Chapter Thirty-seven:
"Sarah, are you okay?" AJ repeats.
"John?" She speaks in a questionable tone.
"Sarah, what are you doing here?" He inquires.
"Did you forget?" Sarah inquires back hurt.
"Forget what?" John speaks puzzled.
"Huh." Sarah continues to speak hurt. "I thought… I thought… never mind." She sniffles. "AJ, I have to go. Hopefully we will still keep in touch." She runs back to grab her supplies.
"But… John, what did you forget?" AJ is stretch between her two friends.
"I don't know." He replies.
"Man, who is she to you?" Randy questions.
"A friend." He answers casually.
"Just a friend?" Sarah enters in again with her supplies. "For all of those times we were together, I am just a friend." She huffs pissed off.
"Okay, a close friend." He answers again.
"You… John." Sarah approaches him. "You… you are a great human being." She hugs him.
"What?" AJ and Randy question with quizzical looks. This causes John and Sarah burst out laughing.
"You should see the look on both of your faces." John acknowledge still laughing.
"Okay, what is going on?" AJ wonders feeling like they got tricked.
"AJ. Randy. This is my best friend Sarah Morgan." Randy looks at him in shock with his jaw dropped. AJ, on the other hand, can't believe she fell for this. "I've got you back haven't I, AJ."
"You did." She admits, however still a bit stubborn to say that.
"Wait, I thought… you seem to let us think that-" Randy is flabbergasted at this whole situation
"She was a guy." John finishes his sentence.
"Yeah." Randy agrees still shocked about this revelation.
"Well, as you can clearly see she isn't." He chuckles.
"You never told us she went to that high school. You just told us that she moved away." Randy states trying to make sense of this.
"She did. She moved out of the state." John clarifies proving he didn't lie.
"Impertinent High School isn't out of the state." Randy acknowledge knowing because he researches the school when AJ told him about this opportunity.
"Actually it is, the campus is outside the state line." John states.
"I should have known." AJ calls out. "Oh sorry." She blushes at her outburst.
"I am surprise you just got it." Sarah smiles. "I tried to give hints." She admits.
"You did, no wonder she didn't get it." John chuckle teasing AJ.
"Shut up, this situation will not repeat itself." AJ huffs in disappointment in herself.
"That is fine with me because I can say I can trick you." John proudly accepts.
"Randy, do something." AJ speaks like his sister who got hurt.
"Best friend you can defend yourself." Randy encourage with a smirk. He has faith that his best friend is stronger than she shows.
"Right." She perks up. "That is okay John enjoy your victory." She grins.
"You should be scared, best friend." Sarah not liking the turn of events.
"It is okay we are even in numbers." He speaks in confidence in this statement.
"Sarah, do you want to be with us or against us?" AJ proposes.
Sarah ponders. "I will take my chances with John." She sticks with her best friend.
"Okay." At least she gave them both a chance.
"Wait, there is something I don't get." Randy still wants to figure out how John made it seem like Sarah was a boy.
"What is it Randy?" Sarah gives her attention to him.
"So how do you keep in touch?" He inquires.
"Mostly phone calls and video chats." John answers. "When I state that students there only study, eat, and sleep, I wasn't kidding. Once in a while, usually once a month, we hang out face to face like old times." John explains.
"The times you went away for the weekend you were visiting her." AJ asks.
"That is right." John confirms it.
"Having met her without this knowledge, I was going to introduce her to you." AJ discloses.
"I thank you for considering me for a friend of hers." John appreciates the offer.
"I always take care of my friends."
"So you two are like us." Randy utters.
"Randy, let it go." They all shake their heads.
"I won't until…"
"Children, dinner time." Mrs. Lee calls out. "Sarah, are you staying for dinner?" She offers.
"I can ask my parents, Mrs. Lee." Sarah politely response.
"Certainly, tell them we do have enough food for everyone, we will drop you home and you will be home before 11 pm." Mrs. Lee assures her.
"Certainly, Mrs. Lee." She calls back out. "How does she know?" Sarah asks surprise.
"She deals with these two, she is well prepared with the parent questions." AJ explains her mother's intuition.
"Right, they can be a handful." She agrees with a titter.
"Hey, we are right here." John and Randy simultaneously speaks offended.
"It doesn't change anything." AJ response back.
"Fine." They both march to the dining table.
"Was he like this before?" AJ inquiries about John.
"Oh yeah, although he is tamer now. It is good to have someone beside me that looks after him." Sarah appreciates.
"It is no problem." AJ waves it off. She will do anything of her love ones.
"So I have heard he is dating a teacher." She states.
"Yup, I am afraid he will get in trouble."
"He might have to, to show him it is wrong, although, he might keep seeing her anyways." Sarah mentions to her dismay.
"How do you know?"
"I know when my best friend is in love. Come on let us eat dinner." She immediately changes the subject.
"Don't you have to call your parents?" AJ reminds her.
"Right, I will meet you there." She takes out her phone to call.
"Thank you for the dinner Mr. and Mrs. Lee." Sarah give thanks.
"You are welcome, Sarah." Mrs. Lee replies. "You are welcome here anytime." She places the dishes in a pile to bring to the sink.
"Thank you, but it might not be here for a while." She sadly utters.
"Why is that?"
"High School, well my school, is quite time consuming. This is my only evening of free time in two weeks." She unfortunately states.
"Wow, is it that much homework." Mr. Lee is surprise. They want their daughter to have the best education, however don't want her to be a robot.
"Yes, they push you each day giving no time to jump ahead. I tried it once to spend more time with John, but it didn't work. I spend more time sleeping than hanging out with him. I would do several overnighters just to get ahead." Sarah explains.
"You are saying you have no social life?" AJ inquires hinting to her parents to consider this.
"As in human presence not really outside the school. My one true friend is John, everyone thought I was so focus on my studies to hang out with. On the other hand, whenever I call John he is right by my side, when he isn't with you guys." She clarifies.
"John, if you have to hang out with her it is okay with us. Moreover, we can all hang out together since we have met her." AJ requests happy to have more girl-friends to hang out with.
"Sounds like a plan, I know your parents will approve to John and Randy." Mrs. Lee assures.
"Also, you can meet our other friends as well."
"That is the one thing that concerns me, you two won't leave him to hang out with your significant others, right?" John also inform her about their dating life.
"Sarah of course not. Besides you they are my closest friends they wouldn't abandon me." John comforts Sarah being like AJ very protect of her loves ones.
"I just want to make sure." Sarah assures them which perks AJ's interest. She ponders if there is an underlying motive to this concern.
"How about we watch a movie or play a game?" AJ offers changing the subject.
"Sounds like fun." Sarah cheers excited being it been a while she had time to relax.
"Sarah why don't you come with me to pick a game or movie?"
"Okay, we will be back guys." Sarah follows AJ.
"Hey man, did you notice that?" Randy acknowledge when the girls are gone.
"Notice what?" John replies back.
"The way Sarah acted towards you, so protective." He notices the motive as well.
"What do you mean she is always like that?"
"She is and you don't find that odd."
"No, she is just very protective of me like you and AJ are with each other."
"Right." He shifts his eyes back and forth.
"What?"
"Nothing, let us get us some popcorn." Randy changes the subject.
"Are you sure?" John suspicious of this whole conversation.
"Yes, it must be a different personality I am not used to." He assures him.
"Okay." He accepts vaguely still confuse on the purpose of the conversation.
"Sarah, how long have you been friends with John?" AJ questions looking through movies.
"Almost all my life, we meet in Kindergarten."
"How did you meet?" She wonders.
Sarah giggles. "That is a funny story, I actually accidentally hit him with a block."
"What?"
"I was sad one day and wanted to be by myself. During playtime, I was playing with the blocks. I was building a tower that for some reason kept on falling down. After the third fall, I kicked a block that hit John in the arm. He cried which got me in trouble which next made me cry. Our teacher calmed us both down and explained the situation. Afterwards, we played blocks together. We have been best friends ever since." Sarah story tells.
"He made your day better." AJ smiles at how John turn her day into a special day.
"Yah he did." She smiles recalling how he actually did.
"Sounds like a special story to your friendship, although how long did you start to like him?" AJ asks quite bluntly.
"That day he became my friend."
"No, when did you start to have feelings for him? When did you have a crush on him?" AJ express clearer.
"I don't have feelings for him like that." She defends immediately.
"Really, you two didn't develop feelings for each other as the years past." She knows she is lying.
"Nope, we are just like you and Randy."
"Actually, we tried to date."
"No way, what happened?" Sarah is surprise by this with the way their friendship is now.
"It didn't last, one kiss and it felt like kissing my brother. At least now we know that there are no romantic feelings for each other."
"How do you know? Maybe one day it will dawn on you that you do like him." She utters in worry.
"Like you are with John." She pursues again.
"Exactly." AJ smirks. "Wait no you tricked me." She huffs not liking that she spilled her secret.
"It is exactly what I do with them. Don't worry I won't tell him." AJ promises.
"Please AJ, I don't want to confuse everything. He loves your teacher and I don't want to ruin that." She sulks.
"You don't want to know if he will like you back."
"He won't, he only treats me like a sister. I will if I have to tell him my feelings. If not, I just want him to be happy." She will sacrifice her feelings for her.
"Okay, however if it is too much tell me. We are kind of outnumbered sometimes; 3 guys to 2 girls."
"No problem." Sarah accepts the offer. Maybe she should just try with John to ease her own feelings just like AJ did with Randy. The only problem is that will this decision affect their friendship as well as his relationship.