Chapter Fifteen
Ryan sat to the side of the large room at the inn and watched Parker order all the young tigers around and grinned. She was definitely alpha material.
“Everyone sit,” she commanded. “Before our students arrive, I want to ask you all some questions.”
He saw Ila sitting in the front along with other young females. The more troublesome, Nigel and his friends, sat at the back, talking amongst themselves. He was ready to growl at them to shut up when Parker cleared her throat.
“Excuse me,” she stared at Nigel. “You, what’s your name?”
“Nigel.”
She nodded. “Do your parents work at the inn?”
“Yeah,” he said, his voice full of attitude.
“So you understand how hard they work to ensure you have everything you need, right?”
Nigel leaned back in his chair. “So? That’s their job.”
Everyone stood quiet. Parker smiled. “No, Nigel. That’s not their job. How old are you?”
“Twenty-two.”
She barked a laugh. “And you think it’s your parents’ responsibility to bust their asses for you?” She snorted. “I. Don’t. Think. So.” She glanced around the room. “You’re all adults. I don’t know how the rules work for shifters, but for humans, once you turn eighteen, you’re on your own.
“You can work, and you can contribute to society. You can even get married if you so choose. So the fact you’re still living with parents who are willing to help care for you shows their dedication to you.” She met Nigel’s gaze and held it. “What have YOU done for them lately?”
“I don’t need to do anything,” he argued.
“Actually, you do,” she maintained. “Your parents took care of you when you couldn’t take care of yourself. Soon, they’ll need you to take care of them like they took care of you. It’s the circle of life.” She glanced around and nodded. “If you’ve got a good job, you won’t have to take care of them yourselves. You can pay someone else to help you do it. But if you don’t, you bet your ass that’s your job.”
Nigel snorted. “Yeah, okay.”
“How would you feel if you had a car accident today and were unable to move. To even feed yourself, and your parents said, ‘you’re own your own’?”
Nigel stayed quiet.
“Any of you, how would you feel?”
“Alone,” one girl said.
“Fucked up,” one of Nigel’s friends added.
Parker nodded. “It would suck to need help and not have people there for you, doing anything for you.”
“What does that have to do with this?” Nigel motioned around the conference set up.
“Well, today we’re going to have a lot of your elders, people who worked to make this pride what it is today, here. You’re going to respectfully show them how to use a computer or their smartphones.” She pointed to the left side of the room where a long set of tables with seats on both sides were arranged.
“You all will help them learn how to use basic functions on their smartphones. That means how to use apps they might need. Social media. How to make video calls. And how to play music. The rest of you will teach them how to log on to a computer and check email and use the internet. Simple stuff.”
“But they’re old,” one of the guys groaned. “They’re annoying.”
Parker barked a laugh. “What do you think your grandkids are going to say about you when you’re an elder? Oh, he’s the coolest guy ever?”
“Yeah,” the kid said. “I’m always going to know what’s happening in the world.”
“That’s a great attitude, but very unrealistic,” she told him. “Technology moves so quickly that we miss things all the time. So for today, you’re going to be kind and gentle with your elders,” her smile turned into a cold hard stare. “And if any of you say anything to upset any of them, you’ll have so much grunt work, you’ll be kissing their asses the next time I tell you to be nice to your elders.”
There was soft grumbling, but nobody objected. Parker nodded to Kell. “Let’s open the doors and allow them inside.”
Ryan helped some of the weakest pride members sit by their young teachers. The females were sweet, smiling and welcoming the elders with enthusiasm.
The males were another story. Ryan made a point to bring Mr. Dunbury to Nigel’s table. He was one of the most opinionated elders and most people had a hard time having a conversation with him.
“Mr. Dunbury,” Ryan said and helped the old man sit, “Nigel’s going to help you with any computer questions and anything you want to learn to do.”
Mr. Dunbury brushed off Ryan’s arm and turned to Nigel. “Well, get to it, little cub. I ain’t got all day.”
Nigel frowned. “Do you know how to turn on a computer?”
“Do you know how to wipe your ass?” he countered. “Of course, I know how to turn on a computer. Any idiot with two brain cells can do that.”
The other kids laughed at that and Nigel’s face turned red. “All right. Then let’s get you online,” he said and turned on the computer, clicking the mouse and doing things quickly.
“Hang on a goddamned second there. I said I knew how to turn it on, that doesn’t mean you get to speed through everything else. What did you just do to get that colorful circle to turn into the internet?”
Nigel rolled his eyes. “I just clicked on it.”
Mr. Dunbury smacked Nigel upside the head so fast, Nigel was left staring at him wide-eyed. “Did you just give me attitude, boy?”
Nigel growled, but Ryan caught his gaze and flashed his own tiger at the young man.
“No, sir. I didn’t.”
“I’ll have you know I was one of the people that established this pride over sixty years ago.”
“Damn, you’re like ancient,” Nigel muttered.
Another smack upside the head and Nigel stared down at Mr. Dunbury’s hand on his lap. “Call me old again and you may not live to teach the rest of this class.”
“How are you even moving your hand so fast?” Nigel asked, rubbing the back of his head.
“Well, boy. That there is a trick. The hand is always quicker than the eye,” he said with a wink. “Now, back to this computer stuff.”
Ryan walked away and caught sight of Parker sitting on a table next to his mom.
“You’re going to love this program.” Parker laughed. “You can post photos about your family. Check out their photos and make comments on them.”
“This does look fun,” his mom said.
“Hey,” he leaned down and kissed Parker on the cheek.
His mom raised her brows and grinned. “Hey, to you.”
“I’m teaching Jolene some social media apps,” Parker grinned at him. “What are you up to?”
He watched his mom stare at Parker, her smile widening. “Just making sure everything’s good.”
“Okay,” she said and waved him off. “I’m going to teach her how to make video calls next.”