." I trailed. "My father owns a tech repair so I take a look around."
"Interesting," the man said as he tapped his finger against his iPad screen. "What year are you two in, already in college?"
"No, I'm a senior in high school," Felix said, waving off the man's guess.
"I'm a junior in the same school," I said. The man nodded, putting his iPad away before looking up at us.
"Have you looked into any college yet?" the man asked, directing his question at Felix.
"Okay, then do you need any financial aid with school?"
They continued to talk, but they didn't settle on anything so the man just handed his card over to Felix.
"Call me. I'll assure you get the best of the best — there's no need to waste talent." The man smiled, before pausing and turning to me. "It would be great if you keep in touch with me. Again, there are a lot of ways my company could help you with post-high school studies."
"I'm looking into a polytechnic," I told him, surprised when he clapped as if impressed.
"That's perfect," he said as he reached into his pocket to pull out another card before handing it to me. "Keep in touch."
"Okay..." I trailed, putting the card away as I watched him walk away.
"If he's being serious I could get some subsidies on my courses. His company is tied to the college I want to go to. Also, he said something about buying the site?"
"That's great," I laughed, my smile dimming when I realized just how close it was for Felix to pack up and leave for college.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked, making me blink.
"No... I—I just realized you'll be off to college soon," I admitted, sighing.
"Come on," I heard him say as he turned to me. He held onto my face, giving me a small slap as he chuckled. "When I'm gone I'll talk to you every single day, and I'll be back to spend all my breaks with you. It's a year — seven months if you don't count the breaks. You'll be in a polytechnic around my college after that — well, hopefully."
"I guess so..." I trailed, watching as he smiled before hugging me. We broke the hug, not bothering to talk about college again, and just enjoyed each other's company. I tried to make my mind focus on our win in the event, and the time I'd get to spend with Felix when summer rolled around — it made me happy.
I'm happy if he's happy. Time will pass like he said it would.