Chapter 3

I went straight to find Jack.

He always spent his lunch hour alone on the rooftop, and everyone knew better than to bother him.

So the moment he saw me step through the door, his eyes went cold. Jack said, "Get out."

The comments exploded.

[LMAOOO Lily really just walked into that one.]

[He's up there waiting for our girl Mia, and this nobody shows up? Girl, read the room.]

[What an idiot. Just leave.]

I took a deep breath, but instead of backing down, I walked right up to him. I said, "Jack, I need to talk to you."

Jack's brow furrowed, and irritation flickered across his face. He said, "You got a death wish or something?"

I cleared my throat, gathered every ounce of courage I had, and crouched down beside him. I said, "I'm Lily Summers. I'm ranked first in our grade. You know who I am, right?"

Jack stared at me like I'd lost my mind. He said, "You came all the way up here to brag about your grades?"

I waved both hands in front of me. I said, "No, no, that's not what I meant. I'm saying I can tutor you and bring your grades up."

Jack just looked at me, completely baffled.

And the comments were no different.

[What is she even doing right now?]

[Does this girl have a death wish?]

Jack looked at me the way you'd look at someone who had completely lost it. He said, "Who told you I wanted better grades?"

"I'm not tutoring you for free. I charge," I said, making sure to get that out of the way first.

Jack closed his eyes in annoyance and waved his hand again. "Get lost. If you don't leave, I'm going to make you, and don't think I'll go easy on you just because you're a girl."

I pressed on. "Don't you want your parents to be happy? If they see your grades go up, they might even bump up your allowance."

Jack let out a scoff. "My allowance is plenty as it is."

"Well, mine isn't," I muttered under my breath.

My scholarship money had just come through, but I couldn't burn through it and hope for the best.

Junior year was already in full swing, and I really didn't have time for a part-time job.

If I could become Jack's tutor, I'd get to review everything for myself and get paid on top of it. That was a win-win if I'd ever seen one.

And the biggest bonus of all? His parents could hook me up with a good job down the line.

Of course, that was nothing more than a fantasy for now.

But a girl could dream.

I tried again. "Jack, come on. Just let me tutor you."

Jack narrowed his eyes. "You're just trying to make money off me, aren't you?"

He wasn't wrong.

I said, "Think of it as a business deal. I trade my brains for your cash, and you trade your cash for your parents finally being proud of you. We both win. What's not to like?"

Jack gave another cold smile. "No wonder you're the top of the class. You even make hustling sound noble."

"How is this hustling? It'd be hustling if I asked you for money and gave you nothing in return." Like Mia always did with me. "I'm offering a real service here. This brain of mine is worth a lot."

Jack seemed intrigued. He looked me up and down, and the corner of his mouth curved into a grin. "Fine. I'll give you one month. If my grades actually improve, you keep tutoring me, and you can name your price."

"But if my grades don't improve—" He trailed off, dragging the words out with a sly edge to his voice.

I swallowed hard. "Then what?"

Jack raised an eyebrow and said, "I'll throw you off that ledge."

I glanced over at the edge of the rooftop.

When he said that, I actually felt relieved.

He was never really going to throw me off.

I laughed and held out my hand to him. "Here's to a great partnership."

Jack glanced at my outstretched hand for a moment, but he didn't shake it. He just waved me off and said, "Get lost and stop bothering me. I'm trying to sleep."

I grinned and said, "Same time tomorrow then!"

I stood up, gave him a little wave, and walked away with a spring in my step.

Yes! I had just landed myself a long-term meal ticket!

For the rest of high school, I wouldn't have to hustle for money anymore.

Why was I so confident?

Because I always believed in myself and knew I could raise Jack's grades.