At the end of a week of spying on the strange little girl, Selina concluded that it really was Annie, though she still had some reservations.
Through her own observations, Sandy saw that the little girl was really into her studies. Annie had spent a lot of time reading and doing homework. Other than that, she dressed plainly and hung out a lot with that plump brown-haired girl.
Had Annie previously been that studious? Why was she so engrossed with schoolwork?
Then in class the following Monday, before school started, Sandy found out why.
"Ready for the exams, Sandy?" Ariel asked when her friend came to her desk. Esper was also there.
"Exams?"
"The semester exams. Today." Ariel stared at Sandy. "Don't tell me you forgot about it?"
"But the teachers mentioned it in class," Esper told her, "a few times, a few of our teachers!"
"How could you not know!?" Ariel asked.
"Er, well..." Sandy was at a lost herself. Time for a Blatant Change of Subject. "Hey, it was really foggy this morning."
"And cold too," Esper added, "You didn't cycle here, did you?"
"Ah, no," Sandy replied, "Momma Lois dropped me off. She said it's dangerous to ride in the fog."
Ariel looked closely at Sandy's casual calmness. "Sandy, the semester exam's today," she mentioned.
Had she not already used the Blatant Change of Subject!? Maybe Feigning Ignorance would save her. Sandy gasped. "What? Today?"
Ariel threw her hands up. "Don't tell me you've already forgotten!?"
"But we talked about it just a minute ago," Esper said in disbelief, "You can't have already forgotten!"
"This is so not funny," Ariel commented.
Just then, Selina entered the class through the back door. She was not carrying her schoolbag - it was already at her desk. When she reached the girls gathered at Ariel's place, she said, "Hope you're ready for today's exams, girls."
Sandy gave up. There was no escaping the subject of exams. "Er, not quite," she admitted.
Both the other two girls sighed audibly. "Thank goodness, she remembers this time!" Ariel exclaimed.
"A bit too late, though," Esper commented.
"What's going on?" Selina asked Esper curiously.
***
Well, it was just the semester exams. Nothing really serious. All Sandy had to do was to answer the questions as best as she could. Out of the many, many questions that were presented, certainly she could get a few right.
It was just like doing homework. The difference was that she was using school time to answer the questions instead of her precious free time.
She had paid some attention in class and she had been doing her homework, most of it. So there were some questions she could answer. Overall, she was not too worried. She would pass. After all, good results would not pay her money.
At the end of the third and last day of exams, Sandy gathered with her gossip group at Ariel's desk. The final bell had rung and the students were free.
"Exams are finally over!" Ariel sighed.
"I'm going to relax the next few days," Esper decided.
Sandy shrugged.
"So, how do you think you'll do, Sandy?" Ariel asked.
"Okay, I guess," Sandy replied.
Ariel looked closely at her. "Sandy, okay for you usually means 'as long as you pass'."
The blond was confident with her statement. She had some past observation that she could base her assumption on. In that particular case, it was the fact that Sandy had been as negligent of her studies while they were in middle school.
"Sandy," Selina addressed her, "Didn't you say some time back that Mrs Johnson would consider approving a work permit for you if you did well for your semester exams?"
Sandy stared at the taller girl. Oh no, she had totally forgotten all about that! She should have studied hard so she could earn that work permit!
***
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