"So, did you get any of that?" Phil asked Tommy.

"Yes, Phil. See, some people actually listen to the teacher."

"Yeah, well..."

Tommy rolled his eyes.

"You are so lucky that I'm in this class with you, Deville. You'd be so lost without me."

"You are loving this, aren't you?" Phil asked.

Tommy just grinned.

The two were in woodshop together. They were halfway through the class already and they had just started on a carpentry project. Since they had already taken the class the previous year, they didn't need much more than an overview.

"So, what are your plans after school, Tommy?" Phil asked.

Tommy hesitated. "Well, Marley had asked me the same exact thing. I think he wants me to practice with him for football season. He's really a good guy, Phil. I don't know why you don't like him."

Phil grimaced. "It's not like I don't like him, T. He just hates me."

Tommy shook his head in disbelief.

"It is so true. Have you seen him on the field during practice? He tries to kill me!"

Tommy chuckled.

"It's not funny!" Phil whined. "I'm not afraid of much, Tommy, but when that guy comes running at you, that's pretty scary."

Tommy laughed again and glanced at the clock. His insides were turning and he felt sick. He had fifteen minutes left until he was scheduled to meet Brett. But he wasn't going to back down. He was doing this for Lil. Whether she hated him or not.

"So, Phil..." Tommy started, in attempt to take his mind off of what was about to come.

"I didn't see Kimi in sixth period. I thought we had it together."

"Huh." Phil responded in awe. "I did, too. Maybe she got sick or something."

"That's too bad." Tommy stated. "I really could have used her back there. I mean, not in that sense."

Phil chuckled. "Trust me, T. I'm not worried about you using Kimi. I know you're not like that."

"Whew. Anyway, some girl was totally flirting with me. It was kind of annoying."

"Was she hot?"

"Well, she was a cutie. Not so much hot, though."

"Cute is good."

"Class..." Their teacher interrupted their conversation. "Let's start to clean up. We've got five minutes until you go home. Let's go!"

As Tommy and Phil were putting things away, Phil resumed the conversation they had started in the beginning.

"So, you gonna get together with Marley today?"

Tommy was not one to lie.

"No." He answered. "I actually made previous plans. I have to meet someone after school."

"Oh. Want me to wait for you?"

Tommy shook his head.

"Naw, man. You go on ahead with Chuckie and Kimi. I don't know how long I'll be."

Phil nodded.

About a minute later, the bell rang.

"Class dismissed!" The teacher shouted. "Enjoy the rest of your day!"

Tommy and Phil parted. One was heading off to the bus while the other was headed to face possibly a very painful confrontation.