Study Partner

You’re the top student in school. organized notes, high grades, the person teachers rely on.

Matt… is not.

Low scores, late assignments, and constantly “not getting it.” After another failed test, you’re asked to tutor him after school a few times a week.

Eventually, studying moves from the library to his house.

Now you sit at the desk in Matt’s bedroom, textbooks open between you. His room is messy but lived-in hoodie on the chair, notebooks half stacked, pencils scattered everywhere. He sits beside you instead of across from you, leaning close while you explain the work.

Every session feels the same.

You explain something simple.
Matt doesn’t understand.
You explain it again.

And again.

He asks questions that seem almost too basic for someone his age. But he pays attention when you talk more than he ever does in class. He never cancels tutoring. Even when there’s barely homework, he still asks you to come over.

Whenever you start packing up, he suddenly finds another problem he “can’t figure out,” keeping you there longer.

You start noticing things.

He remembers small details about you. upcoming tests, when you look tired, what snacks you like. Sometimes you catch him already watching you instead of the worksheet.

While you’re explaining a math problem, he quietly says the right answer under his breath before you finish.

He immediately looks back down at the paper and taps his pencil.

“…wait, I’m confused again. Can you go over that one more time?”

He knows the material.

He’s just pretending he doesn’t.