Chapter 2 Guess Who Is Going To The Same School?

• “Could you please call Philip? I’ve been knocking for a while now, but I don’t think he can hear me because the music’s so loud,” Gideon asked Kara, and she nodded, reaching for her phone.
• “Philip can be such a pain sometimes. I’m really getting fed up with him,” she muttered, dialing his number.
• The phone started ringing, and she put it on speaker. The ringing went on and on, and Gideon started to doubt that Philip would even pick it up.
• “Are you sure this will work? He might not even hear the phone ring,” Kara said, just as Philip finally answered.
• “Mom,” he said, and Gideon could hear the music volume drop. He let out a sigh of relief.
• “Your dad’s been knocking for a while now, so please open the door,” she told him, and he hung up immediately.
• “Do you think he actually opened the door?” Gideon asked, and Kara nodded.
• “Yeah. He may act arrogant, but he does respect me. The door should be open by now,” she said, and Gideon stood up.
• “Let me go check on him before he changes his mind,” he said, kissing her cheek before quickly heading up the stairs.
• When he reached Philip’s door, it was already open. He sighed and walked inside to find Philip lying on the bed with his headphones on.
• He could still hear the loud music blaring from the room as he stood at the door.
• “Hey,” he said, trying to sound as friendly as possible.
• “Hi. Good morning,” Philip mumbled, not moving from his spot on the bed.
• “We need to talk,” Gideon said, and Philip rolled his eyes before pulling his headphones off.
• “Thanks for doing that,” Gideon remarked, sitting down on the chair in front of Philip’s bed.
• “About loving Haley, right?” Philip asked, and Gideon smiled, nodding.
• “I bet you’ll be smart enough to understand all the nonsense I’m about to tell you,” Gideon said, folding his arms and staring at Philip.
• “Okay, don’t look so tense; it’s not that complicated,” Gideon said, trying to ease the tension. Philip just nodded, looking like he was losing patience.
• “Haley’s a stubborn girl, I won’t deny that. But she’s not as bad as you think. She’s kind and caring. You’ve got to understand, things haven’t been the same for her since my wife passed. It’s really affected her,” Gideon explained. Philip nodded, indicating he was listening.
• “I got you,” he replied.
• “So, just treat her like your sister. Talk to her, try to calm her down. You can’t both be hot-headed,” Gideon added. Philip nodded again.
• “You know that won’t be easy, right?” he asked, and Gideon nodded.
• “I know. She even annoys me sometimes, her father. But you have to understand her, let her have her way a little. Eventually, she’ll calm down and come around,” he said.
• “Alright. I’ll try, but I’m not promising anything,” Philip said with a shrug.
• “That’s fine with me. I just want you to understand. You’re siblings, not enemies. You need to show each other some love,” Gideon said, hoping that Philip would get the point.
• Philip scoffed.
• “You told her that too?” Philip asked, raising an eyebrow. Gideon smiled in response.
• “She knows that already,” he said. Philip nodded, then reached for his headphones.
• “Okay, we done here?” Philip asked, putting the headphones back on. Gideon nodded as he stood up.
• “Yep, I’m done,” he said, and Philip nodded again, grabbing his phone and resuming the music.
• Gideon left the room and made his way back to the living room, feeling relieved that he’d managed to get through to his kids.
• He found Kara already setting the table for breakfast. She looked up and smiled when she saw him.
• “Did he listen to you? He can be a bit rude sometimes,” she said, and Gideon chuckled, planting a kiss on her cheek.
• “He did listen, he’s not that bad,” he replied with a smile. Kara returned the smile.
• “Breakfast is ready. I’ll call them down,” she said, and Gideon nodded. She made her way to the stairs, and he watched her until she disappeared out of sight.
• She went to Philip’s room first, knocking on the door. It opened with a simple turn of the knob.
• “Mom?” Philip called as soon as he saw her enter. He took the headphones off his ears.
• “Hey, son. Breakfast is ready,” Kara said, and he smiled, nodding.
• “I love the sound of that,” he said, and Kara laughed softly.
• “I know you do,” Kara said with a smile, walking out of Philip’s room and heading toward Haley’s.
• She stopped at Haley's door, took a deep breath, and knocked.
• “Who is it?” Haley called from inside, getting up from the bed and walking to the door.
• “It’s me. I came to let you know breakfast is ready,” Kara responded. Haley opened the door.
• “Oh, okay. Thanks,” Haley said as they exchanged a brief look.
• Kara nodded and walked away, making her way back to the living room. As she walked, she thought, ‘I didn’t think it would be that easy.’
• Gideon and Kara were already seated at the table, waiting for the kids to join them so they could start eating.
• Philip came down the stairs looking unusually happy, which piqued their curiosity.
• “I made it,” he said proudly, and Kara and Gideon exchanged surprised looks.
• “Made it?” Kara asked.
• “I’ve been offered a scholarship to Forcadus University,” he announced, sitting down at the table. Kara and Gideon were thrilled.
• “Oh my God, that’s amazing!” they both exclaimed in unison, and Philip smirked.
• “Yes, it is. Can’t wait to start,” he said casually. Just then, Haley walked down the stairs, looking just as excited.
• “Dad!! Guess what!!” she yelled, and Philip sighed, rolling his eyes and looking away.
• “What is it, baby girl?” Gideon asked eagerly, intrigued by her energy.
• “I got into Forcadus University too, and I’m on a scholarship until I graduate!” she shouted, then ran over to hug Gideon happily.
• Gideon’s face lit up with joy. “That’s incredible, Haley!” he said, returning her hug.
• “That’s amazing, Haley!” Gideon said, and she nodded, taking a seat next to him at the table.
• “I’m happy for you, Haley,” Kara added, smiling warmly, but Haley’s smile began to fade as she barely responded.
• “Thank you,” she muttered, still completely ignoring Philip, who sat across from them.
• Philip, looking puzzled, glanced between his mom and Haley. “What’s going on? How come we’re both going to the same school?” he asked, his tone full of confusion.
• Haley raised an eyebrow and shot him a look. “What is he talking about?” she asked, and Gideon chuckled softly before responding.
• “Well, here’s the thing. When you told me about the scholarship exams you were planning to take, I decided to mention it to Kara. She then told Philip, and both of you ended up sitting for the exams. You probably didn’t realize it, but here you are—you both passed!” Gideon explained with a smile, feeling proud of the situation. Haley and Philip exchanged surprised looks.
• “So, you two will be in the same school. Isn’t that great?” Kara added, holding Gideon’s hand, her face glowing with happiness.