Page 29 of Tutoring the Bad Boy
“Yeah.” My chest hurts with the thought. Just friends with Ginny Gray makes my stomach turn, but it’s better for everyone if my dad isn’t on my case about dating the principal’s daughter. “She’s really smart. She’s helping me a lot.” And beautiful, kind, intoxicating, and the list could go on.
Dad puts his hand on my shoulder. “Can we make a new deal?”
I furrow my eyebrows. “Like what kind?”
“You make it into MIT, and I’ll never say another word about law school.” He smiles. “But if you don’t, you agree to meet with my old law professor about attending law school. Fair?”
Actually, for my dad, that’s more than fair. Until now, he hasn’t been willing to even consider a college other than Baylor, his alma mater. Slowly, I nod. “All right. Deal.” I stick out my hand, and my dad shakes it.
His hands hang at his sides. “How’s the grade in Mrs. Yates’s class looking?”
“Not bad. I’m passing. She thinks I can bring it up to a B this next semester.” I smile.
My dad slaps my shoulder. “That’s great. Kaleb, I know we’ve…struggled lately, but I’m proud of you for taking school seriously this year. You’re a smart kid with a ton of potential. I just…”
Nodding, I say, “Yeah…” All this touchy-feely with my dad makes it weird.
Obviously, he’s feeling the same as he backs out of my room. “All right. Catch some sleep. I’ll see you later.”
“Yeah, see you later,” I say as I close the door before dropping back onto my bed.
I just had a reasonable conversation with my dad. Something I haven’t had in forever. I link my fingers together and put them behind my head, realizing I’ve missed talking to my dad. We did that before, and I can’t remember why it changed.
All I know is that when my mom took off, I was hurt. Then when she said she didn’t want me to come with her, something snapped inside of me. I close my eyes, and the last conversation I had with her plays in my head. My heart broke that day, and she’s my mom.
I’ve never really considered what my dad might be feeling. He worked all the time, so why would he care? But they were fighting all the time when he was home. Maybe it was just one vicious cycle. To avoid fighting, he worked, which made the fights that much worse.
Before I know it, I’ve drifted off, and I’m dreaming about Ginny. Weirdly enough, we’re dressed in those Shakespearean costumes and running around in a field. When I wake from this dream, I contort my face in disgust. Now that I’m having Shakespearean dreams, I know things are getting serious.
When I go down to breakfast, I don’t take my phone with me. I have to get a hold of myself. I refuse to be invisibly tied to my phone and drooling like Pavlov’s dog as soon as my phone chimes. It’s Sunday, and I’m not going to spend it thinking about Monday. That’s a whole twenty-four hours away. I’m a guy. Obsessing isn’t our thing.
Based on the few take-out boxes and the half-empty orange juice jug, it’s pretty clear that dad has neglected grocery shopping. I grab the OJ and down it. No food means I need my phone after all. Maybe Chris will want to meet up somewhere.
Sure enough, he’s jonesing for donuts too, and we agree to meet at Coastal Donuts. I quickly dress, grab my skateboard, and head out.
The sun is warm already, and just as I’m thinking that beach life is definitely for me, I spot Principal Gray’s Ford Focus drive past and I nearly crash into a bush. I hop off my skateboard and hold it in my hand. The Ford Focus stops, and Principal Gray pulls back to meet me. She rolls down the window.
“Good morning, Kaleb.” Her tone has a chill to it, which makes no sense. Wasn’t fake dating her plan?
“Good morning, Principal Gray.”
“Call me Norma.”
Uh, first-name basis? Weirdness. “Norma…” I say awkwardly. I step closer to the car and lean down.
“I don’t remember kissing being part of the dating plan.”
Did she think we’d just hold hands or something? Kissing is part of dating. Who would believe we’re dating if we don’t kiss? “I’m sorry. It was unexpected.” Total truth. I didn’t expect to kiss her at all.
“I’m still willing to hold up my end of the bargain, but if you do anything to tarnish Ginny’s reputation, I’ll make you regret it.”
I regret the whole thing. If it weren’t for the deal, I’d know if Ginny actually likes me. As unexpected as that kiss was, it was amazing. I wouldn’t mind a few thousand more of them.
“It was a kiss. In public. If you expect me to break her heart, then she has to think it’s real.” I lean back and run my hand through my hair. “Besides, I don’t think about Ginny like that.” I mean, I’m a guy, and my thoughts do wander that way, but I’m a lot quicker at yanking them back when it comes to Ginny.
“Good. Get your grades up, get Ginny’s hopes up, then let her down. It will be an important lesson for her.” The car rolls forward a bit and stops again. “I love her. That’s why I’m doing this. This way I’ll be here for her to help her through it.” She taps the gas, and I’m left standing on the side of the road staring after her.
If I weren’t living this, I’d say it was the most unbelievable story ever told. Except, it wasn’t two days ago that I saw a car on my Facebook feed being chased by a cop, only to see it flip over the middle barrier, barely missing a truck, and then drive away. I’m only eighteen, and every day I think the weird can’t get weirder.
