He Sent a Fake to Scare Me Off, I Ended Up Feeding Him for Months Chapter 05

He Sent a Fake to Scare Me Off, I Ended Up Feeding Him for Months Chapter 05

After school, Elias bent down and took the broom from my hand.

“Sit down.”

The setting sun turned the classroom windows the color of honey. Elias wrapped his hand around the worn, polished handle and began sweeping with practiced ease.

“Do you take other people’s cleanup shifts often?”

I asked, sitting on the edge of his desk and swinging my legs.

He nodded.

“They pay me $10 to take their turn.”

Then he gave me an uneasy look. “I wasn’t asking you to pay me.”

I hopped down, grabbed the mop beside me, and snapped, “Ten dollars to clean a classroom this big? They’re ripping you off. Even my dad isn’t that cheap.”

The cicadas outside suddenly seemed much louder. Elias lowered his eyes to the floor, and for once, the tedious work didn’t feel quite so unbearable.

Once we finished, Elias was about to head for his family’s roadside burger stand near Miller Bridge.

Before leaving, he turned to me. “I wrote out the solutions from today on the back of your notes. Go over them again tonight. If you still don’t understand something, I’ll explain it tomorrow.”

I waved off his concern and looked up at him.

“Can I come to the burger stand with you?”

Elias paused before answering gently, “Most students use their evenings to study. If you don’t, you’ll fall behind.”

In the end, he still wouldn’t let me come.

He seemed genuinely worried Dad would ground me for life if my grades slipped.

When I found the stand on my own, Elias was wearing an apron and working the flat-top grill.

The moment he saw me, the spatula in his hand froze.

“What are you doing here?”

“Is she a friend from school?” a gentle voice asked from beside him. “Is she one of Eli’s classmates?”

I turned and saw Elias’s mother. Her illness had left her cheeks thin, but her delicate features were still beautiful.

“Hi, Mrs. Reed. I sit next to Elias at school,” I said with a smile.

She looked delighted. A few silver strands in her hair gleamed beneath the warm yellow light.

“Would you like a burger? Eli hardly ever brings friends around. I can make you one.”

Elias gently guided her back into her seat and glanced at me. “You sit down. I’ll make it.”

I beamed at him, silently urging him to hurry. I was starving.

Without a word, Elias turned to the cooler and began pulling out ingredients.

He dropped a beef patty onto the hot griddle, and it hit the surface with a sharp sizzle.

Then he added strips of bacon, another patty, and a generous helping of pulled pork.

While the meat cooked, he buttered a brioche bun and toasted it on the grill.

Elias stacked the patties with melted cheddar, crispy bacon, pulled pork, lettuce, caramelized onions, and pickles.

He topped the burger with a fried egg and their signature house sauce, then added a side of seasoned fries.

I glanced at the menu and realized he’d made me the fully loaded house burger, which cost $9.

I sat at one of the picnic tables and pulled a paper napkin from the dispenser as Elias brought over the basket.

He crouched beside me, a hint of nervousness in his eyes. “Try it.”

He clearly knew what he was doing. The smell alone made my mouth water.

I took a huge bite and immediately gave him a thumbs-up.

A while later, I looked at Elias with red-rimmed eyes, still clutching the burger in both hands.

“Why does this taste so much like home? I miss my mom.”

The moment Elias saw my eyes, he panicked.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”

I stared at him for a long moment. How could someone be this sweet?

His bangs fell neatly across his handsome face. He had a mind capable of solving the hardest math problems, yet all he could think to say was that he was sorry.

The Chase I’d known as a child had been beautiful but proud, like a little prince who expected the world to admire him.

The past few years must’ve been incredibly hard on him.

I tilted my head. “You’re going to make it someday.”

Elias blinked. “What?”

I didn’t answer.

I’d never met anyone like him.

Life had dragged him through the mud, but he’d never let it stain him. Even though he only had time to study during class, he had remained at the top of his class for years.

Hard times couldn’t erase what he was capable of.

Whatever Elias chose to do, I knew he’d succeed.