Jane Alexandra Bass, Luca Andrew Anderson: Don't cry fluffy

Jane Alexandra Bass was the pride of Frederick School. She had swept all the grade one competitions without exception. Her glasses perched on the end of her nose were a testament not only to her intelligence but also to her exceptional abilities. The kid was a prodigy. Having her in grade two was almost a formality, as she was assigned a mentor to provide her with more challenging material.

As the class teacher began to welcome everyone back to school, the students sat attentively in their colorful chairs, each paired with a matching table. The room was organized, with jackets and pullovers hung on the left and bags stored on the right. Each student's table was equipped with an array of supplies, including color pencils, a file of white papers, and more.

Luca, already bored with the teacher's speech, began to color and draw. Jane, who had arrived late, was seated at the front of the classroom, while Luca sat at the back. "School is so boring," Luca thought to himself, mentally plotting a thousand ways to escape. But when he glanced at his wrist, he felt a surge of motivation. The wristband seemed to remind him to stay focused and try harder.

For the first time in his life, Luca had spoken to his mom, and she had even given him a gift. Usually, he would sneak out of the house to see her, despite being forbidden from meeting her. The spies his father sent were easy to evade, and Luca could spot two of them in the classroom - one peeking through the window, clad in black, and another hiding behind a pillar. However, the third spy remained elusive, and Luca wondered how the teachers and classmates couldn't see them.

As Luca drew, his diagram of Wonder Woman transformed into a portrait of a girl with long black hair tied in pigtails, spectacles, and striking blue eyes. He stared at the picture, unsure who it was, and then looked at the girl sitting in front. "Who is she?" "Why was she with mom?" "Is mom married?" Luca asked himself. He held the diagram up, studying it, and wondered, "She looks like me... is she my half-sister?"

Before Luca could put the picture away, the class teacher, Mrs. Evelyn, noticed it. She was a young woman with a kind face, black hair tied in a ponytail, and average-looking brown eyes. Mrs. Evelyn quickly recognized Luca as the boy with the handsome father. "Luca, what do we have here?" she asked, trying to take the diagram from him. But Luca refused to let go, holding it tightly. Embarrassed, Mrs. Evelyn laughed awkwardly, trying to pat Luca's hair, but he dodged her hand. Her smile trembled, and she looked even more flustered.

The class teacher, Mrs. Evelyn, moved to the front of the group. "Okay, let's begin our tour of the school," she said, leading the way. The students followed closely behind, their similar heights making them look like a uniformed procession.

As they walked, Mrs. Evelyn suggested, "Let's sing a song. 'There was a farmer who had a dog...'" The students eagerly joined in, singing in unison, "And Bingo was his name-o, B-I-N-G-O!" All the kids sang along, except Luca, who found the song lame. Jane, on the other hand, participated enthusiastically, determined to model the best student behavior.

As they sang, Jane felt a growing sense of unease. It was as if someone was staring at her. She glanced around, looking behind and in front of her, but couldn't identify the source of her discomfort. Before she could investigate further, small hands clamped over her mouth, and she was dragged backward, away from the group. The teacher remained oblivious to the commotion.

Mike, perched on the school's rooftop, watched the scene unfold with interest. He had been instructed to intervene only if Luca was being attacked, but to his surprise, Luca was the one initiating the assault. Mike's eyes narrowed, impressed by Luca's bold move.

The child was really a big deal; he could make a good hitman too. Luca pulled Jane to one of the school corridors, the alley between grade two and three. "I'll let you go if you don't scream," Luca spoke into her ear, his voice filled with a childish tone. "Mmhm mmh," Luca released Jane slowly. Jane, not intimidated by the tiny, fluffy kid who was her height, smiled at him.

"You could be gravely punished for what you just did, you know? The school is guarded by the national army, and there are cameras everywhere," Jane said quickly, switching roles with him. She was now the persecutor; Luca could even imagine a small, devilish tail toying around as the girl smirked.

How could she be so confident, Luca felt suppressed by the girl's shiny blue eyes and mature tone.

"You witch! You stole my mother from me," Luca screamed, lost for words. He was completely red with anger and looked like a beautiful tomato. "If Mom is married and has another kid, she would forget about me totally. Dad says Mom has lost her memory, and I shouldn't visit her because it will cause Mom to return to a state of madness."

Huge droplets of tears fell down his eyes as this was a subject he couldn't control his emotions about. Mike, who watched from the other end of the alley, used his cellphone to immortalize the moment.

"The boss will pay me so much for this video. As young as Luca is, he is bold enough to confess his love to a girl and even cry. Hahahaha,"

Luca slowly wiped away the tears, but they kept rolling down.

Confused, Jane patted the kid's hair.

"Small guy, calm down. Grandpa says a man doesn't cry this much, and by the way..." Jane held his jaws and dragged them, playing around with them. "You shouldn't insult someone; that's what a good kid does. Grandma says..." She dragged Luca's jaw again and then let it go. Luca felt like he was going to pick up his jaws from the floor as they burned so much.

"Why did you take me here by force if you would cry so much?" Jane asked, her hands itching to touch the soft, fluffy kid. The kid still didn't reply.

"And by the way, my mom is not around; she's six feet under," both kids stared at each other with the same eyes, each consuming their own pain internally.

"Who are your parents?" Jane asked, interested. Even if she was blind or naive, she could see the resemblance between her and this kid in front of her. The only difference between them was this boy's messy brown hair and her long black hair. Was he even a male?

Jane waited for his answer anxiously, she could feel her belly twisting.

"It's confidential," Luca said before running away to join the group of grade two students. Jane, left behind, cracked her knuckles as she smiled.

"What a stupid kid... who could be my brother."