~ Thanks for everyone who has been taking the time to read this story, especially Amyclg. Please be sure to check out her story, Countdown, if you have the chance to.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. It wouldn't be long before the rain poured down onto the city streets, drenching the unlucky few who forgot to pack umbrellas for the day.

Rain reminded me of Kat. Not because she enjoyed the rain but rather, she had this uncanny ability to predict when it would pour outside. 'My elbow has been itching up a storm today,' she would say. Followed by, 'it's definitely going to rain today.'

Zane tapped the steering wheel with his thumb as he waited for the light to change. Something soft and dark played in the background, lulling me to sleep.

Today, Hannah was introducing me to her boyfriend's brother, the guy who was going to tutor me in the bio course. I was just about to leave the apartment when Zane walked in and offered me a ride. As he scratched his elbow, he freaking told me that it was going to rain soon. My throat closed up but I managed a nod. It was just a damn coincidence, I told myself.

"I didn't know you were having trouble with a course at uni," Zane said as he sped up when the light turned green.

The thought of antibodies and microorganisms made my mind spin like a broken carousel at a carnival. Not the fun kind of carnivals either, where you could eat cotton candy and win stuffed animals, but the creepy and desolate kind.

As of right now, I was pulling a C+ in the course. If I did well on the second term test and final, I could bump that up to at least a B-, especially if the tutor was good. Apparently, he was a high school science teacher. Hopefully working with him would pay off.

I shrugged my shoulders. "Yeah. I took a bio course this year. There were no prerequisites required. That's why I took it."

"I wish I could help you. I majored in Political Science and Criminology." This was not news to me. Kat told me that Zane spent four years at UofT before going on to complete three years of law school. At 27, Zane had moved well beyond spending hours in lecture halls. I wasn't quite done with school yet. "Let me know if the tutoring session works out."

We came to a stop in front of a tiny brick building. A local hotspot for high school and college students, the café was where Hannah and I spent our teenage years. I waved to Zane, who gave me a nod before he raced away.

The smell of coffee and cinnamon engulfed me before the door to the café was even opened. I inhaled deeply as I stepped inside, allowing the smell to transport me back in time to when things weren't so complicated. When Kat was still alive and I was just a dumb high school student interested in studying English.

Hannah was sitting at the back, her tiny frame hunched over a plate of scones. The shop owner, a sweet woman in her 40s, waved at me as I strode past. Her husband died a few years ago, so she hired a couple of kids to help her with the shop. They stood behind the bar with bored expressions on their faces, filling coffee orders.

"Hey, Sarah." Hannah waved as I slipped into a seat beside her. She pushed the scones towards me. "How are you?"

Dramatically tossing my hair over my shoulder, I said, "as cute and cunning as ever." Hannah dropped her head back and snorted.

Max Kunning, the boy that messed with us in high school, would do this every time someone would ask him how he was doing. Knowing him, he probably still did it today. When we were younger, Hannah and I thought it was the cutest thing ever. After Max screwed us over, we started to mock him and his catchphrase. Never to his face, of course.

"Damn. We haven't said that in years," she said, shaking her head. Her hair fell over her face but she didn't bother to push it away. "Those were good times."

Our final year at university was winding down. With finals coming up next month, Hannah was on edge. She wasn't ready to move on and become an adult, or so she said. According to her, things were changing and happening so fast that she had a hard time keeping up. Hannah would fall quiet every time I talked about the future.

"So, Hannah. Have you thought about what your next move is?" There was a graduate program at UofT that I was interested in. Nothing was decided yet but there was a high chance that I would be applying to that as soon as we graduated from Ryerson.

Tossing her head back again, she let out an audible groan. A couple sitting beside us gave her a strange look. But Hannah either didn't notice or choose to ignore them. "I don't know what I want to do, man! Things are just really weird at home right now."

"Maybe, we can go over some graduate programs together," I suggested, knowing very well that she would turn me down like she always would.

"No way! I'm done with school. I got my degree and that is enough for me," she said. Reaching into the pocket of her baggy sweatshirt, she fished out her phone. "Where is Mitch? He said that he would be here by six."

And just like that, she had changed the topic. It was uncharacteristic of me to back down but I let it slide because it was Hannah. She was the one person, other than Kat, who had my back during the last few years. This girl was my friend, not my foe. I would support her no matter what.

A tall man slid into a seat across from me. With his black hair slicked to the side and a cocky smile lingering at his lips, he was the living embodiment of Jim Stark. The guy was even wearing the rebel's characteristic red windbreaker. "How you girls doing?" he said. I rolled my eyes at him.

Before I could tell him to beat it, Hannah leaned over and flicked his forehead, like they were old buddies or something. He responded by glaring at her. "Where the hell were you?"

Realization dawned on me. So, this was the dude who majored in Biochemistry and taught science to high school students. There was no doubt he was popular among the teenage girls he taught.

"I was finding a place to park my car," he responded while he rubbed his forehead.

"Well. Next time, don't be late. This is not what we're paying you for," she said to him, leaning back in her chair.

Hannah had been dating her boyfriend, Ravi, for about two months now. They were hopelessly in love with each other. Ravi was a brooding mechanic who had bounced around from one foster home to another when he was a kid. It was Mitch's family who had welcomed Ravi into their home with open arms and decided to adopt him.

Mitch ran his fingers through his hair. "You aren't paying me. I'm doing this for Ravi," he responded.

"Whatever, man. This is the friend I was telling you about," she said, pointing in my direction. Mitch had his eyes on me the whole time while he was talking to Hannah. It was making me slightly uncomfortable. I hated it when people made me feel uneasy, especially dudes like Mitch.

"Sarah, right?" he said, pushing his hand forward. I shook it. He held onto my hand much longer than he needed to. "Damn, Hannah. You didn't tell me your friend was so cute." He leaned back against his chair and looked me over, running his thumb across his lips. Crossing my arms across my chest, I rolled my eyes again.

"Is he serious right now?" I asked Hannah. There was no way in hell this tool was popular among ladies his age.

"Yo, Martinez," Hannah said, snapping her fingers in front of his face. "Sarah is married. So, keep it in your pants." This didn't seem to faze Mitch one bit. He just simply leaned over and tapped my hand.

"Don't see a ring on your pretty finger," he mumbled, before lifting his eyes to meet mine.

I pulled my hand away. "Look, Mitch. I'm looking for a tutor, not a boyfriend."

"Why not both, sweetheart?" he responded, licking his lips.

If he kept this up, my eyeballs would fall out of my head and end up rolling across the table. Mitch was a total sleazebag. If it wasn't for Hannah, I would have been gone already. I was desperate for a tutor but not enough to tolerate this guy.

"Look, Mitch. I really don't want to deal with your James Dean bullshit. Thanks for coming but the position has been filled by someone who is much more qualified," I said, placing my palms against the marble table. The cool surface grounded me, calming me down.

Mitch gave me a deadpan look but he recovered almost instantly. "Hannah told me that you were having trouble with Immunology, right?" I stood up, glaring down at him. 

"When foreign material enters the body and the innate immune system fails, that is when the adaptive immune system comes into play. This part of the immune response involves coating the microorganisms with antibodies, which are secreted by mature plasma cells, also referred to as B cells. It's a beautiful system if you ask me." He stopped and smiled up at me. "Shall I continue?" As impressive as that was, there was no way I could sit through another conversation with Mitch.

My best friend wrapped her hand around my wrist. She stared at me, eyebrows furrowed. Hannah had known me long enough to realize how much doing well in the bio course meant to me. She also knew how much of a bitch I was and that I would never be the first one to give in. Sighing deeply, I fell back into the chair.

My mom was right. I was different.

Mitch apologized for being such a creep. We agreed to meet up at the same time next week to go over my notes. As irritating as Mitch was, I needed him.

|| Author's Note ||    

What did you think about this chapter? New character introduced in this one. He's not my favourite but he was an interesting one to write.