Aelita smiled at the graded test that she was holding. It was an A-. So far, she has never gotten a grade lower than an A. However, this was not her grade for this test; it was Ulrich's result on the recent test, which was on his worst subject ever, chemistry (and anything science-related).
Mrs. Hertz returned to the front of the blackboard after handing her students their test back.
"Unfortunately, not everyone did great on our latest test, but fortunately, it's not the usual. Nice work, Ulrich," Mrs. Hertz congratulated the young man with genuine admiration in her tone, gaining everyone's attention to the aforementioned student with widened eyes. Some were whispering to the person next to them, wondering how the athlete pulled it off.
"It's refreshing to see you're finally listening to my lectures. Not only that, but you're improving on your homework as well. Hopefully, the ones who failed this test will follow your lead."
Aelita hid a smirk. Ulrich looks back at her with a similar smirk, and that got her to giggle. If only their teacher knew.
When the science teacher turned her back to the class, Aelita took this time to hand back the graded test to its rightful owner while also mouthing, "Great work," to him. Ulrich nodded at her in appreciation. When they returned their attention back to the teacher, she has already started her lecture for the day.
Less than a minute later, the two started to secretly text to each other, making sure their phones were silent with the vibration off.
Ulrich: [You should be giving this lecture, and if you were, I wouldn't be trying so hard to stay awake. Just a second with her and I'm already wanting to go back to bed]
Aelita: [Hehe, thanks :), but I'm not sure that's my style :P]
Ulrich: [You're right. So, are we just going to text about the lesson?]
Aelita: [I already know the material pretty well, so nope ;)]
Ulrich: [XD Figures you would, Princess]
The pinkette tried her to suppress her giggles. She finds it rather cute that Ulrich would openly use emoticon texts like that, which is a big contrast to his usual stoic expression.
Aelita: [So, are we still up to sneaking out and go into town tonight?]
Ulrich: [Yep, so what do you think about going to a restaurant?]
Aelita: [Restaurant? Are you suggesting we leave around dinner time =O]
Ulrich: [Yeah :D, and I wouldn't worry about getting caught by Jim. It's the weekend tomorrow, and he wants this day to be over as much as we do]
Aelita: [Hmmm...oh OK, why not? So what made you plan this?] She texted with an excited smile on her face.
Ulrich: [Thought we could go to one to celebrate. I just passed a test on my worst subject, and you're doing pretty great at Pencak Silat, and it's almost finals, so why don't we go out and celebrate?]
The pinkette thought over his texted words and was inclined to agree with him. And it was almost the end of the school year, meaning the two-week summer vacation was coming soon. Many students would be studying for finals, while others will try to actually slack off and have as much free time as possible before having to actually study when pressed for time. Aelita wasn't that worried about her grades, and if she actually tried to get a bad grade on her finals, she would still be fine (1). Although, she will put her foot down if Ulrich starts to slack off and neglect his studies. He has no room to get any more terrible grades even if they starting to improve.
Aelita: [I guess you're right on that. Do you already have a place in mind?]
Ulrich: [I'll leave that as a surprise ;)]
For the rest of the class session, the two texted nonstop, excluding the times when the teacher would ask for a volunteer to answer a question, which luckily they were never spotted using their phones. When Ulrich would be picked, Aelita discreetly texted him the answer. Mrs. Hertz didn't notice him looking at his phone as he hid it behind his science textbook. Aelita could only hold back her giggles as they actually got away.
It seems all those times sneaking off was paying off. They used their skill of stealth to leave campus later that day without anyone noticing.
(1): Yeah, I don't know exactly the mechanics on how grades are determined mathematically, but one time I was so worried about the finals, my teachers calmed me down when they told me that my grades were great all semester that even if I scored badly on one subject on the finals, my overall grade for that class would still be great. And in the end, I was only worried with one class, and I still got great scores on all of my subjects. Since Aelita's grades are nearly perfect, it should apply to her too.