Chapter 403 You Were My Joy 2
When Willow started elementary school, Mitchell had already graduated and was in his first year of middle school. Although Willow and Danielle were not in the same grade or class, they were in the same school, making it easy for them to see each other. They were inseparable, going to and from school together every day, carefree and happy.
After Mitchell started middle school, he had a lot more homework than in elementary school. However, he still had some free time, and since middle school was right next to elementary school, he would sometimes pick up the two of them after school and use his allowance to buy snacks for them. The two of them followed Mitchell around like little shadows.
Of course, Mitchell didn't always pick them up. Sometimes, Matthew and the others would come, too, and they would also take them to buy delicious treats. At that time, Willow was innocent and believed that all her older brothers were very good to her. Her classmates were envious of her, as she had older brothers picking her up from school every day, and they were all good-looking.
Throughout her six years of elementary school, Willow grew up protected, which contributed to her pure nature. She and Danielle often did homework together at each other's houses and bought pretty stickers and notebooks to exchange.
When Willow was in third grade and Danielle was in fourth, Mitchell was in his final year of middle school, Matthew and Victor had gone to high school, Liam was in eighth grade, and Patrick was in seventh. Only Willow and Danielle were left in elementary school, sometimes accompanied by Cheryl. Mitchell was much busier in his final year of middle school, so he had fewer opportunities to take them out to play or eat.
At the age of middle school, some precocious girls started to dress up and pay attention to their appearance. The budding of adolescence began, and they started to have crushes on boys. The bolder ones would write love letters and secretly pass them on. Mitchell received quite a few pink letters, but he always frowned and coldly said he needed to study, rejecting them. Perhaps boys are slower in this regard, and since none of his friends were dating, he even thought those who wanted to date were abnormal.
When Willow moved up to fourth grade, Mitchell went to high school, which required boarding. He could only come home once a week, and he had a lot of homework, so they could only see each other once a week. At that time, Willow was still a little kid, and her dependence on Mitchell was the same as that of her other older brothers. She eagerly looked forward to weekends because she could see her brothers, and they could take her out to play.
But high school was different for Mitchell. Many of the girls in his class would deliberately shorten their uniform skirts and secretly wear makeup, and some even started dating, holding hands secretly. After evening self-study, they would hide in dark corners to hug.
Mitchell was undoubtedly the most handsome in his class. He also had excellent grades, always ranked first in his class, and was on the school basketball team. He attracted many girls. Some girls from other classes would even deliberately pass by his classroom just to catch a glimpse of him.
The number of girls giving him pink letters increased compared to middle school. Now, in addition to pink letters, he received various gifts, and his desk drawer was often stuffed with snacks. Sometimes, girls he sternly rejected would end up in tears, so 16-year-old Mitchell found other girls too troublesome.
When Mitchell was a senior in high school, Willow was in sixth grade. By then, Danielle and Cheryl had moved on to middle school, leaving Willow as the only one still in elementary school. Fortunately, the increased workload in preparation for middle school entrance exams kept her busy, so she didn't have much time to think about it. She buried herself in her studies and homework, and after school and on weekends, she would still find Danielle. On weekends, she would also see Mitchell when she went to find Danielle.
However, Willow seemed to have developed a sense of shyness. Every time she saw Mitchell, her face would turn red. Mitchell continued to discipline Willow just as he did with Danielle, even showing concern for her academic performance and test scores.
He remembered the second semester of his senior year when Willow was about to take her elementary school graduation exams. One weekend, when he came home and saw Willow handing him a math test with a score of only sixty, he was stunned for a moment before slowly saying, "Not bad, you passed."
Mitchell had been too busy with his studies that semester to keep an eye on her, and as a result, Willow's score had dropped from ninety to sixty. He couldn't figure out what had happened.
He then spread out the test paper and meticulously explained each question to her, spending a full three hours on it. When Danielle came out of his room yawning to get some water, she saw Mitchell still tutoring Willow in the living room and quickly retreated to her room, silently praying for Willow. She thought Mitchell was too intimidating.
Mitchell tutored her for three hours, and Willow nodded at everything he said. He couldn't tell if she genuinely understood or was humoring him. He thought back to his middle school days when girls would slip him pink letters. He pondered, 'Willow isn't even in middle school yet—are girls really maturing this early now?'
He looked at Willow, who had fallen asleep at the table, and sighed softly before carrying her to the guest room.
At that time, Matthew had already started his own business and rented a small studio. Whenever they had time, the others would help out. So, Mitchell not only had a heavy academic load but also many other responsibilities. Still, he tried to make time to come home every week.
The next day, Willow woke up and realized she wasn't in her room. It took her a moment to remember that Mitchell had made her stay up for extra tutoring. Her math grades had always been good, but recently, a very naughty boy in her class suddenly confessed his feelings for her and started giving her snacks every day, which scared her. She told him she needed to focus on studying to get into a good high school.
It was then that she realized the word "like" had quietly entered her life. She didn't understand what "like" meant at the time; only the boys in her class were just like her—little kids. Their "like" was as innocent as playing house.
After that three-hour tutoring session with Mitchell, the only thing left in her mind was "study hard."
The next day, Mitchell found out about the boy's confession to Willow. He went to the school and, posing as a parent, "advised" the boy. After that, the boy avoided Willow whenever he saw her. Although Willow didn't quite understand what had happened, she was relieved. If the boy had continued to pester her, she wouldn't have known how to handle it.
From then on, Mitchell personally supervised Willow's studies every week. In the end, she successfully got into the honors class in middle school with excellent grades. That same year, Mitchell was admitted to the architecture program at A University, ranking first in the state.
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