Risking It All
1837 Words
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The lecture hall slowly emptied as students gathered their books and filtered into the hallway.
Professor Williams remained at the front of the room, organizing a stack of essays.
"Miss Morgan."
Jael, halfway through putting her notebook into her bag, looked up.
"Yes, sir?"
"If you don't mind staying behind for a moment."
A few curious eyes turned in her direction before disappearing through the door. Within seconds, the room fell quiet.
Jael walked to the professor's desk.
"Is something wrong?"
Professor Williams adjusted his glasses and smiled reassuringly.
"Not at all."
He picked up a file from his desk and opened it.
"I have a proposition."
Jael waited.
"You've consistently been the strongest student in this course."
A faint blush warmed her cheeks.
"Thank you, sir."
"You also volunteer in the library, assist with research, and your faculty recommendations have been exceptional."
Jael smiled politely.
"I try my best."
"I know you do."
He closed the file.
"Which is precisely why I need your help."
Her expression became curious.
"Help with what?"
Professor Williams glanced toward the open classroom door before answering.
"One of my students is struggling academically."
"He has the ability."
"He simply doesn't have the discipline to match it."
Jael nodded thoughtfully.
"So... you'd like me to help organize study sessions?"
"In a manner of speaking."
He leaned back slightly.
"I'd like you to become his academic tutor for the remainder of the semester."
She considered the request.
"I'd be happy to help."
Professor Williams smiled.
"I thought you might."
He looked toward the doorway.
"Mr. Carter."
Noah stepped into the classroom.
Jael's smile disappeared.
"You can't be serious."
Noah looked just as surprised.
"I didn't know you meant her."
Professor Williams looked between them, entirely unfazed.
"You two know each other."
"We've met," Jael answered quickly.
Noah rubbed the back of his neck.
"That's... one way of putting it."
Professor Williams ignored the awkwardness.
"Mr. Carter's grades have fallen below the standard required to remain in good academic standing."
He slid a transcript across the desk.
Jael glanced down.
The marks weren't terrible.
But they were nowhere near what Noah was capable of.
Professor Williams continued.
"Hockey has demanded more of his time than expected."
"He attends class."
"He submits his work."
"But he's falling behind."
Noah remained silent.
Not defensive.
Not embarrassed.
Just quiet.
Professor Williams folded his hands.
"Miss Morgan, mentoring another student would reflect exceptionally well on your academic record."
"You've mentioned applying for postgraduate scholarships abroad."
"This sort of faculty-supported academic leadership carries considerable weight."
Jael's attention returned to the transcript.
Her future.
Her scholarship.
Everything she'd worked toward.
Professor Williams seemed to read the conflict in her eyes.
"I'm not asking you to do this because Mr. Carter is captain of the hockey team."
"I'm asking because I believe you're capable of helping someone reach their potential."
Silence settled over the room.
Finally, Jael spoke.
"If I agree..."
She looked directly at Noah.
"This remains professional."
Noah met her gaze.
"It will."
"No missed sessions."
"I understand."
"No excuses."
"I won't make any."
She studied him for another moment before turning back to Professor Williams.
"I'll do it."
Professor Williams smiled with quiet satisfaction.
"Excellent."
He handed each of them a folder.
"Your first task is simple."
"Figure out when and where you're both actually available."
As they stepped into the hallway together, neither spoke for several moments.
Students hurried past them, unaware of the awkward silence hanging between them.
It was Noah who finally broke it.
"So..."
He offered a small, careful smile.
"I guess we're partners."
Jael adjusted the strap of her bag.
"Tutoring partners."
He nodded.
"Tutoring partners."
Neither of them noticed Chloe watching from the opposite end of the corridor.
She folded her arms, smiled to herself, and quietly murmured,
"This is either going to end brilliantly..."
"...or become the biggest disaster this university has ever seen."
The campus library had always been Jael's sanctuary.
Between the towering shelves, the scent of old paper and polished wood, and the quiet hum of students buried in their books, the world somehow felt simpler.
She should have been focused on the research article open in front of her.
Instead...
Professor Williams' words replayed in her mind.
"Mentoring another student would reflect exceptionally well on your academic record."
"This sort of faculty-supported academic leadership carries considerable weight."
Then another voice interrupted the memory.
"Mr. Carter."
She sighed heavily and dropped her pen onto the table.
"What am I thinking?"
"You've been asking yourself that for the last twenty minutes."
Jael looked up.
Chloe stood at the end of the table balancing two cups of coffee and an amused smile.
"I brought you your usual."
She slid one of the cups across the table before taking the seat opposite her.
Jael wrapped both hands around the warm cup without drinking.
"I think I should tell Professor Williams I can't do it."
Chloe raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"You know why."
"No."
"I know why you think you can't."
Jael leaned back in her chair.
"It's Noah."
"So?"
"So... he's Noah."
"The hockey captain."
"The campus celebrity."
"The guy every girl seems to have an opinion about."
"I don't need unnecessary complications."
Chloe watched her quietly.
"Is this about him..."
"...or about you?"
Jael frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"It means you're letting your opinion of one person interfere with something you've spent years working toward."
Silence.
Chloe continued more gently.
"Jael..."
"When was the last time you talked about anything with as much excitement as your scholarship applications?"
Jael looked away.
"I've wanted that opportunity since my second year."
"I know."
"You've spent nights studying while everyone else slept."
"You've skipped parties."
"You've taken extra shifts at the library."
"You've built relationships with professors."
"You've practically lived inside this building."
A small smile tugged at Jael's lips.
"You're making me sound obsessed."
"You are obsessed."
"And it's beautiful."
Chloe reached across the table and squeezed her hand.
"So don't let Noah Carter become the reason you walk away from something that could change your entire future."
Jael stared into her coffee.
"It's just tutoring."
"Exactly."
"Not dating."
"Not marriage."
"Not forever."
"Just tutoring."
Another long silence settled between them.
Finally...
Jael nodded.
"You're right."
Chloe grinned triumphantly.
"I know."
"I hate when you're right."
"I know that too."
For the first time all afternoon...
Jael laughed.
---
Finding time, however, proved far more difficult than making the decision.
For three days they exchanged schedules.
None of them worked.
Monday evenings...
Jael's library shift.
Tuesday...
Noah had team strategy meetings.
Wednesday...
The library closed before hockey practice ended.
Thursday...
Jael tutored first-year students.
Friday...
The arena remained open until almost midnight.
Saturday belonged to hockey.
Sunday belonged to assignments neither could afford to ignore.
Jael rubbed her temples.
"This is impossible."
Noah stared at the timetable spread across the library table.
"There has to be something we're missing."
She shook her head.
"There isn't."
"The study rooms?"
"Fully booked."
"The student lounge?"
"Too noisy."
"The café?"
"I'd spend the entire session telling people to stop interrupting you."
He smiled.
"Fair point."
Silence settled between them again.
Then Noah spoke carefully.
"There is... one option."
Jael looked up.
"My apartment."
The answer came before he had even finished.
"No."
He nodded once.
"Okay."
No argument.
No persuasion.
No disappointment.
He simply crossed it off the page.
"We'll keep looking."
That surprised her.
She had expected him to insist.
Instead...
He respected her answer immediately.
---
That evening Jael sat cross-legged on her bed, surrounded by scholarship brochures, postgraduate application guides and neatly organised folders.
One sentence caught her attention.
Demonstrated academic leadership and peer mentoring are considered valuable indicators of postgraduate research potential.
She read it twice.
Then a third time.
A knock sounded against her bedroom door.
Chloe peeked inside.
"You've got that look."
"What look?"
"The one where you're pretending not to know the answer."
Jael sighed.
"His apartment is the only place that actually works."
"And?"
"And I don't want people talking."
Chloe nodded thoughtfully.
"So set boundaries."
"Meet in the living room."
"Keep the sessions scheduled."
"Tell someone where you'll be."
"You're going there to teach."
"Not to impress anyone."
Jael looked down at the application booklet again.
Then slowly closed it.
"This could help my future."
"It could."
"And if I walk away because I'm afraid of rumours..."
"I'll regret it."
Chloe smiled.
"Now you're thinking like the woman who's going to earn that scholarship."
---
The next afternoon, Jael found Noah outside the athletics building.
He looked up as she approached.
"I've thought about it."
He waited.
"If your apartment is still an option..."
"It is."
"...then we'll study there."
For a second he simply stared at her.
Not in victory.
In surprise.
"Thank you."
She held up a finger.
"There are conditions."
He smiled faintly.
"I had a feeling."
"We study."
"Nothing else."
"You don't miss sessions."
"You don't treat this like a joke."
"If you do..."
She met his eyes.
"I walk away."
Noah extended his hand.
"You have my word."
After the briefest hesitation...
She shook it.
His grip was warm.
Steady.
Respectful.
Neither noticed they held on a heartbeat longer than necessary.
---
Saturday evening arrived beneath a sky painted gold and violet.
Jael stood outside the entrance to Carter Residence, adjusting the strap of her satchel.
The building was elegant without being extravagant, all glass and stone softened by carefully tended gardens.
It wasn't the ostentatious mansion she had imagined.
Taking a slow breath, she rang the bell.
A few moments later the door opened.
Noah stood there in a simple charcoal sweater and jeans, his damp brown hair still slightly messy as though he had only just showered after practice.
For once...
There was no hockey jersey.
No crowd.
No cameras.
No audience.
Just Noah.
He offered a small smile.
"You found the place."
"I almost turned around twice."
He chuckled softly.
"I'm glad you didn't."
Stepping aside, he gestured toward the hallway.
"Come in."
The apartment was unexpectedly quiet.
Books lined one wall.
A whiteboard filled with training schedules, assignment deadlines and practice drills occupied another.
Everything was meticulously organised.
No loud music.
No teammates.
No chaos.
Nothing about it resembled the careless playboy everyone on campus described.
Jael's eyes wandered across the room until they settled on a single framed photograph resting atop the bookshelf.
A younger Noah.
No older than twelve.
His arm wrapped around a beautiful woman whose smile radiated warmth.
She was laughing at something outside the frame while Noah looked up at her as though she hung every star in the sky.
Without thinking, Jael picked up the photograph.
The front door clicked shut behind her.
"I made coffee—"
Noah's voice stopped.
His eyes followed hers to the frame in her hands.
The warmth in his expression faded into something quieter.
Something fragile.
He crossed the room slowly.
His voice was barely above a whisper.
"...That's my mum."
- Writer
