I entered the freshman history class; today was the day we had to complete the group project. I saw that Haley had already arrived, which was unusual for her. She locked eyes with me, and a smug smile formed on her face.
Oh, did she really complete the project alone?
"Are you ready?" she asked as I took my seat.
"For what?" I inquired.
"To take me shopping," Haley responded.
"Alright, show me," I prompted, asking to see the finished project.
"Oh, you mean this?" She teased, brandishing the papers before me.
I eyed the stack skeptically. " Let me see that," I said, taking the papers from her hands.
As I flipped through the pages, my skepticism gave way to astonishment. The project was not just complete; it was impressive. The research was thorough, the arguments well-structured, and the presentation professional. It was, admittedly, better than what I had prepared.
I met Haley's gaze. "This is... really good."
"Is it better than yours?" she prodded.
"Yes, it's better than mine," I admitted.
"And?" she pressed, awaiting further admission.
"We'll submit yours instead of mine, but remember, you only win if it earns an A," I remarked, smiling.
"No, we agreed on a B or higher," Haley corrected.
"Oh, right. I forgot about that," I said.
.
.
.
I was sitting with my friends in the cafeteria. I had just returned from class where we received our grades for the project we submitted a few days ago. We got an A.
Haley's grin was as wide as the Grand Canyon after receiving our grade. She turned towards me.
"I guess you know what this means," she teased.
I sighed, a resigned smile on my face. "Yeah, I know. Shopping it is."
I knew she had help from someone. Could it be her sister? Wasn't she some kind of genius? Yes, that was it. Yet, I didn't want to confront her. I found myself looking forward to fulfilling my end of the bet.
I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't hear John calling me.
"Hey, are you daydreaming?" John asked, waving his hands in front of my face.
I was broken out of my thoughts.
"No, I was thinking about something," I replied.
"So, did you hear what I said?" John asked.
I shook my head no.
"I know you are busy on Sunday, so there is no D&D this week. So why not move it to Saturday?" John asked.
"No can do. I'm busy that day as well," I replied.
"Wait, you told me we were going to hang out that day. What changed?" Matt asked.
"I'm taking Haley shopping," I replied absentmindedly, then quickly realized what I had said.
Stupid, stupid... I scolded myself mentally.
"Oh, so it's a date with Haley, then?" Matt teased. "Not only a date, you are taking her shopping as well," he added, elbowing John.
"No, it's not like that. We made a bet,And unfortunately, I lost," I tried to explain, feeling my cheeks heat up a bit.
John joined in the teasing. "Sure, sure, a 'bet.' That's what all great romances start with."
I rolled my eyes, trying to brush off their ribbing. "Come on, guys, give it a rest. It's just shopping."
"Yeah, but it's shopping with Haley. You have to admit there's something happening here," Matt persisted, not ready to let it go.
"I admit nothing," I stated firmly, but their chuckles told me they weren't convinced.
"What's all the laughter about?" she inquired, sliding into the seat next to John.
"Oh, Daniel is going shopping," John said, barely containing his amusement.
Lucia's eyebrows knitted in confusion. "So? What's the big deal about shopping?"
"It's not just any shopping trip. Daniel here is taking Haley out for shopping," Matt revealed, emphasizing 'Haley' as if it were a scandalous detail.
Joanna, who had been quietly observing the exchange, suddenly spoke up louder than usual.
"You're doing what?" she asked.
Realizing her outburst, Joanna quickly softened her tone. "I mean, why are you taking her shopping?" she clarified.
"Remember the bet I told you I made with her?" I said, seeing Joanna's nod. "Well, I lost."
"Oh, why even bother with it? It was just a silly bet," Joanna remarked, her tone hinting at something more.
"It's alright. A bet's a bet," I insisted, trying to sound nonchalant.
"Daniel Adler, the gentleman, always keeping his promises, especially to his lady," Matt chimed in, the emphasis on "his lady" was not lost on me.
"Truly the most chivalrous man of our time," Lucia added, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
This earned a side glance from me.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it. Let's just drop it, okay?" I said, trying to steer the conversation away.
"Speaking of trips, Joanna and I will be skipping school tomorrow," I added.
"I don't know why mom won't let me come with you," John said, looking at his sister.
He was talking about Joanna and me going to Stardust to use their recording studio. I was able to pull some strings with Chris, and we were going to get the whole studio for a day.
"Sorry, John, celebrities and future celebrities only," I said, nodding to Joanna.
Joanna blushed at my compliment, while John brushed my words off.
"I promise I'll take you guys for a tour of Stardust Studios soon. How's that?" I offered, trying to make it up to them.
John, still a bit sulky, nodded. "Alright, I'm holding you to that, Daniel."
.
.
.
Joanna and I arrived at Stardust Studios.
"Wow, this place is incredible," Joanna remarked as we walked through the corridors.
"Yeah," I replied, leading the way. "I thought we could take a quick tour before heading to the recording studio."
I gave Joanna a tour of the studio. She stayed close to me. I knew Joanna had a crush on me. I thought it might just go away with time, but it seems it hasn't. I was always awkward with things like this.
I should talk to her about it sometime. I didn't want our current relationship to be ruined by her thinking I was leading her on.
"I can't believe I'm actually here. And it's all thanks to you, Daniel," she said.
"I'm glad I could help, Jo," I replied.
We paused outside a soundstage, and Joanna looked up at me.
"You know, you always go out of your way for your friends. It's one of the things I... really admire about you…," she said, her voice trailing off.
"Yeah, that's what I do," I answered awkwardly and quickly moved into the recording studio.
"Here we are," I announced as we walked in, my voice echoing slightly in the spacious room.
"It's amazing," Joanna whispered.
The studio technician, Jim, came over to us. Jim was a friendly guy we had met during the recording sessions for Toy Story 1.
"Hey, Jim," I said, shaking his hand.
"Danny, it's good to see you again," he replied.
"And you must be Joanna," he said, turning to her.
"Everything's set up as per your request. We can start whenever you're ready," he said, offering a warm smile.
"Thanks, Jim. I appreciate it," I replied.
I turned to Joanna. "Ready?"
"Yes," Joanna replied in a small voice.
Realizing Joanna was nervous, I took her hands and squeezed them reassuringly. "You're going to do great," I told her. "Just sing like you always do."
Joanna nodded, a small smile breaking through her nervous face.
Joanna stepped into the vocal booth, and I went and stood near Jim, who was behind the mixing desk.
I gave Joanna a thumbs-up through the glass.
As the recording began, I watched in awe as Joanna sang the song we crafted together. It was much better sounding now, more refined. Joanna appeared to gain confidence as she delved deeper into her performance, finding her groove.
During breaks, Joanna and I discussed adjustments with the music and shared ideas with Jim.
As the session wrapped up, Joanna emerged from the vocal booth with a radiant smile on her face. She quickly walked towards me and wrapped me in a tight hug, which she quickly broke.
"You were fantastic, Jo," I complimented her without hesitation.
Jim joined in the applause. "That was some beautiful music you made. Young lady, you've got a real talent there," he praised her.
"I'll get right on it," he added before heading back to the mixing desk.
Joanna's face flushed with the praise.
"This is only the beginning, Jo. I can already see you performing for thousands," I told her.
"Come on, let's see what Jim has cooked up," I suggested, leading her towards the mixing room.