Her mom rattled off a few more wedding details before she finally got off the phone. Mary tossed the cell back on her bedside table and stared at her ceiling. It was an older house with fading siding and in need of a new roof. The inside wasn’t much better, not with the stained ceilings, brown shag carpet that looked like it was from the seventies, and yellow tiled bathroom with a matching piss-colored tub. But it was all they could afford, and Mary called it home. Although her mind kept going on and on about the conversation she just had with her mother she found her eyes growing heavy, and before she knew it she couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer.
The sound of something buzzing close to her ear had consciousness slowing claiming Mary. She opened her eyes and blinked a few times and turned her head to the side. A wince left her when her neck protested to the sudden movement, and she tried to rub the kink out. Her cell moved sluggishly across her bedside table, the blue screen lit up with an incoming call. The temptation to let it go to voicemail was right at the surface, because if it was her mother again, or God forbid, Margo, she didn’t want to deal with the hassle. But in the end she reached for the phone because it could be one of the students she tutored.
“Hello?” Pushing herself up on the bed she glanced at her alarm clock and saw it was eight. Her quick nap had turned into three hours.
“Mary?” The baritone voice that came through the receiver instantly had her pulse increasing.
Pushing herself up, she was suddenly very nervous. “Yes?” She knew who was on the other end because she remembered that voice all too well. In fact, it had just been playing through her mind as she dreamed of a very buff football player.
“Um, hey. This is Alex.” She didn’t say anything right away, and he cleared his throat, as if he was nervous. “Alex Sheppard.” Oh God, he thought she didn’t know who he was. The hesitancy in his voice was almost funny if she hadn’t been feeling it, too.
“I know who you are.” She smiled even though he couldn’t see her.
“I got your number from Racer.”
“Racer?” She racked her brain who that was.
“I mean Adam. Sorry, it’s a stupid nickname for him.”
“Oh, okay.” Oh my God, he actually asked for my number? A sort of girly giddiness came over her at that thought.
“Yeah, well he said you offer tutoring, and I was wondering if you maybe had any openings.”
Her giddiness plummeted, and her shoulders sagged forward. Of course that was why he would call. Did she actually think he would reach out to her for something else? Yeah, she stupidly had.
“Oh, well yeah, I offer tutoring.” Rubbing her eyes with her hand she was tempted to just lie back down, but the grime of the day felt thick on her skin and a shower sounded heavenly. “I’d have to look at my schedule and see what openings I have though. What is the subject you need help with?” Hell, she knew she would clear some time for him, because even if all he wanted her for was to help him pass a class, she would take it. Besides, he was really nice to look at. She had to be certifiably insane to want to spend time with him, even if it was academically oriented. Hadn’t she decided he was not for her, and that he was bad news?
“That’s cool.” A long pause settled between them. “It’s actually Human Sexuality.”
Mary rolled her eyes. Of course that was the class. She had helped a few other guys with that subject in the past. For some reason they automatically thought it had to do with getting it on since the word sex was thrown in there. Yes, that had to do with it, but she had a feeling they thought they were getting easy credits for a class they would watch porn in.
Mary didn’t bother commenting on that or her feelings on the whole typical male aspect of his decision to take that class. “Maybe we can meet up tomorrow and I can let you know what openings I have, and some other details on the tutoring? We could set up a schedule, too.”
“That sounds good.” A beat of silence passed, and she could hear some shuffling of papers through the receiver, and then the sound of something heavy falling.
“Fuck.” His curse was soft but clipped. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to say that out loud.” Mary found herself smiling. “Maybe we can meet around lunchtime, like say noon or one? There is that sandwich place on the corner of High Street that we can meet at. It’s called Rocko’s.”
“Yeah, I know where that is. I have a break between Calculus and Sociology between eleven and noon, if you want to meet then?”
“Yeah, okay.” He cleared his throat again, and Mary found herself pulling at a stray thread at the hem of her shirt. “All right then. I guess I’ll see ya then. And thanks again for taking the time and all that.”