New Life : A Second Chance

As Kyle walked Sari home, they found that Sari's aunt was waiting at the door. Sari quickly let go of Kyle's hand.

She looked at them sternly and said, "Sari, why are you late today?"

Sari bowed her head down, apologizing, "I'm sorry, Auntie. I was held up in school. I forgot to call to let you know."

Sari's aunt looked at Kyle and he stepped forward, giving a slight bow, "Hello, Auntie. My name is Rex. Nice to meet you."

"Who are you?"

Kyle blinked. He just introduced himself, and she's still asking who he is? 

Well, he knew what she was actually referring to but he still found it funny.

Kyle looked at Sari for permission, unsure if she was okay with him telling who he was. If her aunt was anything like how his parents had been in his former life, she wasn't supposed to have a boyfriend.

Then again, the aunt had already seen him walk hand-in-hand with Sari, so any sort of story to cover up their relationship would only put him in her bad books.

He didn't want that.

"I am just a simple guy who has fallen for Sari," Kyle declared, "My intentions are pure, and would just like to stay by her side."

Sari's aunt looked at Kyle's uniform and asked, "I see that you're working instead of schooling? What happened? Did you drop out of school or get kicked out?"

Sari stood by Rex nervously, looking at her aunt in horror. What's with the interrogation?

"Neither, Auntie," Kyle replied patiently, "I am working part-time to supplement my schooling."

"Don't lie," Sari's aunt spat out, "This is just after school hours, and you're working at this time. Or are you saying that you skip school to work?"

With every question, Sari became even more agitated. She was about to say something when she felt a gentle tap on her back. Startled, she turned towards Rex, who was calmly facing her aunt.

"No, Auntie," Kyle replied, "I don't go to a physical school. I take my classes online."

"Online?" she repeated, "You mean they have classes and such on the computer?"

Kyle nodded, "Yes, Auntie. It is flexible, and allows me to work and study at the same time. It's perfect for people like me."

Sari's aunt, who was much older, found this concept to be extremely dodgy. Online school? What sort of thing was this? How reliable was it? Was this boy that terrible or something?

As if sensing her confusion and disdain about it, Kyle explained further, "Online schools are becoming more popular now, so this type of schooling is meant to help people like me who is unable to go to school regularly."

"I am also enrolled in a certified school, and it's a degree that is recognised worldwide," Kyle said. He gave the information to help Sari's aunt think about it, and said it humbly enough not to make it sound like he was belittling her knowledge.

Sari's aunt stood there for a while, quiet while she thought about it. She glossed over the fact that the boy had said 'degree' and took it that Kyle was just using the wrong term.

Narrowing her eyes, she asked, "What about your parents? What do they do?"

By now, Sari was fidgeting. 

"My mother is a housewife while my father is in business," Kyle revealed, "Currently, I am staying by myself because my father wanted me to be more independent."

Kyle decided to reveal this bit because if she was to find out from someone else that he lived alone, then misunderstandings could occur. 

Kyle knew that Sari's aunt was giving him the 3rd degree to determine whether he could continue to see Sari or not, thus, he had to lay everything on the table right now.

This was something quite common in Country M. Even while growing up, he had had to give a report to his parents about his friends, from 'what is your friend doing' and 'who are their parents/what do they do' were the basic information that had to be given.

So this was not unexpected. Still, he was not giving the full picture but he was not lying either.

Even if he was being low key and hiding his identity, he was not going to lie outright for anything. He may give information that would lead them to make slightly different conclusions, but the main point was: he did not lie.

Sari listened nervously and looked at her aunt again.

Was it over?

Did he pass?

Sari hadn't told her uncle and aunt about Rex because she didn't know how to raise it. She wasn't their daughter, and they had never asked about her personal life before. They took care of her, and she took care of them in return - but they never shared things.

In other words, she viewed her uncle and aunt like kind landlords, but she also knew that they had their own set of rules that she had to abide by. She did, and now she was worried if they had a 'no boyfriend' rule that she was unaware of.

"Sari, what are you still doing standing over there? Are you coming in or not?" Sari's aunt finally said as she glared at Sari.

Sari jerked up, apologizing profusely, "I'm sorry, Auntie."

"Bye, Rex," Sari said as she quickly headed to the house. 

Kyle smiled, saying, "Bye, see you again next week."

As Sari passed by her aunt and entered, Sari's aunt stepped inside.

She then looked closely at Rex and said to the very calm boy, "If you're serious, you should not just be walking her home only some of the times."

With that, she slammed the door shut.

Kyle stood there for a second, blinking, then let go of the breath he didn't realise he had been holding.

He turned and left, thinking that that interrogation had been scarier than when he had presented at the Smith Industries board meeting.