Chapter 7 7. Subtitute Teacher

"Good morning, students!" greeted Ms. Melly that morning to the 12th-grade science class.

"Good morning, teacher!" the students replied in unison, standing up to salute and then sitting back down.

"I will introduce the substitute teacher while I'm away," Ms. Melly explained to the students. The students exchanged glances, curious about this announcement.

"Miss Nadine, please come in!" Ms. Melly called Nadine, who had been waiting outside the classroom. She welcomed Nadine to introduce herself and then left the classroom. All the students were captivated by Nadine's presence, especially Brian. He smiled in admiration as he observed Nadine. Unconsciously, Brian raised his hand, eager to ask a question.

"Miss Nadine, do you have a boyfriend?" Brian asked, instantly causing a stir in the classroom.

"Ahem..." Nadine cleared her throat without answering Brian's question.

"Apologies in advance. I'm here to temporarily replace Ms. Melly in teaching Mathematics for a month. I hope we can cooperate well during this time," Nadine explained with a composed expression.

Brian observed Nadine's petite frame, which he estimated to be around 155 cm, and he smiled. Even though Nadine was wearing 7 cm high heels, with her slacks and blazer covering her printed shirt, she still looked more like a 10th-grade student than a teacher. Her long, straight hair flowed like a shampoo commercial on TV, and Brian couldn't take his eyes off her.

"By the way, here I'm just assisting Ms. Melly temporarily. My main role as a vocational teacher is to teach the 10th-grade class, so I'll be here only on Mondays and Wednesdays," Nadine clarified as she glanced around the entire class.

"Oh, who's the class representative of 12th-grade science class? Maybe I'll need your assistance later!" Nadine asked, and the entire class responded in unison.

"Brian!" With a wide grin, Brian stood up, towering tall. His face bore the handsome looks reminiscent of Korean idols.

"Miss, he's my twin," Najwa quipped from the seat next to Brian. Who didn't know them? Throughout the school, they were known as the Siamese Twins. Brian himself was the most wanted in the school. Besides being the student council president, he was also the captain of the basketball team, adored by female students.

"Oh, I see..." Nadine replied briefly, her face expressionless and cold. Brian smiled mischievously at Nadine.

"Listen up, guys... what if Miss Nadine becomes my girlfriend? Would that be a good match?" Brian proclaimed loudly, instantly making the whole class even more animated.

"You're such an attention seeker, watch out if you dare to leave me," Najwa protested while lightly tapping the back of Brian's head.

"Don't worry, Najwa dear, you'll always be the queen in my heart. Miss Nadine is the one becoming the queen," Brian retorted while poking Najwa's chin, causing the class to become even more lively.

"Okay, let's start today's lesson!" Nadine interrupted firmly to regain control of the class. Teaching the 10th grade turned out to be easier than teaching the 12th grade.

Nadine began explaining the lesson with enthusiasm, occasionally incorporating games that ignited the class's spirit. This time, Nadine instructed all students to stand up and do random calculations, but they couldn't repeat the numbers that their classmates had said. They were given only 5 seconds to respond. Failure to answer within the set time and repeating a classmate's answer would result in a punishment.

The game started, and a few of Brian's friends received punishment in the form of solving a problem correctly within 5 minutes. Now it was Brian's turn to receive a punishment. Brian stepped forward confidently, and it only took him 1 minute to answer the question correctly. Nadine was surprised because the problem she thought was difficult was easily solved by Brian.

"This kid is actually quite smart," Nadine thought. She had deliberately given a challenging question to prank Brian and make him feel embarrassed for not being able to answer it. From the beginning of their introduction, Nadine hadn't liked Brian's arrogant and conceited attitude.

***

"Today, we're having a quiz! Get your papers and pens ready!" Nadine announced as she started the lesson in their third meeting.

"Miss, why are we having a quiz?" Rinto, one of Brian's classmates whose math grades were always below passing, protested. For some students like Rinto, math lessons were intimidating, especially when there was an impromptu quiz like this.

"You're quite toxic in our class, aren't you? Class 12 IPA-1 is the best, why did you manage to get into this class?" another student remarked, while Rinto just stuck his tongue out in response to their teasing.

"Okay, let's start the quiz! Pay attention to the slide I'm displaying. You have 5 minutes to answer each question, and no repetitions allowed," Nadine explained firmly, switching on the LCD projector to display the prepared slides.

Thirty minutes passed...

"Please submit your papers on my desk right now!" Nadine ordered, causing the entire class to groan. Brian casually walked forward and handed in his work.

"Definitely 100, Miss!" Brian said as he turned in his quiz paper, earning a glowering look from Nadine. After Brian returned to his seat, Nadine glanced briefly at his quiz paper. Once again, she was amazed to find that Brian had easily answered all 10 questions she had given. Brian smiled as he saw Nadine's surprise and her icy gaze fixed on him.

"Is Miss Nadine here?" Brian asked Nadine's fellow intern during the school break. Despite the risk, Brian had ventured to the internship office located next to the Science Laboratory.

"Nadine, someone's looking for you!" Fera called out, although her eyes were still fixated on the handsome student in front of her.

"Who's looking for me, Fera?" Nadine approached Fera and Brian standing in front of the office.

"This is for you, Miss!" Brian handed a box of brownies to Nadine. Fera observed Nadine and Brian with a playful smile.

"Don't bother, Brian... but thanks a lot!" Nadine replied with a gentle smile, accepting the gift from Brian. Brian's heart suddenly bloomed as he received a sweet smile from Nadine.

"No need to thank your future boyfriend, Miss," Brian murmured, then hurriedly left before Nadine could throw the brownies at him. Fera and Nadine's fellow interns burst into laughter behind Nadine, who stood frozen in the doorway.

***

"Answer my question, Nadine. Who is this?" Brian asked with a strained voice, holding back his anger. The emotions he had suppressed for the past three days finally exploded. Not just for the past three days, but for the past 5 years, Brian had been holding back his pain and disappointment from Nadine's departure.

"Who is it?" Brian snapped, causing Nadine to jump in surprise, tears welling up in her eyes. She gazed at Brian's eyes, which were filled with rage.

"Is he our son?" Nadine responded with a quivering voice. She never expected Brian's reaction to be this terrifying. Tears streamed down Nadine's face uncontrollably.

"Great, you say he's our child!" Brian retorted with a cynical smile and applause. Nadine cried helplessly, unable to say anything anymore.

"Then why did you leave me just like that? Ah!" Brian roughly pulled his own hair and then grabbed Nadine's shoulders harshly.

"I loved you, Nadine..." Brian's voice trailed off into a hoarse whisper. His heart hurt because he had never once heard Nadine confess her love, and now she suddenly revealed that Ricky was their son.

"But that was in the past, now I hate you!" Brian snapped, then roughly released his grip on Nadine's shoulders. Nadine could only cry, hearing Brian's outburst. It wasn't just Brian; she felt the same pain too. In fact, Brian never understood the suffering Nadine went through during her pregnancy with Ricky – the anger from her father, the whispers from neighbors, and the fact that she had to take a leave of absence from her studies, just two semesters away from completion.

"Listen to me, Brian!" Nadine interjected amid her tears. This was the reason she wasn't ready to be honest – she was afraid of the rejection she might face again. Henry's rejection of Ricky had hurt her enough, and now she had to face rejection from Brian, Ricky's biological father.

"Are you sure Ricky is my child? It's possible that after sleeping with me, you slept with another man," Brian taunted, looking at Nadine with a spiteful glare.

Slap... Nadine's hand struck Brian's cheek hard. Brian's words had already wounded her deeply, and he held his cheek while smirking mockingly at Nadine.

"Enough! You can insult me all you want, but never insult your own flesh and blood!" Nadine retorted, wiping her tears roughly. She wouldn't waste any more tears on the despicable man before her. Her heartache was nothing compared to Brian's denial of Ricky.

"Now go, and never see Ricky again. He's my son!" Nadine threatened, pushing Brian out of her apartment. After the door closed, Nadine's body slumped to the floor, her cries once again breaking through.