‘What’s the other name for red blood cell?’ Erica asked while covering the relevant textbook passage with her hand.
‘E-ry-tho-CYTE,’ Clara said, counting every syllable with her fingers.
‘Good enough. Alright, number five, then we can go watch cartoons and have a big glass of chocolate milk. Respiration. No matter what you are doing, the cells that make up your body are turning sugars and other things you’ve eaten into energy,’ Erica said as she pointed to a complicated diagram. ‘So, the sugar here goes through all of these steps and in the end, becomes the energy you need to keep living.’
‘Hey Erica,’ Philip said as he rummaged around some shelves, ‘have you seen my keys?’
‘Yes, you left them on the table. Sorry, let me move these books…’
‘Should I even ask why you’re teaching Clara something way beyond her age?’ he said, somewhat amused.
‘It’s NOT beeond my age!’ Clara said, helping her mother tidy the textbooks. ‘It’s for Mrs. Delaney.’
‘How is high school level biology “for Mrs. Delaney”?’ Philip asked as he tried to retie Clara’s ponytails, without much
success.
‘Well, Mrs. Delaney keeps asking Clara what she’s doing during recess, and Clara keeps giving the same answer, since she’s always reading.’
‘I’m going to have FIVE answers on Monday!’

—

Word count: 215