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He tipped on his toes and pointed at me. “I’ll make sure he gets the worst tutor we have. Hell,I’lltutor him. They’ll bench him after a week, and it will be ‘bye bye’ hockey scholarship.”
“Fine.” I didn’t even have to think about it because I was a petty bitch like that. If I could screw Connor over the way he screwed me, then I was going to take it. Without another word, I walked the rest of the way to Hazel, gave her a small greeting, and placed the books on the table. Then I headed back to Ralph, who had now dropped back onto the soles of his feet.
“So, does that mean you’ll do it? You’ll tutor Tanner?”
I widened my eyes and tutted my tongue against my teeth. “What part of yes were you confused about?”
“But what about me needing to learn a lesson on extortion?”
I waved my hand flippantly. “I’ll forgo it just this once.”
Ralph couldn’t hide his happiness now. His smile was stretched wide, and his toes were tipping. “Glad to see we’ve come to an agreement.” He held out his hand, and I inspected it for a couple of seconds, noticing his nails looked like they’d been gnawed on by a relentless puppy. Usually, he had a pristine appearance, so he must have been fretting about this.
I slipped my hand in his, shaking on it, and as we stood there in the middle of the library, it almost felt like I was making a deal with the devil. Granted, I was acting irrationally and taking on a new client just to spite my ex, but I needed to do this. Connor used me, and as much as I wanted to be the kind of girl that could forgive and forget, I couldn’t. I risked my reputation to help him get a passing grade. All the while, he was shacking up with Rachel behind my back.
“Connor better be benched by the end of the month, otherwise the deal’s off.”
Ralph nodded incessantly; his eyebrows were so high it looked like he didn’t have a forehead. “Okay. On the bench by the end of the month. Got it. Not going to lie. That’s pretty vindictive.”
I shrugged. “Not really. You and everyone on this campus knows what went down, so he deserves everything he gets.” I dipped my chin, looking at him pointedly. “But let that serve as a warning to you. I’m not messing around anymore. If you mess with me, I’ll break you.”
He let out a low, hesitant chuckle. “See, that’s what I love about you, Aster.” He waved his hand nonchalantly. “You just throw out casual death threats like they’re nothing.”
I narrowed my eyes, pulling my hand out of his. “Glad you see it for what it is.”
“Okay. Well, your new student will take Alex’s time tomorrow. His name is Tanner Joyce.” He paused for a moment to see if that name resonated with me. It didn’t. I never cared for football, or hockey, for that matter. Give me a Brian Cox or Leonard Hofstadter kind of guy any day. Connor was just an anomaly and got me at a bad time.
“Great. Can’t wait to meet him.” It was a lie, because I was certain he was just like every other athlete in this place, but if it meant that Connor would get what he deserved, then I was willing to play along. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Aster,” my mom croaked down the phone. Her usual smooth tone was replaced with a roughness I wasn’t used to. “You don’t normally call on Thursdays. I look like a wreck.”
Wreck for my mom was subjective. I remembered growing up how she’d always look like a Disney Princess. So close to perfection that I’d question if she was real. Right now, the woman looking back at me was a different story.
She’s going to be fine. They caught it early enough.
I just wished those words would stop that little gnawing feeling inside me because I couldn’t help but worry that they got it wrong.
Sitting under a tree on campus, I adjusted myself before relaxing against the thick bark. With nothing but a small thumbnail of my face on an otherwise blank screen, I said, “Come on. You know I don’t care about that. I just want to see you.” I heard her huff in compliance before the screen blinked, and her picture came up.
“Aster? Can you see me?” I could only see her cheek and nose at this point, but it made me laugh because I knew for a fact she’d hate that view.
“I sure can.”
Thankfully, she pulled the phone back, resting it on the kitchen countertop as she took her time to sit on one of the barstools in front. “How did you find time to call me? Aren’t you normally in class?”
I shook my head, feeling the California breeze across my face. “Nope. I usually have a tutoring session now, but I’m transitioning to a new student, and I had a little free time. So, I thought I’d call you.”
“Oh,” She clasped her fingers together, leaning into the screen, and I groaned, knowing why. “Who is it? Anyone you might want to be friends with?”
My mom wasn’t shy when it came to her wishes for me to have more of a social life. Little did she know that taking her advice didn’t pan out so well for me. I looked to the side, watching some students walking across the path on campus. I was far enough away from the hubbub that no one would notice me here unless they were looking. Just the way I liked it.
“Umm. I don’t remember his name.” Which was the truth. I hadn’t taken any time to look over the notes Ralph sent yet, but I remembered he was an athlete, so becoming friends was most definitely not on the cards. Our relationship would be completely transactional because I’d learned my lesson. After Connor, I wasn’t going to make that mistake again.
“That’s a good start,” she replied with a frown.
“I don’t need to know his name to get his grades up. The guy wants a passing grade, and I’m going to make sure he gets more than that.”
Rolling her eyes, she huffed out a laugh. “Aster,” she rolled out my name. Something she only did when she was mildly annoyed by my antics. “Boasting isn’t an attractive feature.”
