"Riiinnnggg."
The bell rang, and the teacher snapped her textbook shut, glancing at the clock. 3:20 already?
"I guess time flies when you're learning," she said with a small smile.
Students began packing up, stretching and chatting as they headed toward the door.
"Remember, next week is finals," the teacher called. "Make sure to study."
After leaving the classroom, Ace reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, scrolling through the group chat.
Cole – 2:40 PM: Hey, who wants to grab a quick bite? I'm hungry.
Mark – 2:40 PM: That depends on where you want to go. And remember, Chase has that thing at 5.
Cole – 2:40 PM: Yeah, I forgot about that.
Chase – 2:42 PM: I can be a little late. Besides, this is my last week as a high schooler.
Mark – 2:43 PM: I keep forgetting we both are graduating this year.
Chase – 2:43 PM: Yeah, time does fly when you think about it.
Mark – 2:43 PM: Good times.
Cole – 2:44 PM: Stop it, you two. You're going to make me cry.
Chase – 2:44 PM: Need a tissue?
Cole – 2:44 PM: Funny.
Carl – 2:44 PM: Hey, you guys stop texting the group chat in class. I'm going to get in trouble.
Mark – 2:45 PM: It's called turn your sound off.
Carl – 2:45 PM: It's called no texting in class.
Mark – 2:45 PM: Teachers' pet.
Carl – 2:45 PM: I am not.
Cole – 2:45 PM: Depending on the teacher.
Chase – 2:45 PM: I can see that.
Mark – 2:45 PM: Agreed.
Carl – 2:47 PM: Sure, whatever. Just wait until after class to text. I'm in Ms. Jones' class right now.
Chase – 2:47 PM: Yeah, she is a bitch.
Cole – 2:48 PM: Chase, that's not very nice.
Mark – 2:49 PM: Because she liked you, your freshman year doesn't change the truth.
Chase – 2:49 PM: Fakes.
Carl – 2:49 PM: GUYS. Stop texting.
Cole – 2:50 PM: Okay, sorry. We'll talk later.
Mark – 2:50 PM: Yeah.
Chase – 2:50 PM: Fine.
Chase – 2:58 PM: Hey Carl.
Carl – 3:00 PM: What's up?
Chase – 3:00 PM: 😋😎😈🧐
Cole – 3:01 PM: You're an ass, Chase.
Chase – 3:01 PM: You know it.
Ace smiled at the messages. "Those ideas are something else," he muttered. He started typing a reply, but someone bumped into him from behind, causing him to drop his phone.
"Hey, watch it, you dweeb," the student sneered.
Ace bent down, picked up his phone, and looked back.
"What, got something to say?" the student challenged.
"No. Not really," Ace replied calmly.
"Oh, does the little girl need to run home to his mommy?" the student taunted.
Ace stopped walking, a grin forming. "Not my home. I was going to visit your mom instead."
The student grabbed Ace's backpack and yanked him closer. "What did you just say, punk?"
Clenching his fist, the student prepared to strike.
"Really? Violence is your go-to move?" Ace teased.
Before the punch could land, Chase appeared. "Hey, stupid."
The student froze. "Oh, it's you, Chase. What do you want?"
"Nothing, really. But go ahead and throw that punch. I'll let you… after that." Chase pointed to the locker across the hall. "See that locker? Yeah. I'm going to shove your big dumb ass inside it. Or you can walk away."
The student hesitated, then let go and walked away.
Ace brushed off his backpack and approached Chase. "What is with you wanting to throw someone into a locker?"
"I just want to see someone be in one," Chase admitted.
"That is… weird," Ace said.
"You're talking," Chase reminded him.
"Yeah, sure." Ace raised his hand and gave Chase a high-five. "Thanks for having my back."
"Yeah, I got you. Just quit talking trash to others, and I wouldn't have to," Chase said.
"I mean, he started it," Ace protested.
"Sure he did," Chase said.
Ace put in his earbuds, and both he and Chase left school, heading to Outro Fast Food in Chase's yellow Corvette, where the others were already waiting.
"About time," Zack complained.
"Oh, give it a rest," Chase said.
"Hurry up and order your food. We'll be over here," Cole said, pointing to a table where Mark and Carl were seated.
Ace and Chase got their orders and joined the others.
"So I see you're in one piece," Carl remarked.
"What do you mean?" Ace asked.
Cole chimed in. "What do you mean, what do we mean?"
Mark held up his phone, showing Ace the gibberish he had sent in the group chat.
"Sounds good, we could go tahdiejafhoeha," Mark read aloud.
"What the…?" Mark stopped, and Chase shook his head. "Bud, stop. I am losing brain cells here."
Cole grinned. "After that, I asked Chase to check on you."
"Yeah, lucky you he did," Chase added.
"Funny," Zack said, laughing.
"How tall was he?" Mark asked.
Ace replied, "I think about six-three, give it a take."
Both Cole and Mark glanced at Chase. "Yeah, he's not fitting in a locker," Cole said.
"Sure, I know that. But one can dream," Chase said with a grin.
"I think we need to talk to Ally later and see what's wrong with you," Mark said.
Chase glared. "Hey, she has nothing to do with the locker."
Cole and Ace laughed, teasing him, and Chase grew red with embarrassment.
After finishing their meal, they left the restaurant. Chase pulled out his phone.
"You all got your passports?" he asked.
The others leaned in. Chase revealed tickets to South Korea, a graduation gift from his dad. Cheers erupted.
"The trip was meant for Ace, but he wanted all of us to go together," Chase explained.
"Two weeks of fun and doing stupid stuff," Mark muttered.
The conversation turned to drinking age, K-pop, Korean language, and Ace's excitement. Cole teased Ace about going crazy there, and the friends joked back and forth.
Two weeks later, the group gathered at Chase's house to celebrate graduation. Mrs. Smith was cooking a feast: pulled pork, sweet and spicy short rib tacos, BBQ chicken pizza sliders, and sides of southern fried corn, coleslaw, mac & cheese, and cornbread.
Mark commented, "Hey, Mrs. Smith. I see you're making a feast."
"Well, with grown boys in the house, you have to cook extra," she said.
Ace washed his hands and offered to help. Mrs. Smith assigned him to the pulled pork and mac & cheese, Cole to the cornbread and coleslaw.
For the next hour, they cooked together, laughing and teasing each other. Dinner was a lively, chaotic event, full of jokes and small competitions.
After dinner, everyone went outside and sat by the pool. The warm night air carried laughter and chatter, but then Chase leaned back and asked something more serious.
"So… where do you see yourselves in the next, like, five years?"
Everyone exchanged confused glances before Cole spoke up. "That's… deep, man."
"Yeah, not exactly light dinner talk," Mark added.
Ace gave Chase a reassuring pat on the back. "You're good, man. You don't ask stuff like this often."
Zack nodded. "Ace has a point."
Chase pushed Ace's hand away. "Yeah, I'm good, guys. I just… I don't know when we'll get to do something like this again. Time moves on, and friendships change. One day, we'll all move on, and I'm just not ready for that."
The others fell silent, understanding the weight of his words. Cole took a sip from his drink before speaking.
"Honestly… my mom wants me to take over the family business, and my dad expects me to become the next opera singer in our family. That's a lot to live up to."
Zack shook his head. "Yeah, that's a huge role to fill."
Cole shrugged. "Tell me about it."
Chase turned to Mark. "What about you? Any plans for the next step in your life?"
Mark scratched the back of his head. "To be honest… not really. I might just wing it. Mom's been pushing me toward vet school, but I don't know if that's my path."
Carl raised an eyebrow. "Not sure that's a good idea."
Mark waved him off. "Hey, don't judge my future. You still have another two years to figure yours out."
Carl groaned. "Yeah… don't remind me."
Zack leaned back. "So you're saying you're not sure about college?"
Mark fiddled with his crimson red hair, avoiding the question. Cole tossed him a snack cake, making him jump.
"What was that for?" Mark asked.
"You looked hungry," Cole said smugly. "Couldn't let you starve."
Mark glared but opened the snack cake. "Told you," Cole said with a grin.
Chase turned to Ace. "So… what about you?"
Ace choked on his drink, spitting it out. Everyone froze, then Chase smirked. "Supposed to swallow, not spit."
"Go fuck yourself," Ace replied, laughing as he cleaned up.
"To answer your question… I don't know. My mom's pushing me to go to college. I'd be the first in generations in my family to do that. It's… a lot of pressure. I get the sense she expects more from me than my siblings, which is hard to handle sometimes."
Cole nodded. "That's rough, man."
Ace smiled, though deep down he felt the weight of expectations. Chase noticed the change in topic and jumped in.
"Yeah, you're the firstborn, so she's gonna be harder on you. Not that it's wrong, just… different."
Mark added, "Yeah, and your mom expects top grades, involvement in everything, and more. It's not just casual pressure."
Ace laughed softly. "What can I say? Mom has high hopes."
Cole patted him on the shoulder. "If that's how you see it, bro, more power to you."
The conversation lingered for a moment, then Chase remembered someone. "Oh, yeah… I almost forgot. You guys remember Theo?"
Everyone but Carl looked shocked.
"Theo O'Neal?" Cole clarified.
"Yeah, who else?" Chase said.
"Bro, I miss Theo. He was really cool," Mark said.
"No, he was more than cool. The guy dances like a pro," Ace added.
"Still keeps up with street dancing whenever he has time," Chase said.
"You still talk to him?" Ace asked.
"Yeah, I check in. Unlike you guys," Chase teased.
Mark scratched the back of his head. Cole and Zack looked away, leaving Ace to sip his drink quietly.
Cole asked, "Doesn't he live in South Korea?"
"Oh, yeah," Ace replied. "That's right."
Carl frowned. "Who is Theo?"
The others realized Carl never knew him by name—they'd always called him "T."
Chase explained: "Remember a few years ago when we first started hanging out? The guy who would randomly breakdance in the hallways?"
Carl nodded. "Yeah."
"That's Theo," Chase said.
"Oh," Carl said, finally connecting the dots.
"Why did we call him that again?" Mark asked.
"Just what he liked being called," Zack said.
As the boys continue to sit at the table outside they hear the sliding door opened, and Chase's little sister came out carrying a tray, her small arms wobbling under the weight.
"Careful!" Chase called.
"I got it, I got it!" she said, carefully setting the tray down in the center of the table. On it were neat rows of vanilla cake pops, dipped in white chocolate and sprinkled with colors.
Carl tilted his head. "Cake pops?"
"Vanilla cake pops," she said proudly. "I made them with Mom."
The boys laughed lightly, each grabbing one.
Ace took a bite, eyes widening. "Dang… this is actually good."
Cole nodded. "Yeah, not bad at all."
Mark smirked, though he already had two in his hand. "Guess it runs in the family."
Chase groaned, rubbing his forehead. "Don't encourage her, she'll think she's some master chef."
His sister stuck her tongue out. "You're just jealous because mine are better than yours."
The boys chuckled, the weight of their family confessions softening as they enjoyed the simple treat. For a moment, it felt like the worries of tomorrow could wait until another day.
As the night ended, Ace realized he had work the next morning and left with Cole, while the others cleaned up.
The morning of the flight, Ace woke to a figure standing over him.
"What the…?" he shouted, swinging—but it was Mark.
"Yeah, it's me, you ass," Mark said.
"I hate you sometimes," Ace muttered.
"You know you love me," Mark said smugly.
After getting ready, they headed to the airport, met up with the others, and boarded the plane.
Seats were arranged: Mark and Zack in the middle, Carl and Chase on the right, Ace and Cole on the left. Ace nervously chose the window seat.
"Why the window?" Cole asked.
"I'm scared of heights," Ace admitted, closing it again.
Cole laughed. "Makes sense."
Ace sighed, bracing himself for what promised to be a long flight.