The Chemistry Experiment
1100 Words
Elvis and I walked down the hallway toward chemistry class, the morning’s confrontation still fresh in our minds.
"Can we just take a moment to celebrate how iconic we were back there?" Elvis said, throwing his hands up in triumph. "You, standing up to Jenny, and me, serving Jamie and Jesse some cold, hard truth? Chef’s kiss."
I laughed, shaking my head.
"It felt good, didn’t it? Especially after Ryan noticed me."
Elvis smirked, nudging me with his elbow.
"‘Beautiful,’ he said. Kristen, that was a moment. You’re officially on his radar."
"One word doesn’t mean anything… yet," I said, though I couldn’t help the grin spreading across my face.
"Sweetie, one word from Ryan is like a paragraph from anyone else. Trust me, you’re winning."
I glanced over at him, and my smile faltered. His usual spark had dimmed, and he seemed quieter than normal.
"What’s wrong?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer.
Elvis sighed, his shoulders slumping.
"It’s just… Luke didn’t even look at me. Like, not once. I don’t get it. Was my hair not perfect? Was my shirt too much? I thought I nailed the casual-but-charming look."
"You looked great," I reassured him. "And don’t read too much into it. Luke probably just didn’t realize you were talking to him. Guys like him can be clueless."
Elvis gave me a skeptical look.
"Clueless? Kristen, Luke is top-tier hot. Hot guys like him are never clueless."
I stopped walking and grabbed his arm.
"Hey, listen to me. You’re amazing. If Luke doesn’t see that now, he will. Trust me, this year is going to be different for both of us."
He smiled weakly, the edges of his lips barely turning up.
"Thanks, Kris. I needed that."
"That’s what best friends are for," I said, linking my arm through his.
We reached the classroom, and the familiar smell of disinfectant and faint chemical residue greeted us.
The seats were arranged in pairs, and I scanned the room immediately, my eyes landing on Ryan at the far corner.
He looked effortlessly cool, leaning back in his chair and chatting with his friends. My heart skipped a beat.
"Focus, Kristen," I whispered to myself as Elvis and I took our seats in the middle row.
Our teacher, Mr. Daniels, a balding man with an endless supply of dull-colored ties, clapped his hands to get our attention.
"Good morning, everyone. Today, we’ll be conducting an experiment to kick off the semester. You’ll need a partner for this, so pair up quickly."
The room erupted into a chaotic shuffle as people rushed to claim their partners.
My eyes locked onto Ryan immediately.
This was my chance to spend time with him, to show him I wasn’t just some girl he passed in the hallway.
I stood up, determined. But so did Jenny.
Her icy blue eyes met mine, and her lips twisted into a smirk.
"Don’t even think about it, Kristen," she said, her voice low but venomous.
I ignored her and started walking toward Ryan.
Jenny was faster. She shoved past me, her shoulder slamming into mine with just enough force to throw me off balance.
"Oops," she said, feigning innocence as I stumbled.
My blood boiled.
"Seriously, Jenny? Grow up."
Jenny turned around, her hand on her hip.
"What? I didn’t do anything. If you’re clumsy, that’s not my fault."
"You—" I started, but Mr. Daniels interrupted.
"Ladies!" he barked, his voice cutting through the tension. "If you can’t decide, I’ll do it for you."
I glared at Jenny, who smirked triumphantly. But her smile disappeared when Mr. Daniels pointed at me.
"Kristen, you’ll be Ryan’s partner."
Jenny’s jaw dropped.
"But—"
"And Jenny," Mr. Daniels continued, "you’ll work with Mark."
Jenny’s face twisted in disbelief. Mark was nice enough, but he wasn’t Ryan.
"Fine," Jenny muttered, stomping off to sit with Mark.
I tried not to smirk as I made my way over to Ryan.
"Hi," I said, sliding into the seat next to him.
Ryan glanced at me, his expression unreadable.
"Hey."
I felt a rush of nerves.
He was even more gorgeous up close, his green eyes brighter and his jawline sharper.
Meanwhile, across the room, Elvis raised his hand.
"Mr. Daniels, who’s my partner?"
"Luke," Mr. Daniels said, not even looking up from his attendance sheet.
Elvis’s eyes widened, and he shot me an excited look. I gave him a thumbs-up, silently cheering him on.
As Mr. Daniels explained the experiment—a simple reaction to produce foam—I tried to focus, but my attention kept drifting to Ryan.
"So, uh, did you have a good summer?" I asked, desperate to break the silence between us.
"It was fine," he said, not looking up from the instruction sheet.
"Cool, cool," I said, mentally cringing at how awkward I sounded. "I went on this road trip with my family. It was… okay, I guess."
"Nice," he replied, still not looking at me.
I bit my lip, trying not to feel deflated.
Across the room, Elvis was chatting animatedly with Luke, who gave short, polite responses.
I could tell Elvis was thrilled just to be near him, but I wished Luke would show a little more interest.
Back at our table, Ryan and I started the experiment. I reached for the beaker of sodium bicarbonate while he measured the hydrogen peroxide.
"Careful with that," he said, his voice calm but distant.
"Got it," I said, trying to sound confident.
I wanted him to look at me, really look at me, but his attention was fixed on the task at hand.
Feeling frustrated, I decided to take the lead. I grabbed the flask and poured in the first chemical.
"Wait—" Ryan started, but it was too late.
I accidentally mixed the two chemicals too quickly, and a sudden burst of foam shot out of the flask, covering Ryan’s face.
My eyes widened in horror.
"Oh my god! Ryan, I’m so sorry!"
The entire class turned to look at us, laughter erupting as Ryan wiped his face with a paper towel.
"Great," he muttered, his tone a mix of annoyance and resignation.
I wanted to sink into the floor. This wasn’t how I imagined our first real interaction going.
"At least it’s not toxic," Elvis said, trying to lighten the mood from across the room.
Ryan didn’t say anything. He just kept cleaning up, his expression unreadable.
And just like that, my dream of impressing Ryan had literally blown up in my face—along with a foamy explosion.
- Writer
