Sarah offered to help her mother with the dishes as she entered the kitchen. Her father was sitting on the couch, watching TV, while Deliah had gone to her room to use the computer.
Mrs Johnson smiled. "It's okay, Sarah. Just go do your homework or something. I'm sure you have a lot to do."
"It's okay," Sarah replied as she took the wet dishes from her mother and grabbed a towel to dry them. Mrs Johnson smiled at Sarah's kindness, and the two of them worked quietly and efficiently.
Sarah thought about Alex James, the new guy in her class who had recently joined the newsletter committee. He was popular with the teacher, and Sarah feared he would be a competitor for the empty Newsletter Editor position. Alex had come into the class without any warning and was quickly becoming the teacher's pet.
Sarah didn't like the way Alex was frowning at her in a judgmental manner, especially since Julian McMahon, another member of the committee, had bad-mouthed her. Although she didn't mind Julian, he was a nice guy and didn't tease her like some of the other boys in her class, but he didn't put much effort into his work. Sarah often had to go over his work twice to find mistakes before it could be printed. Julian had the potential to write well, but he just wasn't motivated.
Sarah thought about Alex's privileged background and his tendency to use connections to get ahead. "So what if he's good-looking?" Sarah thought to herself.
"Hey," Mrs Johnson said, bringing Sarah out of her thoughts. "You were zoning out."
Sarah blinked and shook her head. "Just thinking," she mumbled. "There's this new guy in my class, and he joined the newsletter committee."
"Sarah hissed and Mrs Johnson erupted in a fit of giggles. "Looks like you already have a beef with the guy," she chuckled, amused.
"Well, let's see... he's the new hot shot in town, already making waves on day one," Sarah grumbled. "You know how I feel about the popular crowd, Mom, except for Liah. And to top it off, he's the principal's son, so he already has all the teachers wrapped around his finger," she huffed.
Sarah turned to her mother. "And to add insult to injury, I think he's quick to judge too. I caught him giving me the stink eye during the meeting just because I asked Teacher Edison about his writing skills."
"So to sum it up," Sarah crossed her arms. "I don't like him one bit."
Mrs Johnson shook her head and let out a hearty laugh. "But Sarah, aren't you being just as quick to judge?" she teased. "The guy just got here a few days ago and you've already written him off."
Sarah pouted and pushed up her glasses. "Well, I don't see how he could have any kind of moral excuse for all of this."
"He doesn't have a say in who likes him or who he was born to," Mrs Johnson pointed out. "And don't forget, you're both guilty of judging."
Mrs Johnson let out a chuckle as Sarah made a face. "Who knows, maybe someday you'll find yourself head over heels for him," she said with a twinkle in her eye.
"Eww, Mom, gross. Not in this lifetime," Sarah made a disgusted face.
********
Sarah's phone buzzed with a message: "Sissy, can I meet you on the rooftop later during break? I need to borrow some cash."
Sarah blinked and put her phone away. She rummaged through her wallet and found thirty dollars allowance that she had saved up for a book.
With a soft sigh, she set aside five dollars for her bus ride home and stuffed the remaining twenty five in her pocket.
Sarah snuck out of the classroom like a ninja when the bell rang signaling the start of break. No one noticed, except for Alex. He couldn't explain why he looked in her direction at just the right moment and saw her scurrying out with her phone in hand.
Just as he was pondering where she might be off to, Joe burst into his thoughts with some exciting news about their favorite soccer team. Alex forgot all about Sarah, just like everyone else.
But the fact remained that for a split second, Alex had wondered about Sarah when nobody else did.
Meanwhile, Sarah had made it to the rooftop and was clutching the twenty-five dollars in her hand. She did some quick math and realized she would need another week of saving to buy the book she wanted. There was no way she was going to say no to her sister.
Along came Deliah, grinning from ear to ear. "Sissy!" she exclaimed.
Sarah freaked out, looking around nervously. "Shh! What if someone hears?" she whispered.
Deliah pouted and hugged her arm. "Sis, you're my sister, who cares who sees us!" she said. "Are you ashamed of me?" she fake-sulked.
Sarah chuckled and patted her head. "Of course not!" she said. "It's quite the opposite."
Sarah placed the money in Deliah's hand. "What do you need the cash for anyway?" she asked.
Deliah beamed, stuffing the money in her pocket. "Nancy is going on a date with Brad after school, and Iris and Yvonne want to hit the shops while she's occupied. You know how much Nancy hates shopping," she giggled. "And I kinda want to buy a new dress."
Sarah didn't say anything about Deliah's wardrobe of nice clothes and simply nodded. "Okay. Have fun later, okay?" she smiled. "I'll go back to class first. Remember to leave a little while after me so no one knows we met."
"Aye Captain," Deliah laughed. "I know. Go on then, and thanks for the cash!" she waved the notes in the air.
Sarah shook her head in amusement as Deliah danced around happily and she strode back to class to have her lunch in the corner as she usually did.
As she walked back, an unexpected figure approached her from the other end. Alex.
He didn't seem to notice her at first and Sarah wondered if she should say hi. They were classmates after all, right?
The words reached her tongue and she was already opening her mouth to address him when she faltered. What made her think that he would even remember who she was? No one ever did, so what made this Alex James different?
Sarah quickly averted her eyes and strode forward quickly, inwardly cursing herself for getting soft.
Alex caught her in his sights at that very moment, and was puzzled as to why he felt the urge to say hello. But before he could utter a word, she walked right by him without a glance and rounded the corner out of sight.
Alex was left staring, with a shrug and a frown. "Rude," he grumbled.
Continuing on to the restroom, another person approached him, beaming from ear to ear. The girl practically bounced over to him. "Hi Alex!" Deliah blushed bashfully.
Alex nodded, scratching his head. What was her name again? He definitely needed some memory enhancing pills or something.
"It's Deliah, but you can call me Liah," she offered, with a smile. "Hmm, okay Deliah." Alex smiled awkwardly and cleared his throat as the silence lasted a bit too long.
"Uhm," Deliah gazed at the floor. "I was hoping we could be friends, Alex?" she asked shyly.
Alex looked at her closely and realized that she was really pretty, just like his friends had said.
"No problem," he said. "We can be friends."
Deliah's face lit up like a Christmas tree and she beamed at Alex. "Thank you, Alex!" she exclaimed. She then blushed and added, "I'll be going back to class. Bye!" before running off.
As Alex turned to leave, he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was David, who was grinning at him.
"I saw that, dude," David said.
Alex raised his brows, thinking that David had seen Sarah walk past him without acknowledging him.
"I saw the little interaction between you and Deliah," David said with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "She's cute, huh? That's why half the male population here has a crush on her."
"Oh," Alex nodded in understanding. "So you like her too?" he chuckled.
"Nah," David shook his head. "I don't like chirpy types." He then stopped and looked at Alex seriously. "But seriously Alex, if you have any interest in Deliah, I encourage you to pursue her. I mean, you're already 18 and haven't had a girlfriend before. What's up with that?"
Before Alex could respond, David continued, "We'll all be cheering you on, Alex. Good luck!" He grinned."