Ben Twist led Nate and Eric Anderson, along with Cassie O'Sullivan, back to his house. There, everyone set up to tackle the weekend's homework, which had yet to be done because of the pack meeting (orgy) that ushered Eric into werewolf society and introduced him to Cassie.
"So, will you need help finding X this afternoon, or have you decided to give in and hire a private detective?" wondered Eric, looking at his new friend.
"I think the two of us together are more than a match for our elusive quarry," replied Cassie, going with the gag.
"Well, if you two are discussing algebra, I'll take all the help I can get!" said Nate.
"I'll lend you a hand," answered Ben. "Besides, they're Freshmen, we're Juniors, remember?"
Ben got everyone sodas and poured out two bowls of potato chips.
Nate never gave the seating arrangements a second thought, but Cassie and Eric couldn't help wondering about sitting next to each other at one corner of the Twist's dining room table while the older boys occupied the other.
"So, if 3x + 1 = 10, then we know X has to be 3, because 3 times 3 is 9, plus 1 equals 10," said Eric, showing Cassie his work.
"But why do they have to make it so difficult?" asked Cassie, torn between looking directly at Eric and studying his paper.
"Because it's part of a fiendish plot to drive teenagers nuts," quipped Nate, before cursing out his own homework in a more PG friendly language than what he really wanted to say.
Ignoring his older brother, Eric said, "Here. Let's do the next one together. 4x - 5 = 15," as he put the page between them. "Now in this case, instead of subtracting before we divide to get X, we have to add the 5 to the remainder first."
But as Cassie leaned closer to watch Eric work, his new lupine senses detected a tantalizing odor.
Nate was too lost in his own fight with Algebra 2 homework to notice, but Ben looked up from his history book when he realized that the Freshmen had grown strangely silent.
He saw Eric and Cassie staring intently at each other and smiled. A quick whiff of the air told him everything. Ben knew that whether she intended to or not, Cassie was giving off pheromones signaling that she was VERY interested in Eric, and not just for help with her homework!
While he had no idea that Julie Stovall would react as badly as she actually did, let alone have a complete psychotic break from reality as far as her vision versus the reality of Eric Anderson was concerned, Ben did believe that Julie would eventually reject Eric for choosing to become a werewolf instead of her romanticized dream were-merman.
That was why he had set things up for Cassie O'Sullivan to usher Eric into were society. Having known her and her family for years, Ben thought Cassie was an ideal match for Eric Anderson, given the trauma of recently losing his father versus she already having come to terms with the death of hers. Despite both of them only being 14, the two had decided to dedicate their futures to helping others, with Cassie wanting to become a doctor and Eric a police man, but considering he was the adopted son of Doctor Frances Twist, Ben also knew that there was and should be happiness and romance within their lives as well.
Being friends and neighbors with the Anderson family, Ben had come to think of Nate and Eric as the brothers he never had, and was glad his matchmaking efforts appeared to be paying off for Eric.
Despite not wanting to feel like a voyeur, Ben couldn't help himself, watching the new couple kiss and hold hands, lost in the moment and each other.
But when it looked like Eric and Cassie were about to remove each other's shirts and let things progress further, that's when he looked back down at his history book and loudly cleared his throat.
"I could use another soda," said Ben, looking up directly at Nate first. "Anyone want another?" he asked, turning to look at Eric and Cassie, who had quickly separated while both were blushing in the embarrassment of almost (as far as they knew) getting caught.
All wanted another. As Ben got up and collected their empties, he asked Cassie, "I promised your mom I'd have you back home for dinner, but what time is that?"
"Six," she replied, noting that it was almost four on the dining room clock.
"No problem," said Ben, as he went into the kitchen.
But as he started getting the new round of drinks, he looked out a side window at the Anderson's house next door, and idly wondered what his mothers and Martha Anderson were up to?