Chapter 29 Chapter Twenty nine

Chapter 29 Chapter Twenty nine

I gathered my things slowly, my hands still trembling, and filed into the hallway with the rest of the class.

Ryan shoved his laptop into his bag and muttered something about wiping his search history, half joking. His jaw stayed tight the whole time and he would not quite meet my eyes.

I thought about telling Mr. Patterson that someone had broken into the voting system while we were watching. If he asked how I knew, though, that would drag Ryan into it.

I grabbed Ryan’s sleeve before he could turn down the hall.

“We need to find who did this,” I mumbled, glancing around to make sure no one else was listening.

He looked at me for a second, then nodded once, his shoulders tense.

“Yeah.” He shouldered his bag and walked off.

The apartment smelled of roast chicken mixed with garlic and rosemary the moment I opened the door. Mom never made roast chicken on a weeknight. She saved it for birthdays or the rare good day at work. My stomach flipped. Was Dad back? I rushed inside.

Only Mom stood at the stove, basting the chicken with a spoon and humming softly under her breath. A quiet wave of disappointment settled in my chest. I had hoped to see him.

“Baby.” She set the spoon down and turned, wiping her hands on her apron. “Sit. Dinner’s almost ready.”

I dropped my bag and watched her face, searching for whatever was coming.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured as she stepped closer, her eyes soft with regret. “For shutting you out. You didn’t do anything wrong, and I made you feel like you did.”

I pulled out a chair and sat.

“I still don’t know how to explain everything so you will understand, but I know with time you will.”

“Okay.” I nodded, offering her a small smile.

She turned back to the stove, carried the chicken to the table, and spooned rice onto my plate, then hers. She stayed quiet for a moment before she looked up again.

“You looked so happy to see him.” Her voice caught as she reached for the serving spoon. “And I couldn’t look at you without seeing everything he did to us at the same time. I did not know how to react and I just…”

“Mom, I understand.” I crossed the table and pulled her into a tight hug, rubbing her back gently.

We held each other for a long while, before we finally drew apart and I returned to my seat.

“Do you still love him?” I asked, picking at the edge of my napkin.

“I don’t know what I feel anymore.” She reached for her plate, her eyes distant. “I wanted to hate him but I just could not.”

“When was he released?”

“About a week or two ago.” She whispered it so quietly I almost missed it, then cleared her throat and reached for the chicken. “Eat, baby. It’s getting cold.”

I almost told her about the hacker, but she had only just started talking to me again. I did not want to give her something else to carry.

“Denise mentioned something today,” she added later, setting her fork down and leaning back in her chair. “One of the families she cleans for is looking for a tutor.”

“Oh? What age?” I asked, mouth full of chicken.

“Seventeen. Homeschooled girl with some kind of health thing keeping her out of regular school. The pay is good.”

“How good?”

“Thirty an hour.” She slid a piece of paper across the table with a number written on it. “Three sessions a week, two hours each.”

I did the math in my head before she even finished speaking. If I kept both jobs, I might actually make it through the semester without falling behind on bills every month.

“Call them this evening,” she urged, squeezing my hand briefly. “Before someone else does.”

After we cleared the table I stood at the sink, phone tucked between my shoulder and ear while I dried dishes, and dialed the number.

It rang twice.

“Hello?” A woman’s voice came through, sharp and clipped.

“Hi, my name is Mirabel Chopper. My mom’s coworker Denise said you were looking for a tutor?” I shifted the phone to my other ear.

“Right. Can you make a video call tomorrow at four o’clock?”

“Yes, that works.”

“Good. I’ll send the link.” She hung up.

I dried the last plate and set it in the rack, then picked my phone back up and opened my thread with Elma.

I think I just got a tutoring job and the pay is good.

The typing dots appeared almost right away.

M that’s amazing!! See, good things do happen to you ❤️

I grabbed my school bag and headed to my room while we kept chatting.

The next day I sat at the kitchen table with my old laptop propped on a stack of cookbooks so the camera would not tilt. The woman who answered looked younger than I expected.

“Mirabel, right?” She did not wait for me to answer. “Tell me about your grades.”

“I have mostly A’s in all my subjects. A couple of B’s in chemistry but that was last year.” I reached into my bag and pulled out my printed transcripts. “I have them here. I can email them to you.”

“Good enough.” She glanced at something off screen. “Have you worked with kids who struggle socially? Not academically. Socially.”

I thought about Emma, then decided this probably meant something different.

“Not really. But I’m patient.”

“She’s bright.” The woman’s voice softened for half a second. “Brighter than people give her credit for. She just needs someone who will not rush her.”

“I can do that.” I sat up a little straighter.

“I’ll call you tonight either way.”

She hung up. I sat there staring at the black screen, not sure if the conversation had gone well or badly.

She called back that night.

“You’re hired,” she announced. “First session is Thursday at four o’clock. I’ll send the link tomorrow and then you both can begin. Good luck.”

I hung up and sat in the quiet for a moment. The realization sank in slowly. I got the job. I ran to Mom’s room. She was getting ready for her night shift. I hugged her tight and we spun in a joyful circle.

“Mom, I need to get a new laptop. I have saved enough and I think this is the right time.”

“You are my God sent.” She hugged me tighter and kissed my forehead. “There is some money in the second drawer. It will not buy the whole thing but it will help.”

Saturday morning I took the bus to the electronics store two towns over. Laptops lined the shelves under bright lights.

“Hello, welcome to TN Electronics.” A guy in a red polo walked over as I entered. “Are you looking for anything specific?”

“Something that can run my code without freezing. Video calls too.”

“What are you working with?”

“JavaScript, mostly. Sometimes heavier stuff.”

“You’ll want more memory than the base models, then.” He moved toward the aisle.  “Do you have a budget?”

“I am not locked into a strict number but I am looking for something affordable and good value.”

He led me toward a shelf by the wall. “These ones fit your description perfectly.”

I picked the one that fit my budget, paid in cash, and carried it home. My hands were not quite steady counting out the bills, but this time it was not fear making them shake. I no longer needed to code with the school system.

Mom cried a little when I opened the box at the kitchen table, wiping her eyes quickly.

“I’m so proud of you baby,” she whispered. “You are my blessing.”

Thursday came faster than I expected. I set the new laptop up on my desk at exactly three fifty, angling the camera so it would show my entire messy room.

I checked my reflection in the small preview window, smoothed my hair back once, and glanced at the clock.

Four thirty arrived and the call still had not connected. I was about to message the woman when the screen finally lit up.

A face filled the whole frame, close enough that I could see the small gap between her front teeth when she smiled.

“Hi.” She smiled. “I’m Sloane Ben.”