A/N – Thanks for all R & Rs much appreciated!

xXx

The next day.

Jess was already struggling with the questions Chris had set her; he had a free set and so did she, so she was able to stay with him for the full hour and a half.

He peered over at her from where he was perched at his own desk at the front. "How are you coping over there?"

"I can't do it."

He smirked a little. "Come on, Jess, you've only been in here ten minutes and already you're thinking of giving up?" He went back to his marking, half-focussing on that. "I had you down as someone who didn't do that so easily."

"I just…" She slammed her pen down irately. "The questions you've set me are too hard."

"Now don't pin this on me." He lifted his gaze from the paper he was marking. "The questions I set you are standard for your set. You're not concentrating. At least try to."

"Why are you making this so hard for me?" She cried out, sharply getting up out of her chair and making to leave.

"Jess, I'm not…"

"With everything else going on as well…" She went to get her jacket on, prompting Chris to frown and come up to her.

"Everything else like what?" He placed his hands around her wrists.

"S-sir…please let me go."

"No, I'm not letting you go." He spoke softly, his bright blue eyes shimmering into hers. "I told your mum I'd be dealing with you separately, so only I owe a duty of care to you."

Jess managed to hold a few tears back from springing behind her eyes.

"I'm here to help you." He made her sit back down. "You've told me a bit more about why you're doing this, and something is making you do it. At least try to explain what it is so I know how to help you more."

"I-I don't know…all of what's going on with mum, I guess."

He tilted his head attentively. "You wanna tell me what that is?"

She drew in a deep breath. "No one at the school knows except me, and she doesn't even know that I do." She gazed at him shakily. "Please don't tell her or do anything."

"Why would I do that?" Chris sat opposite her. "I'm not likely to do that if you receive one-on-one tuition with me, so don't worry."

She nodded slowly. "The reason I've been doing other things is that I want a boyfriend."

He smirked a little. "Well, you either won't do that or find someone who wants something other than to be one, if you carry on the way you are."

"I know, but if it meant me to not be alone…"

"That's still silly, Jess."

She said nothing, but peered down at the desk.

"Is that all this really is?" He couldn't help but feel suspicious. "It all seems rather petty in order to make you under perform like this."

"Well, no." Her answer prompted him to flit his gaze back to her. "Mum's been going off with someone lately."

"You should be happy for her, in that case." He softly noted. "She's been without anyone for quite some time, and I think she's very lucky to have someone – whoever they are."

Jess smirked to herself. "I wish I could feel the same way."

"Why don't you?" Chris sat back a little. "You're making it sound like it's someone you don't really like."

"That's because I don't like them." She wanted to go back to what she was writing all of a sudden. "Can we not get back to this?"

He shook his head. "Not when I've gotten you to talk as much as I have." He leant closer towards her. "I might not ever get this much out of you again. Try and talk some more."

"I don't think I wanna tell you who they are, though."

"Jess…" He started playfully. "I don't care if your mum is going off with the school caretaker, once you tell me, you'll feel better for it."

"That's because she is."

"She…what?" He got a little confused.

Jess felt the tears roll down her cheeks. "She is going off with the caretaker."

"O-oh." Chris seemed shocked. "That isn't good."

"D-does that change things between you and her?"

"What? No!" He laughed a little, despite the revelation. "No…I don't feel anything for your mum. Don't worry, he's not got any competition from me."

"Then why do this?" She wanted to know, gazing down at her answer sheet. "Why go to all this for me?"

"Because I honestly wanna help you. Isn't that reason enough?" He was slightly distracted at the fact that Karen was…going off with someone who also worked at the school.
He wasn't jealous about it, of course not. But he was definitely worried.

"So it's not an attempt at trying to impress my mum then?" She assumed.

"Jess, if I felt anything for your mum, I would've gone a different way about telling her how I felt. But I don't." He was mildly surprised that she thought he…fancied her. If he was twenty-five years older, maybe. "There's someone else I like at the moment anyway."

"Someone I know?"

He shook his head dimly. "Oh. No, no one you would know of." He felt a small blush start at his cheeks, but he did very well to stop it from becoming too noticeable. "They're not likely to feel the same way at any rate."

Jess smiled softly.

"What?"

"You're too modest at times, do you know that?"

"Ok." Chris said finally. "Enough relationship advice for now. We've got to get back to this before I have to see your mum and try to convince her that this is working."

"I don't like these questions though." She pouted.

"Do you want me to help you out a little bit?" He suggested.

Her eyes widened. "Really?"

He nodded resignedly. "As long as you promise to me you'll do the next lot I give you by yourself, and I mean by yourself."

She tilted her head attentively. "What's in it for me?"

Chris sat back a little. "Erm…well, hopefully it'd restore your confidence. That was the general idea that your mum and I had in mind."

She knew he was keeping something back.

"Ok, and your laptop your mum took from you." He smirked playfully. "She gave it to me to keep hold of, but she did throw that in as an incentive."

"Wow…" Jess breathed.

"But that's only if you pass your first mock test – without any help." He warned.