Lincoln

"We'll be in and out before you know it," I said, fixing Sadie's jacket as we stepped off the bus.

The jacket in question was a little too big despite my mom claiming it was a steal when she showed up with it one night. It was like a dress on Sadie's small frame, draping below her knees and drooping off her shoulders.

"It's okay," Sadie said with a smile. "I have Beary with me."

"I'm sure you two will have lots of fun while I'm studying." I lightly pinched her nose.

Sadie laughed. The airy sound calmed the tension I'd been feeling about bringing her to campus with me. Mom was working the day shift at the hospital and there was no one else that I could trust to watch my little sister until she was home from work. Usually I could have called our elderly neighbour, Mrs. Zhang, but she was out of the state visiting family. Andrew would have been my last resort but he had the lunch shift at Red Room. With no other options, I lugged Sadie along with me—something she was more than content with.

I rose from my knee and offered her my hand. She took it without question, her favourite stuffed animal tucked under her other arm. It took a few more minutes than it normally would for me to reach Williams library because of Sadie's short strides. Last time I checked, I was already ten minutes late thanks to the unpredictability of public transportation. I knew Cali was going to have something to say about it.

And I was right.

Cali's glare snapped up once she heard the click of the study room door open. Her lips were set in a tight line, the frustration written all over her face. She looked ready to rip me a new one until she took in the four-year-old beside me.

"Who is this?" Cali asked, rising from her seat.

"This is Sadie," I said, placing a hand on top of my sister's head.

Cali didn't even spare me a glance. She approached Sadie, getting down to her level and sticking out her hand. "Hi Sadie, I'm Cali."

Sadie didn't say anything. But unlike the first time I met Cali, she accepted the handshake. And in that moment I was forever grateful for Sadie's angelic features. Maybe I would have to bring her to study sessions more often. If it kept my tutor off my back, I would gladly make the sacrifice.

"Are you going to be joining us today?" Cali continued once she took her hand back.

An uncomfortable feeling pulled at my stomach. I waited for Cali to give Sadie that familiar look of confusion or to prompt her with more questions.

But she didn't miss a beat. "I'm glad you could make it."

Cali returned to her seat, giving Sadie and I room to settle into the space. Slipping off Sadie's jacket, I placed her into the empty chair beside me. Her tiny fingers clutched onto the worn stuffed animal. The short, brown fur looked ratty and dishevelled.

I slid my bag off my shoulder, finding my seat in-between them.

"Alright," I huffed. "Let's get this over with."

Cali's smile didn't reach her eyes. I could feel the glower she was holding back, but I was thankful she didn't push the topic of me being late (again). Cali flipped through some of her old notes. Stacks of colour coded headings and hand-drawn diagrams filled the pages.

"Did you transcribe the entire textbook?" I said, blinking at the stacks of notebooks and cue cards.

"I remember things better once I've written them down by hand." Cali flipped through another few pages before landing on the topic of focus for today. She took a bite of her sandwich before elaborating. "How comfortable are you with the musculoskeletal system?"

"I wouldn't say I'm comfortable with anything he's taught so far in the course," I said.

"But..." Cali paused to blink at me. "The majority of the course is on the musculoskeletal system."

"Then you understand why Hamilton thinks I need a tutor."

"I'd say that was a pretty good assumption." Cali turned a bright smile towards my sister. "Don't you think so, Sadie?"

At the mention of her name I peered down at her—her head only a few inches above the table. But instead of focusing on Cali, or her beloved Beary, Sadie's eyes zoned in on the half-eaten sandwich.

"Are you hungry?" Cali asked once she realized Sadie was staring. "Do you want some?"

Without hesitating, Cali reached a hand towards the unwrapped parchment that the sandwich lay on. "It's tuna. I hope that's okay."

"No," I started to raise from my chair. " I'll go get her something."

"Is she allergic to fish or something?"

"No, but that's your lunch—"

"It's fine. I'm full anyways."

I placed my hand on my back pocket, checking for my wallet. "Don't worry about it. I'll go grab her something quickly."

Cali put her hand up, stopping me from stepping away from the table. "Absolutely not. If you leave now, you'll waste even more time. I don't mind sharing."

"It's fine—"

She dared me with her eyes to move. I didn't.

Cali's eyes gleamed with satisfaction when my ass made contact with the plastic seat again. She placed half of the sandwich on a napkin before sliding the other half towards Sadie. "Here you go."

As expected, Sadie didn't answer, but her eyes lit up at the sight of food. Tuna was probably one of Sadie's all time favourite foods of choice. Crackers, sandwiches, pasta, you name it and she wanted tuna with it. She definitely was not your typical preschooler. Tuna was familiar to her. And at times it was all that we had stocked up in the house.

Sadie's small hands wrapped around the doughy bread as she took an enormous bite.

"Is that good?" Cali asked with a kind smile.

"Thanks," I said, not meeting Cali's gaze. Instead I focused on Sadie's content face. "I fed her before we left the house, but the bus ride took longer than expected and I didn't think to bring any snacks."

Cali's response was quiet. "No worries."

The silence stretched on for a long moment.

"So." I cleared my throat. "What were you saying about the musculoskeletal system?"

Cali bounced back into her explanation without hesitation. She started with an overview, explaining the main function of the system and why it was so integral for me to understand this particular system for my program. But it wasn't long before I zoned out. The material wasn't particularly boring. There was something about the way Cali described things that made it easy to understand.

My head just wasn't in it.

Sadie's quiet chewing seemed to boom over Cali's description of neural controls. Anxiety simmered somewhere deep in my stomach. I was way over my fucking head.

Calm the fuck down.

Under the table, I forced my leg to stop bouncing.

"Is everything okay?"

Cali's eyes were on me, scanning my face. I hadn't realized how light brown they were—almost hazel, but not quite.

"Yeah," I managed to get out. "I'm fine. I was just trying to picture what you were talking about." The lie came out so fluently, I almost believed it myself.

Cali didn't hesitate to shift her chair a little closer, placing the textbook in between us. A slight smile pulled at the corner of her lips and I wondered if she was happy that I was showing some interest in studying. It almost made me feel bad about being dishonest. Almost.

"Here," she said. Her finger was pointing to an illustrated version of the human body. "Your musculoskeletal system includes bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments and soft tissues. Basically, everything in this system works together to provide five main functions. Those five functions are body support, facilitation of movement, protection of internal organs, storage of minerals and fat, and hematopoiesis."

"Gotcha," I said.

"Does any of this sound familiar?" Cali sounded hopeful.

"It might have."

"If..." Her eyebrows raised.

"If I ever went to class."

Cali's head fell towards the table, landing with a soft thud. "We have a lot of work to do."

I bit back a smile. "Yes, you do." 

* * * * *

author's note:

Today has been a long one and all I want to do is curl up with a tea and read a book. What are you planning on doing this weekend? 

P.S. how do you like the new chapter headers? I thought they added a nice little touch in letting you know who's POV we're in.

See you next week!