Kevin slid into the seat opposite his blue eyed teacher.

"So what's on the schedule, Professor?," he asked as he flashed his most winning smile.

Eddward's scowl deepened but his eyes sparkled.

"Your math homework, if you please?," Eddward said as he held a hand out for Kevin's notes.

Kevin took the moment to be serious because his math grade and playing eligibility was on the line. Handing over the homework, he rolled his eyes at Eddward's scowl of distaste at his penmanship. Edd had looked at it in horror for a year. But the two Edd's were alike in how they scanned Kevin's work over. Where Eddward's face of concentration was softer than his usual scowl, Edd's was a bit harder than his usual face of wide eyed wonder at life. And both young men looked adorable when they were concentrating on something. It's gonna take everything in Kevin to focus.

"Who's your professor?," Eddward asked, his blue eyes clouded over with a touch of concern and curiosity.

"Dr Thomas. Why?"

Edd threw his head back and let a sigh escaped clenched teeth.

"Think you can transfer to Dr Maskin's class?"

"No clue, Dude."

"OK, I will help you, but I'd highly recommend transferring to Dr Maskin's class. Take your notes as neatly as possible, because I can't read this chicken scratch if I tried and I'm not trying. I'd prefer to keep my perfect vision perfect for the rest of my life."

Kevin scoffed and rolled his eyes, but when the math genius leveled a look at him, he snapped his mouth shut.

"Dr Thomas tends to teach straight from the book, because these notes are a direct copy of the textbook," Eddward went on as he pulled the same textbook Kevin had pulled out of his bag out of his own. "What you need is for someone to actually walk you through the steps and use real life examples, not the bullshit the textbook uses. You wouldn't even need my help if you had a better professor."

"And miss spending time with you?," Kevin smirked.

Another look.

Kevin just laughed.

"Until I can get a transfer, if I can get a transfer, you're it, Rockwell. So teach me."

"Fine. Just know that I can only help you this semester."

"You help me pass this class and you won't hear a peep out of me next semester."

"Deal."

But Eddward would hear way more than a peep out of Kevin in the spring semester and he would like it.

While it exasperated the mathematician to no end to have to reteach Kevin everything he should have learned in class, he was pleasantly surprised that the quarterback had the capacity to understand the concepts and apply them correctly once he was shown how to do so.

When their alarms sounded that curfew was within the next hour, they packed up to leave.

"Is this the only class you're having trouble in?," Eddward asked.

Kevin nodded.

"It would be in our best interests to meet in your room or mine from now on as they're closer to the field and the dining hall than the library as neither of us is really required to attend study hall as long as our GPA's hold up and they will."

Kevin, hearing his serious tone just nodded again.

As they made their way out of the building, Kevin Anderson caught sight of them. Kevin had his cocky grin on his face and Eddward was frowning in disapproval at what he was saying, but his eyes gleamed with mischief. Then he caught Eddward's eyes in his own. And the swimmer shrugged as he walked through the door Kevin held open for him, giving him a soft pat on the cheek and and smirk as he walked past him.

Kevin froze. Eddward was being kind. Affectionate, even.

Barr took advantage, though, which is what Eddward wanted. Slinging his arm around the swimmer's shoulder he walked them home like they were old friends. But Eddward gave the library one last glance, his ice cold eyes looking right into Anderson's soul.

Then he winked. And deep inside Kevin Anderson, a sleeping dragon stirred.

On Friday, Angela woke up, pulled her Afro into a high puff, donned her glasses instead of her usual contacts, no makeup, jeans and one of Sy's hoodies, but she did pack her small duffel with her tablet, makeup kit, and snacks. After lunch, she and Jessi Anne were headed back to Peach Creek. Angela was getting her hair braided and Jessi Anne was meeting up with a few cousins to celebrate her engagement with a much needed Girl's Night.

Most everyone wasn't used to seeing her so dressed down, but for Sy, this was Ang at her best. No pretense, no princess. Just a girl set about living her life. And looking good doing it because, like Kevin did with Edd, she loved to see Ang in her things.

"When will you be back?," she asked as they walked to class together.

Ang made a face.

"Prolly not til after 9. Closer to 10 depending on how many breaks we take."

"You're going to have like five people braiding your hair, Babe. It shouldn't take that long."

Ang pointed at the mountain of hair on top of her hair.

"Technically, I need six people to get it done in the time I want it done in, but beggars can't be choosers. I'll text you before I come back, alright?"

Sy nodded as she sighed and leaned in for a kiss.

"Lunch?"

"Get me a slice of pepperoni and a Coke," Ang replied with a quick peck and then she was off to class.

They had lunch and Ang was off to the city for the rest of the afternoon and evening, too, if the braiders doing Ang's hair had anything to say about it. And since they charged by the hour and the amount of hair they had to work with, they did have something to say about it. But Ang did text her like she said she would. At 10PM. But Sy held on. It was only a two and a half hour drive, so even though it would be after midnight when she came back, at least she was coming back.

Sy had figured that her mom or dad would be bringing her back to school and dozed off while she waited on her angel to get back. When the roar of a 1985 Harley FXRS came in through the back parking lot, Sy was startled awake. She missed that roar something fierce. Her mom had a Harley that sounded like that but they had to sell it to pay for her hospice care right after Sy got her motorcycle license. Margie was going to teach Sy to ride herself but got too sick to do it. For once, her dad didn't act like an ass at her mother's request to teach Sy to ride. She took the test on her mom's bike and did a few turns in the driveway to show off after she got her license in the mail to show off for her mom. The woman beamed from her spot at the living room window.

She died two days later.

Walking to the window to see who had such a sweet ride that brought back so many bittersweet memories for her, she screamed when she saw not only the motorcycle, but who was on it.

Angela.

And it was her mom's bike. Her dad had painted it baby blue to match Sy's at her mother's request right after Sy was born. When Sy was 6, she keyed her name into gas tank because her mom said she wanted to take her for a ride, but couldn't because she didn't have a side car and Sy was too little to ride on the back, so Sy figured if her mom saw her name on the bike, they'd always be together. Her dad pitched. a. fit. And Margie laughed til she cried and hugged her close and promised her the bike when she got old enough because her name was now on it.

They sold the bike to one of Kevin's dad's friends. The man kept it tuned up and in shape in the hopes that Sy could buy it back from him or he could regift it to her in some way. Somehow Angela made it happen.

Seeing her name look back up her under the yellow glow of the parking lot's lights and then Ang take off her helmet and taking her braids out of her hoodie (as far as Sy was concerned she could keep it for forever now) and whip them around to loosen them up and shake the stiffness of driving the bike back to school out of her bones made Sy make a promise to herself she'd never break.

She'd be a Jackson. And Angela would be the owner of her mom's bike.