57 Phase II

The first half of the semester passed in a haze. Midterms crept up on Justin quicker than expected and he was drowning under the load.

He wasn't the only one. Two club meetings in a row were canceled because everyone was too busy writing papers, coding, or studying.

Alexa was so stressed that she ignored Justin's text messages for a week straight even though she said she wanted to initiate phase two of her plan. Emily couldn't process a word he said to her on their daily rides to and from school, asking "what?" five times whenever he tried to talk to her.

"I'm sorry I'm so distracted," she lamented, leaning her head back on the headrest tiredly. "I've still got two more film analyses to write for two different classes and I have to write ten pages of a screenplay by Monday. I already had to ask for a few days off work and that means I'll have to live off ramen and stale crackers for a week until I can go grocery shopping again."

Ramen and stale crackers? That's really all she had to eat because of a few missed days of work? Justin wouldn't stand for that. They were about to arrive at their apartment building when he sharply veered right instead.

"What are you doing?" Emily yelped, clinging to the handle above the door for dear life.

He didn't answer and pulled into the parking lot of a carry-out pizza place. Instructing her to stay there, he strode into the restaurant and picked out a large meat lover's pizza, three types of breadsticks with various dipping sauces, and a side salad with two liters of soda.

When he came back to the car he surprised her by dumping all the food in her lap. He winced. That was a little more forceful than he intended. Justin the Klutz strikes again.

"For you."

"All of this food?!"

"It's better than ramen," he said quietly, not meeting her eyes. He wasn't sure how she would take his gift but he really didn't like the idea of her not having enough to eat so he had lost his head a bit. "Consider it a Because You're Stressed Pizza."

Finally daring to look at her, Justin was startled to see tears in her eyes. He was about to open his mouth to apologize for being presumptuous when she flashed him a beautiful smile.

"You're the best. Thank you, Justin. I really needed this today."

A lump appeared in his throat. "Any time."

He meant it. More than anything, he wished he could be there for her always.

He helped her carry the food up to her apartment before wishing her luck on her various papers and trudging to his own apartment to write a few papers of his own. His stomach grumbled. The smell of pizza lingered in his nostrils. He could use some Because You're Stressed Pizza himself so he ordered some for delivery before getting back to work.

Justin was halfway through his biology paper when the pizza arrived. He was about to chow down when his phone dinged. Alexa finally responded.

'Sorry for going AWOL. Was planning on getting some people together to go to the movies to celebrate when midterms end. You should invite Emily for Phase II'

He attempted to type with one hand as he devoured a slice. 'How many people?'

'A few art students, a few indie game club people, possibly my roommate. The new superhero movie is out and it's supposed to be really good'

'Are you sure it's a good idea to initiate Phase II with so many people around? What if they notice something weird with you?'

Justin was concerned because of how ridiculously she behaved in the macaroni restaurant. He knew her well enough to know she wouldn't act that way in front of all of her friends.

'Have some faith in me, grasshopper! This master knows what she's doing. Next Saturday, 6 PM. Be there or be square'

Justin shook his head. He really should trust Alexa since she hadn't let him down yet.

Debating only for a moment, he texted Emily. 'Some friends and I are going to see the new superhero movie next Saturday to celebrate the end of midterms. Want to come?'

Despite how busy he knew she was, her response was immediate. 'That actually sounds really fun. I haven't been out with people in forever. I'm supposed to work that evening but I can switch with my coworker who has the morning shift. He's always trying to switch out that Saturday morning shift so he can sleep in'

'Great! The movie is at 6 but we should probably meet there earlier to make sure we all get seats. I'll ask what time they want to meet up'

'Cool'

He didn't reply after that because both of them had papers to write. Time was of the essence. Justin powered through the rest of his essay by eating ¾ of the pizza in one sitting and as soon as he submitted it online he collapsed on his bed in a pizza-induced coma.