1. Shaayadh

2007, November 21th, Wednesday.

ZT Country, Province; ZT-02, District 4, Claywan Town.

Monsoon rain heavily fell on the roofs of St. Mary's Nursery building.

The sky was covered with dark clouds, only allowing little light through them, showing that the noon sun was still on the horizon.

Inside the teacher's room, three ladies were seated around the table, talking with an old woman respectfully.

"Aunt, Shaayadh's mother came today too. She pleaded for a little more time to pay off last month's fees..." Teacher Rosy informed the old woman about the notable events that happened today.

Hearing that, the old lady, who was addressed as 'Aunt' by Teacher Rosy, fell into deep thought.

Sigh, that pitiful woman...

"Didn't she ask whether there was any work to do here? When she comes later to pick up Shaayadh, inform her that she can work as a cleaner."

"The salary will be 400 Cr per month, and tell her that there won't be any need to pay her child's fees once she starts working here," Ms. Francis, who was also called 'Aunt' by everyone, said after deep thought.

Ms. Francis was the owner and principal of St. Mary's Nursery. She built this nursery when she was forty. Now, even after many decades, she was still running this nursery very well at her old age.

As for why everyone addresses her as 'Aunt', the three young teachers here weren't very sure. It had been the norm to call her 'Aunt' when they joined a few years ago, so they addressed her as such.

If someone were to ask them the reason, they would say that Ms. Francis was like a relative to them, similar to their own mother or aunt.

"I will make sure to convey your words to her, Aunt," Teacher Rosy replied.

"Is there anything else to inform me, Aunt?" she asked after checking the time on her watch.

"No, nothing. You can leave," the old woman waved her hand. With that, Teacher Rosy got up from her chair and left the room hurriedly after bidding farewell to the others.

At that very moment, a pair of clear eyes looked at the world outside through the curtained window, full of complex feelings inside.

St. Mary's Nursery, my memories regarding this place were mostly blurry... Shaayadh quietly gazed, standing by the window, moving the curtain a little more.

Who doesn't want to have another chance? Even if there are, I am not one of them after all... Shaayadh stretched out his hands, looking at his young and soft little arms. He slowly clenched them, embracing the truth of the reality.

He had died, died without even knowing who or what killed him. Then he was reborn, standing by the window full of doubts.

Even though he was reborn, he didn't feel any overly emotional reactions. If anything, he felt a little excited thinking about it; other than that, it didn't bring him any panic or make him unable to accept the reality. After all, the future he had lived had many outrageous events happening... So, the 'him' who lived in that period also had a calm and adaptable mind.

"Nearly 30 years of experience, it really feels like a dream," Shaayadh muttered slowly with his childish voice.

Nok~ Screech

The sound of the door opening brought him back from his reverie.

"Oh~ Shaai, are you not feeling sleepy? What happened?" Teacher Rosy asked after looking at the sleeping kids and Shaayadh, who was standing by the window.

Since all these children in her class were between the ages of four and five, they would mostly fall asleep around noon. Rosy would also make those who weren't asleep sleep before going to meet 'Aunt' for discussion.

Ms. Francis was already over 75 years old, so she wouldn't be present at the nursery all day. Most of the time, she would visit around noon, so Rosy needed to go downstairs every day during that time to meet her since the old lady's physique wouldn't allow her to walk upstairs.

Rosy couldn't leave the children alone to their own devices, or they would turn the class upside down. Since she couldn't watch them, she made it a habit for them to sleep during noon. This would effectively prevent children from fighting among themselves due to mood swings or throwing things all over the place.

"I am looking for my mother, teacher~" Shaai replied with his mellow voice, looking at her.

To him, Rosy felt both familiar and unfamiliar. Familiar because his current brain remembered her image vividly, unfamiliar because his present soul's memory didn't remember her... not even her name.

Ah right, it had been more than 30 years... I have even forgotten my younger image when I was just a teen. So how is it possible to remember my nursery teacher who taught me when I was a kid?

"Ah~ Don't worry, sugar~ Your mother will be here in a while. Come here, teacher will play with you," Rosy thought that he was staring to miss his mother so she consoled the child as she called him over.

"Mm~" Shaayadh didn't object as he walked to her with slow steps.

The two of them played some simple 'number counting' games as time slowly passed.

Shaayadh sat on Teacher Rosy's lap as he relaxed his mind a little.

I better not think too much, my head already hurts so much... There is also this bloating feeling...

It was fine if it was only reciting numbers one to ten; his brain would have allowed him to accomplish the task simply. But he had been thinking about his rebirth and future predicaments all the while playing with Teacher Rosy.

How can his undeveloped brain shoulder all these taxing tasks? It is understandable that he would feel mentally tired after all that brainstorming.

It had only been a little over an hour since I was sure that I was reborn, so how will I stop thinking... Ahh, it hurts, stop thinking... stop thinking... Shaayadh furrowed his brows in pain as he tried to forcefully distract himself from thinking too much. An hour of continuous thinking was already his limit.

Slowly... He leaned a little to find a comfortable position to place his head, which was on Teacher Rosy's chest.

Although it felt comfortable for him to sleep in her warm arms, his current situation didn't allow him to enjoy it as sleep overtook him.

Hmm... Teacher Rosy also noticed that he was falling asleep, so she leaned a little on her chair to make it comfortable for him to sleep.

Time passed. It was nearing 1 o'clock, which was the time for many parents to pick up their children.

Soon, many parents came to pick up their children. Teacher Rosy had no choice but to get up holding Shaayadh in her arms. She placed him on his play mat carefully and went to greet the parents.

After most of the children left, only Shaayadh and another little girl remained.

After a few minutes, Shaayadh's mother, Vanitha, also arrived.

Vanitha was a mother in her late 30s. Her skin was dark, in stark contrast to Shaayadh's fairly fair skin. She had an ordinary face, an average height of 165 cm, and a very thin body. The oversized cheap dress she wore couldn't hide the sunburns on her skin.

Her long black hair, which was woven into a braid, and her determined eyes, which contained countless painful stories, were the only attractive things about her.

Holding a wet umbrella in her left hand, Vanitha greeted Teacher Rosy with a smile,

"Thank you for your trouble, teacher. I was delayed a little because of this heavy rain."

Teacher Rosy also smiled back and talked with her. Soon, she mentioned what Aunt had told her a while ago.

Hearing that she could work here and there would be no need to pay for her child's fees, Vanitha smiled heartily and thanked Teacher Rosy repeatedly.

"No need to thank me, it was Aunt who helped you. If you need to thank anyone, you can thank her."

"Yes, yes, I will never forget her kindness. Is she here? Can I meet her now?" Vanitha's eyes started to cloud with mist as she couldn't control her joy and relief.

To her disappointment, the one who helped her, the one she felt grateful to, had already left a few minutes ago.

"No, she just left. If there is nothing else, you can start working tomorrow. You will also have a chance to meet her."

"Yes, you're right. There is no problem for me. I can start working tomorrow. Can you tell me more about my work..." Vanitha asked with a foolish smile.

To her, today was one of the happiest days. This day brought her a chance to relieve most of the pain she had in her heart. The pain of seeing her children suffer from hunger was not something she wished to see anymore. If she could also start working and earn some money, with her husband's earnings, at least there would be food to fill their stomachs every day.

As for the job as a cleaner... she didn't mind.

Teacher Rosy also patiently informed her about her work and responsibilities, which included, but were not limited to, watering the garden, sweeping the nursery floor, cleaning the toilet, and taking care of children's emergencies.

Although it hurt her last bit of remaining dreams and pride to do a job similar to a servant, as a mother, she had to do it. She was not a clueless woman who didn't know the way of the world. She had seen and heard about many women who even sold their bodies for money. Compared to them, she was relatively lucky. At least, she didn't have to do something disgraceful.

After telling her everything, Rosy walked in to pick up the still-sleeping Shaayadh.

"He was sleeping. Do you need me to wake him up?" Teacher Rosy asked Vanitha as she came carrying Shaayadh in her arms.

"No need, teacher. I came walking today, so there is no need..." Vanitha spoke in a low voice as she carefully took her child into her arms.

After bidding farewell to Teacher Rosy with a smile, Vanitha started walking toward her house, carrying her child with one arm and holding the umbrella with the other.

Luckily for her, the rain was starting to slow down; otherwise, the small umbrella she was holding wouldn't have been enough for the two of them to reach the house without getting wet.

As she walked with determination, her fate was also starting to change slowly because of the one she carried carefully in her arms.....