First test of the year is tomorrow. 20 questions, worth 100 points. The test is on negative and positive integers (things we don’t need to know in life). I am fantastic at math, but when it comes to tests, well that’s another story. I tend to forget a lot. From the previous years, Iʼve done really well in math. Math was fairly easy. I would never study, thatʼs how easy it was for me. I tend to say, “and... there goes another one for me,” or “anyone else received a 100%?” I brag a lot as you may tell, but that’s not the point… the point is that I’m great at math. Saying that on all of the tests I have  ever taken, the lowest grade Iʼve ever received was a B+. Now that is pretty good, saying it is the worst. Only one flaw about taking tests, only one reason I got the B+, I could not remember the rules for whatever we were tested on. It was 8:30PM, and youʼd think your boy, Levi, would be playing xbox or on his phone, texting friends. But no, your boy was studying, studying hard, like REALLY hard. I didnʼt want to fail my first test of middle school.

I  A night owl like myself, stayed up til 1 or 2 AM (couldn’t remember), and had to wake up at 7AM. Smart right? Woke up super tired and exhausted. Yawning here and there, every 3-5 minutes or so in the morning. Had coffee, “this isn’t enough!” I exclaimed. Didn’t matter, I had to push through it. I fell asleep during what seemed like ages in the car. Had a good nap in before school. Happy as I can b-.                                       

  “Everyone ready for the test?” Mrs. Kleopfer, the teacher, announced as I walked into the classroom.

Ii””Test!” I forgot about the test! Oh no!!! I wasn’t ready to lose all hopes yet. You know what Levi, you can do this. With no sleep, and no knowledge because you forget everything, you can still do this!  “Math is easy, math is easy. I love math, and math loves me.” I am totally going to fail this test, aren’t I? Right now, inside my mind is all chaos.

  And there it was, the disgusting looking thing right in front of me. The test was smiling at me, and I was in terror. I looked confident, sounded confident, but surely did not feel confident. Today is your big day. You own the test, don’t let the test own you. I tried to motivate myself, nothing worked. I still felt the fear inside of me. Mrs. Kleopfer yelled, “25 minutes, you have 25 minutes left.”

  25!? I’ve done nothing for the last 10 minutes! Nothing, no name, no graphite, no nothing. I finally wrote my name. The 1st question looked tough, but the 2nd one looked even tougher, and so did the next, and the next... How can this be? This class is supposed to be easy for me. Now I’m in mad confusion. Only one thing that was good about the test, multiple answers. 25% chance of getting it right. I usually do process of elimination, but the test answers and my answers did not match whatsoever. My brain was going left and right, up and down. So I just chose one that looked right, or one that was close to my answer. I did that on a lot of them. I finished with 5 minutes left. I went back and looked through my answers. I don’t know why but I changed half of my answers. I just had a feeling that my first choice wasn’t quite right.

 “Time is up kiddos,” Mrs. Kleopfer announced. “Did everyone do well? I’m sure you did.”a a a a a a

  I just wanted to rip the test up and exclude it from my grade. I did not have a good feeling about this. I definitely bombed this test.

  The day was over, and it was still on my mind, the test. What did I get? For the next two days, all I was thinking about was the test. Then, there comes that time of day, second period. Everyone in first period was talking about the test and what they got, and oh my goodness, my parents wouldn’t allow me to live in the house if I got those test numbers.a a

  “I got an F!” Says a student. “I got a D+!” Says another.

   Wow. I had no words. I got to my seat and my test was upside down on my desk… I started feeling anxious and sick at the same time. The feeling you get when you do something wrong and think that you may get caught. Yeah, that’s how I was feeling then.

  *flipped the paper over* “C. And I thought a B was bad. I can’t live with a C!” I checked to see which questions I got incorrectly. Right after I saw them, I was so angry at myself! Some of the answers I had before changing it were right! I could not believe what I did. I just had a feeling that once I switched them, something is gonna bite me right back.

  “Pre-test over chapter 1.1 tomorrow,” Mrs. Kleopfer announced to the class.

  “Another test?! Why!” I wasn’t happy that we had another test, but if I don’t mess that one up, it could help my grade go back to where it was, an A. Chapter 1.1 was easy, so I didn’t have to study for it. And I’d also get more rest if I didn’t stay up late studying. Win, win situation. I went to bed at 9:30 PM that night.

  Woke up the next day feeling great! I wasn’t tired, drowsy, or slumped. But more like pumped, hyped, and exited. I felt great, more than ever ready for the pre-test. I got to school, first period was boring. Now here is the moment, the moment where I will redeem myself. Second period. We had 30 minutes to answer 15 questions. pshh, easy. I started the test and finished it within seven minutes. I did not change any of my answers because we know where it took me last time. And since it was a pre-test, we checked it in class after everyone was done.

  “Times up kiddos,” said Mrs. Kleopfer.

  We passed the test around and checked it. And the results was… five people received an A+, and of course, finally, I was one of them. Felt good to be back on track. I don’t think studying works for me. I’m never gonna study again!

  When it comes to tests, sleep is all I need to Ace it. Studying takes too long, and studying is for nerds. And I ain’t no nerd. And never gonna second guess myself. I learned it the hard way.