Disclaimer: I don't own these characters.

Luke walked into third period English as usual, trying to hide the fact that his hands were shaking with both nervousness and anticipation. He took his usual seat.

Marilou was already at her desk. As soon as Luke sat down, she gave him a nudge and a grin. Mark had done his job.

Luke turned around; Mark sat in the very back of the room, a couple of rows over from Jabba. He just nodded and winked. So far, so good.

The bell rang, and Jabba didn't show up for class.

Mrs. Lucas approached the podium and began to take attendance. She frowned. "Where is Robby Krueger?"

Someone assured her that Robby was finishing a chemistry test and would be there in just a few minutes.

"And where's Jason Hutt? He's supposed to give his speech today!"

Luke turned around and looked at the cheerleader who sat beside Jason. Her name was Victoria something. Victoria just shrugged and looked back at Mrs. Lucas.

"Well, he's going second, so he has a few moments. Marilou, you're up first. Would you like to set up?"

Marilou Yarrich was a pro at public speaking. Luke had no idea where she'd gotten it from, because just like him, she was rather shy.

The topic for the speeches was My Chosen Career. Luke had written his speech—the one he never really gave- on being a pilot. He didn't know what he wanted to do when he grew up, but flying planes seemed pretty cool.

Mark had wanted to be a comic book artist. Go figure. Luke thought Mrs. Lucas would subtract points from his speech grade for not being realistic, but Mark had actually passed around some samples of comic book heroes that he'd drawn in his spare time. He probably could be a comic book designer, if he's serious about it, Luke mused as Marilou rearranged her notes at the podium.

Marilou smiled at the class, showing her brilliant white teeth.

Luke imagined Mark in the back of the room, staring at her and drooling. He fought the urge to laugh.

"When I grow up, I want to be a dental hygienist, just like my mother," Marilou began cheerfully, not missing a beat. "My father is a dentist and my mother is a dental hygienist. They tell me that a smile is the most important part of your entire appearance, and it can make or break a first impression."

As Marilou talked on about the career duties of a dental hygienist, Jabba Hutt arrived to class late—without a late pass, which meant that Mrs. Lucas would have to write him up. Jabba noticed that Marilou was in the middle of a speech, and therefore tried to get to his seat by walking around the back of the room. At least he was polite for the ladies.

This proved to be easier said than done, because Mrs. Lucas' room was rather crammed, and all of the desks in the last row pushed right up against the wall. In order for Jabba to get to his seat, everyone in the back row would have to stand up and let him pass.

Luke looked over at Mrs. Lucas, to see how she was handling this. Sure enough, Mrs. Lucas was rolling her eyes and mouthing for Jabba to just cut behind Marilou anyway and go up the last row to his seat.

Marilou was trying her hardest not to be distracted by Jabba, which was a feat in and of itself. Now she was talking about the educational requirements of being a dental hygienist. "My mother went to community college and got an associate's degree in dental hygiene, but she says the job pays more if you have a bachelor's degree in-"

Luke silently watched as Jabba crossed the front of the room—requiring Marilou to move out the way and allow his giant girth to pass—and then meander up the last row, taking his usual seat in the very back. He was so large that he couldn't even fit at a regular desk. Mrs. Lucas had had to put a different table and chair in the very back, just for him.

Marilou continued talking. All of a sudden…

CRUNCH.

Marilou stopped her speech and looked at Mrs. Lucas, seemingly annoyed that someone had interrupted her. "What the hell was that?" muttered the kid who sat to Luke's left.

"Hold on a second, Marilou." Mrs. Lucas turned to the rest of the class. "What was that crunching noise?"

"I think it came from Jabba's desk," Victoria said absentmindedly. She wasn't even in on the plot, so this was working out perfectly. Jabba would never know that Mark Fisher had planted the mirror. "Jabba, did you sit on something?"

Jabba sat up from his chair and looked down at his empty chair. A few other kids who sat around him were examining the floor.

"Look!" a kid nearby hissed, pointing to something on the floor. Luke, pretending he didn't know what had happened, craned his neck for a better look.

Jabba picked up his chair and set it aside. Then he bent down to the floor and picked something up.

"That's some kind of a mirror," Victoria said, looking shocked. Being one of Jabba's closest associates, she probably knew all about his superstitions. "You broke a mirror! That's seven years of bad luck, isn't it?"

Up at the podium, Marilou started to giggle.

"I can't believe he's stupid enough to sit on a mirror," Mark said in a stage whisper to the kid sitting next to him. Mrs. Lucas didn't even try to shush him.

Other kids joined in and started to laugh. "That's enough," Mrs. Lucas finally said, waving a hand. "Let's let Marilou get on with her speech. We can clean it up later."

Luke watched, curiously, as the look on Jabba's face began to turn from confusion, to amusement, to a look of horror. He held the broken compact mirror in his hands. He was looking up at Victoria, possibly for some sort of comfort, but the silly cheerleader couldn't believe what had happened, either. She just stared at the broken mirror in his hand.

Jabba looked at Mrs. Lucas, at a loss for words. Even Mrs. Lucas was unsure of she should be doing.

Jabba looked back and forth from Mrs. Lucas to Victoria, trying to open his mouth and say something. Finally, before Luke's mind could register what was happening, Jabba Hutt fell backwards in a faint.

The floor shook so hard that Marilou grabbed the podium to keep from getting knocked backward herself.

Finally, a group of kids burst out laughing.

At lunchtime, all anyone could talk about was how Jabba had fainted in Mrs. Lucas' class. Luke couldn't remember anyone talking about him behind his back on the day that he had vomited, but Luke Skywalker was a shy kid who hated public speaking. Jabba Hutt was a bully.

"Okay, so it worked, but this doesn't mean that we're friends," Leia told Han at Han's lunch table. "I'm not riding with you to school anymore, and you're not allowed to come to my house and sing on my lawn. In fact, my dad is booby-trapping our front yard."

Han wasn't paying attention. "I say we prank the soccer team next. Let's drain all of the hot water from the showers in the locker room. That'll be super easy, we'll just leave them running for a while…"

"—and he said he'll DESTROY you, Han. And he means it."

"…Chew and Lando can sneak in during the soccer team's practice, no one will look twice if those two are caught going in there…"

"Mrs. Lucas said he still has to give his speech, but honestly, nobody's going to take him seriously," Marilou was giggling to Carrie Hamill. "Not after today."

"Luke, did you see her smile?" Mark asked, dreamily. He was probably the only one not talking about Jabba, besides Han and Leia. "She has the best smile in the entire class. And she was looking at me."

Cheerful for the first time in days, Luke clamped his friend on the back. "She's sitting at the next table over, Mark. Why not ask her out?"

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