Kate Evangelista - Reaping Me Softly

“What’s that about?” Arianne asked.

Tammy removed her lab coat and gathered her things. “I don’t know.”

Carl, backpack already in hand, waited for Tammy at the front of the class. He took the paper from Mr. Todd, and once Tammy reached him, they both left through the front door.

“Niko,” Mr. Todd said over the tsunami of whispers, “will you join Arianne, please?”

Arianne inhaled too fast, causing her to sway slightly. Somehow her heart had transformed into a bullet that ricocheted inside her chest. She braced herself on the table’s edge, staring at the test tube rack to keep from looking over her shoulder. Act cool. Just act cool.

Niko settled into Tammy’s stool and flashed Arianne a cordial smile. “Nikolas Clark,” he said.

Arianne tucked an imaginary strand of hair behind her ear, forgetting that the strands were currently tied together for her own safety. “I know,” she breathed out. “Uh, I mean, Arianne Wilson. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Amusement seemed to make Niko even more handsome. “Finally?”

“I, uh, mean, for the first time.” Arianne returned her attention to Mr. Todd, who resumed his lecture after getting the class to pay attention again. “I mean, since freshman year. We’ve had freshman English together, sophomore geometry, and now chemistry.” Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!

“That many classes together and we’ve only just met?” He shook his head. “Well, I’m glad this chance has presented itself. It’s a pleasure meeting you, Arianne Wilson.”

Her spine went ramrod straight while her stomach flipped five times. When had she gotten on a plummeting rollercoaster?

“Okay, safety goggles on, and begin,” Mr. Todd said. “Remember to record all observations on your data table.”

Niko flipped to the second page of the worksheet. “There are six procedures on here. Care to split the jobs evenly?”

Arianne attempted to respond, but lost the signal between her brain and tongue. He even makes safety goggles look good , she thought. She snapped her jaw shut, eliciting a click. She swallowed, hoping nothing escaped.

“I’ll take odds and you take evens. Sound fair?” he asked cautiously.

“Shhuurrr.” Arianne fumbled as she reached for the insulating square she was supposed to place under the watch glass, according to the instructions.

“Is everything all right?” Niko glanced at her after he’d lit the Bunsen burner.

“I’m fine,” Arianne squeaked. She tore up small bits of paper and burned them on top of the watch glass by lighting a match and placing it on top of the pile she’d made.

Niko shrugged and proceeded to place a cube of wax into a test tube. He held the tube over the blue flame. “I would say this is a physical change, not a chemical one.”

“Okay.” Arianne scribbled his observation on the third page of her worksheet. The pen had a life of its own, wanting to write down “Mrs. Arianne Clark” on every available space, over and over again. Keeping her hand at bay, she said almost like a normal person, “And burning paper is a chemical one.”

Like manna falling from the heavens, he granted her a smile. “I’d say you’re right.” Then he did the unthinkable, he touched her shoulder. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Sparks ignited in the pit of her stomach. She could die and have no regrets. “I’m just a little nervous, I guess.”

“Chemistry not your thing?”

“You can say that. I just don’t get it.” She swallowed the tide of crazy thoughts. Understanding what he said next required a total brain-reboot.

“I think it’s more like a hesitation on your part to open up to the possibilities of what chemistry can teach you.” He leaned in a little closer. “Physics may rule the world, but chemistry is what makes it an interesting place. All the atoms, neurons, protons. They’re in everything. Binding everything together. We wouldn’t exist without chemistry. Worth thinking about, right?”

Oh, you don’t want to know what I’m thinking about, mister. An army of muscles had to help her assemble a smile that wouldn’t end up with her being slapped with a restraining order.

“Shall we start with procedures three and four, then?” he asked.

She absentmindedly reached for the magnesium ribbon and tore it. She placed two fingernail-sized pieces into a test tube and proceeded to fill a dropper with hydrochloric acid. Her attention shifted to Niko as he added sodium chloride to water in a beaker. The deft movements of his hands had her imagining things she shouldn’t be imagining. Things a girl like her shouldn’t be caught doing in public, let alone on top of a chemistry lab table. The dropper missed the mouth of the test tube she held just as she squeezed the black rubber end to release the acid. Droplets met her skin.

Even before she could register the pain, Niko had grabbed her hand and yanked her to the sink. The test tube and dropper clattered to the floor, meeting their imminent demise. He ignored the mess and opened the tap, placing her hand under the steady stream. Arianne yelped as the sudden burn was replaced by ice.

“Mr. Todd, where do you keep the sodium bicarbonate?” Niko asked.

“Brown bottle by the sink,” their teacher said. “Now class, I cannot emphasize strongly enough the need for caution. Please, handle the hydrochloric acid with care.”

Niko twisted the cap off the bottle and splashed some of its contents onto the red welt that rose on Arianne’s hand. “Better?”

“Much.” Arianne blew onto the raw skin. “Doesn’t burn as badly anymore.”

“Oh, we’re not done yet,” Niko said in all seriousness.

We’re not? Saliva flooded her mouth.

The boy of her dreams addressed their teacher. “Mr. Todd, I believe Arianne needs a cold compress. I’m taking her to the nurse’s office.”

ON THE WAY FROM THE CHEMISTRY LAB to the nurse’s office, Niko threw discrete, albeit slightly lecherous, sidelong glances at Arianne. The different hues of her hair fascinated him—an angry mob of red, orange, and gold strands. They reminded him of the flames he’d stared into earlier that morning. And her eyes—the ocean on a clear day couldn’t compete. So open and so clear, he could almost see forever in their depths. He asked himself over and over why he’d only met the exquisite creature walking by his side now after all his years living in Blackwood. He hadn’t realized he’d spoken his thoughts aloud like an untested youth until Arianne’s lilting voice had every fiber of his being focused on her.

“Exquisite?” she asked, lips twisted. “I don’t think so. I’m pretty plain.” She indicated her shirt and jeans with a sweep of her hands. “Not exactly someone you’d notice. Not like Darla. All that polish. All that sophistication.”

She’d relaxed around him considerably. Moments earlier, he’d expected her to leap out of her skin if he so much as stared at her too long. She reminded him of a wary doe. And as much as he wouldn’t care to admit it, he represented the hunter. He loosened up his suddenly tense shoulders. Pouncing on her is out of the question, he scolded himself. You’re a gentleman for Christ’s sake!

“I apologize.” He scratched his cheek. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you. In fact, I didn’t mean to ask that question out loud.” He looked at her fully. “Don’t sell yourself short. Exquisite is the proper word. Like fine wine you didn’t know you had in your cellar until years later, after it has aged to perfection.”

“What do you know about wine?”

He studied her until she blushed, ignoring her question and asking one of his own. “What do you mean by ‘not someone you’d notice’? Are you saying everyone in school or just me?”