Kayla's POV

"Oh man, I can’t believe how hungry I am," I exclaimed, stifling a yawn.

Luca, ever the optimist, shot up from his chair. "Let’s whip up something to eat!"

Once again, I found myself at the twins' place, buried in textbooks and notes with finals looming just two days away.

"I’m coming too!" Lila chimed in, hurriedly trailing after us.

We stormed into the kitchen, rummaged through the cupboards until we stumbled upon some noodles. Perfect.

"Let’s throw on some TV while we wait for the water to boil," Luca suggested, settling onto the couch.

"So, you turned in that application for Juilliard, right?" I asked, curious about his plans.

"Yeah, but honestly? I kind of hope I don’t get in," he said, a hint of frustration creeping into his voice. "Dad still hasn’t warmed up to the idea of me studying medicine. Doesn’t he get how many parents would kill for their kids to be interested in that?"

I nodded thoughtfully, unsure of how to respond.

"But seriously, what’ll you do if you get into both universities? Which one’s it going to be?"

"I’ll choose Bristol, no doubt. It’s my life, my choice, not his," Luca affirmed, determination shining in his eyes.

"Hey, no worries. We’re going to figure it all out," I reassured him.

Suddenly, Lila burst back into the room. "The water’s boiling!"

She always seemed unsure how to approach the topic of Luca’s future with their dad, so more often than not, she stayed quiet during those discussions.

In no time, the noodles were cooked and ready.

"Oh wow, this is delicious!" Lila exclaimed, eyes sparkling as she took her first bite.

"Right? It’s amazing!" Luca agreed, a proud grin spreading across his face.

"Do you guys think we can cram everything in before finals?" I wondered aloud, a hint of doubt creeping into my voice.

"Absolutely! We’ve been studying forever!" Lila replied, her confidence infectious.

"Exactly! We’re almost through, so we’ve got this," Luca added with a nod.

"You're both right," I said, feeling a bit more reassured.

"Stop worrying so much; we’ll be just fine," Lila encouraged.

"How’s the tutoring with Fiona going?" Luca asked, steering the conversation to a lighter note.

"It’s going really well. She’s starting to grasp the concepts, which is a relief," I said, feeling proud of the progress we’d made.

"That’s awesome! It’s her result at stake, so I really hope she aces it," Lila said earnestly.

"Me too," Luca and I echoed in unison, sharing a knowing smile.

"Alright, let’s dive back into our studying," Luca said, breaking the momentary silence. The countdown to finals was on, and we were ready to tackle it together.

After several hours of studying, the clock finally pointed to dinner time, and I made my way back home.

“Mum, I’m home!” I announced brightly as I stepped through the door, but an eerie silence hung in the air.

Curiosity piqued, I wandered through the house until I reached Mum’s room, where I found her sleeping soundly.

Not wanting to disturb her just yet, I decided to whip up a delicious dinner. Tonight’s menu? A fragrant vegetarian curry paired with steaming rice.

I gathered fresh ingredients from the kitchen and set to work, chopping vibrant vegetables and letting the enticing aromas fill the air. About forty-five minutes later, I stood proudly over a pot of bubbling curry, the mouth-watering scent beckoning anyone nearby.

I tiptoed back into her room, flipped on the lights, and softly called, “Mum!”

Silence lingered once more.

“Mum!” I raised my voice slightly this time, and felt a spark of hope as she stirred.

“Mum!” I called again, and at last, her eyes fluttered open.

“Hey, Kayla, when did you get home?” she murmured, a hint of sleep still in her voice.

“About an hour ago. I’ve already made dinner. Let’s eat!” I replied, feeling a sense of satisfaction.

After we finished our meal, we curled up together in the living room to catch up on our favorite TV show, but my mind was racing. Dr. Sarah’s voice echoed in my head: if I didn’t learn to communicate better with Mum now, it would only become harder when I left for university.

“Mum, can we talk for a minute?” I asked hesitantly.

“Of course,” she replied, looking attentive.

Taking a deep breath, I continued, “I just want to say that I see how hard you’re working to support us, and I’m really grateful for that. But sometimes it feels like you’re so busy that we don’t get enough time together. I have so much I want to share about my day, but with you often being absent, it’s tough for me to open up. I want us to share our struggles, but it sometimes feels like I’m the only one trying to mend our relationship. I worried you care more about the kids at the hospital than you do about me.”

“Kayla, I promise you, I’m working hard solely to keep our lives afloat,” she replied, her expression softening. “I care deeply about the children at the hospital, but that doesn’t mean they matter more to me than you. You are my everything, Kayla. You inspire me to strive to be the best mum I can be because I know I haven’t always met that standard for you. I want you to feel comfortable sharing anything with me. You’ll always be my baby. No matter how busy I am, I’m always here for you. I love you so much, darling. Thank you for expressing how you’ve been feeling,” she said, her eyes glistening with tears.

“I love you so much too, Mum, and thank you for listening,” I said, pulling her into a warm, tight embrace.

“Of course, my darling. I’ll do my best to be the mum you deserve,” she promised.

“Thank you, Mum,” I replied, feeling a weight lift off my shoulders.

We settled in for the evening, wrapped snugly in a cozy blanket, diving into yet another episode of Love Island.

Just then, I decided to call Fiona. “Are you coming over?”

“Yes, I’ll be there in just a few minutes!” she replied cheerfully.

“Awesome! I’ll be waiting!” I said, grinning as excitement filled the air.

I couldn't help but notice the weight that had been lifted off my mind after my conversation with Mum yesterday.

Today was the day the study group was meeting at my place—Fiona, the twins, Ashley, and Jake were all coming over to tackle some studying together.

As they walked through the door, I greeted them with a big smile. "Hey, guys! Welcome!"

"Hey Kayla!" they chimed back, settling in and dropping their bags.

I wanted to make everyone feel comfortable, so I asked, "What would you like to drink? Water? Juice?”

“I’ll take water,” Ashley and Jake replied without hesitation.

“We’ll stick with juice,” the twins echoed, grinning.

“Two waters and three juices coming right up!” I declared cheerfully as I headed to the kitchen.

I returned shortly with a tray filled to the brim with our drinks, and they all mumbled their thanks as I set it down on the table.

“Alright, let’s dive into Math! Who’s ready to tackle some quadratic equations?” Luca suggested, his eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.

“Sounds good to me!” we all agreed, nodding eagerly.

Lila jumped in with the quadratic formula, “It’s x = -b ± √(b² - 4ac) / 2a!”

“Perfect! Let’s solve a few problems using that,” I encouraged, pulling out my pen and worksheet.

It didn’t take long for everyone to get into the groove. Luca was the first to finish, followed closely by Jake, then me, then Lila, with Fiona and Ashley finishing up last.

After everyone was done, we exchanged worksheets for marking.

“Are we all wrapped up?” Luca asked, looking around.

“Yep!” we replied, almost in unison.

“Alright, who wants to share scores?” he pried, a knowing grin on his face.

“Sure!” we replied, though I could see some hesitation in Ashley's eyes.

“Fiona, let’s hear your score first,” he said.

“I got a 6,” she admitted, her voice tinged with a hint of disappointment.

“Not bad, but I know you can do better. How about you, Jake?” he asked.

“I scored an 8!” Jake beamed.

“Great job! Still, there’s room for improvement. What about you, Ashley?” he continued.

“I got a 5…,” she replied quietly.

Jake jumped in, “I’ll help you with your corrections!”

Lila then cut in, “I got a 7, by the way!”

I felt the excitement build in the room, and finally, I said, “I scored a 10!”

“Awesome, Kayla! I could use your help with those corrections, too,” Luca said, and I nodded, feeling a mix of pride and pressure mounting beside Ashley. This was exactly the last thing I wanted right now.