Chapter 19: A Warm Family

Chapter 19: A Warm Family

Unable to focus on calculus anymore, my eyes casually drifted downward—and caught sight of Sierra's bare, slender legs resting under the study table. Since she didn't have school today, she was wearing a simple, knee-length summer dress.

Right at that moment, Sierra looked up and caught me dead to rights.

Her face burned redder than a beet, and she gritted her teeth in embarrassment. "What are you staring at? It's not like you didn't touch them that night!"

My jaw dropped. "Sis! That was a complete accident!"

Before the awkward tension in the room could hit critical mass, the front door swung open as Dad and Mom returned from the store, breaking the heavy silence.

Mom was beaming when she saw the stacks of completed practice tests on my desk. She immediately set down a steaming pot of black-boned chicken herbal stew she'd bought specially from the market, insisting that intense studying drained brainpower and required proper nutrition.

While Mom was in the kitchen getting bowls, Dad leaned in close and quietly slid two $100 bills into my palm.

"Take it, son. For extra study guides or whatever you need," he whispered with a sly wink.

I held the $200, a surge of warmth filling my heart. In our house, Mom held total authority over the household finances. For Dad to pull out two $100 bills, this had to be his hard-earned secret savings stash from months of managing the store!

"David Carter," Mom's sharp voice cut through the air as she walked back into the dining room, setting down a bowl of soup. "Since when did you start keeping a private stash?"

Dad instantly went into full defense mode. "Private stash? What private stash? I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Mom, I swear Dad's innocent!" I chimed in, trying to cover for him.

Mom narrowed her eyes, glaring at my coat pocket. "Do you think I'm blind? I can see the green paper sticking right out of your pocket."

Dad and I instantly wilted. Decades of running a convenience store had given Mom hawk-like vision—she could spot a shoplifter from fifty yards away.

I sighed, reaching into my pocket to hand back Dad's money, but Mom suddenly reached into her own purse, pulled out another two $100 bills, and tossed them on the table right in front of me.

"Keep it," Mom said softly, her expression softening. "If our son is finally serious about studying for the NEE, two hundred dollars isn't even enough for prep books and practice tests. Take all four hundred. If you need more, just ask."

Dad and I both stared at her, completely floored.

Mom gave a brisk huff. "If you don't want it, I'm taking it back!"

"I want it! I definitely want it!" I snatched up the $400 with a huge grin.

That was Victoria Carter in a nutshell—a terrifyingly fiery temper on the outside, but a heart made of gold on the inside.

Dad let out a quiet sigh of relief, thinking he was in the clear.

"David," Mom added, her voice dropping into a deadly serious tone. "Don't think you're off the hook. We're having a long conversation about that secret stash tonight."

Dad's face turned instantly miserable, while I buried my head in my soup bowl, pretending to be deeply fascinated by a chicken drumstick. Whatever happens between Mom and Dad behind closed doors stays between them!

Sitting across the table, Sierra watched our family with a soft, envious smile. Her own parents were distant, leaving her feeling far warmer in our chaotic household than anywhere else.

That night, lying in bed, my heart beat with quiet excitement.

Tomorrow was another major mock National Entrance Exam at Aurelia Academy.

With fifty percent of Chloe's intelligence flowing through my veins, I was ready to shatter everyone's expectations—and make my parents proud.

The morning sun filtered brightly through the high windows of Aurelia Academy. Sierra had left for Bellevue High early, and I made my way to campus shortly after.

With the National Entrance Exam looming closer with each passing week, the tension across campus was thick enough to cut with a knife. The second I stepped into Senior Homeroom A, the suffocating atmosphere hit me.

Today was the third-to-last mock NEE, and every student was crammed over their desks, frantically reviewing study guides and memorizing formulas.

"Morning," I said, slipping into my chair at our shared double desk.

Chloe looked up from her books and smiled. Ever since riding home together on my scooter two days ago, her attitude toward me had grown noticeably warmer and more natural.

"Morning! How's your studying going?" she asked softly.

I scratched the back of my neck and gave her a confident grin. "Thanks to those AP notes you gave me, I actually think I can clear 60 points and pass at least one subject this time."

"Pfft!"

Before Chloe could answer, a loud, sneering laugh burst out from the desk across the aisle.

I turned my head and met a pair of arrogant, disdainful eyes.

It was Tyler.

Tyler was one of the top academic performers in our grade, consistently ranking near the very top of the school board. Coming from an influential, wealthy family, he carried himself with an insufferable air of superiority. Because I had spent the entire semester anchored to the very bottom of the class rankings, he viewed me as absolute trash beneath his notice.

Hearing a bottom-tier slacker like me claim I could pass an NEE subject in front of Chloe was more than his ego could stomach.

"Are you seriously trying to sell that garbage, Zach?" Tyler scoffed, leaning back in his chair with a mocking smirk. "Try drafting a believable script before you start blowing smoke. You're out of your mind."

Another guy sitting beside him immediately jumped in to suck up to him. "Seriously. Last time, you only managed to climb out of dead last because the guy below you got food poisoning and went home early. Did that one-spot leap make your ego explode? Passing a subject? That's a pretty damn big lie!"

Chloe's face instantly darkened. She turned toward them, her voice firm and cold. "Don't look down on people. Nobody starts out as a genius."

A surge of warmth bloomed in my chest.

See that? That's the difference between a real genius and a bunch of arrogant pretenders!