novelraw Chapter 168: A Father-in-Law Is Also a Father
Chapter 168: A Father-in-Law Is Also a Father
The second mock exam was held at the end of April. For the high school seniors, whose hands were cramping from doing so many practice tests, there wasn’t much nervousness left. They were all quite calm.
In this mock exam, Mortimer Quincy’s score of 747 finally made a "huge" leap to 748.
At this level, raising his score by a single point was as difficult as it was for other students in the honors class to raise theirs by twenty.
Rumor had it that several language arts teachers had reviewed his essay together. It should have been a perfect score, as they couldn’t find any reason to deduct points. In the end, the teachers, along with the principal, decided to dock him two points just to be safe.
To leave some room for improvement.
Holly Winslow’s score on the second mock exam was similar to her first, somewhere in the 730s. Her grades had plateaued, and it would be very difficult to raise her score any further.
So for now, she was just trying her best to solidify what she already knew.
The biggest dark horse in the class this time was Paul Powell. He had shot up from the standard university threshold to the top-tier university threshold, even breaking into the top ten of the class—which meant the top ten of their grade—ranking one spot behind Luna Lynch.
With one more student hitting the top-tier threshold, Gabe Chaucer was ecstatic. He praised Paul Powell for several minutes during language arts class.
As he was being praised, Paul Powell glanced at Luna Lynch beside him with a silly grin. Anyone with eyes could see what was going on, and the class instantly erupted in a chorus of teasing.
Gabe Chaucer naturally saw it too, but he didn’t say anything.
’This is what it means to be young,’ he sighed to himself.
He completely failed to notice a certain boy and girl in his class holding hands.
Holly Winslow kept her body still, secretly trying to pull her hand back. Mortimer Quincy just raised an eyebrow and laced their fingers together tightly.
Holly Winslow: "..."
’She was genuinely afraid Gabe Chaucer would see. But this guy wouldn’t let go, so she had no choice but to discreetly shift her stool a little.’
Mortimer Quincy shifted along with her, their shoulders pressing together.
In the entire row, they were the only two sitting so close. Gabe Chaucer glanced at them for a few seconds, thought nothing of it, and looked away, continuing to go over the test paper.
At noon on the day the mock exam scores were released, Holly Winslow received a call from Iris Kensington. Before Holly could even speak, Iris’s excited screams burst through the phone, "AHHHH, Holly! I scored in the 430s, and Anna scored in the 420s! AHHHH, we can’t believe it! HAHAHAHA!"
Anna Willow’s voice followed immediately. "Holly, HAHAHAHA, I’m so happy."
Hearing their voices, Holly Winslow laughed along with them. Her eyes curved into crescents as she offered her sincere congratulations. "Congrats, you two fairies! You made the cut for university! Keep it up and aim for a top-tier school next."
"HAHAHAHA." Iris Kensington and Anna Willow couldn’t stop laughing on the other end of the line.
As a reward, Holly Winslow added, "I’ll treat you guys to barbecue when we get a break."
"I want cheese rice cakes," Iris Kensington said without hesitation.
Anna Willow chimed in, "I want two servings of meat."
"You got it. This little rich girl has plenty of money." Holly Winslow nodded with a grin, and they moved on to other girly secrets.
In the row ahead, Zeke Zane turned to watch Holly Winslow on the phone, a complicated expression on his face.
’He’d put in so much effort, staying up late to tutor Anna Willow, but the first person she called when her scores came out wasn’t him.’
"..."
’As her boyfriend, he was a little hurt.’
’Ahem, actually, what hurt more was that Anna Willow hadn’t really settled into the role of a girlfriend yet.’
After all, they hadn’t seen each other once since they officially started dating.
Mortimer Quincy noticed his expression and raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly. As someone with experience, he knew this kind of situation was perfectly normal, but he wasn’t about to say it.
At this thought, he shot a mournful glance at the girl who was blooming with laughter.
’Putting her friends before him.’
Holly Winslow caught his gaze and found it baffling. She tilted her head and habitually stroked his cheek, silently asking him what was wrong.
Probably because she was on the phone, she had forgotten they were in a classroom with over forty other people.
Mortimer Quincy’s lips curved into a smile. He then rested his head on her desk, watching her talk on the phone.
’He was so damn charming.’
Holly Winslow stopped mid-sentence. After a dozen seconds, she grabbed a test paper and covered his face with it.
’If you keep looking at me like that, we might as well go home and make babies.’
Mortimer Quincy reached up and took it off. The already narrow corners of his eyes seemed to lengthen even more, carrying a hint of desire.
As the two lovebirds were being all couple-y, Zeke Zane was left speechless. "..."
’Was his own wattage too low? Is that why he wasn’t shining bright enough?’
’He couldn’t be the only one blinded by this inhumane display.’ He scanned the classroom and found Pantheon in the back, huddled over to watch someone play a game. He waved him over. "Forrest, come here."
Pantheon didn’t think much of it, assuming something was up, and hurried over. "What’s up?"
"Look to your right," Zeke Zane said, pointing.
Pantheon subconsciously glanced over, but by the time he realized what was happening, it was too late. He saw Mortimer Quincy toying with Holly Winslow’s ponytail, looking effortlessly and lazily handsome. "..."
’Zeke Zane, to hell with your "look to your right"!’
"Zeke Zane, are you even human? You’ve used this trick so many times!"
Seeing him fly off the handle, Zeke Zane felt much better. He grinned mischievously. "It’s not about how many tricks you have, but how effective they are. As long as it works."
Pantheon: "..."
’Screw you.’
He turned his gaze to Chase Hawkins, who was in on the joke. Chase Hawkins had already noticed their movements and simply rolled his eyes upward. "I don’t see anything."
Pantheon: "..."
’Dammit, they’ve all gotten smart.’
’He was the only one who kept falling for it again and again.’
’No wonder I can’t find a girlfriend.’
’Pah! How could I think that? It has nothing to do with this.’
’I’m a good student!!’
At noon, Wyatt Winslow came to see Holly Winslow. He brought a lot of snacks, as well as a full meal.
When Holly Winslow saw him in a gray short-sleeved shirt, she was stunned for a moment, then said happily, "Dad, why did you bring food? Aren’t you busy?"
"Not anymore."
Wyatt Winslow handed her the things and studied her for a moment. Her complexion was rosy. "Go on and eat. I’m leaving."
He paused. "Don’t work yourself too hard."
’How could he not be busy with the factory expansion?’ Holly Winslow knew this but pretended she didn’t. She reached out and linked her arm with his. "Hehe, if you’re not busy, Dad, then eat with me."
"I’ve already eaten."
Wyatt Winslow knew the seniors had a short lunch break and didn’t dare delay her any longer. "I have something else to do, I’m going," he said again.
Holly Winslow couldn’t make him stay, so she could only wave goodbye to him.
Wyatt Winslow had brought two meals, clearly one for Mortimer Quincy as well. As Holly Winslow set out the food, she huffed, "Hmph, hmph. Look how good Dad is to you."
Mortimer Quincy took out spoons for both of them and raised a single eyebrow. "He’s my dad. Of course he’s good to me."
"Shameless."
Holly Winslow scolded him with a laugh, then her lips curved into a smile when she saw the pickled chicken feet.
She picked up her phone and sent a message to Wyatt Winslow: Dad, the pickled chicken feet are delicious.
Wyatt Winslow, who had just left the school gate, saw the message, and a hint of softness appeared in his brow. He replied: Okay.
「In the classroom.」
Holly Winslow and Mortimer Quincy weren’t the only ones eating. Other students were also enjoying homemade meals brought by their parents to supplement the cafeteria food.
Cynthia Owens was among them. Her grandmother brought her lunch every day. She actually used to bring food for Mortimer Quincy too, but since he wanted to eat with Holly Winslow, he had told her not to bring his anymore.
Holly Winslow shared some of the chicken feet with Cynthia Owens and a few others.
When Pantheon and Zeke Zane got back, the two were still eating. Pantheon saw the chicken feet and gulped. "Eating something good, huh? Ahem, Cousin, can I have one?"
Holly Winslow pushed the container toward them, gesturing for them to take some. Pantheon and the others didn’t hesitate. Pantheon took a bite. "Whoa, this is delicious! The sour and spicy flavor is on point."
Mortimer Quincy gave him a cool glance. "My dad made them."
Holly Winslow: "..."
Pantheon, Zeke Zane, and Chase Hawkins: "..."
’Have some shame, will you?’
’That’s your dad?’
’Fine.’
’A father-in-law is a dad too.’
Paul Powell was leaning against a desk, gnawing on a chicken foot as he asked in confusion, "Isn’t that Cousin’s dad? Did I remember wrong?"