Reborn with My Genius Husband-Chapter 82: The Difference Between a Girlfriend and a Male Classmate
Holly Winslow looked at him. "..."
’That makes me sound a little immoral.’
But every time she complained to Brooke Jarvis—no, just *told* her about it—Quincy the Puppy really was "unreasonable."
If she got off work late, or went out with Anna Willow and Iris Kensington, he would call her every five minutes. That was no exaggeration.
Anna and Iris even joked that she was completely under her husband’s thumb after getting married.
Once, the principal needed to talk to her, and Mortimer Quincy called. She rejected the call three times before the principal smiled and asked, "Is that Lawyer Quincy? You should probably take it. I’m afraid he won’t stop calling otherwise."
His tone suggested he knew exactly what was going on.
Her face turned bright red, and in that moment, she wanted nothing more than to take a kitchen knife to that jerk Mortimer.
She puffed her cheeks and glared at him. "And you have the nerve to bring that up."
Mortimer raised an eyebrow, looking completely shameless. He added, "Take out your homework and do it."
’Wow, that’s a fast topic change,’ Holly thought. "..."
She didn’t argue.
The difference between Jarton High and Jarton Second High was that Jarton High even had a lot of homework for the monthly exams.
She took a math worksheet from his backpack to work on. Mortimer also took out his homework—it was the same math worksheet.
While Holly was still reading the first question, he had already finished the first two multiple-choice problems.
"..."
She shifted her worksheet away and turned her back to him.
The two of them worked quietly for a few minutes before Wyatt Winslow called.
She shushed Mortimer, signaling for him to be quiet, then answered the phone. "Dad, I’m out shopping with Anna and the others. We’re eating dinner out." A wave of guilt washed over her as she spoke.
Wyatt Winslow, who was waiting at an airport out of town, pursed his lips and grunted in acknowledgment. "I’m still away. My flight’s delayed. I won’t be home until eight or nine tonight."
Holly breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, Dad. Be safe."
Wyatt grunted again, then said, "Let Mortimer have the phone."
"Okay," Holly agreed instinctively. When she realized what she’d said, she froze. "..."
Mortimer was close enough to have heard their conversation. Seeing his dazed wife, he couldn’t help but chuckle.
He reached over and took Holly’s phone. "Uncle Winslow, Holly is at my place doing homework. My parents are both here."
He added that last sentence out of a strong desire for self-preservation.
He then continued, "Yes, Uncle Winslow. Okay. Mm-hmm."
After a minute or two, he hung up.
Holly’s mind had gone blank, so she hadn’t heard what Wyatt had said. She asked meekly, "What did my dad say?"
"Dad said I need to behave myself, or he’ll kill me when he gets home," Mortimer said, raising an eyebrow, intentionally teasing her.
His life’s greatest pleasure was teasing his wife.
’She’s so adorably silly.’
She could tell he was lying. Wyatt Winslow could be stern, but he would never say something like that. Holly shot him an exasperated glare.
Mortimer stopped teasing her. "Dad told me to stay with you and not let you go home alone. He said one of your downstairs neighbors was burglarized a couple of nights ago."
"Dad’s so nice," Holly said, touched.
"Is your husband nice?" Mortimer asked, tilting his head.
Holly: "..."
Ignoring him, she went back to her worksheet.
By the time they finished the worksheet, Brooke Jarvis had dinner ready.
Holly was a little reserved at first, but she quickly relaxed. After all, she’d been eating meals here for many years.
"Aunt Quincy, your cooking is delicious."
Catching sight of Holly’s satisfied expression out of the corner of his eye, Mortimer couldn’t help but smile. He mimicked her, "Mom, your cooking is so delicious." As he spoke, he picked up a piece of clam with his chopsticks and placed it in Holly’s bowl.
Holly: "..."
’Quincy the Puppy, shut up!’
Brooke Jarvis glanced at Andre Quincy. It was rare to see their son, Mortimer, acting so childish. Brooke then smiled. "Come over often. I’ll cook for you."
Andre Quincy added, "Just make yourself at home."
...
「The Monthly Exams」
The exams at Jarton High were harder than at Jarton Second High. Aside from math, which was a bit of a brain-teaser, Holly found the other subjects manageable.
It was a good thing she had memorized "Free and Easy Wandering"; the passage from it on the test was a rather obscure one.
"If you pour a cup of water into a hollow on the floor, then a mustard seed can serve as a boat. But if you try to float the cup itself, it will get stuck, for the water is too shallow and the boat too large."
On the day the exams ended, Gabe Chaucer took advantage of the fact that they had to move their books to announce a seat rotation. The entire seating block would rotate.
It would happen once a month.
The seats near the door didn’t have a great view of the blackboard, so Gabe Chaucer had come up with this method to be fair.
Holly and Mortimer were in the third row, right next to the "window of death"—the spot where Gabe Chaucer loved to stand, and the Dean of Students’ favorite observation post.
Originally, Holly was supposed to sit on the aisle, but she had switched seats with Mortimer, so now Zeke Zane was sitting behind her.
Pantheon looked at Mortimer in front of him, a dying expression on his face. "Cousin, you’re so cruel."
Holly turned her head to look at him, chuckling. Just as she was about to offer a few words of comfort, a large hand covered her mouth.
Mortimer said, his tone neither harsh nor gentle, "You’re not allowed to smile at other people."
Holly: "..."
Pantheon: "..."
Zeke Zane: "..."
Feeling as though he’d just taken a ten-million-point critical hit, Pantheon exclaimed, "Mortimer, are you serious?! She can’t even smile?"
Mortimer raised an eyebrow and said with a roguish air, "Can’t be helped. I’m too jealous. Unless you go get a sex change."
Pantheon: "..."
Damn it!
Just then, Paul Powell came over with a bag of spicy sticks. "You guys want some?"
Pantheon didn’t hesitate to grab one, and Zeke Zane took one too.
Paul Powell bypassed Mortimer completely and offered the bag to Holly. "Cousin, have some, don’t be shy. These spicy sticks are delicious; they don’t even sell them at school."
Spicy sticks were unhealthy and had no nutritional value. Mortimer didn’t allow her to eat them, so Holly instinctively glanced at him.
Pantheon: "..."
Zeke Zane: "..."
Seeing how much she wanted one, Mortimer said, "Just one." He then took her pink cup and went to the faculty office to get her some warm water.
Holly took a spicy stick. "Thanks."
Paul Powell said casually, "Don’t mention it."
Watching Mortimer leave the classroom, Pantheon couldn’t help but say, "Cousin, no way. You even have to ask Mortimer for permission to eat a spicy stick? That’s tragic."
"I have a sensitive stomach, so I have to eat less of this stuff," Holly explained earnestly, not wanting others to misunderstand Mortimer.
Pantheon said, "Oh," then clicked his tongue twice. "Tsk, tsk. I never realized Mortimer could be so considerate."
After a moment, he remembered something and added, "Cousin, before you came here, Mortimer always had this super ’sour’ look on his face. It was always a ’don’t talk to me, I don’t give a damn about you’ kind of vibe." He then proceeded to imitate Mortimer’s old expression.
Paul Powell burst out laughing. "HA HA HA! Yes, yes, exactly like that!"
Holly couldn’t help but laugh too. Then she took a bite of the spicy stick. It was so hot, like eating a red-hot chili pepper raw.
’But it really is delicious.’
She only ate half of it before stopping. It was too spicy, but she felt bad throwing it away. When she saw Mortimer come back, she held the spicy stick out to him and said with a grin, "Heh heh. You eat it."
Without a word, Mortimer took her hand and ate the rest of the spicy stick she was holding. He then handed her the water bottle. "Drink some warm water."
When Paul Powell saw Mortimer eat it, he was surprised. He quickly offered him the bag. "I thought you didn’t eat this stuff, so I didn’t ask."
Mortimer never ate junk food.
"I’m good," Mortimer said, shaking his head.
Pantheon and Zeke Zane, who knew the real story: "..."
’So that’s the difference between a girlfriend and a male classmate.’
’What a hypocrite.’
