Acting as the Ideal Tutor - Part 2

I noticed that he had handed me a note alongside the keycard.

—She might be cold at first but I'm sure you guys will get along.

Well, for $300 an hour, I guess I'd at least try to teach her something. Granted, my entire school life is being threatened, but even if worse comes to worst, the reveal of The Incident that Ruined the Outcomes wouldn't exactly destroy my life. I made my way over to the elevator and pressed the button. The elevator door instantly opened.

Well, I guess I won't be having much free time in the near future.

It was a large, posh elevator that looked as if it was made for royalty. I scanned the keycard again on a sensor on the elevator before it allowed me to select the level I wanted to go to. Floor 6, room 124, that's where I was going.

A few moments later, the elevator door opened once again, and I made my way to room 124.

Should I just walk in?

I wasn't sure if the person I was tutoring had been notified of my arrival. I worried that I might accidentally catch them off-guard and have the police called on me. My keycard could technically unlock the door, but I decided to knock anyways.

A few seconds later, the door opened, and I was greeted by a short, brown-haired girl. On the other side of the door, I saw a Yokosuka Girls Academy uniform. It was probably the most prestigious school in the entire area, comparable only with National High School, even so, Yokosuka was likely much more elegant, whilst NHS was more academically-based.

"What do you want?" she asked with a very harsh tone.

"I'm your tutor."

Slam.

The door closed right in my face.

Ah, what a pain.

"Can you please let me in? I was sent here by your father."

"No, I don't need another tutor."

"I'm afraid that decision isn't up to you."

She didn't respond to my next statement.

[Illustration]

Ugh.

I decided to just scan the keycard and open the door.

I slowly made my way into the high-end apartment. It was somewhat messy, there were clothes all over the ground and other items hanging where they shouldn't.

"Ah! What are you doing in here?"

"I've got a keycard to this apartment."

"Go away! I told you—I don't want a tutor!"

I walked over to her as she was sitting on the couch. The TV was on, and she was watching some fantasy show with kings and queens.

"I'm afraid you're going to have to accept it whether you like it or not."

Suddenly, she turned off the TV and ran into a room, slamming the door behind her. I decided to take a seat on the couch while I thought about what to do. I could use force to make her come out, but I doubt that'd allow for any positive outcomes for either of us.

It wasn't like I had anything I needed to do these two days. If I wanted to, I could camp here the entire time and wait for her to come out. Even so, I needed to think of a way to get her to study.

What a troublesome situation.

I walked over to the room she was hiding in and spoke through the door.

"Why do you not want to study?"

I was met by silence.

I grabbed the doorknob and began turning it before I felt a force pulling it the opposite way.

I guess I'd use a little more strength.

I twisted the doorknob with a little more power, and I heard a squeal on the other side of the door. As soon as I felt a slight release on the doorknob, I pulled open the door.

"Hey!"

Before she could close it again, I jammed my foot between the door and the hinge.

"Sorry, but I have my own reasons for doing this."

She pulled on the door, but it wouldn't budge.

Through the small crevice, I managed to see into her room. On a desk behind her, I noticed a large collection of trophies scattered all around her room were various different eloquent chess sets—it didn't take long for me to connect the dots.

"So you like chess?"

"Shut up; I'm not talking to you!"

"I assumed you're a chess prodigy with all of those trophies."

"Why does that matter to you?"

"If you're so good at chess, surely studying also comes easy for you."

She didn't respond.

"How about this; if you beat me in a game of chess, I'll leave you alone forever..."

She was extremely surprised by my sudden proposition. I quickly shoved the door open and entered her room. She backed up as I walked closer.

"But if you lose, you have to study with me."

"W-wait... why are you..."

"You're confident in your skills, aren't you? I'm just a nobody."

She took a second to think about it.

"Fine... but get out of my room."

I walked out back into the lounge room.

It had been quite a few years since I last played a proper game of chess.

After a few moments, she came back out of her room with a chess set.

"I want you to leave this house as soon as I win."

"You have my word."

Slowly, she began putting the pieces in place. The chess set she chose wasn't a very stylistic one. It was quite basic, being made out of standard wood—however, it was still much more elegant than any of the chess sets I had ever used.

Just observing the way she was placing the pieces on the board, it was obvious that she was quite proficient with chess. In the few seconds in which I had to glimpse at her trophies, I noticed that they were all first-place awards. There were quite a few trophies from very famous tournaments as well—some that even I'd heard of.

After a few moments, she finished setting up the board and picked up a pawn of each colour into her hand. She covered them with her hands and stuck her hands out toward me.

"Which hand?" She asked.

"Left."

She opened her left palm, exposing a white pawn.

It was decided that I would be playing white and she would be playing black.

This brings back memories.