29. Sienna
twenty-nine
Sienna
“Shit, I don’t understand…Explain it one more time.” I sigh for the fortieth time, running a hand over my face as Jace gives me a warm, patient smile.
He places a soft hand on my knee and squeezes gently before diving back into his spiel on columns and their different art styles. And just like before, I can’t process a single thing he’s saying.
We’ve been going at this for hours now. Him tutoring me for my History of Modern Art course with me looking like a confused puppy in front of him.
Around hour two, I ordered Chinese takeout. Now, an hour later, zero information has been soaked into my brain and all of my shrimp fried rice is gone.
“Babe, are you listening?”
No, not at all , I want to say. But instead of being truthful, I nod.
Jace dramatically and playfully rolls his eyes like a toddler before adjusting our position to where his legs are open and my back is to his chest on the ground. I relax under his touch, something that I’ve grown accustomed to over the past few months as he holds up my flashcards before my eyes.
“I’m going to fail…and then I’ll be a miserable loser who has no food, house, or money for chocolate chip cookies. Then, I’ll grow old and grey and no man will look at me.” I frown as Jace chuckles from behind me, the vibrations of his laugh warming my body.
“I’ll still be here.” He chuckles, but that only ups my antics. I sigh loudly.
“This is a disaster!” I yell, throwing my head back against his chest .
“Sienna… A “C” in a college course is not a bad thing,” Jace soothes, his voice soft and gentle against my ear.
My body caves in on itself, slouching as I process his words. “But it’s not perfect...”
I hate to be that person, but my grades are my everything. I didn’t have too many friends growing up, and school was the only constant in my life.
My parents were never around, and I barely got to see my uncle and cousins.
If I don’t have good grades, then who am I?
“Listen, we’ll get through this…I’ll stay up all night to help you. Always,” Jace says, massaging my shoulders, causing me to roll my neck from the deep touch.
“Promise?” I ask, my voice lazy and soft as he kisses my shoulder gently.
“I promise.”
We sit for two more hours, studying and working on both of our class work. Jace helps me through everything, and for the first time since I’ve started this course, I truly understand it.
“You’re really smart, y’know?” I say, watching him as he works out some of his work for his Communications course.
I hadn’t even known that he was a double major until tonight.
He’s minoring in Business Management and majoring in Fine Arts. It’s a hard task when not doing any extracurriculars, but Jace is also a hockey player for a D1 team and the owner of a small business and art gallery.
The man’s work ethic is impeccable.
“Gee thanks…” He chuckles as I playfully roll my eyes, leaning my head on his shoulder.
“I don’t mean it like that, I just mean that I admire you. You’re really smart and you work hard,” I say with a shrug, but my heart racing in my chest tells a completely different story.
“I admire you too, Sienna, more than you’d ever know.”