With their eyes constantly on the ticking second-hand of the clock, the next few days crawled for all of the little Oakers.
It felt frivolous to crack open their books and continue learning. Homework stopped being issued last week. At this point, it was all just going through the motions.
Ket was on red alert.
Emeral helped to ease his worries by staying nearby him at lunch, and recess. She didn't worry so much about people thinking anything of it.
Her only real worry was Rini, but the rat seemed more preoccupied than usual. Panda hanging out with them at recess made it seem more usual to her somewhat paranoid worry; even Kimberly and William joined them.
The Treasure Of Lonely Oak was more interesting, anyway. Conspiracies abound over what it could be, and the teachers dodged questions when they were asked; it had only been mentioned during that one morning, and never since.
Some kids were even beginning to question it, wondering if they had just misheard something, and now the rumor got bigger than the truth.
That, and the excitement of Market Day, made it easy for the tigers to be closer without worrying about rousing attention.
The worst part was actually sitting in his desk. Not because it was boring, and he would rather be reading a book. No, the problem was that his mind began to wander. He squirmed nervously, trying to quickly think of something else or refocus on Ms. Hupp's lesson to distract him.
Why did his daydreaming keep going back to sitting on the couch next to Emmy, holding and fidgeting with her training-bra?
It was his brain being a jerk to him, he rationalized. He was agitated and alert, and his brain was taking advantage of that like it sometimes did.
Oh, you're high-strung? Let's remind ourselves about that time you wet yourself during a Halloween party in first grade, to distract us from our current worries.
Somehow, between the fits of daydreaming and staying together to watch each others' backs, hours turned to seconds before the end-of-Thursday bell.
* * *
”Don't forget to bring a towel,” instructed Ms. Hupp, “to put over your shop for when you're 'closed.' You'll also want to bring a good amount in singles or quarters, so you have some change. I'll have some if you want to exchange.”
The bell buzzed.
”All right, I'll see you all tomorrow; practice your pitches!” She said, as her students got up to leave.
The commotion within the room lasted only a few moments, before all of the kids dove into the current of the hallway.
All except for two.
The tiger cubs approached their teacher while she erased the whiteboard.
”Ms. Hupp,” called the older one, to get her attention.
She twisted round. “Oh, what's up guys?” She asked to the tigers.
”Do you need any help getting ready for tomorrow?” Asked the tigress.
”Oh, no,” the raccoon said, her hand gesturing as if dismissing a cloud. “You two can go on home. You don't need to help.”
”But, we wanna,” the tigress insisted. “You stayed behind for weeks to help him for his RSBTs,” she pointed to the tiger next to her. “We can stay behind today to help you get the room set up, or whatever.”
”I appreciate it,” the raccoon replied, sincerely, “but I don't want your moms to worry or have to bother them while they're working.”
The tigress reached into her pocket, pulling out her small red cell-phone. She flipped it open, and it gave a few beeps as she tapped on the keys. She held it to the teacher.
Ms. Hupp took the phone.
Gna stay bhind tday hlp teach get rdy for 2morro
K, sweet idea. Love. Xoxo
By now, the hallway fell to quiet.
”Oh... Well, okay,” the teacher acquiesced. “If you guys really want to, I'd appreciate it.”
”Tell us what to do,” the tiger said, as they shucked off their backpacks and set them against the wall, below the whiteboard.
”Well, first we have to stack the chairs in the corner,” she said, moving toward the wall where Lyza sat. “We're going to move desks around, so let's make some space here.”
They moved the desks away from the corner, made much easier since they had cleaned them out that day. With enough space in the corner, the two tiger cubs began darting about the room, collecting the chairs and bringing them to their teacher, who stacked them.
While the tigress carried them one at a time, her partner would stack a whole row, carrying them in batches.
”Well look at that,” the teacher praised. “You're already a strong young man.”
The tigress stuck out her tongue, starting to stack the row she was on. She picked up all the chairs, and started to walk, but rather quickly the weight of the chairs started to throw her off balance.
The top of her stack slipped off, and the chair clattered to the carpet, falling onto its side.
She let out a low grumble as her friend helped her to get the stack back together, and walk it with her to the teacher.
”Slow and steady wins the race,” the raccoon reminded them.
A few moments later, the rest of the chairs were all gathered, the teacher having gotten them into two stacks.
”That was already a big help,” she complimented.
”What's next?” The tigress asked.
”Well,” the raccoon went to her desk, and pulled off a sheet of paper. She set it on one of the desks nearby, and the tigers came round to look. “We have to arrange the desks, and a few tables, like how this diagram shows,” she said tapping the paper.
The tigers saw a sort of grid-outline of their room, with a pattern that showed the edge of the room and the middle blocked off by black lines, allowing a circular lane.
”Kids will come in the door and they'll walk around here,” she said, tracing her finger along the lane, “some of you will be here,” she pointed to the space between the black line and the edge of the room, “and some of you will be here,” she pointed to the inner-circle.
”I think I remember this,” the tiger mentioned. “These black lines are where we need to put the desks, right?”
Their teacher nodded.
”Okay, let's start with the middle,” he said, taking the paper and handing it to his friend. “I'll move the desks, you tell me where,” he said.
”Sure,” she agreed, taking the paper.
”I'll go get the extra tables,” the teacher told them, heading out the door of the room. “Be right back.”
The tigers set to work rearranging the desks. She helped guide him to the best of her ability, as the diagram wasn't perfect.
He moved desks efficiently, using nearby ones to arrange the inner-circle, and moving the other desks just enough away so that they didn't get mixed up as to where it was.
They had started on the outer edge when Ms. Hupp came back, rolling a few extra small tables on a dolly. The tigers quickly helped to unload the tables and open them up, with only one pinched hand.
The tigress went to her backpack, pulling out a small first-aide kit.
”Oh,” their teacher remarked, as she saw the tigress laying out a few things on a nearby desk. “Someone came prepared,” she chuckled.
”I've learned to be,” the tigress said with a smirk, dabbing the cotton-ball against the webbing of the tiger's saddle-joint.
He winced a bit as the alcohol stung.
”Do you have some scissors?” She asked to her teacher.
Ms. Hupp went to her desk, and very quickly grabbed a pair of scissors.
The tigress took a band-aid, and cut its edges to be a bit shorter, placing it over the pinch. She dusted her hands, and began collecting the trash from her task.
”Made quick work of that,” the teacher remarked. “No wonder Mrs. Panesia says she's gonna miss you.”
After his hand stopped stinging, and a water-break, they got back to work scooting desks around while the teacher started writing the instructions for the next day on the board.
By now, they would normally have been at her house, and have already had their at-least-five-minute hug. But, once they were done, the room was all ready for the next day.
”Thank you guys so much for your help,” their teacher said, giving them each a chocolate Kiss. “It's getting late, so head on home. Get plenty of rest, you'd be surprised how exhausting it is to sell stuff, right Ket?”
The tiger nodded.
Gathering their backpacks, the tigers headed out the classroom and into the hall. Their footfalls had a soft echo as they passed through the empty cafeteria.
It was bright and sunny out. The weather was warm, with few breezes to cool them off. They had started taking a short break about halfway along, at a bus-stop bench.
However, they were far from that break. They had not even made it to the edge of the teacher's parking-lot, before another boy stepped out beneath the shade of a tree, standing between them and the short cross-walk that began their journey home.
She looked to him. Her walking-mate didn't falter his pace, and neither did she. She got the impression that he half-expected this; and so she quickly worked through the bit of surprise that had panged through her.
When the two boys were within two feet of one another, the tiger stopped.
The lion cub folded his arms with his heels shoulders'-width apart, tail flicking about behind him.
”You missed your bus,” the tiger stated.
”Le'ss cut t'the chase,” the lion said. “I li'g'er,” he said, pointing to the tigress. “You li'g'er. I don' li'g' sharin'.”
”Let's cut to the chase,” the tigress retorted. “I like him,” she pointed her thumb to the tiger next to her. “I hate you.”
The lion cub chuckled. “Yea'? How much'a li'g'm?”
The tigress squinted an eye. “I... Don't know what you're asking,” she replied. “I love him. Is that clearer?”
The lion cub's arms unfolded, and he looked the tiger in the eyes, his next few words said with a distinct clarity that made it sound like they came from a completely different person: “She let you touch, yet?”
She felt the slight heat give off as his fur subtly puffed.
”You're not making sense.”
”C'ma',” the lion said with a chummy inflection. “Y'kn'w,” he held his hand down, his index- and middle-fingers wiggling in a stroking-motion in front of him. “Li'g' I gott'n t' touch 'er, 'mem'r?”
Her own fur puffed.
”I m'n, 'f sh'le'mme touch'r, an' she ha'me...” He grinned, taking a step forward. “Be' she le'ss you d'alo' mor'd'n jus' touch 'er.”
She felt a pulse of electricity in the air before any motion. Her left hand shot forth, catching his wrist before he was even halfway out. She took a step forward, twisting his balled fist downward and behind her. She brought the momentum to her other hand, and held him against the underside of her backpack.
Standing between the two boys, the tigress glared at the lion cub, while she firmly held the tiger's burning fist between her hands behind her.
”Roar all you want, Simba,” she told him in a low growl, amidst the rising sound of footfalls on the sidewalk. “We're not playing your game.”
”Hello?” A voice called.
The three looked as their teacher came out from around the fence that enclosed the teacher's parking-lot.
”Ket, Emmy, what're... Ritzer?” She walked toward them. “What's going on? Ritzer why aren't you on your bus?” She questioned.
”'M wal'g'n home w't d'em t'day.”
”No, he's not,” the tigress said, as she and her friend took a step back, separating.
”You,” the raccoon pointed to the lion cub, “come with me. We're going to the front office to call your dad.”
”Bu' I sai—”
”I heard what you said,” the raccoon stated. “So you wouldn't mind if just called your father to check and make sure where you're supposed to be right now?”
The lion cub was silent for a moment, before he started walking toward the school.
The teacher gesture for the tigers to go along home, readily believing that Emeral was telling the truth.
They did not take their break at the bus-stop bench. In the air-conditioned home, even before their backpacks dropped, he snared her into a tight hug.
”First rule.” She said, softly.
”I can't,” he told her, hugging more tightly.
She rested her cheek onto his shoulder, squeezing him back.
”Then... He's got you... Right where he wants you.”
