The Tutor - Chapter 5
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Friday Evening ....
Josh had never felt this scared before. Not when his dad caught him sneaking back into the house, not when Coach threatened to bench him before the biggest game of the season, not even when he took that blindside hit freshman year that knocked the wind clean out of him.
None of that compared to the way his chest tightened when Dejah looked at him like that.
Josh pushed past Kayla and started to take a step towards Dejah.
“Dejah—”
He barely got her name out when she shook her head and walked away from him. Josh followed her, weaving through people, even going as far as to push people out of his way. By the time he caught up with her, she was already with Myra and her cousin, who was sitting suspiciously close to his twin
“Whoa!” Myra spoke up first, as she noticed Dejah coming in hot, with Josh right on her trail. “What’s wrong?”
“I need to leave,” Dejah said. Trinity and Myra shared a look. Dejah took a deep breath, but it did nothing to steady her shaking hands. “I… can you take me home?” she asked just as Josh reached the group.
“Dee, don’t leave, just let me ex-”
“You don’t have to explain shit to me, Josh.” Dejah finally snapped, making Myra, Trinity, and even Jon’s eyes widen. “I’m not your girlfriend… I’m not anything to you, and you just made that clear.”
Trinity and Myra exchanged glances again, and they both stepped towards Dejah, like two protective shields.
“I don’t know what your goal was,” Dejah started again, eyes narrowing as she started to become angry at Josh. “Whether it was to embarrass the ‘shy girl’ or…” she paused, her voice catching for just a second before she forced it steady again, “or to make Kayla jealous. I don't wanna be part of it.”
Josh shook his head immediately, stepping forward despite Myra subtly shifting again to block him.
“No,” he said, voice low but urgent. “That’s not it. Dejah, I swear that’s not what I was doing.”
Dejah said nothing as she hugged her arms to her chest, suddenly aware that they were ‘arguing’ in the middle of a party with half of their classmates. “I just wanna go home.”
Myra nodded and immediately sprang into action. She wrapped her arm around Dejah’s shoulder and ushered her out of the party. Trinity stayed behind, eyeing Josh up and down.
“She had faith in you.” She said, shaking her head at him. “My cousin didn’t deserve that. Whatever you and that Kayla chick got goin’ on… leave Dejah out of it.” Trinity rolled her eyes and walked away from Josh without waiting for his response.
Josh stood there, teeth clenched as Trinity’s words echoed in his head. Jon placed a hand on his twin's shoulder, but Josh shook it off. He looked over in Kayla’s direction, and she was already looking at him. She bit her lip and winked before turning her attention back to her friends.
Saturday Morning ....
Josh couldn’t sleep. He kept replaying Dejah’s reaction and her walking away from him in his mind over and over again, and before he knew it, it was 6 in the morning. He sat up in his bed, glaring at the bird chirping outside his window.
He felt like shit, and he couldn’t be mad that Dejah was mad at him. He'd spent weeks getting closer to her, flirting with her, making her feel special, only to end up with Kayla fucking kissing him.
Josh groaned and flopped back down on the bed. He had just gotten back on her good side, just for Kayla to fuck everything up!
“Fuck it,” he muttered, rolling off the bed and walking towards his closet. He put on a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie before sliding on his sneakers.
“Where you going?” Jon asked from the other bed, voice still groggy with sleep.
“For a run,” Josh said as he grabbed his Walkman off the dresser. “Gotta clear my mind.” He walked out of the room before his twin could reply. The house was silent as he made his way downstairs, stepping carefully over the creaky spots he knew by heart. A few seconds later, he pushed through the front door and into the cool morning air.
21 Questions by 50 Cent was blasting in his ears as he jogged throught the somewhat empty streets of his neighborhood. He tried to keep his mind off of Dejah, but it wasn’t working. He would think about his next football game, then boom, she was back in his mind.
“What the fuck.” Josh muttered as he pushed himself harder. He wasn't even paying attention to where he was going anymore. He just ran. By the time he finally slowed down, sweat was dripping down the back of his neck, and his chest was heaving. He bent over slightly, hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath. Then he looked up. “Shit”
He was standing in front of Dejah’s house.
Malcolm Monroe was a busy man; he barely had any days off. He had woken up before his wife and children, like any other day. He put on a pot of coffee, letting the familiar sound of the machine fill the quiet kitchen as he moved on autopilot.
He let out a yawn as he filled his favorite cup, grabbed his golfing magazine, and set out to the front porch, but he froze as he noticed a teenage boy, probably the same age as his daughter, standing at the end of his driveway, just staring.
Malcolm took a sip of coffee, his eyes never leaving the teenager. “You lost, son?”
The teen jerked, like he had been pulled out of his thoughts. “Uh-” He said, looking like a deer in headlights. “No, sir?” He said, more like a question.
Malcolm smirked. “You sure?” The teen nodded. “So why are you standing in my driveway at seven a.m.?”
Josh opened his mouth, then closed it again. “I—uh,” he started, then exhaled sharply through his nose. “I don’t… I didn’t mean to come here.”
That caused Malcom to raise an eyebrow. “You didn’t mean to come here,” he repeated slowly.
Josh rubbed the back of his neck, immediately realizing how ridiculous that sounded once it was out loud. “I mean—no, sir, I did. I just didn’t mean to… show up like this.”
Malcolm hummed and rubbed his beard. “What’s your name?” He asked as he set his coffee down on the patio table and walked down the front steps.
“Joshua Fatu”
“Alright, Joshua Fatu,” he said, stepping off the last porch step. “Now tell me why you’re standing in my driveway.”
“I don’t know!” Josh answered, frustration seeping through his tone. “I was goin’ for a run and ended up here.”
Malcolm narrowed his eyes. “I’m gonna give you some advice.” He didn’t wait for Josh to respond. “Go home. Whatever happened last night that had my daughter up half the night crying can’t be fixed by you showing up unannounced at seven in the morning.”
Josh wanted to argue, but he knew Mr. Monroe was right. Nothing he could say right now would help his and Dejah’s situation. So he sucked in a deep breath and nodded.
“Yes, sir,” He said, slightly defeated. He looked back towards the house, hoping to see a glimpse of Dejah. He let out a deep sigh before turning around and walking away from Dejah’s house.
Saturday Afternoon ....
Dejah sat at the bay window in her room, her knees pressed to her chest as she stared out the window. She let out a slow breath and rested her head against the cool glass.
Every time she closed her eyes, all she could see was Josh and Kayla, and she wished she’d never accepted his invitation to that stupid party.
She felt stupid. She knew better than to believe his sweet words, knew better than to let her guard down. Knew better than to think that anyone like Joshua Fatu would want someone like her.
A bitter laugh escaped her lips as she hugged her knees tighter to her chest. She should have seen the signs sooner. How was he suddenly so interested in her? They went to the same schools for their entire lives. For years, she had just been another face.
Then out of nowhere, he wanted to talk, wanted to hold her hand, and take her on smoothie dates.
She squeezed her eyes shut. She hated how she missed him already, hated how a part of her wanted to hear Josh out, hear what he had to say about this situation. Because as much as she wanted to be angry at him, there was a tiny voice in the back of her mind telling her that he hadn’t kissed her back.
But, she also didn’t want to make excuses for him. Because when she went to the bathroom, Kayla was nowhere around… where did she even come from? Before she could think about the situation even more, there was a sharp knock on her door.
“I didn’t let you mope around last week, and I’m damn sure not gonna let you mope around this week. Getcha’ ass up, girl.” Trinity said as she twisted the doorknob to Dejah’s room, sighing loudly when she found it locked. “Open the door!”
“No!” Dejah called out, still curled up in her spot. “I wanna be alone!”
“You been alone enough!” Trinity called out, twisting the doorknob again. “C’mon before I start yelling!”
Dejah let out a groan. “You’re already yelling!” She called out as she stomped towards her door and flung it open. She narrowed her eyes as she looked at her cousin. “I don’t want to talk, Trin.”
“We don't gotta talk, but you’re definitely gonna stop acting like someone died.”
Dejah rolled her eyes and walked away from Trinity and back over to her window, curling back up with her pillow. Trinity rolled her own eyes and walked into Dejah’s room, shutting the door behind her.
“C’mon now, I know you like the boy, but damn, this is depressing,” Dejah said nothing and continued to stare out the window. “Oh, so you ignoring me now? I thought I was your favorite cousin.” Dejah ignored Trinity again. “Fine,” Trinity said, shrugging as she sat down on Dejah’s bed. “I talked to Jon.”
That got Dejah’s attention. She snapped her head over to look at her cousin. “What? When? How?”
Trinity shrugged, a sly smile on her lips, and she crossed one of her legs over the other. “Oh, now you wanna talk.”
Dejah glared at her. “When did you talk to Jon?”
Trinity rolled her eyes. “He called me this morning…” She trailed off, looking down at her fingernails and inspecting them.
Dejah looked at Trinity, waiting for her to continue, when Trinity just stared at her fingernails. Dejah let out a groan and threw the pillow that was on her lap at Trinity.
“What did he say?!”
Trinity shrugged. “Nothing, honestly. He was surprised I called. Didn’t think I was because of what happened last night.” Trinity said as she stood up and stretched. “Speaking of, you still got that white tube top?”
Dejah glared. “I hate you.”
Trinity burst out laughing. “No, you don’t.” She walked over to Dejah, pushing her legs out of the way so she could sit down. “He said that Josh is beating himself up about what happened.”
Dejah folded her arms against her chest. “You think I’m being crazy, don’t you?” Dejah asked. “Like we weren’t even together. He can kiss who he wants to kiss.”
Trinity rolled her eyes. “I think you’re being crazy when you say shit. Like that.” Dejah opened her mouth to respond, but Trinity put her hand over her mouth. “That boy is head over heels for you.” Dejah scoffed under Trinity’s hand. “He’s the one who initiated first contact. If all he wanted was tutoring, then he wouldn’t have taken you on that smoothie date, nor would been walking you to class every freaking day. I love you, but I’m about to smack the shit outta you.”
Dejah pushed Trinity’s hand away with an annoyed huff. “You done?”
“Girl, I’m just getting started.”
Dejah rolled her eyes. “ I watched him kiss another girl.”
“No,” Trinity said immediately. “You watched another girl kiss him. You said you saw Kayla walk up and kiss him, not the other way around.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be on my side?” Trinity reached her hand up and thumped Dejah on her forehead. “Hey!”
“When Josh pushed Kayla away from him, what did he do?”
“Uh, came to me,” Dejah muttered, rubbing her forehead.
“I’m sorry…” Trinity said, turning her head to the side and cupping her ear. “I didn’t hear you.”
“He came after me.” Dejah said louder.
“Exactly, dingus. If he wanted Kayla, why would he chase after you? You’re the girl he wants, Dejah Monroe.”
“But Trin, how would you feel if your almost boyfriend was kissing his ex-girlfriend?”
“Almost boyfriend?” Trinity grinned
Dejah hugged and smacked her arm. “I’m being serious.”
Trinity rolled her eyes while rubbing her arm. “Of course I’ll be upset. But that’s not what happened. Look,” Trinity sighed. “You can be upset with him all you want but if he didn’t want you he wouldn’t have showed up here this morning.”
Dejah’s eyes widened. “What?!”
“I heard Unc talking with Auntie, said he went outside this morning and saw the poor boy just standing at the end of the driveway.”
Dejah sat up a little bit straighter. “You’re lying.”
Trinity made a face. “I ain't got no reason to lie.”
Dejah stared at her cousin, eyes searching her face, looking for one hint of Trinity lying. “He came here?”
“Yup,” Unc said he was looking all pitiful, too. Aint no boy who's playing you gonna show up at your house early as hell trying to talk to you”
Dejah looked back out her bedroom window. He was here. He came looking for her, not Kayla. “I don’t know what to do.”
“And that’s fine,” Trinity answered with a shrug. “You don’t have to forgive him right away. Hell, you don’t have to ever forgive him. If you want, you can wipe your hands and be done with him.” Trinity paused. “But we both know that's not what you want.”
“What do I want?”
Trinity rolled her eyes and stood up to stretch. “Girl, that’s up to you to decide. But if I was you, I would hear him out. Actually listen to what he has to say and then decide.” She waited for Dejah to nod her head before continuing. “Now, back to that tube top. I kinda got a date.”
Dejah raised her eyebrow. “With who?”
Trinity smirked. “All imma say is that we about to be cousins and sisters-in-law.”
Dejah’s jaw dropped, and Trinity laughed before walking into the closet. “Oh, I might be borrowing those baby phat jeans, too.”
Monday...
Dejah tried to keep her head down all day, but she could feel the stares from her classmates who were at the party. Nobody was openly pointing at her, but she could tell today was different.
At lunch, she sat out by the bleachers instead of in the cafeteria.
“You gon just sit here quietly the whole time?”
Dejah shrugged as she looked out onto the empty football field. “I don’t really have anything to say.”
Myra rolled her eyes as she took a bite of her burger. The duo sat in silence for a while. The sound of the waves from the nearby ocean relaxing Dejah just a bit. For the first time all day, she felt at peace, didn’t feel anybody watching her, no pressure on her chest, just peace. Just as she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, the doors leading to the gymnasium slammed open, hitting the concrete walls. Loud chatter followed.
“Uh-oh,” She heard Myra mutter, but she kept her eyes closed. She took deep, even breaths, trying to calm her now rapidly beating heart.
Even with her eyes closed, she could feel him. The air was suddenly thick, and she slowly opened her eyes.
Josh was standing at the bottom of the bleachers, staring back up at her. Myra looked between them, a smile on her face as she gathered her stuff. “I’ll see you next period.” She whispered to Dejah, whose eyes widened.
Dejah grabbed Myra’s arm, stopping her from leaving. “Wait -”
“No, y’all need to talk. Seriously.” Myra gently eased her arm from Dejah’s grip and walked down the bleachers towards Josh.
Dejah watched as Myra whispered something to Josh, who immediately nodded his head. Myra narrowed her eyes at him before looking back up at Dejah. She mouthed ‘you got this’ before walking away from the bleachers and back into the school building. Dejah’s hands gripped the metal bleachers as she turned her attention back to Josh.
Authors Note: Golly... I suck at this updating thing. Whew, well I know it's been a lil minute. SORRY!!! I hope yall still here with me cause we're almost at the end of this story!!
Hope everyone enjoys this chapter! ❤️
P.S., y'all know I love a good cliffhanger.
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