Kaitlyn flopped back onto her bed with a heavy sigh of exhaustion. The mattress squeaked in protest as she bounced atop its surface for a moment, then settled. After a long day of tutoring, programming, and cooking, her brain was completely fried.
What time is it? Checking the clock, her eyebrows raised. It wasn’t even 9 PM. Geez. It’s so early and I already want to sleep.
She spared a glance over toward Heather’s side of the room. The girl hadn’t come back to the dorm with her after they’d finished up with the meal prep business tonight. She apparently had some other hangout to get to, as usual. Her socializing never let up, even on a Wednesday.
Still, her help with managing the customers was well and truly appreciated. Heather volunteered to be on hand to help with payments and dishing up meals while Kaitlyn cooked. The fact that she could network, socialize, and call first dibs on the first of the meals was just an added bonus.
The side hustle - dubbed Kate’s Kitchen because “like, what kinda business doesn’t have a name?” - was absolutely booming. Between Heather’s advertising and social connections, Kaitlyn had suddenly found herself with a real challenge and real profits on her hands. She’d had to not only spend more of those profits on cooking equipment, but also prepare multiple staggered batches to feed everyone who signed up. It was so insane that she was considering capping the number of meals to be sold only a few weeks in. After she’d bought everything on her wishlist, of course.
If nothing else, one thing’s for certain - we’re definitely raising prices next week. Maybe that will manage to rein in some of the demand. And if not… Well, at least I’ll know that I have a new standard price to set.
Rubbing at her temples, her gaze wandered around the room. Eventually, it settled on the poorly done painting tacked to her corkboard. A painting of what was supposed to be a sunset over a mountain lake.
The keepsake sent a wave of longing through her. Longing for everything she’d lost during that fateful reset. The feeling had indeed dulled over the course of so many loops, yet it hadn’t faded entirely. She’d considered taking the picture down more than once, maybe putting it under the bed or flipping it around at least. Yet every time, she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Even though it served as a constant reminder of everything she tried to forget.
With a bit of effort, she tore her eyes away from the picture and rolled over. You said you just needed time. But… is time really enough? How long has it been now?
Closing her eyes, she quickly checked her Progress Report.
Progress Report
Current Cycle:
Cycle 26 (Week 6)
Endings (6/20):
Alex (3/3 - Complete!)
Dinner Date
Comfort Food
Rotten to the Core
Ian (1/3)
???
A Winding Path
???
Philip (0/3)
???
???
???
Vinny (1/3)
???
???
Party Crasher
Elliot (0/3)
???
???
???
Other (1/5)
???
Under the Radar
???
???
???
Achievements (8):
The First of Many - Unlock your first ending
What Friends are For - Unlock a friendly ending for any male lead
Walking Red Flag - Unlock a bad ending for any male lead
Happily Ever After - Unlock a romance ending for any male lead
From Every Angle - Unlock all endings for a single male lead
Wingman - Complete the “Rachel and Cedric” easter egg
A Solid Start - Unlock 5 unique endings
Dean’s List - Ace all five classes
Twenty-six loops. Fourteen since Alex had forgotten her. At about four months per loop, that’s… some quick mental math made her wince. Fifty-six months? One of them got cut short, but still… Almost five years? Has it really been that long?
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She opened her eyes with a sigh. Five years, and yet she still hadn’t fully managed to move on. It wasn’t as though she’d accomplished nothing - her Dean’s List achievement was proof enough of that - but still. The fact that a simple painting still could affect her so deeply made her feel… weak. Weak and strangely immature.
Maybe… maybe it’s not just a matter of time. She chewed her lip. Perhaps she actually needed to think through what had happened. Peek inside the little box she’d stuffed those memories inside. As much as she recoiled from the very thought.
She sighed again, but now from a different kind of exhaustion. I’m already tired. I shouldn’t think about this right now. It won’t be productive. Maybe… maybe I’ll think about it tomorrow. Yeah, tomorrow. Or the next day if I get busy. I’ve always got plenty of time. More than I know what to do with, maybe.
With that, she pulled the covers over her head and went to sleep.
***
Kaitlyn jogged toward Cappy’s Cafe, unable to suppress a grin. Her backpack bounced against her spine as she headed for Philip’s familiar outline. At last, she’d done it. It hadn’t even taken that long, either. She wasn't even halfway into the semester - way ahead of expectations.
Despite how early she’d arrived, he was already seated and waiting as she approached. “Hey, Philip!”
“Greetings.” The tutor nodded as she slid into the bench seat. “Today’s lesson will involve a significant amount of programming. Would you like to work off of my computer once again, or do you have something different in mind?”
“No need!” With a flourish, Kaitlyn unzipped her backpack and revealed her most recent acquisition with no small amount of pride. “I finally have my own!”
The small metallic rectangle felt light, even more so than she'd initially expected. It made her worry about the sturdiness of the thing, like she might break it on accident just by holding it wrong. A stylized orange slice logo glowed in its center of its matte silver surface.
The laptop couldn't have come soon enough. Kaitlyn was entirely over using public computers for her programming assignments, especially once the library got busy enough that her usual spot wasn't always free. Meaning she'd had to use other desktops instead. On the bright side, it meant that she had the setup process well and truly down.
Philip blinked, but otherwise his expression didn’t change. “Congratulations. I’m certain that will make both these sessions and your class experience much more pleasant.”
She deflated somewhat at the lack of reaction. Still, Philip’s usual stoic demeanor wasn’t enough to fully diminish her excitement. “It already has. You wouldn’t believe how good it feels to actually do assignments in my dorm instead of hunting down a public computer somewhere…”
He nodded. “I can sympathize, for the most part. Still, considering your financial situation, I’m surprised that you purchased a relatively new model.”
Kaitlyn looked down at the sleek rectangle in her hands. “Yeah. It’s not the latest or anything, those were way out of my budget. I found a pretty good deal on it, at least, so it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. Still, though…” She winced. “It wasn’t cheap. Nile only had so many options to pick from.”
Philip frowned slightly. “If cost truly is your main concern, why did you purchase a laptop from Nile?” As Kaitlyn stared at the guy in confusion, he elaborated. “You could have purchased a refurbished model or searched for secondhand computers from any number of sources.”
Oh, yeah. That’s totally an option, isn’t it? In truth, she hadn’t even considered it. She was so used to buying everything from Nile at this point that it felt second nature, and for good reason. “Most of those places don’t ship to dorms. I might be able to buy them, but how would I get them?”
Philip shrugged. “Have you considered that there may be students on or near campus willing to sell their belongings? If so, perhaps they would likely be willing to meet and hand you the item. It would profit them as well to not pay for shipping.”
After a moment, Kaitlyn looked down once more at her new laptop. Her expensive new laptop. One that worked just as well as Philip’s battered one with its cracked case. And one that I could have afforded much earlier if Philip is right…
“...You’re right. I didn’t even think about that.” She admitted, blushing slightly. “But thanks. I’ll have to look into it.” Maybe I can get cheaper instruments that way, too. It’s worth trying.
“Of course.” He began pulling out notebooks to start their usual lesson. “I hope that the advice helps you in the future, even if it may have come too late in this case. Still, given the amount of income you’re likely generating from the restaurant, I am surprised you were able to afford the expense so quickly. Especially considering your continued investment into tutoring.”
Honestly, same here. She chuckled a bit at that. “The restaurant’s not my only job. Don’t worry. You’re not wringing me dry here.”
He looked at her appraisingly. “You engage in other work? Such as?”
“I, uh…” She hesitated, strangely embarrassed to admit it. “I make food for students. Like, homemade dinners and stuff like that.”
“I see.” Philip’s grey eyes sharpened as he understood. “Is that, perhaps, related to why you ask Scarra to teach you in the kitchen?”
“Kind of? But, it’s not like I’m stealing his recipes or anything!” She raised her hands defensively, the words tumbling out of her as she hurried to explain. “I couldn’t even make half the stuff he does in a dorm anyway, even if I was as good as he is. It’s just something I enjoy that I can also make money on. You know?”
Philip’s narrowed eyes seemed to relax slightly. “I see. And this is something you do on top of your responsibilities as a student?”
“Yeah,” she waved off the implied question. “My classes aren’t that bad this semester. I can handle it.”
He nodded once more in acceptance. “I see. Well, as I said, do not hesitate to ask if you require assistance. My offer extends outside of the restaurant as well.”
Once more, she felt the familiar mix of surprise, warmth, and guilt mix in her gut. Surprise and warmth at the guy’s continued kindness, then guilt at having ever considered him a jerk. At this point, she shouldn’t have been surprised - the guy was just nice. But somehow, this still seemed a bit different.
You know… he’s been pretty talkative all loop. Maybe he’ll actually open up a bit now.
“You’re already helping plenty.” Kaitlyn smiled hesitantly. “But… I did mean to ask. What major are you?”
The fact that she didn’t even know the answer to such a basic question spoke volumes for how impenetrable Philip’s walls were. Or maybe how little she’d tried to get past them. The guy seemed to be about her age, at least, so him being a first year was a pretty safe bet. It also would be consistent with the other male leads.
The guy hesitated. “I have not selected a major formally. However, at present I am taking courses associated with Computer Science, predominantly.”
“Oh, cool.” Weird way of saying he’s undeclared, but ok I guess. “I’ve got another friend who’s a CS major. Maybe you know him?”
Philip was already shaking his head. “Unlikely. I tend not to socialize much with classmates.”
You don’t say. She chuckled to herself at the brief vision of Philip encountering a talkative social butterfly like Heather. If the two ever met… well. It would certainly go terribly. Whether that meant "comedy routine" or "bad ending" levels of terrible was the real question.
“Oh well. It was worth a shot." Kaitlyn shrugged. "You’ve gotta be really busy, then. CS looks like a pretty hard major, now that I’m taking one of their classes.”
He nodded. “Indeed. The parts of my day unoccupied by work are almost entirely spent on studying.”
She whistled. “Dang. That’s a lot of studying.”
“...Less than I’d like.” Without elaborating further, Philip placed a notebook between them. “Now. I have wasted enough of our session with idle chatter. Shall we begin?”
Kaitlyn felt a slight twinge of disappointment at the sudden stop to their conversation. Still, it was more than she’d ever gotten out of the raven-haired tutor before. Far more.
She nodded in agreement. “Sure. I actually have a few questions about floats and integers…”