Marisol Fuentes Definitely Does Not Have a Crush on Mikey Gutierrez: A Case Study
Marisol Fuentes Definitely Does Not Have a Crush on Mikey Gutierrez: A Case Study
By Marisol Fuentes (Negatory), Grace Aung (Affirmative), Mr. Gabriel Iglesias (Affirmative), Walt Smit (Affirmative), Lorenzo [REDACTED] (Affirmative)
Additional assistance to Ms. Fuentes by Gabriel Iglesias and Abigail Spencer
Purpose of Case Study: To determine whether or not Ms. Marisol Fuentes is crushing on Mr. Mikey Gutierrez.
Procedures: Structure examples by writing down specific dates, then an honest, impartial account of the events that have transpired. No opinions permitted.Â
Working Hypothesis for the Negatory: Ms. Fuentes does not and has never had a âthingâ for Mr. Gutierrez because she is far too busy to consider getting into a relationship, so she has never allowed herself to look at anyone in that manner, and even if she did, Mr. Gutierrez is almost comically ignorant of the most basic facts and possesses little to no desirable qualities one would look for in a significant other.
Working Hypothesis for the Affirmative: Ms. Fuentes has been into Mr. Gutierrez literally since the first day of freshman year, as says everyone who lays eyes on them. The only reason she doesnât know about it is because sheâs so focused and driven regarding everything in her own life, as it is highly stressful, so she hasnât had time to think about her own feelings.Â
Beginning of Study: Wednesday, February 1st- 7:35 am
End of Study: Monday, March 4th- 2:35 pm
Final Meeting Between Affirmative and Negatory (Presentations): Wednesday, March 6th- 2:36 pm
Formal voting procedures and a conclusional committee will be held three weeks from the completed report date, to be determined after the complete case study is typed, proofread, and submitted by an independent source, also to be determined. The committee is as follows:
Member One (Chair): Principal Paula Madison
Member Two: Mr. Tony Ochoa
Member Three: Ms. Abigail Spencer
Faculty Supervisor: Mr. Gabriel Iglesias
Wednesday, February 1st- The Classroom Incident
Submitted by Marisol Fuentes, Negatory
Itâs a simple, normal Wednesday. Marisolâs made calls for only five hours instead of six before school starts because itâs not every day she aces a math test like the one she aced yesterday. She got an extra one percent, so she can sleep a little more than usual. She steps into class with a little spring in her step, tossing her backpack next to her chair and giving Mr. Iglesias a wave, which he returns without looking up.Â
Mikeyâs not next to her yet, which is fairly normal considering his penchant for being late, although Marisol strongly suspects itâs not completely his fault. She stretches out in her seat, flipping Walt off after he teasingly pretends to hike up his shirt into a crop top. Yeah. Today is a good day. Grace tosses her the extra apple she pretends she packs on accident, and she leans back and closes her eyes lazily for a couple extra minutes.
The bell rings in what feels like ten seconds, and Mr. Iglesias sweeps around the room in his normal dramatic ways until he gets to the door and closes it. âGood morning, settle down!,â he shouts over the vague buzz. âLet the undercurrent cease!â
Marisol combs her fingers through her hair as he starts attendance. She does her usual hand raise when she hears her name.
Something feels-odd in a way. Itâs just a little different from her productive little spot of morning bliss. She canât quite put her finger on it, but it is extremely disconcerting.Â
âMikey?,â Mr. Iglesias calls. Marisol instinctively turns to watch Mikey crash and burn like he does every day during attendance because he always answers with some weird Fortnite taunt or something-but she stops cold. Mikeyâs seat is completely empty.
In reality, things proceed as usual, but Marisol is stuck on Mikeyâs empty spot. Heâs never been this late before. Itâs usually a few minutes before or a few minutes after the bell. She canât remember a day where heâd been absent, either, and she never is because she wills herself into having perfect attendance at least for this class, so she would definitely know if heâd ever been out before.Â
It takes Mr. Iglesias starting to perform the character of Mary-Todd Lincoln to snap her out of her weird dissociation. She shakes her head like a dog shaking off water and starts to take notes about the importance of the role of first ladies within the presidency. But she keeps having these thoughts, harkening back to things Mikey had said the last time theyâd discussed Lincoln, or his complete flame out during the infamous oral reports last summer. Itâs not only memories, too, itâs stuff that she could say to him to make him laugh, or maybe a new mnemonic device they could use to study for the next test.Â
The bell rings, and Marisol blinks to find most of the other kids filing out and Mr. Iglesias standing over her desk.
âAre you okay?,â he asks suspiciously. âThat was an awful lot of daydreaming for one class, especially for you. Are you sleeping?â
âYeah, yeah,â she answers, starting to gather up her things. âIâm okay. Just an off day, you know? Thanks for not calling me out on it.â
âSure thing,â he nods. âAnd Marisol?â
She turns on her way out. âYep?â
âWord of advice,â Mr. Iglesias says, smirking. âIf you really donât want the entire class knowing that you somehow reciprocate that thing Mikey has for you, Iâd suggest making sure you can function when heâs not here.â
Marisol can feel her cheeks redden. âI was fine,â she protests. âI was a little groggy.â
âSure, fine, okay,â he agrees. âIf youâre denying that, maybe next time you shouldnât write notes with his name all over your notebook. Mikeyâs out sick today. His mom called. Heâs fine. Text him and tell him that joke you wrote down at the top of page 3. Stir the pot a little. See what happens.â
Her face is now tomato red. âI donât like him!,â she yells as she throws the door open. âI can miss my friend!â
His laughter follows her down the hall, all the way to her next class.
(The next day, Mikey is back in his desk, and early for once, with a smile and about three large oranges to play catch with Lorenzo when Mr. Iglesias isnât looking. When his name is called on roll, Marisol elbows him when he almost falls out of his desk trying to deep dab. He leans over and doodles a small flower on her paper, but if you look closely, heâs really just drawn a penis. Marisol calmly writes âOscar for principalâ on his worksheet in retaliation. They are now even. At least until English next period.)
Friday, February 15- The Sleep Out Incident
Submitted by Marisol Fuentes, Negatory
In Marisolâs very humble opinion, the annual âsleep outâ is a way to punish all of the students in the school. Itâs always a complete mess organizationally, nobody ever has exactly what they actually need to function normally, and the teachers mostly just sit there and watch as the students destroy the environment and do the exact opposite of appreciate being with their schoolmates.
Marisol has spent the last two sleep outs sitting alone in her tiny tent, selling solar panels and doing her work in peace as her classmates push each other to the brink. But this year, she will not be doing that. She will not have her little slice of alone time before the stupid sing-along and the stupid friendship circle and the waste of time that is the scary story session. She also wonât be sleeping alone this time.Â
Because Mr. Iglesiasâs class came in last in the fund-raiser, they have been forced to sleep on the roof without tents. Marisol will be subjected to all the nonsense for a solid thirteen hours.Â
Case in point, she thinks to herself as she watches Walt chase Lorenzo around, using his sleeping bag as a giant butterfly net. She does enjoy her group of weirdos immensely, but this is a lot for one day.
âMr. Iglesias,â she calls. âCan I just sit up here and not go to the campfire?â
âNo, because if Iâm suffering, so are you,â he yells back. âStop running on the roof, idiots! Youâre gonna fall off and die!â
Great. An evening watching Mr. Ochoa make a fool of himself in front of Ms. Spencer and Principal Madison host an event to the nines, which she usually enjoys, but sheâs already so annoyed and keyed up, she doesnât know how sheâll enjoy it. âStepford!,â Marisol hollers across the roof at him, because she knows nobody will understand how truly gorgeous that insult is but the two of them.Â
Mr. Iglesias whirls on her. âYou take that back this instant!â Thereâs an announcement from the field that Capture the Flag is about to begin.Â
He takes a deep breath and snags Mikeyâs bedsheet, which Rakeem seems to be using as a cape. âNever mind. This isnât over. Weâre finishing this after we kick the honors studentsâ collective asses. Also, everyone quit stealing stuff just to annoy me!â
Walt halfheartedly returns Mr. Iglesiasâ wallet to his pocket, just as Lorenzo returns his vape. Marisol sends both of them a look that says she wonât tell, and reluctantly descends the stairs to go spend two hours pretending to care about some random scrap of fabric.
Following the gratuitous game, the entirety of the stupid campfire (although she enjoyed Mikeyâs little yelp when she grabs his shoulders during the story about the man with a hook for a hand they tell every year), and the group discussion thatâs supposed to make them see each other in a âdifferent lightâ that never does, Marisol relishes the chance for quiet. She crawls into her sleeping bag and falls asleep.Â
It turns out the roof is deceivingly cold. And full of gravel. Both of these are highly counterproductive to getting any restful sleep and true to form, Marisol canât fall asleep anymore. She reaches for her phone. 2 am, reads the ruthless display. She flops over in her sleeping bag, onto her stomach, and notices someone else sitting a few feet away, looking up at the stars.Â
She shoots a look to her right-Walt and Lorenzo sharing a blanket. On her left, Grace sleeping with her glasses on and Rakeem twitching his feet in his sleep. And one empty pile of blankets and twisted sleeping bag belonging to a certain someone belonging to the Fortnite club.
Marisol grins to herself. She wraps her blanket around her and pads over to where Mikey is sitting.
âYou canât sleep?,â she asks, easing herself down into the pile of gravel next to him.Â
He oddly doesnât lose it, which she chalks up to how late it is. âNo,â he says, turning his gaze to her. âItâs stupid we have to do this. Did anyone actually come up here and consider the fact that this is uninhabitable because itâs the roof?â
âThatâs a big word,â Marisol teases. âDid you read the dictionary for summer reading again?â
He snorts and sifts some of the gravel through his hands. âNo, thatâs the one thing I picked up from Mrs. Ortiz yelling at me about my desk yesterday because she made me look it up.â
She laughs. âThatâs easily the loudest Iâve heard her yell since Walt tried to start the vape train in third period. It was an achievement.â
âThanks,â Mikey jokingly bows to her. âItâs my pleasure to entertain you as we fuck Shakespeare over.â
âThatâs a complete understatement. Lorenzo pronounced âJulietâ as âJulesâ today. It was ridiculous.â
They both break into giggles. Marisol bumps shoulders with him and smiles.
âSo why canât you sleep besides, you know, everything?â
Mikey sucks in his cheeks. âYouâre gonna laugh.â
âNo, I wonât laugh,â Marisol says stubbornly. âI promise, if I didnât laugh at you when Ortiz dumped your desk on the floor, I wonât laugh at you now.â
He stares at the ground for a second. âOkay. So I share a room with two of my younger brothers, and I kind of find it hard to sleep without the noise. One of them snores a little and the other one breathes loud, and itâs just-comforting, I guess. Go ahead, make fun of me.â
âThatâs kind of sweet, Mikey,â she grins. âUh-I canât sleep either. Iâm cold because I sleep with my sister and without her, it feels freezing.â
âHey,â he says after a beat of silence. âUh-you can totally slap me in the face if you want, and Iâll never speak of this again, but lots of people are accidentally, like-sleeping really close together, like look at Rakeem and Grace-â
âOh, noâ, she interjects. âThat is clearly on purpose.â
âBut-like, youâre cold, and I need noise, and-well-â
Thatâs when it occurs to Marisol exactly what heâs talking about. Thereâs a little rush of heat through her core that she pushes aside for the time being. The offer seems almost kind, and Mikey is very seriously blushing.Â
She makes her decision quickly.
âI wonât tell anyone if you donât,â she says, trying her best to act nonchalant and rising to her fee. âAre you coming?â
(Marisol settles her head firmly on Mikeyâs chest. They both sleep just fine, and nobody says anything to them in the morning because theyâre way too busy teasing Walt for his morning wood. Just as theyâd sworn to do, they never speak of this again, but she can feel that something has changed. Mikey calms down a little around her, and touching shoulders becomes their weird little thing. Itâs almost disturbingly comforting, but true to form, Marisol doesnât decide to figure her shit out. She just chooses to not think about it.)
Sunday, February 24th- The Science Fair Incident
Submitted by Mr. Gabriel Iglesias, AffirmativeÂ
The first thing Marisol says when she walks into the gym on the morning of the science fair is, âIs this room spinning?â
The second thing is âItâs really hot-no, itâs really cold in here.â
And by the time the entire class is looking at her with extreme concern, the third and final thing is, âIâm gonna throw up.â
With that single warning, she pukes directly onto Mikeyâs shoes, swaying on her feet for a second before successfully losing consciousness against him.Â
Predictably, as in Gabeâs experiences, high schoolers tend not to be incredibly mature when it comes to someone getting sick in class. He elects to follow the traditional âteacher vomit checklistâ. First, check for sympathy pukers. A quick scan reveals no immediate signs. Grace quickly volunteers to notify Jim the janitor, leaving him available to check in on Marisol, and make sure that Mikey is surviving as well.
He turns to find Mikey rather maturely removing his shoes and gently helping Marisol over to the bleachers, where he props her up, sitting next to her so she can lean on him. Gabe is very surprised by this sequence of events, but he gets less concerned when she wakes up slightly, still really sleepy.Â
Mikey looks to see him approaching. âHey,â he says. âSheâs really of out of it. I donât know what we should do.â
âWhat about your sneakers?â
He shrugs. âI have a lot of siblings, so itâs not like that hasnât happened before. Iâll just hose them down on the way home.â
Marisol stirs again, then sits upright and makes a very very bad face. Thanks to Walt putting a trash can next to his project so he can destroy it as soon as possible, she doesnât throw up on anyone. Gabe thinks about helping, but Mikey is already holding her hair back and telling her that itâs okay. She finishes and slumps backwards, leaning into nothing. When she realizes Mikey isnât sitting next to her anymore, she makes a highly affronted noise and hauls him back in by the sleeve of his shirt. He looks like heâs made the honor roll.
âHead hurts,â she groans. âToo bright.â
Gabe sits next to her. âWhat hurts?â
âHead,â she whispers again. âShaky. Cold. Stomach hurts, too.â
Without being asked, Mikey drapes his sweatshirt around her shoulders. There has to be something going on that Gabe doesnât know about, because he is acting incredibly mature and not freaking out because Marisol is touching him.
âWhat about the science fair?,â she breathes, reaching out a quavering hand. âI worked so hard on that project, it would have beat Whitneyâs-â
âYou canât go up there like this,â Gabe tells her openly. âYouâre sick.â
âAm not,â she argues. âI can do this. I donât want to let anybody down.â
âI know you donât want to miss it, but you need to rest! You definitely have a fever and chills, and youâre shaking.â
Marisol throws off the hoodie and stands up defiantly. âI have to present today! Itâs make or break for my grade!â
âI know you want to do this really badly,â Gabe says carefully, âbut I really think you need to go home.â
âGreat,â she says frostily. âThank you for your opinion. Iâm going to go give my presentation-oh, oh, dizzy, oh my god.â She sways dangerously once again and heâs easily able to guide her down onto the bleachers once again.
âLet me try,â Mikey offers. âJust gimme a sec, okay?â
What the hell, Gabe figures. He walks a few paces away, giving Lorenzo a very annoyed look when he tries to hotwire whatever kind of villainous supercomputer Grace has constructed, let him give it a shot. He already knows how itâs going to turn out, so there isnât any real risk involved before heâll have to step-
Surprised, Gabe turns to see Mikey standing there. âYou did?â
âYeah. Iâm gonna go on with her. Iâll do most of it, because then we can show how easy it is to follow, and if she needs to take a break she can. Carlsonâll probably say itâs innovative or something.â
âYou got it that fast?â
Mikey shrugs. âWell, yeah. Duh. Itâs not that hard.â
And with that, he goes back to sit with Marisol, bumping her shoulder once, which makes her smile a little for some reason.
âIf it gets too much, just tap on my hand,â heâs gently telling her. âYou can take a break, or be done. Itâs gonna be fine.â
She murmurs something quietly, which makes him laugh. âHe tries, you know that.â
Gabe doesnât know whether to feel completely insulted that he apparently doesnât know how to talk to Marisol, dumbfounded that Mikey somehow does, or impressed at his handling of the situation. He goes with somewhere in the middle of all three.
Pride is added to the mix when Marisol and Mikey finish first. Ms. Carlson calls it âincredibly creativeâ.Â
(Directly after the ceremony, she collapses again, and because Gabe is done being scared for her safety, he calls an ambulance. It turns out she has appendicitis. Her surgery is scheduled for one day later. Mikey is in class that day, and he looks sicker than she had. Everybody leaves him alone for most of the day, and the second someone calls Gabe to let him know it was successful, he knows exactly who to forward the news to. Mikey instantaneously relaxes. His signature hoodie is still missing. It can be found in the picture of Marisol post-surgery, hanging over her hospital gown.)
Tuesday, February 26- The Druggie Incident
Submitted by Grace Aung, Affirmative
Grace had figured that it would have been easy to convince everyone else they should visit Mari in the hospital after school, but she had been so very wrong.Â
âHospitals depress me,â said Walt.Â
âThose places have too many cameras,â said Lorenzo.
âImalreadygoingtomorrowandItalkedtoherlastnightbye,â mumbled Mikey, blushing crimson.
âNo,â said Rakeem. âNot even for you, Gracie.â (Only Rakeem and her mom are allowed to call her Gracie, just like how only she calls Marisol âMariâ.)
So Grace goes alone to the hospital after she finishes taking the short answer part of her English midterm. She checks in to get her visitor badge and heads to the second floor ICU, room nineteen.
A nurse stops her outside Mariâs room. âAre you here to see Ms. Fuentes?â
The nurse winks at her. âBefore you go in there, you might want to get your camera ready. She is still processing the anesthesia.â
Grace gets out her phone and turns it to video. Mari is sleeping when she gets in. The TV is on and turned to the Smithsonian channel, which is showing a space marathon. She looks really peaceful, and considering that the last time she saw her, she was burning up and puking in a high school gymnasium, itâs an immense improvement. Marisol snuffles a little and turns her legs over to the left. Grace digs her laptop out of her bag and hacks YouTube algorithms for awhile.
Some quiet giggles erupt from the bed about a half hour later. Grace eagerly scrambles for her phone, setting her computer safely inside her bag. âHey, Mari, itâs Grace. How are you?â
Marisol turns over to her other side to face her visitor. Her eyes are glassy, and to use Waltâs favorite phrase in a sentence, she is âtripping ballsâ.
âMy face feels weird,â she slurs. Grace immediately starts recording, because something in her head clearly knows this is gonna be good.
âHey, girl,â she says, gently touching her wrist. âHow you doing?â
âTired. Doesnât hurt anymore. Doctor said I donât have an apple anymore, but I want an apple.â
âThey gave you the really good drugs, huh,â Grace observes idly.
âYouâre Grace,â Marisol realizes. âI really like you and I donât think I tell you enough. Youâre, like, the least annoying person in that classroom.â
âThanks, sweetie, I like you a lot too. Howâs the scar down there?â
âGood,â she mumbles, twisting her fingers in her hospital gown. âThey cut me open and put me back together. Like in SpongeBob that one time. I wanna be SpongeBob when I grow up.â
âOh, honey, I do too,â Grace says, finding it very hard to stifle her giggles behind her hand anymore, so she decides itâs time to switch the subject. She digs in her bag and finds the card and the other crap people sent to Mari.
âHere,â she says, handing her the piece of paper they spent an entire class period on. âThatâs from everybody. We drew Mr. Iglesiasâ favorite poster for you, and then we signed it. Nobody else could come though.â
Marisol nods slowly, looking over what sheâs been given. Grace gets the distinct feeling she has absolutely no idea what sheâs looking at and a little bit of a scary idea that she canât read it.Â
âWalt sent thisâŚthing he made out of Juul pods and hot glue, and if you donât mind I think Iâm just going to throw that away. No one would want that. Rakeem sent this note that says he misses you and your help during class, which is great, except he wrote it on notebook paper that he also doodled a basketball on, and Lorenzo apparently just signed his name on that as well. Great. Even in times of crisis, theyâre minimal effort.â
Mari wriggles a little in her blankets as her blood pressure cuff activates. Grace suddenly notices a beautiful vase of flowers next to her bed.
âWho sent those?,â she asks.
âRita,â Grace hears faintly from the other side of the bed. âSheâs realllly pretty and sweet.â
âI got you one of those ugly stuffed animals,â she sets it on Mariâs chest. âI just thought youâd like a little something to hold onto in here.â
She doesnât get a huge response, but she does see her hug it close to her chest as the cuff releases.
âOh, and Mikey said he was coming sometime tomorrow, okay? He had Fortnite club after school today. He said youâd understand.â
Marisol gets a big grin on her face. âI know. Heâs the best. I like him a lot too, but you canât tell him.â She leans closer. âDo you wanna know a really big secret? I like like him.â
Grace stops. âYou like him? Like boyfriend like him?â
âYeah. You canât tell him. He canât know that I wanna kiss him all over his stupid face and hold his hand and cry on him during movies.â
âWhy canât he know? I think heâd definitely feel that way too.â
âHe just canât. Itâs stupid. Feelings are dumb,â she pouts. âI canât make me not like him and I donât like that.â
(The nurse pokes her head in and signals to Grace that she needs to do some work on Mari, so she says her goodbyes and leaves in a hurry. Late that night she texts her, do u remember what u told me today? Mariâs reply is instantaneous. No. Then, right after that, yes.
Please promise that you wonât say anything. I shouldnât have told you that.
i wonât, Grace texts back. but maybe u should.)
Wednesday, February 27- The Hospital Incident
Submitted by Marisol Fuentes, Negatory
Marisol turns over onto her side and lets out a big sigh of annoyance.
The hospital is the worst, most boring place imaginable. It is incredibly dull. Literally nothing is happening because the âgastrologyâ wing is not exactly a hub of activity. The nurses and doctors have been nice and everything, but she is chomping at the bit to get out as fast as she can.
The anesthesia finally has stopped affecting her, so sheâs been allowed to brush her own teeth and hair and shower on her own for the first time in three days. Nothing has ever felt that good. Sheâs expecting the rehab specialist in about an hour so she can start to walk.
Marisol has spent the majority of her stay alone. Itâs not that her family hasnât visited, they just canât stay long because jobs are a thing and her sister needs to be taken care of too. A surprising amount of school people have come; Grace came after school yesterday and brought her a card and a cute stuffed animal, Ms. Spencer and Principal Madison gave her a nice bar of soap and a cup of hot chocolate from the shop right by her house and joked about how desperate Mr. Ochoa looked on Monday, and of course Mr. Iglesias has been there as much as he can and secretly Skyped her in class today so she could at least hear what the lecture is about. Sheâs lucky to have so many people who care that much.
Speaking of people who care quite a bit about her, she looks up to see Mikey standing there looking incredibly awkward and like heâs about to jump out of his own skin.
âHey,â he says, walking in and putting his stuff down next to her bed. âHow-how are you doing?â
âDecent,â she answers. âHard not to poke at the stitches, I canât walk, and the food sucks.â
âSounds pretty standard.â He eases himself into one of the chairs lining the walls and scoots it a little closer to the bedside. âWe miss you in class.â
âI miss you guys too,â she admits grudgingly. âEven Walt. Itâs sort of lonely in here. And kind of unnervingly beige.â
âI thought about bringing you flowers but I decided that would probably be weird,â Mikey blurts, âso I got you some soup and this weird mint chocolate thing that Grace swore up and down you liked. I-I hope thatâs right. I got the soup recipe off the internet so I wouldnât, like, kill you with my momâs idea of food.â
Marisol eagerly sits up at the mention of food thatâs not medicated or âhealthyâ in any way. She makes grabby hands at the chocolates and to a lesser degree the soup.
âOh, real food,â she practically sings out as he carefully hands her the containers. âYou are the literal best. Thank you.â
Mikey blushes a little at the compliment and slumps back on the chair. âYouâre welcome. I just figured you could use something that wasnât Jello, you know?â
She gratefully takes off the top of the soup, because she hasnât had lunch yet anyway, and to her surprise, it actually smells good. She rummages through the ever-present pile of plastic utensils on her bedside table to find a spoon and takes a taste.
âDude,â she says with her mouth full, âWhoa. This is really good! I didnât know you could cook!â
Mikeyâs grin of omg-she-likes-it is slightly overshadowed by his mumbles of âneither did I.â
âWell, the internet is truly an amazing place,â Marisol observes between sips of soup, careful to not spill any on her incredibly fashionable hospital gown. âYou âused your resourcesâ. Mr. Iglesias would be so proud of you. Heâs been trying to get you to do that all year.â
Mikey laughs and starts to make another joke about the things he says to the class constantly, but her IV drip chooses that exact moment to officially run out and starts to beep loudly. Her nurse comes streaming into the room, and she quickly realizes they are slightly but clearly leaning towards each other.
âWe can get that drip out of there now! You finished all the meds.â Cheryl, who couldnât have been nicer in any way, tactfully chooses to ignore or just straight up doesnât notice the weird as hell vibe in the room. She calmly disconnects the IV line and wraps the area in gauze. Marisol manages to suppress her yelp of pain as the needle comes out.Â
âAnd whoâs this? I donât think Iâve seen you around,â she asks on her way out. The awkwardness ratchets up several notches instantly..
âHi, Iâm Mikey. Iâm a friend. Nice to meet you.â They shake hands.
âWait. Mikey? Like, the Mikey?â
âAs far as I know, thereâs only one,â he answers, a very strange look on his face. Marisol can feel her face going very red very fast, and frantically gestures to Cheryl to stop talking. Thankfully, she seems to get the message and backs off the subject, but still smiles at her teasingly behind Mikeyâs back. Mikey in question is positively cherry red, and is clearly trying to move on and pretend that never happened.
With the IV disconnected, the nurse disappears, and leaves behind a silence thatâs even more awkward than it was earlier.Â
âSo,â he scuffs part of his sneaker on the ground, âWhen are they letting you out of here? I kinda miss you annoying me every day and telling me my study habits are trash.â
âTomorrow afternoon,â she says, sitting up again. âIâll be back at school on Monday if I have my way, and those days off work werenât easy to get.â
Thereâs yet another pause. Mikey is staring at the ground still, and things just feelâŚoff.Â
âOkay, this isnât working,â Marisol cuts in. She picks up the box of mints from the table, scooting to one side to give some space. âCome up here and pretend to like these with me while we watch the same NCIS reruns Iâve been watching for three days. This isnât normal, but we can act like it is, just like movie Fridays at Waltâs house, minus the weed soaked into the couch. Cool?â
His signature grin instantly appears on his face. âCool.â He toes off his shoes and climbs onto the bed with her, bumping their shoulders together once again. The memories of the science fair and the sleepout flood back.
âSorry I puked all over your shoes, by the way,â she adds in as she picks the wrapping off the box of mints. âThat totally sucked.â
âNah, I just hosed them off,â he says casually, stretching. âGood as new.âÂ
Marisol realizes during that interaction theyâve somehow shifted even closer. She quickly snatches the remote and turns the channel to the never ending NCIS loop, pretending that it hasnât happened. It works well enough.
(âYou know what does totally suck?,â Mikey says after a few minutes. âThese mints. These suck.â She jokingly pokes him in the ribs, acting affronted that he doesnât appreciate her great taste in candy, and starts to laugh when he puts an arm around her shoulders and drags her in. Then he leaves his arm there. Then Marisol puts her head on his shoulder. Then she falls asleep. Again, they donât talk about it.)
Monday, March 5th-The Cherry Pepsi Incident
Submitted by Mr. Gabriel Iglesias, Affirmative
Mondays during finals are the worst, Gabe thinks to himself as he sits at his desk, quietly watching the shenanigans that conspire before first bell. Sleep deprivation and all of the weekend issues catching up with his students always hit them like a ton of bricks, leading to some of the strangest behavior one could see in a high school.
Case in point, Rakeem picking up Lorenzoâs backpack and chucking it towards a poster of Teddy Roosevelt because he thought Teddy was looking at him weird. It lands directly on Graceâs head. She doesnât even acknowledge it as she simultaneously drinks from two extra-large coffee cups. Walt has his head on his desk and is deliriously whispering the chorus from that stupid baby shark song.
Gabe figures that Mikey will be at least thirty-five minutes late, given that his track record with all things final or midterm have not been ideal, but Marisol isnât in her seat waiting for the test to begin. Just as he starts to get up for the traditional âhallway checkâ, Marisol strolls in late, and right behind her, Mikey strolls in early.
Hell hath frozen over. Holy crap.
Neither one of them seem to be any kind of tired. Mikey actually has his backpack. Marisol is smiling.Â
Who are these space aliens and where are Gabeâs usual students?
âMorning, Mr. Iglesias,â Marisol calls cheerfully over the relentless noise of the room. âHappy finals week!â
âWhatâs got you all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, Ms. âNo, Iâll Sleep When Iâm Dead, My Grades Are More Important Than My Emotional Well-Beingâ?â
âI just feel confident about the test, thatâs all,â she continues, crossing to put her stuff down at her usual spot. âMikey helped me figure out this thing where I can prop up my notebook while I work cashier at the drive through. And I actually slept last night. So thereâs that.âÂ
Gabe sees the impending accident in slow motion. He suddenly realizes that an empty bottle fo cherry Pepsi has fallen out of Rakeemâs bag following the impromptu game of catch earlier. And that Marisol is walking directly towards it. Carrying a travel mug of coffee. And a large stack of papers.
âWatch out, Mari!,â Grace shouts suddenly. âYouâre gonna slip!â
Itâs too late. Her foot lands directly onto the bottle, which spins and slides across the floor. Marisol looks down in shock as one of her legs slides out from under her and she pitches backward, falling towards the carpet as Gabe watches helplessly.
Her stack of papers lands on the carpet with a slight flump, and she tries desperately to keep a grip on her coffee. He averts his eyes, not wanting to witness the inevitable injury-but it doesnât come.Â
She hasnât hit the floor because Mikey Gutierrez, knight in teenage armor, has caught her just in time. Between the relationship dynamic discussion between Walt, Lorenzo, and Rita last week and Rakeemâs rather dramatic dance proposal to Grace, why in the hell has his classroom become some kind of a romantic comedy?
Theyâre now making incredibly intense eye contact, so Gabe coughs loudly. They spring apart almost instantly and freeze like that.Â
He comes close to saying something stupid about it, but literally no one has noticed anything happening because of the small fight happening in the corner between Lorenzo and his shoelaces. Walt is no longer in his desk. Mikey and Marisol are blushing and making weird eye contact alternately.Â
God, Gabe hates Monday finals.
(Marisol aces the final. Mikey gets a B. After the test, Gabe visits Marisol at her locker. He doesnât even say anything, he just stands there. Marisol turns the color of her high-tops, slams her locker door instantly, and shouts, âshut up!â before stomping away. When he asks Mikey about it, he just turns white and stares at the floor. Gabe has forgotten that high schoolers are all pretty much puddles. Whoops.)
Tuesday, March 6th- The Intervention Incident
Submitted by Rakeem Rozier
Rakeem admits that he isnât super good at expressing his feelings. Thatâs just sort of a weakness that he needs to work more on. Itâs why he and Grace work so well together, because she didnât talk for a long time, and now that she does, it can get a little harder for her to say what she feels. Sometimes they can say stuff without saying stuff, and thatâs why Rakeem likes to be with her. It makes more sense.
They made sense right away, and it was fairly easy for both of them to figure out they wanted to be together.Â
This is why Rakeem does not understand whatever is going on with Marisol and Mikey. The two smartest people he knows, and yet they canât figure out that theyâre completely gone for each other. And to make matters worse, Marisol is so deep in denial that sheâs been making them participate in this stupid study to prove that she doesnât have any feelings when she really does.
To sum it up, Rakeem is only here because Grace asked him and she said please. Heâll do anything for her, except set foot in a hospital or talk to a clown.Â
âINTERVENTIONâ is written in large block letters on the board. Everyone in class has been arranged in a circle, and now theyâre just sitting there. Waiting.Â
Like he said, Rakeem will do anything for Gracie.
Marisol walks through the door about fifteen minutes of absolute silence later, holding her phone. âHey, whereâs the emergency? Did someone fall on the tacks Lorenzo glued to the floor?â
âMari,â Grace intones quietly. âHave a seat. We need to talk.â
Confused, she sits right across from Rakeem-and sees the intervention declaration.
âItâs gone too far,â Walt says solemnly. âYou have to end it.â
âShe doesnât even know what youâre talking about yet, dude!,â Lorenzo hisses out of the corner of his mouth. âLet Gabe do the intro, and then you can get all emotional and do your thing, okay?â
Mr. Iglesias, who is sitting in a high school sized chair, turns to Marisol. âOkay. So when you proposed the idea of having the entire class participate in a study behind Mikeyâs back so you could prove once and for all that you operate above having feelings and that you donât like him, it seemed like it would peter out in a few days because, well, it is a terrible idea and a really good way to hurt Mikeyâs feelings. But it didnât, and you were serious, and now we have to end it. Now, Walt.â
âYou have to end it. Itâs gone too far,â Walt pipes up, looking way too proud of himself.
Grace pipes up next. âYou need to stop obsessively researching and just talk to Mikey, all right? He likes you, and you clearly like him, and you told me you did when you were high as hell on that anesthesia, so I know you know it.â
âThe whole thing is unnecessarily complicated and you gotta just kiss ya boy, girl,â Lorenzo chips in. âAlso, Rita couldnât make it, but she said to tell you to get yourself some of that.â
Marisol looks shell-shocked. âI-I canât,â she says quietly. âI canât tell him how I feel. Youâre right. The study is over. Iâm sorry. It was a dumb idea. But I canât tell him.â
She gets up and walks out of the room, leaving her backpack and her phone on the chair.
Rakeemâs time has come.
âI got this one, yâall. Gracie, you man things here.â
He finds her sitting directly outside the door against the wall.
âHey, lady. Why are you being such a downer? Your boy likes you, and he couldnât be more obvious about it.â
Marisol laughs shakily and rests her head against the wall. âItâs so stupid.â
âPretty sure it couldnât be any more stupid than what they tried to do in there. You can tell me, because who am I going to tell?â
âIâm just no good with this stuff,â she confesses after a second. âMath, no problem. Working three jobs, no problem. Dealing with all of my crazy family, Iâve got this. But the second I even think about this, I get scared out of my mind. That probably sounds weirder than anything youâve ever heard.â
âIâm not good with this stuff either. Itâs real scary whenever you open up to someone like that. But if itâs the right person, you can trust them with it. Gracieâs the first person Iâve talked to about stuff like that, and it gets easier. You just have to be as brave as you can, and youâre pretty much the bravest person Iâve ever met.â
Marisol thinks about it for a second. âSo I should just-try? Even if itâs really stupid and incoherent?â
âNah, Gutierrezâll understand, even if itâs not really understandable. He gets you, ya know?â
When he looks at her again, she has a comically large smile on her face. âYou know what to do, donât you?â
âYeah,â she confirms, standing up. âI know exactly what to do.â
(Grace gives Rakeem the nicest hug when he goes back in and whispers, ânice jobâ. He can see Marisol power walking in the exact direction of the computer lab. Huh. Maybe heâs better at this feelings stuff than he thought.)Â
Friday, March 9th- The Rain Drop Dance
The Rain Drop Dance is stupid. But Marisol has so much riding on tonight she doesnât have time to worry about being sprayed with a stupid hose by the Student Council during the stupidly inevitable ârain danceâ or being forced to pose for stupid pictures with a stupid umbrella.
Currently, sheâs pacing the floor in Mr. Iglesiasâs room, waiting for Mikey to get there. She hasnât heard from him since she texted him an hour ago and told him where to meet her. The thick stack of paper in her hands is getting stiff with sweat.
Mikey steps through the door. âHey, whatâs up? You wanted to show me something?â
Okay. Go time. She can do this.Â
He takes the report and starts to flip through it with a highly bemused expression on his face.Â
âMarisol Fuentes most definitely does not have a crush on Mikey Gutierrez: a case study,â he reads aloud. âWhat? What is this?â
Time to come clean. âSo a few months ago everyone was teasing me about liking you, and I swore that I didnât. And to prove it I made them all do this, where I tried to prove that I didnât like you, and they tried to prove that I did. It was dumb and really wrong of me to do it without telling you, and a dick move to be this anal about being right all the time while I was that deep in denial. So, I wanted to tell you that Iâm sorry.â
âApology accepted. Itâs all fine,â he assures her, the tiny hint of disappointment in his voice clear. âThis is in depth, you really go all out-wait, in denial?â
âUm, look at the last page,â she says quietly. âThe conclusion.â
Mikey takes a couple of seconds to read it to himself, and a gigantic smile spreads across his face. âSeriously? Are you for real?â
She nods. He gives her a high five. âDude, you like me? ThatâsâŚwhoa. Thatâs a lot. Oh, obviously, I like you too, duh. You like me. Holy shit, you like me. The most amazing girl in the world likes me!â
âOkay, Iâm not amazing.â
âYou wrote a whole report about me! Iâm gonna read the whole thing later. After we dance to Umbrella with umbrellas.â
âIâll do it, but only for you. And thereâs absolutely no chance youâre reading that.â
(Conclusion: Marisol Fuentes most definitely has a big, fat, stupid crush on Mikey Gutierrez, and she is not at all afraid to admit it.)
This report has been saved on Marisol Fuentesâ desktop and will never be shown to anyone again. The original hard copy given to Mikey Gutierrez during the Rain Drop Dance has disappeared, and although he denies it, it is most definitely hidden somewhere undetermined in his basement.
There it is! Deadlines are my enemy, so it took awhile. I hope you enjoyed this awful sweetness. Also, STREAM MR IGLESIAS ON NETFLIX!!! Itâs funny and comforting and diverse and talks about real world issues.
Something based on Stranger Things 3 is hopefully up next. Find me on AO3 as TheGirlWithTheGlasses. There may be some crossposting happening soon as well.
Thanks for making it all the way through the intensely sugary hellscape! See yall next time :)
