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Half the class sucked in a breath and looked at him.
Gabriel would fling his pencil down and level the teacher with some snarky comment. He’d probably get himself thrown out of class.
Nick could never do that. Shame was curling his stomach into knots. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”
After class, Dr. Cutter was a lot less accommodating than he’d been the previous day.
“This is an advanced placement class,” he said, a slight edge to his voice. “We move through the material quickly. Are you having difficulty keeping up?”
“No,” said Nick. “I’m sorry. Really, it won’t happen again.”
The teacher’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t really have Gabriel Merrick sitting in front of me, do I?”
Nick flinched. It shouldn’t have been an insult, but it felt like one. “No. I swear.”
“I had to call your name three times.”
Nick didn’t know how many times he could apologize for the same thing. He rubbed at his eyes. “I’m having a rough week.”
Dr. Cutter studied him. “Are you aware you’re the student with the highest average in this class?” He frowned. “Or you were before yesterday’s test.”
Nick pulled his hands down. He’d thought he was better than average, but the highest? “No, I didn’t know.”
“And you’re second in your class in AP Calc. I spoke with Mrs. Rafferty. In fact . . .” He reached behind him for a folder on his desk. He flipped the cover open. “Out of the entire senior class, based on a weighted GPA, you’re ranked fourth overall.”
Wow. He’d had no idea.
He should have been proud. He wasn’t. The pressure clamp on his chest tightened by one notch. One more expectation he had to uphold. If he were like Gabriel, Dr. Cutter wouldn’t have given a crap that he didn’t know the answer in class.
“Have you started applying for colleges?” said Dr. Cutter.
finitely wasn’t in high school. “I feel so special.”
He stood and walked to the edge. The lights from below caught his features and made them glow. “It’s easier to keep an eye on things from up here.”
“What kind of vandals are you looking for?”
He came back to the chair. “Bored teenagers, mostly. It’s quiet up here, too. I can get a lot of studying done.”
Studying. College. Check.
“Two chairs,” she said.
“I’ve got a friend who works at the Sunglass place. Sometimes he brings a six-pack and we shoot the shit.” He paused.
“You have a lot of questions about my rooftop habits.”
Quinn shrugged. “Just trying to figure out how to avoid you.”
He looked at her. “Yeah, you look like you’re trying really hard. Let’s cut the crap. What’s really up with you and Merrick?”
“He’s busy, that’s all. What do you care?”
“Maybe I don’t want to babysit his girlfriend.”
“Fuck you.” Quinn stood with enough force to make the chair scrape back a few inches.
Tyler caught her arm. “Stop. I’m messing with you.”
