Pantheon sidled up to Holly Winslow, whining, "Sister-in-law, Mortir’s bullying . You’ve gotta do sothing about him."
He whispered the term "sister-in-law."
Holly Winslow glanced at Mortir Quincy and chuckled. "I can’t control him."
Pantheon: "..."
’This is killing .’
Mortir Quincy shot him a look of utter disgust, then led Holly Winslow away to get lunch.
Pantheon looked at Zeke Zane, reeking of a single man’s bitterness. "I don’t want to live anymore."
Zeke Zane rolled his eyes at him. "Serves you right." Then he walked off.
Standing beside Mortir Quincy, Holly Winslow began to familiarize herself with the Jarton High campus. "What’s that building over there?"
"The freshn building." Mortir Quincy looked down at his short wife beside him, the smile at the corners of his mouth growing wider and wider.
The Jarton High cafeteria was huge, spanning three floors. It had enough seating for the entire student body, so there was no need to scramble for a spot like at Jarton Second High.
Mortir Quincy pointed to a four-person table off to the side. "Go wait for over there," he told Holly Winslow.
Holly Winslow nodded. After sitting down, she pulled out her phone to check her ssages.
Little Fairies Chat
Iris Kensington: Holly, how are you doing? Are you settling in okay?
Anna Willow: Holly, do you want and Ellie to co visit you?
Iris Kensington: Holly?
The ssages were from an hour ago. Holly Winslow replied: I’m doing okay. You don’t have to co see . Let’s et up on Sunday.
Anna Willow: Holly, any cute guys? she asked, adding a smirking emoji.
Iris Kensington: Send pics.
Holly Winslow thought for a mont, then sent a few photos of Mortir Quincy from the honors showcase.
Isn’t he handso?
Iris Kensington: !!! That’s your handso cousin!!!
Anna Willow: With so many first-place awards, I’m not worthy of your handso cousin.
It made Holly Winslow laugh. Just as she was about to reply, Mortir Quincy and the others ca over with their food.
Mortir Quincy sat down beside her. "What are you looking at?"
"A secret." Holly Winslow blinked, putting her phone away before picking up her spoon to eat.
Mortir Quincy raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you want to keep secrets from ?"
He then leaned close to her ear and whispered mischievously, "Believe it or not, your husband can strip all your ’secrets’ bare."
Holly Winslow: "..."
She shot him an exasperated glare and went back to eating with her spoon.
Before long, a group of guys ca and sat with them, all students from the Rocket Class.
Holly Winslow was full after eating most of her al. She habitually pushed her food container toward Mortir Quincy and said softly, "Hon... for you."
Mortir Quincy glanced at the container. "Good girl. Three more bites."
"One bite," Holly Winslow bargained.
"Three bites." Mortir Quincy wouldn’t budge.
Holly Winslow held up two fingers and used his nickna. "Moira, two bites. If you make eat one more, I won’t eat any at all."
"Fine," Mortir Quincy agreed readily, pushing the container back to her.
They had been married for several years, and his wife pulled this sa routine every ti they ate. That’s why he always started the "bidding" a little higher.
The others, who had no idea what was going on: "..."
’Why does this feel like we’re being force-fed their PDA?’
Holly Winslow took two more bites, then pushed the container back to Mortir Quincy. Under the watchful eyes of everyone at the table, he started eating the leftovers from the pink container.
Pantheon couldn’t take this blatant display of affection anymore. He let out a sudden "COUGH!", spraying a mouthful of rice all over the face of Zeke Zane, who was sitting opposite him.
Zeke Zane’s face darkened.
"Dude, I’m sorry! I couldn’t help it! You have to understand," Pantheon said, pulling out a napkin to wipe Zeke Zane’s face. "I’ll treat you to an all-night gaming session."
...
When they returned to the classroom, Gabe Chaucer was already standing at the podium with a stack of grade reports. He smiled kindly when he saw Holly Winslow. "Holly Winslow, how are classes going? Are you able to keep up?" His eyes flickered to the pink food container in Mortir Quincy’s hand.
Holly Winslow nodded. "Yes, Teacher Chaucer. I can keep up."
"That’s good. If there’s anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask your teachers, or your cousin." In truth, Gabe Chaucer had already asked her subject teachers about Holly’s performance that morning, and they all had high praise for her.
A few minutes later, once most of the students were back, Gabe Chaucer had everyone step outside the classroom. It was ti to choose new seats based on their grades.
He called out, "Mortir Quincy."
Mortir Quincy, who always sat in the fifth row by the window, did sothing unprecedented: he chose a seat in the third row, right next to the aisle.
Zeke Zane, who ca in second, started walking toward Mortir Quincy out of habit, only to be t with a sharp glance. He froze. "..."
He sat down in the row behind Mortir Quincy.
Pantheon, who was third, got the hint and sat down next to Zeke Zane.
Holly Winslow’s grades placed her in the top twenty of the Rocket Class. The mont she entered the room, she saw Mortir Quincy waving her over.
Holly Winslow glanced guiltily at Gabe Chaucer, but the teacher just gave her a kind smile.
’The "young couple" sitting together.’ He didn’t see anything wrong with it in the slightest.
After the seats were changed, Mortir Quincy first helped Holly Winslow move her books before moving his own. Then, noticing her empty pink water bottle, he went to fill it up for her.
Zeke Zane: "..."
Pantheon: "..."
During the afternoon rest period, almost no one in the class was sleeping. Instead, they all had their howork out.
Holly Winslow was working on a practice math test, while Mortir Quincy tackled Math Olympiad problems. Neither of them spoke.
With ten minutes left in the period, Mortir Quincy finished his worksheet. He glanced over and saw the girl next to him chewing on the end of her pen, a stumped expression on her face.
He leaned closer and whispered, "Say ’husband.’"
Seeing he was done, Holly Winslow handed him her pen and mouthed the word, "Husband."
Mortir Quincy raised an eyebrow, grudgingly satisfied. He shifted his stool closer and began to whisper, "The given condition for this problem is..."
He explained patiently for seven or eight minutes. Noticing that Holly Winslow looked a little lost, he paused. "Which part didn’t you understand?"
"That last step you just ntioned," Holly Winslow said.
"Okay." Mortir Quincy broke that single step down into three or four smaller ones. When he finished, he asked, "Do you get it now? It’s okay if you don’t. I can explain it again."
"I get it now," Holly Winslow said obediently.
Mortir Quincy smiled, pressing his lips together, and continued his explanation.
The bell rang, and soone shouted about playing basketball in P.E. class.
It took another two or three minutes for him to finish explaining the problem.
Mortir Quincy pursed his lips, then reached for Holly Winslow’s pink water bottle and took a couple of sips.
Holly Winslow glanced at her bottle, then at his. "Why don’t you drink from your own?"
Mortir Quincy raised an eyebrow, speaking just loud enough for the two of them to hear. "Because my wife’s water is sweeter, of course."
Holly Winslow: "..."
...
The P.E. teacher was always particularly easy on the girls. He had them run one lap before letting them rest at the edge of the track.
The boys, however, had to keep running.
Since Holly Winslow didn’t know the other girls in her class well, she sat alone on the steps under a tree, watching Mortir Quincy run.
Not far away, a group of four or five boys were talking. "That girl’s pretty."
"Which class is she in? I’ve never seen her before."
"Let’s play rock-paper-scissors. Loser has to go ask for her na."
A minute later, a boy in a black hoodie walked up to Holly Winslow with a wide grin. "Hey, my na is Hank King. What’s yours?"
’She’s even prettier up close,’ he thought. ’And her skin is so fair.’
Holly Winslow glanced at him and replied, "Hello," and said nothing more.
The longer he looked, the prettier she seed. Hank King scratched his head, suddenly feeling a little shy. "So, what class are you in? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around."
Before Holly Winslow could answer, a shadow fell over them. It was Mortir Quincy.
He looked at Hank King, his expression displeased. "Failure to wear your school ID, that’s a five-point deduction. Hair not up to standard, another five points. Harassing a female student, that’s five more points. Hank King, you’re getting a fifteen-point deduction."
Hank King: "..."
Every student started each sester with fifty conduct points. If you lost them all, your parents would be called in, and you’d have to write a formal self-criticism.
’And he had just lost ten points two days ago.’
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