Tom and Fabian had 38 muffins altogether. After Tom ate ¹₃ of his muffins and Fabian ate 2 muffins, the number of muffins Fabian had left was thrice the number of muffins Tom had left. How many more muffins did Fabian have than Tom at first?

	Tom	Fabian	Total
Before	3 u	6 u + 2	38
Change	- 1 u	- 2
After	2 u
Comparing Tom and Fabian in the end	1x2 = 2 u	3x2 = 6 u

The number of muffins that Tom had in the end is the same. Make the number of muffins that Tom had in the end the same.  LCM of 2 and 1 is 2.

Total number of muffins at first
= 3 u + 6 u + 2
= 9 u + 2

9 u + 2 = 38
9 u = 38 - 2
9 u = 36 

1 u = 36 ÷ 9 = 4

Number of muffins that Tom had at first
= 3 u
= 3 x 4
= 12

Number of muffins that Fabian had at first
= 38 - 12
= 26

Number of muffins that Fabian had more than Tom at first
= 26 - 12
= 14

Answer(s): 14