It was Tuesday before Lauren saw Bo again, it seemed the only class they had together was English Lit. The teacher was writing "Pop Quiz - Pride and Prejudice Ch. 1-10" on the board when Lauren walked in, just ahead of the bell, and saw that Bo was sitting at her desk in place where a boy sat last week. Lauren paused a bit, unsure if she should proceed to her desk of find another, but Bo waved at her and smiled, as if all was as expected.

Lauren got into her seat and looked up at the dark haired girl. "Bo?"

"I hope you don't mind. I traded seats with Kirby, and Mrs. Walters said she OK, too."

"Who's Kirby?" Lauren asked, still unsettled by the change.

"Dude who was sitting here last week," Bo answered and nodded with her head to her own previous seat, close to the back of the class. When Lauren followed where Bo was pointing, she saw her former desk mate, who didn't seem too upset about the change. He looked over and waved at Bo friendly.

"Is he a friend of yours?"

"No, not really. I've seen him here or there before, though. He's a senior too." Bo answered, as if it explained everything.

Something occurred to Lauren, and she hurried to ask another question before Mrs. Walters was done passing out the quiz and would ask everyone to be quiet. "Do you know everyone's names in this class?"

"Sure" Bo answered easily.

"You are really good with people, aren't you?" Lauren asked, but Bo didn't get a chance to answer. Mrs. Walters clapped her hands and told the class they had 15 minutes to complete the pop quiz. Everyone quieted down and bent over the sheet, scribbling away.

When the class was over, Lauren looked over at Bo to see what the older girl would do.

Bo was putting her things away. "You have one more class after this, right?" she asked.

"Yes. Civics. You?"

"Done for the day." Bo smiled at the thought. "How do you think you did on the quiz?"

"Probably not great. The book is kind of boring, so I skipped around some parts and just read the dialog to get the gist of things." Lauren admitted. "Do you like it?"

"Yes, it's terribly romantic. And I love the descriptions of the country side and all the buildings, inside and out. But I'm sure you did great. Anyway, I got to go, see you on Thursday." Bo smiled in parting.

"Bye." Lauren waved at the brunet's retreating back. The parting conversation made her feel great. She even skipped a few times on the way to her last class. She didn't dare think she had found a friend, not after so many bitter disappointments of the past, but she did hope she found a… she struggled to find the right word. A pal? Yes, that felt right. She found a pal in Bo.

xxx

Thursday rolled in, and Lauren was once again running late for the English Lit class she had with Bo, though not so late that she would miss the bell announcing the start of the period, this time. She settled in next to her new pal just as the bell went off. "Hi." She nodded at the older girl and got a nod and a smile in return.

Mrs. Walters was passing out their graded quiz from two days ago, and Lauren craned her neck to see a red A on her deskmate's sheet. Her own B she tried to angle away from Bo, but red pen on the transparent sheet was sure to stand out, no matter what she did. She did her best to pay attention and took copious notes, knowing she would need to make up somehow for her lack of interest in the reading material if she were to get a good grade in this class.

When the class ended, Bo didn't rush off with the rest of their classmates. Instead, she looked at Lauren curiously.

"So, I thought you were some kind of a wunderkind, in high school two years early. Or do you really just don't like Jane Austen?"

Lauren bit her lip, caught wanting to defend her intelligence but weary of why the older girl would choose to bring up.

"I'm really not into this book, and the quiz was harder than I expected." She thought about adding something positive for her new pal, but struggled for right words. "You did well. I'm glad."

"I see the question is still complicated." Bo parried.

Lauren was not surprised that Bo would call her on a 'non-answer' answer. Still, she had little time and a hefty dose of fear from past encounters to keep her from explaining further. "I promise I'll explain later, when there is more time." She gathered her things and was almost to the door when Bo caught up with her.

"I get it. How about this Friday, after school? We could hang out and talk." Bo was saying as she kept pace with Lauren on the way to her next class.

Lauren decided it was time to stop being surprised by the older brunet. After all, nothing in their interactions thus far went as she expected, this invitation to spend time after school included. She felt a little giddy inside, and still a lot afraid. But she wouldn't turn down an offer of more time with the older girl.

"Yes, that sounds great. Friday after class." She smiled and stepped backwards into the classroom where her Civics teacher was already tacking attendance. Lauren realized she didn't hear the bell ring in all this excitement.

"OK. I'll get Dyson to drive us to my gram's tavern. We can hang out there – food is on the house!" Bo said and closed the door at the nod from the teacher.

Lauren remained facing the now closed door, with her back to the class for some unknown time, until the laughter from her classmates and a stern "Sit down, Lauren" from her teacher had brought her out of her trance. Bo had thrown her a parting curve-ball. Or several. Hang out with Dyson? At the tavern? Oh boy.