The day came and went, and before Kevin knew it, he was staring at a selection of books spread out on his desk. "That's a lotta books."

"Don't worry, we won't take a look at any of them just yet." Standing next to Kevin's desk chair, Gwen took a short sip from the cup of grape soda Kevin bought earlier in the day. "Before we start, what were your grades like when you were still in school?"

"A whole lotta Cs, maybe some Bs here and there. Didn't really care about gettin' good grades, 'specially in the months before I ran away." He cocked a brow, curious about how that information was relevant. It's not like he'd have to show his old grades to take the GED test, or at least, he hoped not. "Why'd you wanna know?"

"I wanted to get a general idea of what kind of student you were; what kind of student you could be. Now that I have, I think you just weren't working up to your potential." Kevin bowed his head, his neutral expression quickly morphing into that of shame. Gwen then realized that he'd misunderstood the meaning behind her statement. "Hey, no, I didn't mean it in a bad way, Kevin! What I'm trying to say is that, if you got Bs and Cs without even trying, you would've done a lot better if you'd put your mind to it."

He faced her again and was met with a comforting smile, reminding him of her unwavering belief in him. "Never thought of it that way."

"I think you're gonna do great," she assured him. "You'll just have to put in the work."

"What exactly do I gotta do?" He could have researched the information on his own, but he didn't want to risk feeling overwhelmed by the details. It was better to let Gwen find out what he had to do and put a positive spin on things.

"So, the test is made up of four subjects." She held up a hand, putting a finger down as she went down the list. "Math, Reasoning Through Language Arts, Social Studies, and Science. You can take them all at once or spread them out, but you can decide later."

"Hm... I think I have math in the bag. Dunno about the others." His past as an illegal alien tech dealer proved beneficial. He prided himself on being a good businessman, and being good at basic math was part of the reason he was able to make a steady profit and, thus, make a living. "Do I have to go to classes and stuff?"

To the Osmosian's relief, Gwen shook her head. It's not like he had the time to attend classes even if he wanted to, thanks to his Plumber work keeping him busy. "You can if you want to, but I know you don't want to." She knew him so well. "But it's okay. Like I said, I'm gonna help you," she continued.

Getting up from his chair, Kevin closed the distance between him and Gwen to hold her hands, reveling in their warmth. "I'm probably gonna be sayin' this a lot, but thanks. This whole thing is a big ask, y'know?"

"You didn't ask. I offered." She couldn't help but smirk at her smart-mouthed response. "Besides, when you think about it, helping you get your GED isn't as big a deal as risking my life for you every time we're out on the field, is it?"

Gwen had a good point. Some alien lowlife would have likely gotten the drop on him if he didn't have her watching his back. "Still, thanks."

With their hands still joined, she brought his left hand to her lips to plant a tender kiss on it, then repeated the gesture with his right hand. "Anything for you, Kevin." His smile intensified for a second but shrunk when he heard the next words to come out of her mouth. "Oh, by the way, have you told your mom about all this?"

"Uh, no," he admitted nonchalantly. "Don't plan on doin' it, either. Not yet, anyway."

She had a rough idea of what his reasons were, yet she opted to coax an explanation out of him rather than make assumptions. "Why?" she asked in a judgement-free tone.

"Y'know what they say. Better safe than sorry." Seeing how his answer did nothing to allay her concerns, he sighed. She was going to make him open up. Not that he didn't appreciate her willingness to help him make sense of his emotions, because he did. He wasn't very good with words, witty remarks notwithstanding.

"Sit back down." She lightly pushed him onto his desk chair and sat on his lap, dangling her legs over the arm of the chair and one arm around the back of his neck. "Let's talk about this." Yup. There it was.

He was prone to making a fuss about opening up, but not this time. He ignored the part of him that told him to be stubborn. Gwen was doing so much to help him out. The least he could do was humor her. "I don't want my mom to get her hopes up in case I flunk the test. If I keep it a secret 'til after the test and I do great, then she'll have nothin' but good news."

Gwen put a hand on Kevin's cheek, lightly stroking it to soothe him. "Do you think she'd be disappointed in you if you failed?"

Kevin hesitated to reply. His immediate thought was to say yes, but logically speaking, his mother would be proud of him for even trying to get his GED. "Maybe not, but I'd feel terrible for tellin' her, and for puttin' you through all this trouble."

Kevin's history with formal education, or lack thereof, was a touchy subject. Despite his best attempts to hide the truth, it didn't take Gwen long to realize that he hadn't gone to school since before he ran away from home as a young boy. If only he'd known that she'd never once looked down on him for not having a proper education, and never would. Even if he did fail the GED test (which she was sure he wouldn't), her feelings for him wouldn't change. "What you're feeling right now is normal. All of the stuff you're gonna learn seems alien, and your brain is probably telling you that there's no way you can master everything since you haven't been in school in ages, but there's no rush. We'll take things slow, day by day. We'll spend some time getting you up to speed on everything. Once you feel like you have a good grip on what you've learned, you can sign up."

What Gwen said made perfect sense. She was going to have his back throughout the whole process of preparing for the GED test, and beyond. He didn't have to worry. Still, doubt remained within him. "I wanna do this, Gwen. I don't know if I'm cut out for it."

Pushing his bangs out of the way, she kissed his forehead. "I believe in you, even if you don't believe in yourself. I always will, and I know your mom feels the same way."

"Thanks." He managed a smile. "I still don't wanna tell her, though, or anyone else."

She disagreed with his decision but respected it nonetheless. "I understand. It's your call." To his disappointment, she retracted her hand from his cheek and stood up from his lap. "Ready to start?"

"I think so."

"Since you're good at math, let's kick things off with that." She lifted a book off the desk and flipped through the pages. "You know fractions and stuff, right?"

He let out a chuckle at the vagueness of her question. "Depends on whatcha mean by 'stuff'."

She put the book back down in front of him, opening it to a list of math problems. His gaze travelled down the page as he carefully studied every line, his brows furrowed in concentration. Gwen watched him for a moment before speaking up. "I can teach you-"

Kevin cut her off by holding his hand up, a confident look written all over his face. "Lemme try. I think... I think I can do this."

Touching his back for encouragement, Gwen took her cup of soda with her and sat on the edge of Kevin's bed while he worked, his right hand moving around as he scribbled the answers onto his notebook. It took a little longer than she would have anticipated, but the silence in the air was soon broken by the sound of Kevin clearing his throat. "Done."

Gwen drank the rest of her soda and walked to Kevin's desk. He watched with bated breath as she looked at each math problem, then at his corresponding answer, squinting to decipher what he wrote. His writing unfortunately wasn't very legible, which she supposed was to be expected, since he rarely needed to write things down on paper. "Your handwriting could use some work, but all of this looks right!"

Kevin's heart swelled with a sense of pride as he pumped his fist in the air. It was a small victory, but one he deemed worth celebrating. There were more difficult topics to grasp ahead, sure, but he was starting off strong. "What's next?"

Gwen turned a few pages on the math book and pointed at a new math problem. "What do you know about geometry?"

"Not much." He shrugged. "Haven't needed it in real life yet. Probably never will."

She giggled at his incorrect assumption. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but you'll need to learn it for the test."

He groaned, his eyes fixed on the page in front of him. "Gonna need some help, then."

"It's what I'm here for," she said supportively. She paused to scan the room for something she could sit on, but upon being unsuccessful, she turned to the door. "I think I'll go get a chair from the dining room. I'm getting tired of standing."

"No need. You've got a perfectly good seat right here." With almost no effort, Kevin grabbed her hips and pulled her onto his lap, evoking a surprised yelp from her.

"W-Well, okay, I guess this works." She reoriented herself to face the desk and wiggled slightly to settle into a comfortable position. This granted Kevin the opportunity to press his lips against the nape of her neck, sending a chill down her spine.

"No funny business, mister," she gasped. "We can save all of that for later. Let me teach you first."

He craned his head forward to give her a kiss on the cheek. "Go on, teach me. I can multitask." Wearing an impish grin, his hands crept up her sides, stopping under her chest.

She resisted the urge to give in, raising her voice to shift his focus to the task at hand. "Please, Kevin, this is important. You said you needed help, and I'm trying to give you help."

Kevin acquiesced, resting his chin on her shoulder to look at the book. His voice took on an apologetic tone. "Okay, okay, I'm listenin', I promise."

To both of their surprise, Kevin actually paid full attention to Gwen as she spent the next hour teaching him everything he needed to know about geometry. He didn't quite get the hang of all of it yet, but all he knew he would improve with enough time and practice. Their session ended with Kevin feeling as if his head was about to explode (remedied by more than a few kisses from Gwen) but he was hopeful that, once he got used to his new normal, things would get easier.

This chapter was kinda challenging to write, not gonna lie, but I think I did a good-ish job overall. Feedback is appreciated as always.