Tutoring in Love 2

Beep… Beep… Beep.

I swear, one day, I will pull the damn plug and put an end to that infuriating sound. A sigh escaped my lips. Who am I kidding? If I ever did that, someone would probably die.

The display in front of me showed an ECG, oxygen saturation, and blood pressure. If any of those vital stats started fluctuating dangerously, the alarm would blare. So, yeah, for now, I just had to stay silent and endure that annoying beep.

“You’ll get used to it. I’ve been here two weeks, and I barely hear it anymore,” Tamara said, her voice breaking the monotony of the beeps.

I turned my head to face her. Tamara was a nursing trainee, a friendly one at that. She had these super curly black locks that covered half her face, but her smile always peeked through. Her almond-shaped eyes formed cute little lines whenever she smiled, and her sun-kissed skin gave off this warm, inviting vibe. After getting to know her, I found out she had North African roots— A Moroccan flower, that’s what I called her... In my mind.

“Yeah, I hope so,” I muttered, not exactly convinced.

“Anyway, Lucas was looking for you. He said he had some new cards he wanted to show you.”

“Oh, cool. I’ll head over then.”

I left the room with Tamara trailing behind me and made my way to Room 16. Inside was a kid about 11 years old, lying in a hospital bed. He had an oxygen tube under his nose and was covered by a thick white blanket, staring out the window at the birds. Occasionally, he’d let out a dry cough.

When he heard me knock on the open door, he shouted, “Jack!”

“Hey, Lucas, I heard you wanted to show me something?” I said, walking in.

Lucas had pneumonia, a lung infection. He’d need a few days of antibiotics before he’d be back to his usual self—at least that’s what the doctors said. Not that I understood the specifics. Still, he’d been hit hard, and he had to stay in the hospital for an IV drip.

I sat next to him on the bed, and Lucas scooted over to make room. He grabbed a stack of Pokémon cards from the table next to him.

“Look! I got Charizard and Eevee!” he said, his eyes wide with excitement.

“Wow, you got lucky. Show me!” I leaned in, genuinely interested.

We spent a good chunk of time talking about the cards, debating the best combos, and playing a little game. All the while, like a creepy stalker, Tamara stood by the door and watched us. What was her deal? Didn’t trust me to be alone with a kid? As if I’d do something stupid. She didn’t know me that well yet.

I’m Jack Valor, responsible adult extraordinaire!

About half an hour later, I left the room with Lucas grinning ear to ear. Good karma points for me.

“You’re really good with kids, you know? You’re just like your father!” Tamara remarked.

“Uhh… thanks?”

I wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or not. I didn’t exactly want to be like my dad. He was a serious man, obsessed with success and reputation—he wanted the same for his kids. That’s the only reason I was here, helping out at the hospital. Dad’s wish had always been for me to follow in his footsteps, go to a prestigious medical school after graduation, and take over his practice.

I didn’t have a choice.

And I had to start gaining experience early, apparently. So, whenever I had a break in my schedule, I’d show my face at the hospital. My dad was the head of the children’s department, so he could just pull strings and make me work here. But to be honest, I wasn’t even sure what I was supposed to be doing.

Funny thing—he never really showed up to work that much. What exactly does a chief physician do all day?

Together with Tamara, I walked to the break room, where gastroenterological consultation happened, which was secretly just the fancy name for “lunch.” Inside, a few nurses were munching on their food, gossiping like they were competing for the title of “Hospital Gossip Queen.”

“You heard about Jane? She slept with Mitch on their last night shift!”

“What? Isn’t she married?”

“Yeah, but they found used condoms in his room.”

“Ha… I knew it! I saw it from the start.”

And off they went again, spilling the hot and spicy tea on every piece of hospital drama. Whether it was true or not didn’t matter. It was all about the gossip.

I sat in the corner, eating in silence. Better not get involved in that hornet’s nest unless I wanted to get stung. Stay calm, Jack. Calm.

At least I had Tamara with me. She wasn’t part of the group yet, being a trainee and all, so we bonded over our shared loneliness. She was cute, kind, and—let’s be honest—hot too. Every time she smiled, I realized why the sun rose in the east. If everyone in Morocco smiled like that, the world would light up.

I was deep in thought when someone poked my arm.

“Jack, someone wants to speak to you about Lucas. Looks like one of his relatives is waiting outside,” a nurse said.

I shrugged, leaving my half-eaten sandwich on the table.

I found myself in front of Lucas’ room again. Standing outside was a guy about my age, leaning against the wall. He looked a lot like an older version of Lucas, and something about him seemed familiar, though I couldn’t place where I knew him from.

“Hey, you wanted to speak to me?” I asked, approaching him.

“Oh, hi…” His eyes widened. “Are you Jack?”

“Uh, yes?”

“Jack from Everglade High?”

Did he know me? Was he in my year? That might explain the familiarity.

“Yeah... Sorry, I don’t remember your name,” I admitted, feeling a little awkward. I was terrible with names.

“No worries,” he said, waving it off. “I’ve heard a few things about you recently.”

Oh, great. Probably about the party where I ended up fighting Brandon and his idiot friends while defending my younger sister, Lisa. Sometimes I wished for a Death Note just so I could write their names down and be done with them. Calm down, Jack... Bad thoughts... Evil thoughts...

After a beat of awkward silence, he continued, “I’m Justin. I’m visiting my younger brother, Lucas. He’s one of the patients here. What brought you here?” He gave me a once-over, probably noticing my all-white outfit. I must’ve looked like a doctor—if only I had the credentials to match.

“Are you working here?” he asked.

“Yeah, well, somehow.”

“Somehow?”

“More like helping out. I’m not getting paid.”

I said it as a joke but in reality? My dad was cheap as hell. No lunch money, no allowance—nothing. What the hell, Dad! That's slavery, I could sue you!

Justin mumbled something under his breath that I didn’t catch. “Wow, so you’re volunteering?”

“What?”

“Nothing... So, you’re the guy Lucas was talking about. He mentioned playing Pokémon cards with you. Sorry if he annoyed you with that! I wanted to apologize.”

“No worries, it was fun.”

It’s not like I didn’t collect Pokémon cards too, sometimes even bragging about them to Lucas. But Justin didn’t need to know that.

We said our goodbyes after he said "Thank you" at least ten times and I found myself back with Tamara, who was, unsurprisingly, gossiping. She wasn't immune to this disease.

“Have you heard about the senior nurse and the new—”

I sighed inwardly. There she went again.

"... us too?" Tamara asked, eyeing me.

Shit, I didn’t catch that. Should I just be honest or nod my head and smile? I opted for the second.

“Ehmm, sorry didn’t catch that.”

Tamara rolled her eyes playfully. “Typical guys. Is it that hard to listen?”

It was, as I spoke for all men, sometimes it really was. Ms. Cherion, my blond neighbor, my affaire d'amour, my personal Goddess, would always smile at me when I zoned out—something about it being in a guy’s nature not to overload our brains. Sure, it was kind of insulting, but her smile... man, it had this magic to it. When she smiled, it was like my heart got fixed, and my brain just forgot the insult. All I could think about was how much I wanted to stay in that moment. And then she’d say, “Apologize if you zone out on someone else.” I’d do it, of course, because when Ms. Cherion gives you a command, you obey.

Damn, stop zoning out again and just listen!

“Sorry,” I mumbled, rubbing my temples.

She laughed and then repeated her question. “... Do you think they’ll start rumors about us too?”

“Rumors? About us?” I asked, not understanding the question.

But Tamara didn't elaborate, instead, she changed the topic.

“Here’s one of the call rooms. You wanted to see one, right?” her voice turned deeper. I couldn't see her expression as she faced the door and opened it.

“Thanks!” I said, genuinely grateful. I walked in, curious about what the rooms were like for the staff who worked crazy shifts.

The call room was simple: a single bed, a desk under the window, a closet, and a bathroom. Nothing fancy. Efficient.

Click.

Tamara closed the door and locked it. I turned around, ready to tell her I’d already seen enough and wasn’t that interested anyway—so there was no need to lock the door. We could’ve just left.

But then my mouth went dry. My eyes widened into two saucer-sized donuts. I didn’t fully process what was happening. Why... why was she taking off her blue top?

It’s been over a year, and I’m finally diving into the sequel! Funny enough, I have even less time now than I did back when I said I needed a break for “time reasons.” But hey, here we are—Tutoring in Love 2 is officially online! Jack’s life is busier than ever, with new characters, fresh challenges, a deeper plot, and hopefully more steamy moments... right?

I’d love to know—what are you most excited to see in the sequel? Let me know your thoughts! :)

-InkandEats98