"Mommy! Are you okay?" Elena took off and ran towards me as soon as I stepped into her classroom with the guy that 'saved' me earlier.
I crouched down and opened my arms wide, hugging her little body. Carefully and gently, not letting the sticky juice touched her shirt.
"Hi, baby. The witch has surrendered and flee." We pulled away before I poked her small nose playfully.
"Yay! I knew you could do it, mommy!" She giggled then she stopped after she realized something different.
"Whose coat is that, mommy?" She asked.
I unconsciously clutched the coat that I was wearing, tight.
"Oh?" She peeked behind my shoulder curiously.
"Mr. Xavier! Mr. Xavier!" Elena beamed with joy when she saw him.
Wait, what?
"Huh?" I turned around, only to see him stood still there watching us with those intense gazes.
He offered Elena a gentle smile. Jesus, even my heart skipped a beat for a little there.
"Come, take a seat." He guided me to the front desk.
"Mr. Xavier, can I stay here with mommy? I'm afraid that old witch... I mean woman earlier will come and hurt her again. It's my job to protect her from harm." Elena hugged my legs, stopping me.
Aw, my sunshine...
Xavier cocked an eyebrow, confused.
"Sure, but... witch?" He asked.
"You know, the woman earlier..." The little girl in front of me nervously played with her hair. That was her habit. When she was nervous or anxious, she would played with her hair. It was an action to calm her down.
Xavier let out a low chuckle, clearly amused.
"Uh..." I bit my tongue, this was embarrassing.
Now the secret was out. I was the one who called her 'witch' before Elena got used to it and started calling her with that nickname too.
Xavier must have thought that I was a terrible mother.
"Elena, I'll call Uncle Jake to pick you up. Is that okay for you?" I asked Elena for confirmation. Silently praying. Please say yes. Please say yes.
"No. I need to stay here. Uncle Liam told me to stay here and protect you." Elena pouted.
Jesus, Liam. WHY THE FUCK?
I rubbed my face.
Xavier must have seen me looking disappointed.
"You can stay. But you need to sit on the back row, okay? This is a conversation between me and your mom only." Xavier smiled.
"Thank you, Mr Xavier!" Elena quietly sat on the back row before she opened her book and started reading.
My heart fluttered. I didn't deserve this kid.
"She's one of my best student. 6 years old but she sure is brilliant." Xavier was pulling my chair for me, urging me to sit there before he went behind the desk and sat on a chair behind it.
I can finally see him. Face to face. For real this time.
And, god...
He was surprisingly, ridiculously, shockingly good-looking.
Sorry Jake. Looked like I had found your rival.
"Thank you for taking care of my daughter. I hope she doesn't cause any trouble. She's my precious gem. If anything happens to her..." I grinded my teeth.
I couldn't imagine what I'll do if something were to happens to Elena.
"Miss..."
I cut him off, "Just call me Myra."
I gave him a small smile.
"Myra, you look a little too young to have a daughter."
Oh. The typical question.
"I'm 24. Is that a problem?"
The same question. People always asked me the very same question. It was pissing me off. I was offended. Were they downgrading a teenage mom? What kind of society was this?
Some even looked down on me. Trash.
"No, you have my utmost respect. It must be hard for you." He smiled.
I blinked. What? Hold on. What?
"Oh." I replied with a simple 'oh'.
Well, I didn't expect him to say that. Usually people would find a way to embarrass me. They would find my flaws and made fun of me.
"Thanks. Unfortunately, not many people really see me the same way as you." I bit my lips.
I could killed them. The haters. But alas, I haven't had the times to do so. They keep on coming after all.
Xavier sighed, "Screw those people then."
I blinked again. Definitely wasn't expecting that from him.
"Now, let's start our session."
We talked for about an hour. I gotta say, he was friendly and nice.
Even I couldn't believe myself. He managed to find a way to make me laugh. And I'm not the type of person who laugh easily. I'm usually deadass serious.
He seemed genuinely happy when he talked about his students. Even though they were just a bunch of kid. His face lights up.
"I'm here for a year only. Temporary. The school needs a sudden replacement for one their teacher. She gave birth recently."
"Oh wow. You've been here for a month and you already caught a lot of attention." I wiggled my eyebrows, playfully.
He offered me a smile, "It's honestly tiring and uncomfortable. I mean, I know for a fact that I'm good looking, but I don't appreciate the staring."
"Jesus, your ego." I laughed.
He smirked, "I want people to see me as someone who teaches their children. I need their respect. Not them ogling my body and my face."
"Well, I do respect you. You seemed happy when you talked about Elena so thank you. For taking care of her." I smiled softly.
Xavier hummed as he looked me right in the eyes. There was something familiar about that eyes, yet I was certain that I had never met him before.
But what was it?