"What's your favorite element?"/ "Plutonium."/ "Because of Pluto?"/"Yes, it reminds me to never give up on things that may seem impossible."
In which Farkle helps Riley study the periodic table, but they learn more than just the elements.
Riley laid lazily on her bed,sprawled over her science notebook and her computer. Her frustration gave her a headache, and it didn't help she felt an overwhelming flow of loneliness because Maya decided to go home and procrastinate on the homework.
She groaned and placed her blood-red face in her tense hands.
"How am I supposed to memorize the entire periodic table in two nights?" she asked irritatedly.
"I don't know," a voice spoke suddenly. "Maybe if you had a genius friend, it would make things easier."
Riley whipped her head around to find her nerdy best friend sitting on the bay window with a smug look on his face.
"You're having trouble with this?" Farkle asked surprised.
Riley bit her lip and blushed rose red in embarrassment.
"Well, not everyone can know 118 elements off the top of their head. As much as I wish I was, I'm not a genius like you."
The brunette boy smiled knowingly. "You're incredibly smart, Riley, whether you believe it or not. It doesn't even take a genius to know these. Here, scoot over."
Farkle playfully nudged his friend to the other side of the bed. She rolled her eyes but sat up attentively.
"The easiest way to figure the table is to associate all of the elements with something you already know or like," he explained.
Riley nodded and asked, "And how do I do that?"
"Well, a majority of the elements are named after scientists, planets, and even countries," he said.
In her chocolate pool of eyes, there was a twinkle of interest and excitement.
Riley sat up with posture fit for a queenand asked, "What's your favorite?"
The teenage boy didn't even have to think about that. He's always known itever since he met the little girl in a pink, puffy princess dress.
"Plutonium," he answered immediately.
He stared at her with such intensity that her cheeks heated like a blazing fire, and she glanced quickly at her lap.
"Because of Pluto?" she questioned shyly.
"Yes," he said the next sentence quietly. "It reminds me to never give up on things that may seem impossible."
The brown-eyed girl looked deeper in his eyes, looking for clarity on his vague answer.
"What's impossible?" she interrogated. "Being an athlete? Beating Smackle in a debate? Being taller than Lucas?"
He chuckled to himself and responded, "Okay, first of all, I am 2 inches taller than Lucas, but none of that is impossible to me anymore."
Riley frowned and asked, "Then, what is?"
He smirked teasingly.
"If I told you, I would have to kill you."
She frowned even further, and her forehead crinkled into several lines.
"So a boy who saves my life twice will have to killme if I know the impossible?" she questioned annoyed.
His smirk widened into a grin.
"Yes. That's exactly the point," he replied arrogantly.
There was a few minutes of silence between the nerd and the ball of sunshine in which she was glaring daggers at him, and he laughed again to himself.
"So you like planets named after planets, huh?" he joked. "There's Uranium, Plutonium, Mercury, and Neptuni-"
Before he could finish that sentence, she attempted to shove him harshly but only ended up tapping his shoulder.
He smiled at her quirkiness and said, "I also personally like elements named after countries like Germanium, Americium-"
"Farkle!" the brunette exclaimed exasperated.
He beamed at her and put his hands up, surrendering to the determined Riley.
"Okay, okay! I'll tell you! I didn't know Princess Dancing Sunshine could get so worked up," he teased.
She rolled her eyes at him and insisted, "Just tell me, Farkle."
One corner of the boy's lip turned up, and he gently grabbed Riley's hand, rubbing his thumb over the top. Riley gulped and felt her heart thudding repeatedly against her chest.
Farkle stared at the hand and gazed at the beautiful brunette in front of him. "This.This is my impossible."
She looked at him with a flood of confusion.
"What about Maya? I thought you loved us both the same," she stated.
Farkle leaned in closer to her and grasped her other hand.
"Ever since first grade, I've told you I've loved you and Maya the same, and of course, I do. It's just- Maya doesn't take my breath away, bring a new light every day, or make my heart thudding like yours is now. You do, Riley. I love Maya, but I'm in love with
you."
"I'm your impossible?" she repeated shocked.
He nodded, smiling. "You're my Pluto, Riley, and someday, I hope I'll be yours too."
She smiled slightly and tucked a strand of her brown locks behind her ear.
"You know, they're thinking of making Pluto a planet again," she responded quietly.
"Yeah," Farkle replied grinning. "I know about that."
She leaned in inches away from his lips and whispered, "That means your impossible isn't soimpossible after all."
Riley kissed Farkle confidently, and he responded passionately by deepening it. After a minute, they let go reluctantly, and Riley ran her fingers through his hair, seeing him in an entirely new light.
Her smile stretched from cheek to cheek and questioned, "So Plutonium is your favorite?"
Farkle smiled knowingly and responded, "Yeah. Yeah, it is."