Alfred was always the popular one. He was the quarterback on the football team, he was the class clown, and he was beyond handsome. Ivan was always the scary one. He would sit alone in the back of the classroom, somehow managing straight A's without taking any notes. He was taller than pretty much every other student and his bulkiness wasn't fat. The two were never seen anywhere near each other, seeming to be complete opposites, but one fateful day would change both their lives for the better. It was December 16, getting close to the Christmas dance at Hudson High, which would be on the 20th, and most of the students were focused on finding dates. It was just like every other day for Ivan as he sat by the window and daydreamed about sunflowers and warmer places, for he had always dreamed of going somewhere very warm. But, suddenly, the teacher called his name. He slowly turned his head to stare at her and she gulped, handing him a slip of yellow paper before continuing around the class. Ivan looked down at the paper and read,
Winter Assignment
You will be pairing up with the person who has the same colored dot as that on the back of your paper. The two of you will choose one thing about the upcoming dance to focus on and will help your school prepare. The list you can choose from will be at the front of the classroom. Please come and sign your name to whatever you and your partner choose, and, remember, even though this is for a grade, have fun!
Ivan growled angrily and looked up to see that the other students were already getting with their partners, yelling out the colors on the back of their paper and pushing fellow classmates out of their way. Ivan turned his paper over to see a red dot. He wasn't overly fond of working with others but it didn't seem he had much of an option. He glanced around the room. If he had to be paired with anyone he hoped it would be someone like Matthew or Kiku. They were quiet and seemed to keep to themselves, not as annoying as some of the louder people in the class. But, it seemed like they had already found their partners, and, just when he was starting to dread who it could be, a loud, obnoxious voice yelled, "WHO ELSE HAS A RED DOT?!" Ivan groaned. He could see that his day was already completely ruined. He held up his card so that the blonde could see, and, after an exaggerated sigh, Alfred jumped down from the desk he had been standing on and sauntered over to where the Russian was sitting. He huffed. "I can't believe I was paired with the Commie." Ivan glared at him, but Alfred didn't even flinch. "Well, get up. We have to choose a job and I wanna get there before the fun ones are all gone."
"You pick. I'll wait here." Ivan turned away from, going back to his daydreams.
"Whatever, man" Alfred rushed to the front of the classroom, pushing through other students to pick the best job. He just got there in time to smack Feliciano's hand out of the way and scribble his and Ivan's names down under refreshments. The small Italian boy looked really disappointed. Alfred laughed victoriously before returning to his gloomy partner, a smirk on his lips. "We're taking care of refreshments. I hope that's ok with you."
"Da, that is fine." Ivan stood up, shaking his head, "But you could have chosen something easier. You do realize we will be getting food for 300 people, da?"
"Yeah, it'll be fine! We can just get 300 burgers from-"
"Don't even say it." Ivan sighed. "The bell rang. I will be going to lunch now." Alfred frowned, pushing his glasses up higher on his nose.
"Ok, dude, I'll see ya later. We need to talk about what we're gonna serve." Alfred smirked again before running off to join his friends, glancing back at Ivan once or twice. Ivan sighed. This was going to be a very long week.