Part 2The Accidental Tutor

My mom is the classic parent who banned dating in high school but started demanding grandkids the second I hit college.

In college, she told me to target classmates. In grad school, it was colleagues. After graduation, she was setting me up with every "local talent" she could find on weekends.

Despite her efforts, I never clicked with anyone.

Either they were frogs, or I was the ugly duckling.

The few guys who actually met my standards? I was too chicken to make a move.

She always complained I had no guts.

She loved to tell the story of how my dad was the village heartthrob back in the day. She wasn't the prettiest or the richest, but she was bold. She basically clubbed him over the head like a cavewoman and dragged him home.

If she hadn't taken the initiative, I wouldn't exist.

She told me to learn from her.

If you like him, club him.

So when I saw her winking at me with this guy, I thought I got the message. I boldly dragged him upstairs to cook the rice, so to speak.

When he flipped me over, I thought, Finally, I'm being bold.

An afternoon later, I was lying in bed, gasping for air, unable to move a finger.

The boy looked at me, wanting to say something but hesitating. I was too tired to talk, so I closed my eyes and started drifting off.

Suddenly, a demonic voice pierced through the door:

"Chloe! Where's Leo?"

"Wasn't he there for English tutoring? Did he leave already?"

"Why didn't you ask him to stay for dinner?"

...

I bolted upright, kneeling on the bed.

Leo?

The chubby kid from next door who was three years younger than me?

The one I tutored in phonics in elementary school, listening comprehension in middle school, and grammar in high school?

The chubby kid my mom said was coming over for GRE tutoring a few days ago?

I remember he didn't look like this. How did losing weight make him this hot?

I pointed a trembling finger at the guy. "Leo?"

He widened his eyes and nodded obediently.

"Here for English tutoring?"

He nodded again, looking innocent.

"Why didn't you say so earlier?!" I thought he was a blind date my mom set up!

When I first saw him, I was so moved I almost cried.

I used to suspect my parents were secretly billionaires pretending to be poor to build my character. Then I suspected I was adopted.

But seeing Leo, I thought, Okay, billionaires aren't even this generous. Only biological parents would save a resource this good for their own daughter!

Turns out, he's just a studious neighbor kid who failed his GREs!

Leo looked at me with puppy eyes, his face still flushed, his eyes misty. "You didn't give me a chance to speak."

I felt a myocardial infarction coming on.

Hearing my mom's footsteps getting closer, I held my breath and locked the door.

I turned around to see Leo putting on his clothes. His back was a perfect V-shape, muscles rippling... and covered in long red scratch marks.

Leo was terrifyingly calm. He looked at me innocently. "Why are you locking the door? Let's go out together. Be bold, right?"

I slapped the back of his head. "Since when are you so responsible?"

I grabbed him, opened the window, and shoved him toward it. "Window! Go!"

Leo froze, clearly unhappy. "Sis, what does this mean?"

I was sweating bullets. I shoved him again. "What does it mean? It means you got lucky today!"

He held the window frame and sighed. "Sis, this is the second floor. Are you trying to kill the witness?"

Click! Clack!

The door handle jiggled.

My heart was in my throat.

My mom's voice boomed again. "Chloe! What are you doing? Why is the door locked?"

"Where is Leo?"

My brain spun. Hundreds of excuses flashed by. I grabbed one, swallowed hard, and yelled:

"He finished tutoring and went home!"

I lowered my voice, sounding pitiful and exhausted. "I was on the bus all morning, I'm dead tired. I knew you'd come in and pull the covers off, so I locked it."

"I just want to rest."

Mom instantly felt guilty. "Oh, okay. Rest well. I'll go make dinner."

Downstairs?

That was Leo's only escape route!

I quickly yelled, "Mom! I really want the roast goose from the village entrance! Can you go buy some?"

At this moment, I truly admired my own genius.

But my mom, being considerate, said, "Your dad is on his way back. I'll tell him to get it."

I gasped. "Mom, I'm starving! Like, dying! You can take the e-bike and be back in ten minutes. I'll eat while waiting for Dad!"

"Fine, fine! You glutton."

Hearing her go downstairs, I sighed in relief. I shoved Leo's clothes into his arms and dragged him out.

He stood there like a statue, eyes dark, clearly unhappy. "Sis, is that it?"

My brain was mush. I just wanted him gone. Without thinking, I blurted, "You ate me? And you want to eat my goose too?"

I pushed him down the stairs.

He resisted, looking grim. He called me by my full name. "Chloe King, are we just going to pretend this didn't happen?"

What else? I'm broke.

I stopped pushing. "I thought you were a blind date. I was a little impulsive. Sorry..."

His eyes turned red. He looked like he was about to cry.

I panicked. I grabbed two steamed buns from the kitchen and shoved them into his hands. "Don't cry. You worked hard all afternoon. Eat on the way. Good boy, go home..."

Before I could finish, Leo turned and stormed off.

Watching his figure disappear down the winding dirt road, my heart finally settled back into my chest.

Suddenly exhausted, my legs gave out, and I almost knelt on the floor.

But there were... stains on the sheets to deal with.

I wanted to cry. I pulled the sheets off and started scrubbing them in a basin.

Fun in bed, funeral afterwards.

I was replaying the afternoon's events while regretting my life choices.

"What are you doing?!"

I screamed and fell on my butt, hitting the floor hard.

I stammered, "Period... accident. Got on the sheets."

My mom glanced at me. "Normal thing. Look at you, acting like you committed a crime."

She parked the e-bike, holding the goose, and started rambling. "Leo's dad has helped our family a lot over the years."

"Teach Leo well. Tomorrow, don't wait for him to come here. You go to his house to tutor him."

Go to his house?

My brain exploded. "He got into a top university for undergrad, how could he fail the GRE..."

"You're as brainless as your father. If his dad hadn't thrown some projects our way during the pandemic, we would have starved."

"It's rare they need us for something. We have to repay the favor."

My mom's tone left no room for argument. "Go tomorrow after lunch."