Deeper

7 | Tutor

The sun has set by the time I come out from the bathroom after taking a shower. I slip into a pair of comfortable leggings and a loose sweater. Facing the mirror, I tie my hair into a ponytail.

The doorbell rings, startling me. I don't remember inviting any guests. Who is it?

I totter toward the front door, and when I open it, Vaughn is standing before me.

"Someone said it's an emergency," he mutters, sounding like he's annoyed, but his face doesn't indicate any sign of it.

I roll my eyes. Jake.

"I'm sorry. As always, he's exaggerating," I say, truly concerned for this poor guy, who suddenly has to babysit me. "Do you have time?"

"Come on. I came all the way here." He smirks. I take it as a yes and let him come into our house.

Once I bring my laptop into the living room, we start digging the stuff, and I'm impressed by how much knowledge he has about the topic.

That even leaves me staring at him with mouth agape as he explains one of the most crucial points of the research.

"Now that you already got the information about the infrastructures, as well as the data for supply and demand, you can even create a balance for every region," the words roll from his tongue as he finishes a sample chart on my excel sheet.

Wow. This is much more than what the professor would expect from us.

"That old man is hella pushy. First-year students are not supposed to do this yet," he comments.

"Everybody says so," I blurt out.

He laughs, and my cheeks heat up. He looks even more handsome now.

Why does he have to be so smart? Like, really smart. Top that with the striking physical appearance that already makes girls swoon over him.

And I can't help but think about how he knows all of the information we've been talking about. I suppose that most of them are off the record, and there's no way that he would have known if he hadn't had connections.

"Thanks, Vaughn," I finally find my voice. "This... is so much more than what I could have asked for."

"Anytime," he says, and I take over the rest of the work, following the steps he told me.

"I was wondering..." I trail off as I input some data into the graph. "Did you apply for your internship?"

"Yes, I did," he says. When I glance at him, I find that he's been settling in the armchair with his legs crossed, writing something on his notebook.

"Where?" I can't help but ask. There must be no problem for him to get into major companies like what happened to Jake.

"Here, in Boston." He shrugs. "Pearl Oil has a really good R&D centre here."

Somehow, I feel relieved. He's not going to leave.

As to why I feel that way, I have no idea.

"Did you get in?" I ask.

"Not sure." He scoffs. "I have yet to do the interview and presentation first tomorrow morning before they can decide whether I'm eligible enough," he says it just like he plans to eat cereal tomorrow morning, his voice lack of emotion, and he's still not leaving his eyes from his notebook.

While here I am taken aback. "What?" I gasp. "Tomorrow morning?" Now my voice is high-pitched. "What time?"

He finally glances at me. "8 AM," he says in a flat tone.

I snap my head towards the clock hanging on the wall. Shit. It's past midnight already. We've spent too much time digging my research.

He notices my worried expression and laughs. "Don't worry about it. Just finish your work."

"Vaughn--" I protest, but he's already shifting his attention back to his book.

My research is not urgent. The deadline isn't supposed to happen until next week. His presentation is urgent.

Sighing, I stare back at the remaining work on my laptop before I begin to type again. This is going to be a long night.

My eyelids flicker. Distantly, I hear the sound of waves crashing the shore. Oh, how peaceful. It makes me want to continue my sleep.

Then the sound of birds chirping fill my ears too like a beautiful melody. I smile, feeling blissful.

Wait. What? Birds?

I snap my eyes open and abruptly sit up. The sudden exposure of light to my eyes makes me wince before I slowly regain my vision. I'm staring at the living room. It's morning already.

Apparently, I fell asleep last night, in the middle of finishing my research.

When I stare down at myself, I find a blanket wrapped around me. Someone must have put it for me. Vaughn.

I look around for him, but he's nowhere to be found. The clock on the wall indicates 7.30, making my eyes widen in shock. Crap.

He must have left.

And that leaves me alone here with guilt washing over me as I bury my face in my hands, sighing.