Fing Perfect - S01 E34

5 months ago

Fing Perfect - S01 E34

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 34

Hang in There

Unfortunately, in spite of what Grace had hoped, the next couple of weeks were very similar to the last. It was midterms, so the honor student was trying her best to focus on her studies. In spite of everything that was happening, she refused to give up her top spot in school. After all, she'd worked hard at it for years.

Still, that was easier said than done. Grace was finding it impossible to fathom how she used to manage such stellar grades. Basically all of her free time was spent with her nose in a textbook, and she felt like she was breaking down from exhaustion.

On top of that, there was still no luck in finding Will's whereabouts, and the police were starting to withdraw their efforts since they suspected he was no longer in the state. They seemed skeptical that he was even here in the first place, which infuriated Grace. She knew what she saw that night – in spite of looking older than the last time she saw him, there was no doubt in her mind that it was Will she saw standing in the corner at that party.

Grace's father was working hard to do what he could – they'd have to hire a private professional service that specialized in these things, and he already got that rolling. Even so, still no luck.

Maybe Grace wouldn't feel so on edge about it if she was still getting messages from Will. Ever since she turned her previous messages from him over to the court, there had been radio silence. It was just too good of a coincidence...did he figure out that she'd been talking to the authorities?

No, no, that's impossible. We didn't even talk to his parents since our lawyer advised against it.

Still, it weighed in Grace's stomach like a rock sunk to the bottom of a pond. She was having trouble being alone basically anywhere anymore – she rarely even spent time in her room these days, instead opting to do homework at the dining room table near her dad and brothers.

But the other big issue that was hampering Grace's studies was, of course, none other than her girlfriend. Once again, she had little luck getting to meet Cal for any decent length of time. They opted to spend one lunch period a week together, when possible, but it really wasn't enough.

What if she dumps me for never having time for her?

This was the question that had really been weighing on Grace's mind lately. The thought of Cal leaving her was more painful than she expected, even after only dating for about a month. But it was kind of a pivotal time in the relationship, so spending almost no time together was...

If they could just wait for midterms to be over... Then she would try her best to pay more attention to the transfer student. Grace certainly wanted to, after all.

The Monday after midterms rolled around and Grace found it particularly hard to drag herself out of bed. Her phone alarm, though relatively quiet, felt like knives piercing her ears. Her sluggishness nearly made her late, something she had never been since she started high school.

When she reached Jeanette's car outside of her house, she slouched into the passenger seat and let out a loud sigh.

"Are you doing okay?" Jeanette asked as she drove away from Grace's house. Her voice held genuine concern – after all, Grace had been visibly drained and lifeless the past two weeks.

"I'm just tired," Grace replied, resting her head back against the seat. "But at least midterms are over."

"Yeah, we should be getting them all back today," Jeanette remarked, her voice taking a positive turn. "Although it's already a given that you got perfect scores."

Grace offered a dry laugh. "Yeah, but at the cost of my sanity."

"You should really take it easy for a while now," Jeanette replied. "You really deserve it. And I'm sure you're dying to hang out with Cal and all that."

Grace stiffened at that last part. "What makes you think that?"

Jeanette smiled, her eyes parting from the road to flash Grace a knowing glance. "You think Megan and I haven't noticed you sneaking off all suspicious-like every few lunch periods?"

It honestly surprised Grace. Before, Jeanette and Megan would refrain from bringing up anything that they thought would make her upset – even if they knew a secret that Grace was trying to keep, they'd never pry into it. And it was Grace's fault for keeping that distance from them. But now, since she'd opened up to the two, it felt like they were being more like their true selves...more like normal friends.

"Yeah, I guess I was too stressed to really cover my tracks," Grace joked.

"Are you guys...you know...?"

Grace flushed. She hadn't told anyone about her relationship with Cal yet, so this was turning out to be rather embarrassing.

"...Yeah, we are," she confirmed, looking down at her lap. "But I'm worried that it's not going well."

"Why not?" Jeanette seemed unfazed by the revelation, so she and Megan must've speculated about them dating for a while now.

"Well, since I have so much going on, we hardly ever get to see each other." Grace found the words tumbling out of her mouth. In spite of literally just admitting that she was dating her former enemy, she realized how much she needed to talk about it to someone. "I'm worried that she'll get fed up with it, like it seems like she's not important enough to me."

Jeanette cracked a small smile. "Well, since everything might settle down a little bit, you'll just need to talk to her. But I think she'll probably be understanding about everything."

Honestly, she was right. Cal was extremely supportive through this whole process, and every time they managed to meet up, it was like no time had passed since they saw each other. The spark was still definitely alive and well. Maybe absence really does make the heart grow fonder.

"Thank you, Jeanette," Grace said sincerely.

"Any time, Grace."

Grace was completely antsy through every class she was in. They basically just went over the midterm exams, which Grace naturally aced, so there was plenty of time to space out.

She was going to see Cal immediately after school ended. If she told her dad that she was hanging out with Cal after school, a friend that he'd met in person, then maybe he would be okay with her coming home a bit late. She could only pray that would be the case.

Grace just wanted to talk it out with Cal and really let her know that she cared about her. The prospect of it was rather embarrassing, and Grace wasn't sure how she would do it, but she would try her best. Little bumps in the road of a relationship were harmless so long as they were dealt with early on.

Or at least, Grace hoped that was the case, since she wasn't exactly a relationship expert.

It was the second to last class of the day, sixth period chemistry. Just two more and she'd be free to go. This day felt like the time span of an entire week...

She sat down on her lab stool next to Megan who shared the same class. They chatted briefly before the bell rang, which calmed Grace's nerves a little bit at least. While they talked, the teacher handed out the exams preemptively. She set Grace's face down on the table in front of her, but she lingered.

"Please see me after class, Grace," the chemistry teacher said, a rather worried expression on her face.

Confused, Grace picked up the exam. It was strange for a teacher to want to see her after class, but perhaps it was for some sort of a favor.

Or, at least, that's what Grace thought before she actually looked at the score at the top of her exam. Her stomach dropped and her mouth went dry as she stared at the number, a number she hadn't had on any test since before the beginning of high school.

"No way..."