"Hey, you must be April. My name's Alex." The boy stands from his seat in the library at my approach, holding his hand out.

Boy? More like man.

I correct myself as my eyes move over my new tutor. I'd seen him in class today, but since he sits in front of me it had been difficult to really see what he looked like. Now that I can see him clearly I realize he's not too hard on the eyes.

Speaking of, his are a nice shade of blue that reminds me of a bright, cloudless day at the beach. I can almost hear the ocean waves crashing on the sand. His dark brown hair is buzzcut and he wears a shirt that sculpts his upper half nicely.

I guess not all nerds are hard to look at.

Alex raises an eyebrow at my slowness in responding. I don't act ashamed about taking my time to enjoy the view, instead I slowly take his hand in my own and shake with him as I say,

"April. Considering the circumstances, it's not very nice to meet you." A smile curls the corner of my lips up as I release his hand and move around the the table he's claimed. Alex doesn't say anything to that, instead he turns around and sits down across from me.

"So, Mr. Dunrier informed me that you're having trouble with the coursework. What parts don't you understand." Alex looks at me with those blue eyes expectantly and I find it hard to act like a bitch with him so, begrudgingly, I pull my past tests out and spread them on the table. Not a single one is more than thirty points.

Alex seems utterly stunned by this and looks between my tests and I. Finally, he clears his throat and recomposes himself.

"So, everything then?" He asked, trying to make his tone light. I smile more and nod.

"Yeah, basically. Math has never been my strong suit and, since this is a math class, you can see how things aren't exactly adding up here." Alex nods and shifts all of my miserable tests together before moving them to the side.

"Well, that's why I'm here. To make sure they do." He returns my smile and we get down to work. It's gruesome, but Alex manages to help me understand certain things that were just foreign to me.

Mr. Dunrier wasn't kidding when he said Alex is good.

I note as he works together with me on a particularly difficult problem that I can't seem to wrap my head around.

"Come on." Alex gently encourages. "If you use this formula here with the original amount you had, then you should be able to..." He trails off, waiting for me to get it and then, it's like everything clicks into place and I figure it out.

I start scribbling down furiously on the paper, my chicken scratch beside his beautifully elegant writing.

"I got!" I said as I look up at Alex. There's an excitement running through my veins that I didn't think I'd get from solving a simple math problem.

Guess there's a first for everything.

Alex just smiles widely at me and I can see that he's proud in his eyes which is a first as well. Usually, it's only disappointment or anger or sadness that shines through in anyones eyes when they look at me. Never pride. Not since that day. I have to look away from Alex as I feel the tears start to well up.

"I think we'll call it a day for now." He said and I nod in agreement. Just as if a bell had rung I collect all of my things at a scary fast pace before hurrying out of the building, not even giving Alex a simple goodbye.

Five minutes later I'm returning to the school building with two ice creams. Thankfully, Alex comes out of the building right as I get back. He's shocked when I hand him one of the cones.

"As thanks, for today." I said, meeting his eyes. Alex's shocked expression turns to that of one with happiness and I find myself blushing slightly from his smile.

"Thanks." He said as he takes the cone from me. I just nod as I say,

"I wasn't sure what ice cream you'd have liked, so I just got you my favorite. Rocky Road." Alex raises an eyebrow at that.

"Hm, that's actually my favorite as well." I'm surprised for a moment before smiling widely.

"What a coincidence." Alex nods at a path that leads around the school, then.

"Want to take a walk?" He asked as he places his things down by the stairs. I contemplate this for a moment before relenting and setting my things down beside his.

"Sure." We start off in silence, just enjoying the beautiful day and the cold ice cream. It's nice and something that should be enjoyed every once in a while.

"So, you're graduating this come year as well, right?" Alex asked and I glance at him out of the corner of my eye before nodding.

"Yeah. You're in the same one? I never noticed." Alex just chuckles at that.

"Well, no one ever really notices me." I snort at that as I eat some more of the chocolatey goodness that is Rocky Road.

"I highly doubt that. In case you didn't notice your pretty hot by most standards." I'm not ashamed in the least to be saying it, but my cheeks do heat up slightly when I feel his eyes on me.

We take a turn and start walking through the small forested part of the school that the track and field people generally use for better training. Sun beams shine through gaps in the leaves and branches of trees, dotting the ground and the surrounding scenery. Everything looks almost mystical and straight from a story book. It's beautiful.

A feeling of content comes to life within me and I can't help but smile at how wonderful it feels right now, in this instant.

"You're not too bad to look at either." Alex said causing me to whip my head towards him, my content feeling getting thrown out the window. Alex doesn't say anything else and I notice that he's purposefully not meeting my eyes. Under better examination I also notice that he's blushing which is utterly adorable. My smile widens and I push closer to Alex, gently nudging him.

"Thanks, but you don't have to force yourself. It is pretty funny, though." I smile up at him once he meets my eyes before looking forward and continuing to enjoy the walk.

We talk about the silliest of things the rest of the time. How his dog is named after Elvis or how I used to be a girl scout and a cheerleader back in middle school. We discuss our least favorite teachers and I'm actually surprised when Alex lists off Mr. Dunrier as one of his.

Before we know it, we're back at the entrance of the school and gathering our things.

"Thanks, for today." I said once more and Alex just gives me a huge smile that I've become accustomed to.

"No problem. I'll see you tomorrow for another tutor session." I open my mouth to answer then hesitate.

Tomorrow.

I force a smile and nod as I say,

"Yeah, totally."