Chapter 156
He figured he should just focus on studying. If he didn’t improve this time, Anthony would seriously kill him.
After the uniforms were handed out, Eleanor walked in holding the seating chart and started reading off the exam times and places. Charlotte, Shirley, Andrew, and Parrish all ended up in the same room.
The test was set for two thirty in the afternoon.
Once Eleanor finished talking, she stuck the printed exam schedule on the wall for anyone who wasn’t paying attention. Shirley hurried over for a look. She groaned the second she spotted Olivia and Nancy’s names with theirs.
Charlotte muttered under her breath, “Great. Just our luck.”
“Charlotte, can I see you for a minute?” Eleanor’s voice called out, slicing through the noise in the classroom.
Charlotte finished the last sip of her milk before strolling toward the office, totally unhurried.
Andrew watched her leave, frowning. “Does she seem worried to you guys?” he whispered.
Parrish and Shirley both shook their heads. Not only did Charlotte not look nervous, she actually seemed kind of happy.
“You think she’s just given up?” Parrish asked. “Andrew, can Anthony help her? If it’s really bad, I can go beg my dad. There’s no way we’re letting Charlotte get expelled.”
After all, they’d fought together, gotten sent to the office together, even had their parents called in. That counted for something.
Andrew didn’t sound convinced. Anthony barely cared about his own family’s problems, so helping someone else wasn’t likely. But if Charlotte really was about to get kicked out, he’d do whatever he could to talk Anthony into it.
As they were plotting ways to keep Charlotte around, Shirley, who’d been quietly working on her test prep, spoke up. “I don’t think Charlotte’s going anywhere.”
“How would you know?” Andrew looked at her, narrowing his eyes and whispering, “Are you going to help her cheat?”
“Of course not!” Shirley shook her head fast. “I just have a feeling. Girl’s intuition.”
Honestly, Charlotte seemed to know everything. She’d rattled off the answers on that practice test like it was nothing.
Andrew didn’t know what to say. He leaned in even closer, his face
ed.ne
suddenly right in front of hers. f
your intuitions so good, tell me how many points I’ll get on the exam.”
Shirley’s face turned bright red. She leaned back, hiding behind her test paper, only her big dark eyes peeking out.
Andrew’s heart gave a weird little jump. He hadn’t noticed before, but Shirley was actually really cute.
In the office, Eleanor was supposed to be checking up on Charlotte’s study habits, but really, she just wanted to help her feel less anxious.
She told her not to stress, promising that even if things didn’t go well, she’d find a way to help her stay.
Eleanor talked so much her throat was dry. When she finally looked up, she found Charlotte leaning against the wall swinging her foot, looking completely bored. It was that classic “in one ear and out the other” move.
“Charlotte, did you hear anything I just said?”
Charlotte nodded, totally relaxed. “Yeah, Ms. Adams. Don’t worry, I’m not nervous.”
Was that even the point? Eleanor felt a headache starting.
Seeing the look on her face, Charlotte blinked her clear, bright eyes, her lips lifting in a playful smile.
“You know, the head of the advanced physics program has to give a speech at the school assembly.”
“You might want to get ready for that. I’m going now.”
Eleanor’s chest actually hurt. Her
mind went blank. How could
Charlotte still joke around at,
like this? Was this girl trying to drive her crazy?