6: The Cursed Tutor (1/1)

"Ms. Park, please see me after class." While all of the other students packed their bags and headed for lunch, Joy was stuck watching them disappear. She got a few gestures of solidarity telling her they are with her, but she was to face the teacher alone. Once the last student left and the door closed shut, Joy finally made her move to the front of the classroom where a very familiar teacher was waiting. "Hey Coach, you called?" "Joy, I'm Ms. Lee during school." "Sorry, Ms. Llllleeeee?" Joy playfully struggling to use the different term of endearment. "You are lucky I like you." It was hard for Ms. Lee to not play at least a little bit of favoritism towards Joy. After all, Joy was the star player to the volleyball team coached by none other than Ms. Lee. The school wasn't really outstanding in any way until Joy and Ms. Lee turned the volleyball team around winning the championship last year and making a strong run this year. "Do you have your test from last week?" "Yeah." Joy pulled out the test and laid it on the desk. "You do realize what I'm trying to say?" Ms. Lee taps on the dark red "31" on the top of the paper. Joy couldn't look at Ms. Lee anymore. She knew. "Joy, I don't want to do this, but you know my policy with grades. I have to suspend you from the team." Joy's face winced rather than showed shock. She knew it was inevitable, it just hurt to finally hear it. "I know you work hard though. I know you are as upset as anyone about this. So I did some calculations. There is another test coming up next Friday before the game. I'll grade it as soon as possible and if you can get at least an 85, you'll be able to play missing only one game." Ms. Lee tried to sound positive about this opportunity, but it was an uphill battle. "I'll try." Joy couldn't sound confident at all. This wasn't a case of an athlete ignoring school. In fact, it was the opposite. Joy did and turned in all of her homework. She asked questions and paid attention in class. She was a model student... who didn't understand the subject material. She was floating above the average needed, but the last test really killed her. "I do have a little ace up the sleeve though, I got you a tutor. She will help you on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and then again on Monday and Wednesday next week. The lessons start at four in the school library. So don't miss them." "Do you really think this will work?" Joy wanted to believe, her coach rarely let her down, but that was usually during matches. "I do, you are a hard worker and she is a very good tutor. I know you'll get it." "What's her name?" "Wendy Son." ~~~   ~~~   ~~~For the life of her, Joy couldn't think of a Wendy Son. Admittedly, Joy avoided most things related to school that didn't involve volleyball in some way. The only reason she even took her studies seriously was that she knew she couldn't play without passing grades. School events or school drama couldn't be any more foreign to her. Not one to really over think things, Joy grabbed her lunch and headed to the cafeteria to eat lunch with her teammates, as per usual. Everyone else had already started and were busy talking to each other, so she just snuck in at the end of the long table to not disturb anyone. "Hey, Captain!" The monolid girl Joy sat next to ruined that plan. "Hey, Seulgi." The table quickly quieted and everyone turned their attention straight towards their captain. It wasn't a secret that Joy struggled with their coach's class and staying after was not a good sign. "So what happened?" The youngest on the team jumped straight to the point. "I'm suspended." Everyone began throwing in their suggestions or voicing out concerns to the person next to them creating a mess of sounds. Without Joy, the team would definitely struggle. The buzz slowly spread across the whole cafeteria as the volleyball team was a big deal for the school. "What are you going to do?" Finally, the vice-captain and the oldest on the team, Irene, spoke up. "Coach said I need to get an 85 on the test next Friday and I should be able to play. She set up a tutor already." "But hasn't the coach already tried tutoring you personally? It's obviously not working." "Shut it, Yeri." Irene knows that that type of thinking wasn't helping. "Coach seems to trust her a lot, so I think it will be okay. But until then, I trust you to run the team, Irene." "Of course, do you know the tutor's name? Must be pretty smart." "Wendy Son?" A bunch of murmurs once again filled the room. Joy thought the whole thing was ridiculous. "Joy… you need to be careful." "Huh?" Joy didn't understand the sudden worry from Seulgi. "You've never heard about Wendy?" Irene was quite shocked. "Why would I?" "Of course she hasn't. If it doesn't have a ball and a net to hit said ball over, she is clueless." "Yeri, just shut up, you aren't helping." Yeri stuck her tongue out at the vice-captain. "Why would Coach set up Joy with Wendy?" Seulgi jumped in with her concern. "What is going on!?" Joy rarely showed large emotions outside of the game, but it was getting frustrating. Wendy was her last resort and three of her closest friends on the team made it sound like she was walking into a trap. "Listen… Captain… Wendy is one of the smartest kids in school." Yeri put her arm around Joy like she was about to teach Joy how life works. "But?" "She is a bitch." "As long as she teaches me, I don't care." "No, you don't get it. Wendy purposely screws people over. She teaches people the wrong things so they are fucked on tests." "Why would she do that?" "Who the hell knows, she is probably jealous or something because her life sucks as a loner. And she probably hates you the most." "What? Why? I haven't done anything." "Oh come on, you are the school's pride. The star jock who carried the school's name to fame through volleyball." "Have any of you actually worked with her? This all sounds like stupid rumors." This was the exact reason Joy just concentrated on volleyball. Listening to people exaggerate about things they heard from other people. "Umm, I did." Another younger girl raised her hand shyly. "I only needed help to pass a test, but she said I was doing things wrong. Then when I followed her instructions, I failed. She was also snobby about it too." "This all seems like a TV show…" This whole situation was why she hated high school drama. People got more obsessed with gossiping and spreading rumors instead of doing something productive. "The coach wouldn't send me to a bad tutor. If I don't do well, I can't play on the team…" "Just be careful okay." Even Irene was suspicious of this Wendy figure. Joy couldn't help but wonder how dangerous this character was. ~~~   ~~~   ~~~ "So it is you." Joy had all of her afternoon classes to reset her preconceptions of Wendy. She needed Wendy and the coach never led her astray, but how could she not be at least cautious with her closest friends sharing horror stories. One of her teammates even had first-hand experience with Wendy. "Are you just going to stand there like an idiot?" Joy was incredulous. She had never met this Wendy person before, so the hostility was uncalled for. Despite her harsh words, when Joy observed the girl, Wendy shied away from eye contact, so much for the tough girl act. "Are you Wendy Son?" Joy tried to diffuse the situation by starting from the top. "What gave you that idea, Sherlock?" More attempted venom from Wendy, but this time she never lifted her head and there was no confidence behind the words. "Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to teach me." Joy finally set down her stuff and sat down. "Whatever." Joy found herself laughing mentally at the whole situation. She wasn't sure why Wendy tried to put on an act, but she was terrible. Two sentences, Joy said two sentences and Wendy couldn't look Joy in the eyes. She was mumbling to herself and the facade was broken. If Wendy's failed bluff wasn't funny enough, the further they got into the lesson, the brighter Wendy got. Every time Joy solved a problem correctly, Wendy visibly cheered for her. And it happened a lot. Wendy was a miracle worker in Joy's eyes. What once felt like an alien language suddenly made sense. She knew Kung Fu. Wendy had a unique style of figuring out how Joy's brain worked before even touching the subject material and it worked. By the end of the session, Joy was even starting to understand the next lesson before it was even covered in class. "It's time to go." Wendy's brightness seemed to dim as the time was up. "Thank you so much. You don't understand how much this means to me. I'll see you on Wednesday? Same time?" "Sure." ~~~   ~~~   ~~~ Of course, news had spread that Joy actually finished a session with the devil spawn of their school. So when she went to eat lunch in peace, her teammates had other plans. "Yo Cap! You actually did it!" Seulgi was the first to greet her. "Yeah." Joy took a bite of her sandwich hoping there would be no questioning. "So, details!" Yeri invaded in Joy's personal space once again to display this ridiculous level of supposed comradery. "What do you want me to say? She did what was asked of her." Her teammates had the gall to laugh in her face. "So you're telling me that she actually taught you something?" "Yes." "Where our coach failed, she somehow succeeded?" "Yes… are you calling me an idiot?" "No, idiot. I'm telling you she is scamming you. Tell me, how did she act when you first greeted her?" "Why does that matter?" Joy could only explain her attitude as hostile, but that fact wasn't going to help the situation. "Joy, you are too nice, blinded to the real world." "Thanks for your advice wise sage Yeri, but the fact is, she was able to teach me what I needed and I should be able to pass the test next week." Yeri, Seulgi, and Irene simply shrugged and continued with lunch. They were worried but trusted Joy. Or they trusted Joy's love for volleyball. "BS." The sound came from a little down the table. "Excuse me?" Joy spoke up. "I said that's utter bullshit, Captain. You said you learned something? I bet my position on the team that she made it all up. Let me guess, she clapped and celebrated for you when you got an answer "right"?" The non-sarcastic air quotes weren't missed. Joy raised an eyebrow. She never mentioned Wendy's habit. "Here is an idea. I'll give you a few problems, you solve it and I'll tell you if what she was teaching you is wrong." Joy honestly didn't really remember who the benchwarmers were, but she was curious. The fact that this girl knew of Wendy's habit and the fact that the whole ordeal did feel too good to be true created caution. The girl took a seat right next to Joy and took out a piece of paper and pencil and began writing. The second she was handed the problems, Joy went at them without hesitation. Using her newly gained information, she solved the problems in no time flat. The girl then took the paper and observed them for a few moments. "Yeah, she is fucking with you." "What are you talking about! You didn't even solve them!" "That's not the point, I saw your work, that's not how it's done." Joy kept silent. "Look, we are worried about you. We need you for the game." ~~~   ~~~   ~~~ Soon enough, Joy is approaching the library once again for her second tutoring session. Because of the surprise quiz from her teammate, her thoughts were consumed by Wendy. Wendy was only nice to her, yet she was told she was a jerk. Wendy's teachings made sense, yet she has multiple sources saying that Wendy is lying. Joy also noticed Wendy around school once, but she was being pestered by a few students who were obviously fans of the volleyball team. Joy was about to put a stop to it until Wendy yelled out that she'll "teach that moron whatever she wants." Joy wasn't exactly keen on being called a moron. So even though Wendy greeted her with a smile, Joy had to confront her about a few things, maybe get the truth. "Are you teaching me the wrong stuff?" Wendy's smile turned into a frown so fast. "No, what the hell are you talking about…" This was the first time Wendy sounded legitimately mad compared to their first meeting. "Well, my teammates gave me practice problems and said I did them wrong." "Well, your teammates are idiots." "Wendy, you should-" "Should what? Are you going to be like everyone else? If so, you can leave. I'm only doing this as a favor to Ms. Lee anyways." Compared to the facade Wendy put up on Monday, this all felt real. "Wait, are you close with Ms. Lee?" Joy had forgotten Wendy came recommended by the coach. "She has helped me before, yes. Why?" "Nothing, sorry I said anything. I trust you." Wendy gave her a look but softened rather quickly. Just like the first lesson, the second one suddenly became simple under Wendy's tutelage. Everything even connected as lessons should. If Wendy was making it all up, Joy wondered if Wendy would become a politician, or a cult leader, because Joy was ready to buy whatever Wendy was selling with how convincing and brilliant it was. ~~~   ~~~   ~~~ "Ugh, Irene keeps making us run laps." "Correction, I'm making you run laps, Yeri, because you aren't doing your digs properly." "Ahh, Seulgi! Help me from the demon." "Don't drag me to hell with you!" Joy laughed as she walked behind the three who decided to walk to lunch with her this time around. "What the hell is going on with the team?" As soon as they entered the cafeteria, Yeri saw the team grouped up at their usual table, but not sitting at all. Rather they motioned for Joy to sit as if they were about t