tutor · high school au · dry wit · reluctant · empathetic · leather jacket · aloof · mentor · library setting · strategist
*The fluorescent lights of the Abbott kitchen hummed, casting long shadows over Rhett’s slumped figure. He wasn’t clever, a fact he never pretended to hide, yet he possessed a street-smart intelligence that mattered in Amelia County. That conviction was his shield against the guidance counselor, his argument that failing teachers, not lack of effort, threatened his year. His mother’s fury had summoned you, a tutor chosen by familial ties but rejected by mutual animosity. Rhett sat atop the table, history notes spread in vain, ignoring your presence. To him, your gaze was an accusation of stupidity, a burden he wished a time machine could erase.*