A Tutor For My Bully

Chapter 22: The First Move

Kael's POV

I didn't move, not even after Milky disappeared into the school building. Justin still stood across from me, one hand buried inside his pocket, the corner of his lips curved into an annoying smile.

"So..." he finally spoke. "She's your little project now?" I stared at him without answering.

"I asked you a question.” "And I decided not to answer it." He chuckled. "I only wanted to talk to her."

"You've said enough." He tilted his head. "Why are you acting like her bodyguard?" "I'm not."

"No?" He took a step closer. "Then why did you interrupt us?" I folded my arms across my chest.

"Because I felt like it." He laughed under his breath. "You've always had that superiority complex." "And you've always talked too much," I snapped. The smile on his face faded just a little.

"You know, Blackwood... I never imagined you'd be interested in someone like Akira."

"I'm not interested in her."

"Really?"

"Really." Justin studied my face for a long moment before shaking his head. "You should learn how to lie better." My jaw tightened. "I saw you at Adrienne's birthday party." I frowned, looking at him with a wide eye.

"So?"

"You held her hand the entire night." I didn't respond. "You waited in line with her just to take pictures." Still nothing. "You searched the whole party when she disappeared." fingers curled into fists. "And then," he continued calmly, "you returned her envelope without letting anyone notice." For the first time during our conversation… I felt something close to surprise.

How much had this guy been watching? Justin smirked after noticing the change in my expression. "I observe people." "I don't care."

"You should," he snapped. His smile widened.

"Because I've decided something." I narrowed my eyes. "I'm going to get to know Akira." Something inside me snapped. "You stay away from Milky."

Justin raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"She's not someone you play games with." He folded his arms. "And who are you to decide that?" "I don't need a reason."

"You do." Silence stretched between us. Then Justin asked quietly, "Is she yours?" The question caught me off guard. "What?"

"Akira." He looked directly into my eyes. "Is she yours?" He repeated.

"No." The answer came immediately. Justin nodded slowly. "Then you don't get to tell me who I can talk to." He walked past me without waiting for another reply.

As he disappeared into the hallway, I found myself clenching my jaw harder than I ever had before. Why did it bother me? Milky could talk to whoever she wanted, It wasn't my business.

So why… Why did the thought of Justin standing beside her irritate me so much? I clicked my tongue. "Annoying."

**********

The whistle echoed across the hockey rink.

The coach stood at the center of the ice with his usual stern expression. "Let's move!" The team immediately scattered into formation. Adrienne skated beside me. "What took you so long?"

"Nothing."

"You sure?"

"I said nothing." He shrugged. "Fine.”Practice began, the puck slid toward me, I caught it smoothly and skated forward. One defender moved in, I shoulder-checked him harder than necessary. Another came from my left, I pushed past him without slowing down. My shot slammed against the post. The loud clang echoed through the rink.

"Again!" Coach shouted. The next drill wasn't any better, I missed another shot, then another pass.

My timing was off, everything was off.

The whistle shrieked. "Blackwood!" The entire team stopped skating. Coach slowly approached me. "What exactly are you doing today?"

"Practicing."

"Does this look like your normal practice?"

"No."

"No," Coach repeated.He folded his arms, "I've coached you for years."

"I know." "I've never seen you this distracted."

Adrienne laughed. "I told you something was wrong with him." Coach ignored him.

Instead, he looked straight at me. "There's only one thing that distracts someone like you this badly."

I already knew where this was going.”No."

Coach grinned. "A girl."

The team burst into laughter, and this time was worse than the previous one, someone even whistled. Adrienne laughed so hard he almost dropped his hockey stick. "No way!"

"Our captain?"

"In love?" The teasing echoed around the rink.

I remained expressionless. Coach chuckled.

"I'm only joking." But I didn't laugh. Because for one terrifying second… Justin's question echoed inside my head.

Is she yours? I shoved the thought away immediately. Ridiculous.

Milky was just… Milky, nothing more.

>>>>>>>>

Akira's POV

The rest of the school day passed slowly.I couldn't stop thinking about Justin, not because I liked him, I barely knew him. But something about the way he smiled unsettled me.

It felt… Calculated.

"You've been quiet all afternoon," Camila said as we walked toward the school gate. "Hmm?"

"You've said 'hmm' at least twenty times today." I smiled awkwardly. "Sorry." She nudged my shoulder playfully. "So..." She lowered her voice.

"Do you know Justin?" "No," I answered quickly.

"He looked like he knew you." "I've never spoken to him before today." Camila frowned.

"That's weird." "I know."

The anonymous note suddenly flashed through my mind. Stay away from Kael… Could it have something to do with Justin? No, that didn't make sense. ...Did it?

---

That evening, I waited on the porch with our textbooks arranged neatly on the table.

A few minutes later… Knock. Knock. I opened the door, and Kael stood there. Earlier than usual. "You're early." "I know." He walked inside without another word, something felt different. He wasn't teasing me, he wasn't calling me Milky every five seconds.

He simply sat down and opened his notebook, We studied for almost an hour.

He answered every question correctly. Yet… His mind clearly wasn't with me, He kept staring into space. "Kael?" "Hm?" "Did something happen today?," I gathered the courage to ask him that. He looked at me for a brief moment. "No."

"You don't seem okay."

"I'm fine." I wasn't convinced. But I knew better than to push him. We finished the lesson quietly, As he packed his bag, he paused at the doorway. "...If anyone bothers you at school..." He stopped speaking. I blinked. "What?"

"...Nothing." He left. I stood there staring at the closed door, that was strange. Very strange.

---

After dinner, Mom asked me to throw away the trash. I stepped outside with the bag in one hand.

Halfway to the gate… I stopped. A small gift box sat neatly on the ground. Pink ribbon, no name, No address. My heartbeat quickened. I slowly bent down and opened it.

Inside… A chocolate bar, The exact same one Justin had tried to give me earlier. Beneath it lay a folded note. My fingers trembled as I unfolded the paper. "Since you wouldn't accept it at school... I thought I'd try again." My breathing became uneven. Slowly… Very slowly… I lifted my head.

Across the street… A tall figure stood beneath the dim streetlight. Watching me, before I could make out the person's face… The figure turned around… and disappeared into the darkness.