Chapter 25

This weekend, I tagged along with him to the car repair shop. He was shooting the breeze with his buddies, but the second he spotted me, he snuffed out his cigarette, tossed it aside, and gave everyone a nod.

So he hadn't really kicked the habit, just kept it on the down-low around me. I sighed and strolled over to say hi.

"Rachel, how's school treating ya?"
"That hottie from yesterday, is he your boyfriend?"
"He's pretty handsome."

"Nah," I said, sneaking a glance at Jason. His usually stern face cracked a small smile.

"Ah, no? Rachel, what kind of guy do you dig? We can totally set you up."

"Shut it, what does a student know about dating?" Jason shot a look at the guy.

"Boss, didn't you date back in school? With your looks, you must've had girls lining up. No way you didn't date."

"Yeah, bet you had like eight or ten girlfriends, right?"

"Quit talking crap. Put your shirts on. There are students here. What do you guys think you look like?" Jason pointed at the shirtless dudes.

"Boss, it's scorching in here."

"Taking your shirts off ain't gonna cool it down. Stop whining and put 'em on."

Under his no-nonsense rule, nobody dared to push back.
I stood off to the side, feeling kinda awkward. Honestly, they were always like this, and I'd seen it all before. But what was up with Jason today?

During lunch, the guys suggested playing Texas Hold'em at the rental house.

"No way! We got a student at home," Jason said, catching everyone off guard.

"But Boss. Rachel's got homework to do," one of them chimed in.

"I..." I stammered, feeling embarrassed and not sure what to say.

"It's not good to influence her like this," Jason said firmly.

I was floored. Since when did I have to study? But I couldn't argue with him, so I just stared at him in disbelief.

After a bit, everyone suggested dyeing their hair since they had nothing else to do.

"But only dye it black. Don't set a bad example for the students. You guys are uncles now; you should lead by example," Jason said.

Everyone looked confused. Dye it black? What?

"Boss, now everything revolves around Rachel. We don't matter, right?"

"Yeah, you're being too biased. Since Rachel came back, our already limited importance has diminished even more."

They all started complaining one after another.

"When did any of you ever have any importance?" Jason shut them all up.

Uncle Bear pulled me aside and whispered, "Rachel, what kind of spell did you cast on Boss this time? He seems like he's been bewitched."
"Oh, nothing," I said, thinking it over. 'Maybe it's because I told him last night that I want to get into a good university?'

"That must be it," Uncle Bear said, giving me a knowing look.

"And you, fatty, I warn you, don't talk to her unless it's important," Jason cut in, shutting Uncle Bear up.

"What did I do wrong, Boss?" Uncle Bear asked, looking all innocent.

"It's nothing, but you being around her is bothersome," Jason said seriously.

Uncle Bear shot me a helpless look and quickly made himself scarce.

"Uncle," I tugged at Jason's shirt and whispered, "You didn't have to be so harsh with them, right?"

"What do you know? The family environment is important, it may even influence whether you could get into the college," he said earnestly. "I thought long and hard last night. If you want to go to university, we haven't been able to help you much."

"Thank you, uncle."

I mentioned wanting to go to college last night, and he thought about it all night, keeping it in his mind. I was really touched. It feels good to have someone care about you.

In the afternoon, he rode his bike to take me to school. I stood at the school gate and waved goodbye to him, and he suddenly handed me a box.

"Check it out in your dorm. I'm heading out."

"Okay."

I watched him ride away on his bike. He looked really cool.
When I got back to my dorm, I opened the box and found a brand-new phone inside. I was pleasantly surprised.

I turned it on, and there was only one contact in the address book, labeled "Uncle."

I held the phone and called him that night to thank him.

I could hear the smile in his voice: "It was nothing."

"I deducted the money for the phone from your account."

"Whatever."

We chatted about random stuff, and then out of nowhere, he asked me what kind of house I liked.

"I was thinking of renting a two-bedroom apartment next time you come back."

"You're really good to me, uncle."

"Just realizing that now? Just don't get mad at me and let me live longer."

He still had that playful tone.

"Uncle, what should I do if I start liking you more and more?"

He was silent for a moment, not rejecting me right away. Finally, he just sighed. "Study hard, let's talk about it after your college entrance exam."

"After the college entrance exam?"

I couldn't help but press him further.

"Don't ask anymore, asking more would be pushing it."

"Oh."

"Well, you won't be with any other women before my college entrance exam, right?"

I knew I was being too greedy, but I couldn't help it. I thought he would scold me again, but instead, he gave me a straight answer.

"No, I won't."