Un-Arranged Love

Chapter 13

Alaya's POV:

I'm not sure how I'm going to persuade Alex to stop tutoring my brothers. It's a complete waste of his time. He must think we're all a bunch of lunatics. Alex stood in front of me, his gaze fixed on me. I hadn't realised how much thought he had put into his appearance until I noticed he was dressed smartly in trousers, a light blue t-shirt with a navy blue tie, and smart shoes. He looked handsome.

''Alex, I'm sorry for my brothers behaviour. I tried to warn you, my brothers are monsters. You should leave before my mother tries to persuade you to stay. You aren't their first tutor. In fact, I've lost track of the number of tutors they've had. They're beyond help, so I'm advising you to go while you still have the chance. You'll thank me in the long run, believe me." I said.

Strangely, I was greeted with a snicker. ''Alaya I've tutored a few kids before, so trust me when I say this isn't something I can't manage. I like your brothers and believe we will become friends very soon. I simply want the chance to get to know them so that I can tailor their education to their interests. This comes in handy while I'm teaching."

"But, Alex...." I attempted to continue.

''Thank you for your concern, but honestly leave me with them and you'll see how great they do.''

"I still think you're insane for teaching them, but if that's what you want, go ahead and do it; it's your funeral." My good intentions had defeated me. 

"Have you eaten anything yet? Why don't we grab a bite to eat? Mums cooked these dishes especially for you, so you'll keep coming back. Might as well eat as I'm not to sure when the boys will come back in from outside," I said. ''Come here and let me go through each item with you to find what you like most." 

"It smells fantastic, but I have to warn Mrs Khan that if she keeps cooking for me like this, I'm going to have to spend  most of my time in the gym training to lose weight" he added, circling his belly.

I couldn't help but laugh. He's funny I thought to myself.

Alex POV:

While we were headed to the table, Alaya handed me a plate. Mrs Khan had made such a magnificent effort, I must say. Alaya pointed to a few dishes that appeared to be fritters. They were pakoras, samosas, and onion bhajis. The next few dishes were a selection of butter chicken curry, lamb bhuna, Cauliflower and potato which she referred to as ''aloo ghobi'' and a lentil curry which she called ''daal''. This was served with white rice and naan bread.

I wasn't a big eater and tried to remain in shape by eating healthy and going to the gym, but that wasn't going to happen today because Alaya had heaped a spoonful of each dish onto my plate. She motioned for me to take a seat at the table.

We took seats across from one other. I felt completely at ease in her company. I couldn't believe that just this morning this girl wanted to bite my head off and now she was serving me food. What a difference a single day could make.

I bit into the pakora first. "Alaya, this is delicious, Mrs Khan is an amazing cook," I couldn't believe how good it tasted.

"Don't tell her she already has a big head from winning the best cook competition at my brother's school. She practically flaunts the wooden spoon they gave her as a trophy and shoves it in the faces of the other mums whenever she has the chance," she explained, laughing.

''Your mum seems great. What about your dad, is he not home?''

"Dad works at the local bread factory. Unless he's taken on an extra shift, he should be returning soon. He's such a hard worker" With a sallow expression, she said, "It's his and mum's dream to see me graduate and receive a medical degree."