Page 15 of Still Here Without You

Joel looks so proud of himself, I fear he’s going to break out in a song and dance number. The thought makes me laugh.

“Can you sing?” I suddenly ask, catching him off guard.

He raises one eyebrow and pulls his lips to the side in thought. “Now, or in general?”

I grin at his response. “I meant in general, but you wanted to sing in celebration just now, didn’t you?”

He shrugs, and I burst out laughing. “Well?”

“Oh, I sing. I’m fucking phenomenal. But only the special ones get to hear it.”

“And that doesn’t include me?” I pout.

“It might, one day,” he says with a slight lift of his shoulders.

I’m not sure how to take his answer, so instead I steer the conversation back to my test. “So, are you going to share your newfound information on my failings?”

Joel laughs as he presses his palms together, tapping his fingers. “Patience, grasshopper.”

I roll my eyes but can’t stop my laughter. “So what do we do for the rest of the hour if you're not going to fill me in, and you won’t sing for me?”

He grins, throws my book at my feet, then pulls his own from his backpack. “Now we can use the book.”Ugh! I wish he’d just tell me what I was doing wrong.

After I’ve reluctantly opened to the first page, Joel asks me to read the last page of the first chapter, and when I’ve finished that he chooses another two chapters, asking me to do the same. I’m just finishing up the final one when it hits me. “Are you kidding me?” At the end of each chapter is a small disclaimer that saysfor more information, please visit the following website. Pulling out my phone, I check it out and see details of the subject that are not even mentioned in the book. “Are they even allowed to do that?”

Joel laughs. “As long as they mention it in class they can.”

“She’s never…shit! I think she has. Why wouldn’t I have looked that up?” I have a general knowledge of the subject, but now that I’m reading this, I can recall several times that she’s asked specific questions that relate exactly to this text. “What the fuck? Without reading this stuff, there’s no way I’d ever pass. Her testing doesn’t help us learn any of this; it’s basically about memory recall.”

“No rules against that.”

“Well, it’s a fucking joke.”

“You’re a potty mouth when you’re mad.”

“Fuck you!” I’m completely baffled. How do any of her methods help us in the long run? “I wish I had Travers.” I pout with my arms folded in front of me.

“For more reasons than one, I’ll bet,” Joel says with a smirk.

My eyes narrow as I picture causing him physical pain. “You’re itching for a slap, aren’t you?”

“Swearingandviolence. Can’t decide if I should be scared or turned on.”

“You’re. Hilarious,” I say with a blank stare.

“I hear that a bit.”

Playfully slapping his arm, I finally laugh and try to see the funny side of the situation. I guess I should be grateful I now have an answer. My eyes lock on Joel’s, and I sigh. “Thank you, Joel. For some stupid reason, I never would have figured this out for myself.”

“You’re very welcome,” he says with a warm smile, one that has the corner of his eyes crinkling. It’s a nice moment until his gaze turns cocky and he starts rubbing his hands together. “And my work here is done.”

I want to laugh, but a hint of something dangerously similar to disappointment flows through me when I hear the worddone. I try to hide it with a smile, but the curious expression on Joel’s face suggests that I failed.

I’m just about to thank him for his time when my phone rings. “Shit, it’s the internships office. I have to take this.”

Joel nods as I answer and picks up the book he had on his chest when I first arrived. I wish I’d read the title, but I can’t think about that now.

“Delilah, it’s Courtney,” she says before I’ve said hello.

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