A/N: Your reviews were all so wonderful! I love you guys! I'll reply some stuff in the next chapter, now that I can write more often. I'm so sorry it took so long to get this up, I was in recovery for my wrist. Enjoy the chapter!
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Nick sighed and looked at the clock. He'd been done with his semester test for half of first period, and he'd spent the rest of the time dreaming up ways to win Sara's heart. So far, he'd gone through love letter, singing love songs outside her window, and just asking her to go somewhere, get out of the world and go to a movie or get something to eat.
When the bell finally rang, he shoved his test paper at Mr. Lector, dashing out of the room and taking the steps to the gym two at a time.
When he'd found his gym clothes and put them on, he stood in line next to Sara and rested an arm casually against the wall behind her without her knowledge. "I wish she knew how I felt…" His mind desperately tried to make his mouth form the words, those few simple combinations of letters that could tell her how he felt.
His thoughts were interrupted when Sara poked him in the side, telling him that they were going to run some laps. "There's no semester test for gym, so we're just having a normal day. It's nice to have a little break from all that crap, right? I think I did terrible on my French exam."
"I'm sure you did great, Sara," Nick reassured her. "You're too smart to get bad scores on a test."
Sara blushed a little at his words, wondering what else he thought of her, whether she was pretty or ugly or nice or jaded. She stared off into space and was only stopped from running straight into a wall by Nick grabbing her arm and pulling her back to run next to him.
"Thanks," she said breathlessly, staring up into his concerned face. "I guess I just spaced for a minute."
"You sure you're okay?" he asked, worry etched all over his features.
"Yeah, guess the tests are getting to me."
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"A ballad is…" Catherine squinted down at her paper, willing the words to come. Gil was leaning back in his chair, the test paper on his desk turned over, signifying that he was done with the poetry semester exam.
Catherine erased a few words and began again. "A ballad is a poem written to the tune of a popular song. It has iambic pentameter and often tells a story. Traditionally, ballads have stanzas with four lines each; however, there is an adaptation with six lines in a stanza." Satisfied with her answer, Catherine moved on to the next question, regarding Cinquain poems.
Gil was watching Catherine while she struggled with the test, noting her neat handwriting that became sloppy when she got excited about a question. His eyes traveled up and down the bumps in her sentences, reading her perfectly worded answers to questions that would have no relevance to her later in life.
Catherine sighed heavily and flipped her paper, glancing up at her comrade. He looked away, but not quickly enough. "What am I doing?" Gil Grissom, for once in his life, was confused by his own actions. "I have no feelings for her besides friendly affection. She's one of my friends, it's only natural for me to sit next to her and think about her sometimes…"
Catherine had caught Gil openly staring at her. She mentally congratulated herself and amused herself by wondering what he was thinking about. "I wish I had a flower, I would pick the petals off to see if he loves me…" She drew on a piece of paper, a small sketch of herself picking the petals off of a daisy. "If I had a crystal ball, I would know how he feels." She drew a crystal ball, herself seated behind it, and a beating heart inside. She drew as the class went on, illustrating how she would find out his feelings, wondering if she would ever know.
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Sara sidled into Ancient Cultures, puzzling over the odd thoughts she'd had about Nick during gym class. When she saw that Greg was already seated, she hurried over to pull up a chair at the two-person desk before anyone else could.
"Hey, Greg!" she said, noticing the pensive look her friend was wearing and the crisp, white piece of paper held in his hands. She leaned over his shoulder and read the black print.
"You're captain of the chess club?" she asked incredulously. Greg looked over at her and nodded. "Awesome!" Sara held up a hand and received a high five, not knowing quite how relieved Greg was at her excitement. He'd been a little reluctant to take the post, not knowing if he'd be able to see her outside of school as much, but her approval, her enthusiasm, seemed to make, up for it completely.
Mr. De la Cruz had begun to pace back and forth at the front of the room, lecturing the class about proper test-taking techniques. Greg and Sara rolled their eyes at one another, praying that they'd be done with the test soon and could pass notes for most of the somewhat useless class.
When they'd both finished their tests, Sara tore a piece of notebook paper out and asked Greg his middle name. His reply caused her to have a giggle fit, her face turning red as she covered her mouth in a futile attempt to keep in her laughter.
"Hojem!" she wrote in block letters. "What the hell kind of name is that?"
"It's Scandinavian," Greg wrote back, a blush creeping up his neck.
In this way, they continued for the rest of class. Sara found herself looking at her companion more than his notes, and she wondered what was causing the sudden change in her attitude towards her two best friends.
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"So…Warrick…" Natasha looked over at her math partner. They were in fourth period, right before lunch, and they had both finished the test already. "What's the deal with you and Mia? Still together? Still happy?"
Warrick nodded, embarrassed. "She's acting a little distant lately, and I can't help but think Archie doesn't approve of us…"
In her mind, Natasha was saying "Duh!" as loudly as she could, but in reality she just smiled. She opened her mouth to ask another question, but Warrick cut her off, trying to spare himself any more shame.
"What about you and Jim? Has he asked you out formally yet?" Warrick grinned at the uncomfortable look on Natasha's face.
"Shut up, you," she said, turning to her test paper and double-checking every step of every problem.
"You brought it on yourself, you know," Warrick thought mischievously.
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"Coffee shop after school?" Catherine asked the group at large. They were crowded around the usual table in the cafeteria.
There was a general sign of assent from the nine other scholars, all except Greg. "I can't make it, but tomorrow I'll go," he said, regret in his voice.
"Why not, Greggo?" Archie asked. "You love coffee!"
"What an amazing revelation," Greg said sarcastically. "I'm busy, that's all."
No one questioned any further, and only Sara knew the reason for his absence from anything after school on Wednesdays. She smiled a secret smile to herself, hidden from everyone else, and set off for her first class (and first test) after lunch.
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Okay, everyone! I hope you all like this chapter, I'm going to try to update daily again, but my school work is building up from not being able to do it in class for so long. Lucky for me, my wrist is good as new and I can type whenever I want! I'm going to take Thursdays off, though, for CSI. Reviews are appreciated; next chapter will be about Spring Break!
Maddy