A Tutor For My Bully

Chapter 14: A Picture Worth A Thousand Rumors

Akira's POV

The moment I stepped through the school gates, something felt... off. Students weren't just walking past me like they usually did. They were looking at me. Some whispered behind their hands.

Others didn't even bother lowering their voices.

"That's her."

"The one from the picture."

"I thought she was just a nerd." I frowned.

Picture?

I adjusted my glasses nervously and kept walking, pretending not to hear them. Maybe they were talking about someone else.

Right?

A group of girls passed by, their eyes fixed on me.

"I don't get it," one of them scoffed. "What's so special about her?" "I heard she's been going to Kael Blackwood's house."

"Maybe she's his secret girlfriend."

My footsteps came to an abrupt stop.

What...?

Before I could process what they were saying, someone grabbed my wrist.

"Akira!"

I turned around.

"Camila?"

She looked unusually serious. "Come with me."

Without waiting for an answer, she dragged me toward a quieter hallway behind the science building. "What happened?" I asked, confused.

Instead of answering, she took out her phone and unlocked it. "You haven't seen it yet, have you?"

"Seen what?"

She sighed before handing me the phone. "It's all over the school's gossip page." My heart skipped a beat. On the screen was a photograph.

It was me.

Me...

Walking out of Kael's house yesterday evening. The angle made it look as though I had just left after spending hours there. The caption underneath read:

Underwich's Ice Prince has been secretly meeting the class nerd after school. Tutoring... or something more? Thousands of reactions flooded the post. I slowly scrolled through the comments.

"No way Kael likes someone like her."

"She must be after his family's money."

"Didn't he bring her to Adrienne's party too?"

"Poor Linda..."

"The nerd hit the jackpot."

My fingers trembled.

"I..."

My throat tightened.

"We're not..."

The words refused to come out. Camila gently took the phone back. "I know."

She offered me a small smile. "I don't believe those comments." I looked at her gratefully.

"Thank you."

"But..." she hesitated.

"You really have been going to his house."

I froze.

"I..."

I couldn't tell her.

I had promised Kael.

No matter what happened, I couldn't reveal that I was tutoring him.

"It's complicated," I whispered.

Camila nodded.

"I figured."

She didn't ask another question. For that, I was thankful. Suddenly, excited murmurs echoed from the end of the hallway. "They're here!"

"The hockey team!"

Students rushed toward the corridor. Curiosity got the better of me. I peeked through the crowd.

Kael walked in first, his hockey bag hanging over one shoulder. Adrienne and the rest of the team followed behind him. The whispers grew louder.

Someone finally shouted, "Kael! Is the rumor true?" The hallway fell silent. Everyone waited for his answer. Including me. Kael stopped walking.

His blue eyes swept across the crowd before landing on me. For a brief moment...

Something softened in his expression.

Then it disappeared. He smirked.

"Rumor?"

"The one about you and Akira!" another student called. "You've been sneaking around together!"

Adrienne looked between Kael and me curiously.

"So?"

Kael laughed. It wasn't his genuine laugh.

It sounded forced. "Her?"

He looked at me as though he had only just noticed I was standing there. "Milky, you're following me now?" The crowd burst into laughter.

Heat rushed to my face. "I-I'm not..."

He folded his arms.

"I never thought you'd become this desperate."

More laughter. Every word felt like a tiny pin piercing my chest. Someone yelled,

"So she's not your girlfriend?" Kael snorted.

"Obviously not."

"Then why does she keep coming to your house?" My heart pounded.

Please...

Don't tell them. Kael shrugged carelessly.

"She's useful."

Useful...

Was that all I was? "If she wasn't useful," he continued, "I wouldn't even notice her." My fingers tightened around the straps of my backpack. The words stung more than they should have. Adrienne studied him carefully.

"You sure about that?"

Kael shot him a look. "What kind of question is that?" Adrienne chuckled.

"Nothing."

Kael turned back to me. "What are you still standing here for?" His voice returned to its usual coldness.

"Go to class." I lowered my head.

"Okay." Without another word, I walked away.

I didn't look back.

Not once.

…….

The library was unusually quiet. I sat in my favorite corner by the window, hugging my backpack against my chest. Slowly, I opened my notebook.The photograph slipped onto the table.

The one from the photo booth.

Yesterday...

It had made me smile.

Now...

Looking at it only made my chest ache. I traced the edge of the picture with my finger. Maybe Linda was right. Maybe I didn't belong anywhere near Kael. Maybe all this time...

I had misunderstood everything.

A chair scraped against the floor opposite me.

I looked up.

Kael.

He sat down without asking.

"What are you doing here?" I asked quietly.

"We have tutoring."

I let out a humorless laugh. "You don't need someone useful today?" His eyebrows knitted together.

"So that's what this is about."

"What else would it be?"

He sighed.

"I said those things because—"

"Because they're true?"

I interrupted.

His lips parted.

"No."

"Then why?"

Before he could answer, the librarian looked up from her desk.

"No talking in the library."

Kael rubbed the back of his neck in frustration.

"We'll talk after school."

I shook my head. "I don't think there's anything left to talk about." I packed my notebook and stood up. The photograph nearly slipped out again, but I caught it just in time.

Without looking at him, I walked away.

For the first time...

I was the one leaving him behind.

As soon as Akira disappeared around the corner, Kael clenched his jaw.

"...Damn it."

He had said exactly what he needed to.

So why did it feel like he had just made the biggest mistake of his life? Neither of them noticed the person standing behind one of the bookshelves. A phone was slowly lowered.

The screen displayed a freshly recorded video of everything that had just happened.

Linda smiled to herself.

"So..."

"I finally found your weakness, Kael Blackwood