Chapter 38: Chapter 38: You Are Dad’s Pride
That afternoon during alti, Holly Winslow received a call from Wyatt Winslow.
"Dad, is sothing wrong?"
"Mr. Carlton called... He wants
to co to the parent-teacher conference on Friday."
On the other end of the line, Wyatt Winslow gripped his phone tighter after he finished speaking.
Since Holly Winslow started high school, he had only attended one parent-teacher conference. That ti, the two of them got into a fight and didn’t speak to each other for over half a month.
Holly Winslow took a spoonful of rice. Thinking about things at the factory, she asked, "Do you have ti, Dad? If you do, then you should co."
"I have ti. Things are slow at the factory recently." Wyatt Winslow’s voice sounded a little unnatural.
"Hehe, well, when you co for the eting, you can be my ’mule’ for a bit. I have a few thick jackets that need washing, and I was just wondering how I was going to get them ho." Holly Winslow could tell he was lying and smiled so wide her eyes crinkled shut.
"Yeah, okay."
After Wyatt Winslow agreed, he hung up. The words, "Have you eaten, Dad?" were on the tip of Holly’s tongue when she heard the BEEP BEEP of the disconnected line, and she swallowed them back.
Iris Kensington glanced at her and asked timidly, "Holly, Uncle Winslow is coming to the parent-teacher conference?"
Seeing Holly Winslow nod, Iris Kensington looked as if she were about to die.
"I’m dood, I’m dood. My dad is definitely going to talk to Uncle Winslow. If he finds out how big the difference is between our grades, he’ll definitely ’beat
black and blue’ when I get ho."
Iris Kensington’s father and Wyatt Winslow had been elentary school classmates, but they weren’t really close. Since Holly Winslow and Iris Kensington were friends, they would exchange a few words whenever they ran into each other.
"Ellie, when you’re getting that beating, rember to give
a call so I can listen to your painful screams." Anna Willow twisted the knife in her friend’s "wound."
Iris Kensington scooted her rice bowl a little farther from Anna Willow, turning her body away to feign anger. "Anna Willow! We’re through."
"Oh, co on. Here, you can have the last piece of lean at," Anna Willow coaxed with a laugh.
Holly Winslow watched the drama unfold from the sidelines, laughing uncontrollably.
Not far away, Jared Zimrman let out a soft laugh and looked away, picking up a large mouthful of noodles and slurping them down.
After finishing her al and returning to the classroom, Holly Winslow found a bottle of milk on her desk with a note tucked under it.
I owe you.
Holly Winslow knew who it was from—Jared Zimrman.
A couple of days ago, Jared Zimrman had asked to copy her howork, and after he was done, he’d said he would treat her to milk so other ti.
She imdiately handed the milk to the student behind her and whispered, "Can you pass this to Jared Zimrman for ?"
Jared Zimrman, sitting behind her, stared at the milk that was passed to his desk. After a few seconds, he got up, walked over to Holly Winslow’s seat, and set the milk back down on her desk. "I don’t want it." He walked away before Holly Winslow could reply.
The surrounding students all glanced in their direction, as if they’d just witnessed sothing scandalous.
Holly Winslow hesitated for a mont before putting the milk in her desk drawer.
Beau Sullivan nudged Xavier Jennings beside him and whispered, "Jared Zimrman doesn’t have a crush on Holly Winslow, does he? I’ve seen him buy her stuff a few tis now."
"Bro, you’ve got competition. Jared Zimrman’s dad works for the Bureau of Education, he’s not bad-looking, and three or four girls in our class have a crush on him." His voice dropped to a hush.
Xavier Jennings was engrossed in a ga on his phone. Hearing this, he glanced at Holly Winslow, then at Jared Zimrman. Suddenly irritated, he turned off his phone’s screen and shoved it into his drawer. "My dad warned
not to get into a relationship. He said if I dared, he’d transfer
to another school imdiately."
At this, he cursed irritably, "Who the fuck is sick in the head, making false reports? If I find out who it was, I’ll beat the shit out of them."
If he and Holly Winslow were actually dating, he’d take the bla for getting reported. But they weren’t. And now Mr. Carlton was watching him like a hawk, and Holly Winslow was deliberately avoiding him.
"Fuck, I’m going out to get so air and cool off."
He said this a little too loudly, and the students around them all heard, sparking quiet discussions.
"Did Holly Winslow and Xavier Jennings break up? They barely talk anymore."
"Probably. I saw Holly Winslow crying in the dorm a couple of days ago."
"No wonder her eyes were swollen."
...
After fifth period, the school let out early. The cafeteria hadn’t even prepared a al.
The parents who had arrived early were already waiting outside on the verandas.
Wyatt Winslow was among them, dressed in a smart black casual outfit. His hair was combed back, and it was clear he had made an effort to look presentable.
Holly Winslow ran over happily, wearing her backpack and carrying several bags of clothes. "Dad."
"Mm."
Wyatt Winslow nodded and glanced at the bags in her hands. "The car’s at the school gate. Put these away, then find a place to eat." He handed her the car keys.
"Okay." Holly Winslow saw his hands were stuffed in his pockets and knew he must be nervous. She walked over and said quietly, "Dad, I’ve been really good lately. All my teachers praise . You won’t get an earful from them."
Before Wyatt Winslow could answer, she waved. "I’m off, Dad!"
As her figure disappeared from sight, Wyatt Winslow lowered his head, a faint smile gracing his lips.
The parent-teacher conference started promptly at one o’clock.
Mr. Carlton took a stack of report cards and began handing them out to the parents. "These are the results from the exams this sester. I’ve marked the students who’ve shown improvent with a red pen. Please take a look."
When Wyatt Winslow got the report card, he imdiately saw Holly Winslow’s na marked in red. She was ranked third in the class.
After a minute, Mr. Carlton stood at the podium and began his analysis. "Now that you’ve all seen the scores, you should have a good idea of where things stand. To be frank, their results are not ideal. Getting into a good university will be difficult, which is why the school has called this parent-teacher conference. We hope you will help supervise your children at ho."
To give the parents a better understanding of the score disparities, he used Mortir Quincy as an example. "Do any of you know what the top-ranked student at Jarton High scored on this exam?"
The parents shook their heads.
"743 points. Only seven points were deducted," Mr. Carlton said.
A collective "Wow!" went through the crowd of parents. Wyatt Winslow was also astonished; 743 was indeed a very high score.
After speaking for a while, he brought up Holly Winslow. "Everyone, please take a look at Holly Winslow’s results. Of all the students in Class Eight, her improvent has been the most significant. She deserves a great deal of praise."
"At this ti, I’d like to invite Holly Winslow’s father to the podium to share with everyone how Holly studies at ho."
Everyone looked around to see who Holly Winslow’s father was, their eyes filled with envy. ’It’s always soone else’s kid who gets the good grades.’
Startled by being singled out by Mr. Carlton, Wyatt Winslow froze for a second. When he collected himself, he stood up and walked to the podium. Facing the dozens of parents watching him, he calmly straightened his posture. "Hello, everyone. I’m Holly Winslow’s father, Wyatt Winslow..."
When Wyatt Winslow finished his sharing, Mr. Carlton led the applause, and the other parents quickly joined in.
Mr. Carlton added, "For weaker subjects, if your circumstances allow, you might consider getting tutoring, just as Holly Winslow has done."
...
By the ti Wyatt Winslow left the school, Holly Winslow had already finished her al and was sitting in the car, having just completed a physics worksheet. When she heard the car door open, she looked up. "Dad."
"Mm."
Wyatt Winslow got into the car, buckled his seatbelt, and started the engine. He pursed his lips. "Mr. Carlton praised you. Keep up the good work, Holly."
’You’re your father’s pride.’
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