Travis pats my shoulder before standing up and heading to the kitchen.
“Be sure to subscribe to her channel,” I holler. “And get everyone else you know to subscribe. I want to help get her to a hundred thousand.”
“I will,” Travis hollers.
I pack up and head to campus so I’m not late to College Algebra. Once class starts, Professor Wilcox hands out the tests we took two days ago.
“Overall, solid work. You all did pretty well,” he says.
My nerves kick up when he hands me my test. When I see the bright red 90% on top of the paper, I smile so hard my cheeks hurt.
“Oh, fuck yeah,” I say.
Professor Wilcox frowns.
I clear my throat. “Sorry.”
“Good work, Mr. St. George. It’s nice to see such an improvement out of you.”
“My girlfriend started tutoring me. She’s really smart.”
Professor Wilcox’s brow lifts, almost like he’s impressed. “You’re quite lucky to have such a supportive partner.”
I smile again. “I am.”
“You should take her out for dinner to thank her,” Professor Wilcox says as he walks off, handing out the rest of the tests. “Having you as a pupil is no easy task. I would know,” he mutters.
I chuckle and take a quick photo of my text, then send it to Poppy.
I got a 90%!!!
I put my phone away and focus on the rest of the class. When class ends and Professor Wilcox dismisses us, I check my phone and see that Poppy texted me back.
Poppy: Amazing job! I’m so proud of you :)
A warm feeling swirls through my chest, hearing her say that.
Me: I couldn’t have done it without you, hot tutor.
Poppy: You really need to stop calling me that.
Me: I definitely won’t. Also, I wanna take you out for dinner as a thank you for helping me on this test. What’s your favorite place to eat?
Poppy: That pad Thai place two miles from campus, but I’m pretty slammed this week. I picked up some extra shifts at the Writing Center, so I don’t have a night free.
Me: That’s okay. We can plan something for later in the week.
Me: In the meantime, be ready for a surprise from me
Poppy: What kind of surprise?
Me: You’ll see ;)
I sprint across the ice with the puck, headed for the opposing team’s net.
It’s the first game of the season, and we’re playing North Utah State. We’re tied one to one at the end of the second period. One of their defensemen is on my ass. He smacks his stick against my leg, and I grit my teeth when the refs don’t bother to call a penalty. Asshole.
I speed up to try and lose him. Yeah, my legs are burning, and my body is gonna feel like hell after this game, but I don’t care. It’ll be worth it if I can score this goal.
