Page 14 of Tutoring the Bad Boy
Chapter Eight
Kaleb
When I seeGinny duck into the locker room and her mom head my way, I wonder if I should run.
She gets a few feet from me and stops. “Ginny will be out in a minute. She wanted to grab a shower before going to the movie.”
My eyebrows hit my hairline, and my jaw hurts from hitting the floor. She’s letting Ginny go to a movie with me? I have no idea whatWarm Bodiesis, but it’s a movie on the beach…with me.
I scratch the back of my neck. “Uh…okay. I’ve never even heard of that movie, but if it’ll help me understand Shakespeare, I’m all for it.”
Her eyes narrow. “Idowant to make a few things clear.”
“Okay.” What hasn’t been clear up to this point?
She looks over her shoulder toward the locker room and back to me. “I don’t like you. I don’t like that Ginny has taken an interest in you, and I especially don’t like her hanging around you. But I know her. Until she realizes that you’re not worth her time, she’ll give you everything she’s got. I just hope she’s not too disappointed when you inevitably mess up. Because you will. We both know it.”
I shake my head and curse under my breath. “Other than Mrs. Yates and maybe my dad, no one in this town cares about me. I know you don’t. My one dream is to be an architectural engineer. The only way that happens is by getting my grade up in Mrs. Yates’s class. She said she’ll give me a college recommendation letter. She said that letter depends solely on my dedication to her class. That’s theonlyreason I’m willing to be tutored.”
Just as she opens her mouth, something comes over me that I can’t describe. It’s more than desperation. More than just needing someone to hear me. It’s…this soul-deep unquenchable hope that words can’t encapsulate.
Sagging, I catch the principal’s gaze, hold it, and say, “Principal Gray, I want to be an architectural engineer. I want it so bad it hurts. I’m a screwup. I know it, but…life can’t be over at eighteen, can it?”
Principal Gray’s lips press together in a thin line, and she holds my gaze until I nearly squirm. “Mr. Quinn, I don’t know why, but I actually believe you. So, here’s the deal I’m willing to make with you.”
She believes me? I’m shocked but grateful. Except there’s a deal she’s wanting to make, and I don’t like the sound of that. “Okay.”
“Ginny likes you. She can deny it, excuse it away, or whatever she wants, but she does, and she doesn’t need to be interested.” She quickly looks over her shoulder. “So here’s my proposal. You make her think you like her until you get your grade up and then dump her as soon as you do.”
Did her mom just say what I think she said? “What? No way.”
“And I’ll give you a personal recommendation. I’ll make it glow.”
Blinking, I’m trying to process what she just said, and I’m struggling.
“So, I date Ginny and dump her…and you’ll…”
“Give you a letter of recommendation.”
I’m a little speechless. “You’d really be okay seeing her hurt?”
“No, but girls with broken hearts find their focus much easier than those with visions of love.”
I’ve heard of parents doing crazy things, but this is…certifiable. And cruel. As great as the letter sounds, I’m not sure I can stomach hurting someone. Not on purpose. As I start to shake my head, Ginny’s mom leans in.
“I can get you a meeting with MIT.”
Massachusetts Institute of Technology? That’s my dream school that I’d totally put out of my mind because there was no way I could get into it. Not with my grades and history with getting into trouble. It’s the one school that might get my dad to realize how serious I am about what I want to do with my life. It’stheschool.
My phone dings, and I pull it out of my pocket. It’s my dad, and it feels like the world is whispering in my ear to listen. To take the deal. If I can get a meeting with someone at MIT…maybe I can show them how desperate and determined I am to be the best student they’ve ever had.
And she’s totally gotta be bluffing. “No way,” I say, but I’m not able to hide the hope in my voice. I want to go to that school. If nothing else than to prove to myself that I don’t have to be the screwup everyone is expecting me to be.
“I have a friend who works at MIT. No guarantees of getting into that school, but if you can convince my friend you’ve got what it takes, you’ll have a great shot.” She sticks her hand out. “Deal?”
Before I can think twice, I’m shaking her hand. “Deal.”
“Deal?” Ginny asks as she stops next to her mom.
