"Billy," She nodded. "It's nice to see you again this year."
"Nice to see you too." I answered.
"Do you like to read about molecular biology too?" She asked me next.
There was a hint of teasing sarcasm in her face. "No Mrs. Crookshank." I said. "I'm an MB virgin."
Before she had a chance to reply I turned to find a seat. I saw that Nina was in the class. She was sitting in the front row and all of the desks around her were empty. She gave me a weak smile, perhaps wondering if I was going to speak to her or not after the summer.
"Hi Nina." I greeted, walking over and taking the seat next to hers. "How was your summer?"
It turned out Nina was also in my third period class; Geometry. I sat next to her there also. When the lunch bell rang we walked together to the cafeteria. We found our normal seats and began to talk as we ate. After only a few minutes it was if we'd only done this yesterday.
"So you still want to be a doctor?" I asked her as we waded through the cafeteria's version of stroganoff.
"Oh yes." She nodded. "That's why I'm taking molecular biology. You have to be heavy in the science classes to get in. Especially if you want to get a scholarship."
"Where is it you want to go?" I asked her.
"Anywhere they'll take me." She said. "But I'd prefer U of W at Seattle. It's a top rated school but close enough so that I could commute home on vacations. If I get a good car that is. My parents don't have that much money."
"Mine either." I agreed. "I keep trying to get my old man to invest in the stock market but he won't do it. I don't think he trusts my predictions of good stocks."
"Do you still want to study business?"
"I don't really WANT to." I said. "But I think that I should. I think that's where my fortune lies."
She giggled, an action she would have been incapable of a year before. "Still gonna make that fortune huh?"
"I think I'll have a good head for investment." I predicted.
We ate in silence for a moment and then I asked, "Do you follow all that molecular biology crap? I mean today was only the intro but it seemed pretty deep to me. Quite a change from A amp;P."
"Yeah." She nodded. "I've read up on it a little over the summer. Trying to get myself a little edge you know? But you know what confused me?"
"What?"
"The geometry. It sounded like he was talking in Latin."
"He was." I affirmed. "But I think I got that handled. It's mostly just memorizing formulas it looks like. The actual math part is the algebra that we learned last year. If you can memorize the formula, you got it nailed."
"You must have a head for numbers." She told me, taking another bite.
"I never did before." I muttered.
"What's that?"
"Nothing." I answered, an idea suddenly striking me. "Listen, maybe we can help each other out. Why don't we get together and study a couple times a week? You can help me with the biology and I can help you with the geometry?"
She looked up at me, speechless, her face reddening.
"You okay?" I asked, wondering what I'd said to embarrass her.
"You want to… study with me?" She asked.
"Sure." I said. "Why not? We can either do it at your house or mine. You don't live too far from me, do you?"
"No." She shook her head. She gulped. "Are you sure we should do that?"
"Study together?" I asked, confused. "Of course I do. What's wrong with that?"
She looked at me hard for the longest time, various expressions crossing her face; fear, doubt, elation, disappointment, determination. "Nothing." She said finally. "When can we start?"
"I don't know." I said, still confused. "How about whenever we get stuck on something. It's probably gonna be often the way I see it."
Her face cleared a little bit and she seemed more composed. She giggled a little and shook her head.
"What's wrong?" I asked, nearing exasperation.
"Nothing." She chuckled. "Just thinking weird thoughts."
"I get those a lot too." I told her, still wondering what had gone through her head.
I saw Mike in the halls of course but he didn't talk to me, didn't approach me. His locker was no longer next to mine. It seemed he had a new group of friends to hang out with; the freshmen kids from last year. They all looked as if they worshipped him. I sadly guessed that that was what he needed. I also knew that he would drop out by the end of this year and that I was powerless to stop it. I tried to approach him a few times and he simply walked away.
Nina and I started studying together on a regular basis and our friendly relationship deepened to the point that we became intimate friends; able to judge each other's moods with a glance, able to say nearly anything to each other. I became closer to her than I ever would have thought possible. I was closer to her than I'd ever been to Mike. After all, Nina didn't always try to top whatever story I told or try to convince me about all of the mythical dick she was getting. She didn't try to get me to smoke cigarettes or cut school or get stoned. There was also no underlying sexual tension with her as there was with most of the other girls I knew. We just enjoyed being together, talking together.
She met Tracy and my parents on her first day studying at my house. It was somewhat awkward since Nina was very shy before new people and my parents were very curious about this girl I chose to have meet them. Though I was boffing nearly everything I could get my dick into at that point, I'd never introduced anyone to them. I thought it kind of ironic that the one they were meeting was the one I had not had any sex with. Nina uttered monosyllable replies to Dad and Mom's inquiries about where she lived, what she planned to do, etc, and finally they left us alone. Tracy had only uttered a polite greeting and had retreated to her room.
After she'd left, and after I'd answered my parent's interrogation and explained that we were only STUDYING together, that we were only friends, and that they should not start compiling a wedding list, I went upstairs to put my books away.
Tracy was doing some studying of her own, this time to the accompaniment of Ozzy Osborne. She looked up as I passed and called me into the room.
"What's up?" I asked her.
"Have you no shame at all?" She asked me.
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"It's bad enough that you're screwing all of my friends but isn't that enough? Have you gotten bored with that and decided to start knocking off the shy egghead girls too? You are serious scum."
"I'm not screwing Nina." I said, looking at my sister aghast. "We were just studying. She's my friend."
"You don't have any girl friends." She accused. "You have fuck partners. Are you seriously telling me that you invited that poor girl over here to study? You didn't take her upstairs for a little private session before we all got home?"
"No." I yelled, shaking my head. "My god, am I that bad?"
"Are you that bad?" She laughed. "Do you know how many relationships you've broken up in the last few months? Do you know that more than four of my friends have dumped their boyfriends after they fucked you?"
"No." I said, and then, "Really?"
"Really." She nodded. "It was kind of cute at first, how all these girls were trying to maneuver to you, to get you to notice them. But you're getting out of hand. I've got girls coming up to me and pretending to be my friend just so I'll introduce them to you. Of course I have to keep it quiet they all say. I just wanna meet him, talk to him a little. Did you know that they all talk about you in the locker room and in the bathroom? Do you know what they say about you?"
"What?" I asked.
"They talk about you the way your friends talk about chicks like Steph. You're a male slut Billy. They describe what you do to them and how well you do it using the most disgusting terms I've ever heard. They've even asked me if I've done you. Me! Your fucking sister!"