"Sorry we're late," Fatima kicks off as she slides into the seats. She sinks in the spongey seats. Weird. Something about her vibe today is off. "It was kind of hard to get here with all the traffic. Coming from Seattle to here is quite a trek."
No kidding. If you're lucky, forty-minutes might work, but sometimes, it can take up to an hour or more. So thankful it was only thirty-minutes for me. Still feel bad for my mom for having to drop me. If only I could I drive already...
"My car broke down when I was coming home from basketball," Jacob pants. He must've ran in here. He collapses into the seat, exhausted. What a drama-king.
I check my watch. As much as I am unhappy they wasted nearly forty minutes of my life, I have to admit. Xu Zi Quan wasn't wrong. Traffic can be hell in some places. Also, the car breaking down? Been there, done that. And it certainly wasn't any fun.
"That must've been difficult. How is everything now?" Xu Zi Quan empathizes. He sounds like he cares. Good for him.
"My mom and dad are getting the car fixed right now, so it should be alright." Jacob has already moved on to the menu, perusing the bubble tea options. In his mind, the list of priorities go in this order: Boba, car problems, and then Tea Project.
"That's good," I add. Ugh, that sounded monosyllabic. Why can't I speak normally? Even quiet Xu Zi Quan can dial up the charm when he wants to. Now that's an important skill to develop. One I obviously don't have.
Fatima takes off her coat, shifting in her seat. She closes her eyes for a second before opening them. Fatima seems stressed. "Um, so by the way, I kinda gotta tell you guys something."
Xu Zi Quan soothes, his voice soft, "No worries, let's get the tea first. Then we'll talk about the project."
I look over to him. He definitely noticed how weird Fatima's being. I hope that she's able to keep her emotions and the work separate. For some people, that's hard. Can't relate. Though, some people might label me as a "study-oholic", meaning my work is my life, which I don't think is a problem. That's a skill in my honest opinion.
So, please. Let's just get this whole tea party over with already. Time to speed this up as much as possible. "You guys order first, I don't like boba."
I thrum the top of my closed laptop. The time is slipping away. This is taking far longer than I thought it would. Don't these people have a life? We might be sophomores, but SATS, college, career, and other things need a lot of time to prepare for... So, what are we doing wasting precious time?
When I come back to reality, they seem to be talking about how they discovered boba, which is also not what we're here for. But why use our time wisely when we can simply throw the entire idea of time management out the window? That sounds like a great idea.
"I know, right?" I flinch at Xu Zi Quan's out-of-the-blue loud and casual voice. Now he's become a mirror of Jacob. Where did the thoughtful, intelligent version of him go? I like that dude better... "I discovered bubble tea when my parents took me to Chinatown when I was little. They are stands literally everywhere."
That. What he said. Is relatable to everyone. Who hasn't been to Seattle Chinatown? It's like he has this knack for saying all the right things.
Internal sigh. As I said before, social skills need practice. And it worked with Xu Zi Quan last time, so maybe it'll work with these people. Baby steps. "You know, bubble tea originally came from Taiwan. It started getting popular in the 80s, but was actually first made in the 40s. When it spread to US, the Chinese diaspora, especially, took interest. So, it makes sense that you would find it in Chinatown."
All at once, I notice three things:
One, Xu Zi Quan looks interested in what I was saying, but hesitates with a slightly pursed lips, probably battling himself on what is socially acceptable to say.
Two, Fatima smiles in the way people do when they're trying to be nice, but they simply don't know what you're saying.
And three, Jacob has completely zoned out.
Shoot. I grasp my neck, embarrassed. This always happens to me. Saying the wrong things to the wrong people. Turns out, the vast majority of the world think that history should never leave the bounds of a measly school subject. They said, I don't speak nerd. Speak English. Different versions I've gotten all through elementary school, middle school, and even recently echo in my mind. God, when will I learn to read a room?
"I thought you said you don't like tea?" Xu Zi Quan jokes. Both Fatima and Jacob come back to Earth, giggling at my hypocrisy.
That was genuinely kind of him. He basically saved me. Why would he do that though? Very socially aware of him. This is new territory.
"Hey, a little research never killed anyone," I grin, glad for his comment. I smoothly transition to our project, "So, the tea project." I pause until both Fatima and Jacob stop giggling. "How is everyone doing? Xu Zi Quan and I are already done."
Fatima checks her phone again. Even though Xu Zi Quan tried to lighten the mood with small talk, she still seems anxious. I can't seem to explain why she's being like this...
Jacob straightens and confidentially shows the pictures on his phone. "So, I finished my part a while ago. I'll text it to you now."
You're telling me that we could've done all of this virtually? Dear God. I force my lips to smile.
"Cool," I say, who would've guessed, coolly. "Thanks for being conscientious."
Jacob might seem a bit disorganized, but he can get shit done. Respect for where respect is due. He receives his boba. What I like about him is his ability to live in the moment. I can be chill at times, but not usually. Jacob's just so... Jacob.
"Yeah, about that..." Fatima begins, fiddling with her glittery, bulky phone case. She speaks without making eye contact with anyone, "I didn't have time, so I have no work to show." She takes a jagged breath. "I'm also very busy for the next few days." She looks into all of our eyes, one by one before ending with, "I know, I'm a mess."
Silence ensues.
Yes, you are a mess. Love the honesty.
Girl, you're telling me that you didn't have a minute of spare time? Not the time you wasted on chit chat and dilly-dallying? You had a frickin' sixty minute drive to get here in the first place! You even had the easiest of all the tasks.
I hate that school forces me to not only get good grades (when we all know that the system is broken), but also have to deal with people as well. Ugh.
I am on fire, so I stay silent. Anything I say now will have a hundred percent chance of being offensive.
Jacob seems to be extremely focused on sipping his boba, sucking each tapioca ball. At least he's having a good time.
I glance over to Xu Zi Quan. Mr. Socially Aware might be able to defuse the situation. His eye twitches, I swear I saw it. But it's gone before I can confirm it. That doesn't seem like him, but there's so much about him I don't know. "No problem, Fatima." No problem? That eye twitch didn't seem to say that, but sure, keep deluding yourself. "If you're busy, I can do it. It's fine."
Hell, no. He's already done so much. Xu Zi Quan is the best in this whole group. A-plus with no hesitations. He can't do more. That would be incredibly unfair.
Fatima tugs at her sleeves, not looking up. She's looks as uncomfortable as me with what he's doing.
"Uh, no." I make full eye-contact with Xu Zi Quan. I realize how physically close we are, on the same couch. I scoot an inch away. As much as "uh" is a filler word, I'm using it intentionally here. Time to handle this. Fatima is about to cry. I thought she didn't give a damn about her grades. Why are people so inconsistent? And apparently, Xu Zi Quan is a push-over.
I need to give her a solution that she can initialize, so she feels a sense of control (because she's clearly out of control). I need something that can both stop Xu Zi Quan from self-sacrificing and keep Fatima's self esteem high enough for her to function until the deadline.
"Since you're having trouble, remember, you can always tell the social studies teacher. I bet he would understand," I start. Fatima's eyes brightens, taking the weight of her shoulders. It's working. "So I say, you email him right now, and explain to him your situation. Remember his rambles about extensions? Those can be useful here."
Fatima's face stretches into a grin, "Really? I can do that?" She whips her phone out, presumably to email the teacher. She types wildly at the tiny screen. Without looking up, she gushes, "Thanks, Min Hui! You're a life saver."
Girl, I was just about to unleash hellfire on you. Be thankful I chose kindness today. Ok, that might be overdramatic, but I did do good. Status on leadership skills? Definitely improved.