2.

Ashleigh couldn't concentrate. All she had to do was take books out of her locker and put them in her bag, but her mind was so unfocused that she couldn't stay on the same train of thought long enough to determine what homework she had.

So she was standing there standing dumbly at her books when Adam walked up. He paused for a moment, and when she didn't notice his arrival he snapped his fingers in front of her face. Her eyes widened as she turned her head, and then she shook it, her curls bouncing. "Sorry, I'm thinking."

"Uh-oh," Adam said with a playful tone, and she gave him a tight smile before punching his arm lightly.

"Shut up."

He laughed. "Anyway, I came to ask if you want to go to the mall with me and Eva?" He reached his arm across her to play with one of the magnets adorning her locker, and she swatted it away.

"Nah, I'm part of the math tutoring program." Ashleigh grinned, cocking her head slightly. "Looks good on a college resume, no?" She remembered one of the books she needed then and grabbed it, feeling rather proud of herself as she threw it in her backpack.

Adam sighed loudly, letting his head fall against the locker. "You're already part of a billion clubs. Must you do this, too?" He turned his head towards her with exasperation.

Ashleigh glared at him. "Yes, I must," she said, sticking her tongue out at him. "Now do you mind?" She waved her hands at him in a shooing motion.

He stood up straight. "How about after?"

She shrugged, turning her attention back to her locker. "I'll call you."

He nodded and walked away, and satisfied with the books she had gotten out, Ashleigh shut her locker and made her way down the hallway and into her math classroom.

"Ashleigh, hey!" She heard the voice before she saw the person. She looked around, finally finding her teacher on the opposite side of the room. She put on her polite smile reserved only for teachers and walked over.

"Hi, Mrs. M," she said, as cheerful as possible. "Do I have anyone to tutor today?"

"Actually you do," Mrs. Morris replied with a similar smile, waving over someone behind Ashleigh. She turned around and her eyes went immediately to the boy walking towards them. Zach.

Just her luck.

She turned back to Mrs. Morris, stunned. Just as quickly, she looked at Zach again, who was closing the distance between them too quickly for her liking.

"Hey, the girl I called hot," Zach said when he reached the desk. He smiled. "I never got your name."

"Ashleigh," she replied, nervously picking at where her binder was peeling. "Spelled e-i-g-h."

"Clever," he said. "I'm Zach."

"I know," she said, and then instantly wished she hadn't. Now she sounded like either a stalker or a gossiper.

He just chuckled. "I bet."

Only when Mrs. Morris started talking again did Ashleigh realize that she was still there. "You guys can study here or the library," her teacher suggested. "Anywhere you find comfortable."

"The library sounds wonderful." Zach grabbed her wrist, and Ashleigh felt his touch burn her skin. She let him hold her for a moment, and then lightly plucked her hand out of his grasp. He only gave her a quick look, which she didn't return, before turning around and walking back out into the hallway.

After a moment's hesitation and a last glance back at Mrs. Morris, Ashleigh followed him into the hall. Subconsciously, she crossed her arms as she walked with him to the library.

It was dead silent when they entered, and Zach immediately walked over to the table nestled in a corner, slightly hidden away from view. Of course.

Ashleigh sighed loudly in resignation and made her way over to the table. She sat across from him and took out her book. "Okay," she said, somewhat warily. "What are you having trouble with?"

He shrugged.

She repressed another sigh, pushing a curly strand of hair behind her ear. "Well, that doesn't really help me."

He paused, drumming his fingers on the table. "Everything, I guess."

Ashleigh resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Maybe he really was having trouble, and not just failing because he was lazy. Trying to keep herself in high spirits, she sat up straight and gave him her polite smile. She had to treat this as a professional job; it was the only way she could get through it. "Well, how about we start with today's lesson?" she suggested.

"Fine with me," he said. There was an amused tone to his voice, like he knew something she didn't. She found it slightly annoying, but she kept herself calm.

When she first started talking, Zach seemed to be paying attention. But somewhere after fifteen minutes, she saw his eyes glaze over and then he was just writing what she told him to. It was obvious he had a short attention span.

She was about to snap at him when he sat up, stopping in the middle of the problem he was solving. "I can't focus here," he said. Ashleigh figured he was just trying to avoid the work, and she pinched her mouth.

"Yeah?" she said. "So why'd you suggest we go here?"

"I don't know," he said lazily, closing his book. He raised his eyes to meet hers. "You want to go to the park?"

"I really don't think you'd be able to concentrate any better there," she said, her voice layered with doubt and exasperation.

"It's either that or I leave right now." He stood up, cocking his head towards the door. "Come on."

Letting out another long sigh as if to tell him how frustrated she was (he didn't seem to notice), she followed him outside and into the cool air. He stopped just then and Ashleigh almost bumped into him. She caught herself just as he turned around. "I don't have a car," he said, his eyes imploring. "Can we-?"

This time, she did roll her eyes. "Yeah," she said, walking quickly over to her car at the end of the parking lot. He followed right behind her, which made her nervous. Suddenly aware of everything she was doing, she felt her legs tighten, like she was unaware of what to do with them.

She was so preoccupied with keeping her stride normal that she didn't even notice the backpack lying on the ground. Until she tripped on it. As soon as her foot got caught in the strap, she lost her balance and felt her knees collapse.

She had resigned herself to hitting the pavement when Zach grabbed her waist and quickly pulled her upright. "You bump into things a lot," he said with amusement, his hands lingering on her waist.

"Shut up," she snapped, moving away from him and to the drivers' side of the car. She got in, throwing her backpack in the backseat. Zach got in next to her, putting on his seatbelt (at least he had some sense of safety).

He sat silently on their way to the park save for telling her which one they were going to, and she clutched the steering wheel, praying silently that she wouldn't get into an accident. With the complete chaos that was her mind, she knew it was a good possibility.

Despite her worrying, Ashleigh couldn't stop herself from looking over at Zach every so often. He had his arms folded, and a smile was playing on his lips as he looked straight at the road ahead. He was very loose and casual, but the dark circles under his eyes seemed more prominent than usual.

On the one hand, he seemed completely unlike a drug addict; he smiled a lot and cracked jokes. But the smile never reached his eyes and the jokes always seemed half-hearted. Like he was using them as a guard to hide behind.

Her gaze softened as she looked back at the road, lost in her thoughts. Before she knew it, she was in the parking lot and Zach was unbuckling his seatbelt. He hopped out of the car fluidly and stretched. "See, this place is so much more peaceful," he said, bending over to look at her.

The screaming kids on the swings suggested otherwise, but Ashleigh didn't feel like arguing. She unbuckled her own seatbelt and got out much more slowly, reluctant to go with him. She took out her backpack and shut her car, following Zach over to one of the benches.

He draped his arms over the back of the bench and slouched down, his hair falling into his eyes again. Ashleigh had to resist the urge to brush the bangs away as she set the book on his lap. "Alright, work," she said, leaning forward and resting her cheek in her palm.

Maybe to prove a point or because the park really did help, Zach worked quickly and finished all of the problems, most of them correct. He didn't even ask for help, which Ashleigh was miffed about. If he just focused, he could easily get an A in the class and not even need a tutor. But she had been right in her assumption before: he was lazy.

"Sorry for wasting your time," Zach murmured suddenly without raising his eyes. Ashleigh looked at him in alarm, only to realize that she had been scowling.

"You obviously don't need help," she said, finally letting annoyance creep into her voice. "Why are you failing?"

"Maybe you're just giving me easy questions," Zach suggested lightly.

She shook her head. "No, this is the most recent lesson."

He shrugged. "I don't do well on tests."

Ashleigh frowned. "Whatever."

He sat against the back of the bench, tilting his head back slightly, and for a second she thought she saw exhaustion flash across his face. "Are we done now?" he said.

"Um," she said, losing her thought process as she looked away from him. "Yeah, we are. Pretty much. Any other questions?" She tried to smile at him, but it was tight.

"Mm," he murmured, rolling his head towards her and then lazily leaning forward. "One."

Her mouth was dry, she realized. Chastising herself, she swallowed and said, "Yeah?" as nonchalantly as possible.

He smiled, finally showing teeth. He had dimples, she noticed. "You want to go get a bite to eat?"

Inside she was drowning, but outside she managed to give a slightly haughty smile and say, "Are you asking me out, Zach?"

His grin widened. "Yes, I am."

She smiled and closed her book, putting it in her bag. "No thanks."

His eyes flashed for only a second before he was back to his easy manner. "How heartless of you," he said playfully. Ashleigh smiled.

"Bye, Zach," she said, getting up and walking away from him. He yelled something after her but she was too far away by then, or she had already closed her ears off from receiving. When she reached her car, she got in and almost immediately began to shake.

Nervously, she fumbled for her keys and tried to put them in the ignition, failing. She almost expected him to run up, asking for a ride back. She finally got the key in and turned it. Her car began to purr, and then she grasped the steering wheel and pulled out of the parking spot almost recklessly.

Ashleigh didn't see him on the bench as she drove past, thankfully. She let her grip loosen and even hummed to herself as she drove home.

Maybe she'd skip tutoring next week.

AUTHOR NOTE: I thought this chapter was really long. Apparently, it is not. Oh well, haha. I hope you enjoy anyway. :)