Our last hope

Chapter 1

I wake up one morning to the sound of my alarm clock, signaling it's time to get ready for school. I roll out of bed and make my way to the bathroom, brushing my teeth and washing my face.

As I head downstairs for breakfast, I see my Mom sitting at the kitchen table with a piece of paper in front of her. She looks up at me "Harper, I received a call from the Baker family yesterday."

I pause in my tracks, a sense of dread creeping up in me as I wonder what the Baker family could want with me. "Oh? What did they want?"

My mom continues, "They're looking for a tutor for their son, Reece. Do you know him?"

Unfortunately I do know of him. He's always unnecessarily loud in the hallways and makes sure everyone knows how popular and important he is. I can't help but roll my eyes at the thought of him. "Yes, I know of him," I reply. "He's in a few of my classes."

"I see," my mom says, nodding. "Well, they're offering to pay you to tutor him. Are you interested?"

I take a moment to consider the offer. On one hand, the money would be very helpful for me. On the other, I have no interest in working with someone like Reese.

I weigh the pros and cons before finally saying, "I'll do it I need the extra money anyways " My mom smiles, relieved. "Great! I'll let them know."

I finish my breakfast and grab my backpack, heading out the door.

As I drive to school, my mind is preoccupied with the thought of tutoring Reece. I can't help but feel a little nervous about it. I've never really interacted with him before, and I'm not sure what to expect.

As I arrive to school, I make my way to my locker, trying to shake off the nerves. I can't help but notice a group of students gathered around Reece, laughing at something he just said. He seems to be the center of attention, his laugh carrying across the hallway.

Reece definitely gets people's attention with his athletic build, standing tall at 6'1", his broad shoulders accentuated by his football jersey. His chiseled features include strong jawline, high cheekbones, and piercing blue eyes that seem to bore into anyone who crosses his path.

I've never seen anything good about him other than his appearance. He's so full of himself and
I can't stand how he seems to think he's better than anyone because he has mommy and daddy money.

I roll my eyes, already feeling a headache coming on.

As I'm gathering my things from my locker, I notice Reece pushing his way through the crowd, a smug look on his face. He spots me and saunters over. "Hey, you're Harper, right?" he says, leaning against the locker next to mine. "I hear you're going to be my tutor. Lucky me."

I can tell he's being sarcastic and can't help but feel a sense of annoyance wash over me. Of course he would act like this. I take a deep breath, reminding myself I just need the money. "Yes, that's me," I reply, trying to keep my tone neutral. "We should probably get started right away if that's okay. I have a lot of material to cover with you."

Reece chuckles and pushes off the locker, a cocky smile on his face. "Sure thing, tutor lady. My house or yours?"

Oh no there is no way in hell he's coming to my house.

I shake my head emphatically. "No way," I say firmly. "We're going to study at the library. It'll be quieter there, and we can focus on your work." Reece raises an eyebrow, clearly not used to someone saying no to him. "The library? I can't even name one library around here"

I rolls my eyes, unimpressed by he's remark. "The library is a quiet place where people go to Study or read" I say emphasizing my words to make sure they really get through his long head.

Reece stares at me for a moment, clearly thrown off from my response. He then scoffs "I know what a Library is smartass. Look let's just do it at my house, It'll be easier"

"Why? Because Mr. I'm to cool for school can't be seen in a Library?"

He scowls and crosses his arms over his chest.
"Look, lady, my parents are paying you good money to help me out here. So I don't have to come to a boring ass library. Plus I don't even wanna be doing this, so can I at least pick where we do it at?"

I take a deep breath before responding, trying to control my anger "Fine we'll do it at your house, but don't blame me when we get no studying done because of all your distractions"

He shrugs nonchalantly, clearly not fazed by my annoyance "whatever you say tutor lady"

His friend catches his eye and he walks off, He's attention span being zero to none.

I arrive at my English class and take my seat in the front row as always. My best friend Abby is in this class and I can't wait to tell her about my situation. Abby and I tell eachother everything, She's been my bestfriend since third grade. Abby is a lively and outgoing person, always full of energy and laughter. She's the complete opposite of me in many ways, but that's what makes our friendship so special.

Aa the class begins, I turn to Abby, eager to share my news. "Guess what?" I say, trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice. "I'm going to be tutoring Reece Baker after school."

Abby's eyes widen in surprise. "Reece Baker?" she repeats, clearly impressed. "Wow, Harper, that's huge! He's like, the most popular guy in school."

I can't help but roll my eyes. "Believe me, I know who he is, and he's not all that" you say dryly.

Abby laughs and insists, "Oh, come on, Harper! You're just saying that because you don't know him. I bet he's not that bad once you get to know him."

You sigh and lean back in your chair. "I don't need to know him to know that he's arrogant and entitled," you say, crossing your arms over your chest. "But I do need the money, so I don't really have a choice."

Abby shrugs. "Well, if anyone can handle Reece, it's you," she says, giving you an encouraging smile. "Just remember to be patient with him and don't let him get to you. And if things get too tough, you could always let me take your place"

I laugh, shaking my head. "I'll keep that in mind"

Hii thanks for reading my first chapter. Lmk how you feel about it :)