Chapter 4. Honor Student

SIMOUNE

The professor has come, and based on the number of papers in her hands, it appears that she will be announcing the honor students.

“Good morning! Today we will be announcing our honor students, which I will post on the announcement board for you to see, but first, I want to congratulate Vince Ramos, who received the highest score on all of the exams and was awarded 1st honor this semester. Please applaud him,” the professor said, smiling.

I looked at Lucy fiercely since everyone cheered for Vince, and Lucy as well. I observed all this, annoyed.

So, he’s smart!? What did he think he was getting into? I’ll prove that I am smarter than he is. I don’t know why, but I feel like Vince only came here to humiliate me after what happened.

***

I asked Lucy and Bruce to come over right after class so I could talk to them about what was bothering me.

“We won’t be going to a bar today!” I said seriously.

“Wait, what? Why?” Lucy said, her eyebrows furrowing.

“Let’s stop going to the bar and start studying properly,” I said with determination.

My statement surprised them, and Lucy laughed as she looked at me.

“Why are you acting like this? Are you upset because Vince is our first honor this semester? Is that how you develop feelings for him?” Lucy asked, looking at me with interest.

“But what if I admit that I want to show him that the woman he is battling is not stupid?” I said.

“Vince is really good for you because at least now you’ll act adequately,” Bruce said.

“Shut up! If you don’t like my plan, you can just leave,” I said.

“Easy, girl! Let’s grab some coffee then since we can’t go to a bar anymore. My treat,” Bruce offered.

Of course, Lucy and I couldn’t refuse. During the trip, it was clear from the expressions on their faces that they were amused by Vince’s antics.

When we arrived, Bruce promptly placed our orders.

“Hello, may I have one caramel macchiato and…” Bruce said, then turned to us. “What would you like?”

“Iced americano for me,” I said.

“Espresso con panna,” Lucy said.

“Can I have one caramel macchiato, one iced americano, and one espresso con panna, please?” Bruce said to the barista.

As we waited for our order, I kept asking myself why I was feeling this way about Vince. I was so stressed because I just had to study, and it was because of a man! What the hell is this feeling?

We decided to head home after drinking and conversing because it was getting late.

“Are you entirely sure about your plan?” Bruce asked.

“Of course I am. Do I seem to be joking?” I replied.

After a short while, we arrived at my house, and I bid goodbye to Lucy and Bruce. They simply smiled at me. As soon as I got inside, I walked upstairs and lay down on the bed. Vince’s face would not leave my thoughts, and I was unable to articulate my feelings. He was the only person I’d had sex with that I couldn’t forget. No matter how hard I tried, there was something unique about him that I just couldn’t put into words. What is this fucking feeling?

***

LUCY

I’m not sure how to explain Simoune’s plan, but I think it makes sense since we finally worked so hard in class instead of boozing and going crazy. But I’m still unsure of how to react that Simoune is becoming so worked up solely because of the guy.

After Bruce dropped us off, we promptly said our goodbyes. When I walked in the door, Mommy greeted me and asked if I was hungry.

“No, Mommy, we ate outside with Simoune and Bruce,” I replied and quickly walked upstairs and lay down on the bed to rest.

***

SIMOUNE

I had breakfast and drank coffee as I got dressed. Mr. John informed us that there would be a Computer Science quiz, so I called Bruce and Lucy immediately to tell them to get to school early.

Lucy eventually responded, “It’s still morning. Can’t we leave later?”

“What? Get up, you lazy bones! We still need to review for our Computer Science quiz!” I yelled at her on the phone.

“Okay-okay, I’m getting up,” she answered while yawning.

I hung up and dialed Bruce. Bruce replied right away, “I’ve already eaten. I’ll pick you and Lucy up soon.”

“Okay, see ya,” I answered as I ended the call.

After a short while, I heard the horn of Bruce’s car, so I quickly said goodbye to Nanny Lily and left. On the ride, I was already reviewing for the quiz we would take later, and Lucy was holding her phone.

“I’ll copy your answers later on the quiz,” she said.

“What are you doing? If you’re reviewing, then focus! Maybe something will enter your mind by now!” I screamed at her.

She started reviewing the materials after I yelled at her. Bruce only chuckled at us. I know that Computer Science must be simple for Bruce because he is intelligent, but I’m unsure about his proficiency.

When we arrived at school, there weren’t many people there. I continued reading about the possible topics for our quiz, and after a little while, Mr. John arrived.

“Hello, everyone. Today’s quiz consists of 50 questions, and we’ll begin right away. We’ll check the results later to see who scored the highest,” Mr. John said.

We began answering the quiz after receiving the papers. When I thought about Vince, I looked behind me to see him concentrating on the questions.

Vince assumed he might be smarter than me. Well, we’ll see!

We passed our papers in front and waited for 10 minutes for results as Mr. John started checking them immediately.

“I didn’t know the last question on the quiz, so I just guessed it,” Lucy whispered.

“You could have reviewed your materials better if you hadn’t been stuck in your phone,” I responded.

Mr. John stood up astonished while holding the quiz paper as we waited.

“Congratulations to Miss Simoune Fierro for scoring the highest on our quiz today. I can’t believe the results,” Mr. John said.

Many of my shocked classmates stared at me, maybe unable to realize that I was intelligent. Vince only grinned at me as I smirked in his direction.

I received the highest grade, so Lucy and Bruce congratulated me after class.

“Looks like we can celebrate tonight at the bar,” Lucy stated immediately.

“Yeah, I feel like we can go to the bar tonight. I need to reward myself. What do you think, Bruce?” I said with a smile.

“It’s all right with me as long as you don’t get drunk, Simoune,” Bruce responded, concerned.

After our conversation, we returned home to relax for a little and get ready for tonight’s celebration.