Nolan took another slow sip from his chipped metal mug, steam curling lazily into the air as the movie played on the massive projection screen before him.
His legs were kicked up on the desk now, one arm draped casually behind his head, the other holding the mug with the kind of practiced laziness that screamed detached superiority.
He watched as the character on-screen—the father—stared down the monstrous Bloater with nothing but a flickering knife in his trembling grip. He didn't even try to run. He stood his ground.
Nolan scoffed. "What a stupid father," he muttered, shaking his head with a dry chuckle. "You still got a little baby girl waiting back at that mall, and now you wanna act fearless? Fucking stupid."
He burst into a short, humorless laugh that echoed across the quiet classroom.
But then—
"SIR!!"
The shout pierced through the air like a dagger.
Nolan turned, slowly lowering his mug.
It was Kera.