Chapter 167


    Chapter 167: First Day of School


    Moana


    A few weeks passed after that. With each passing day, E became more and more excited for school,


    and I was just as excited. After singing my paperwork and getting the keys to my ssroom, I then


    spent the next few weeks leading up to the start of the school year preparing my lesson ns, stocking


    up on supplies, and cleaning out the abandoned art ssroom.


    On the morning of the first day of school, I woke up to E jumping on the bed and shouting.


    “Moana! Daddy!” she shrieked excitedly, jumping up and down and jostling both of us out of our sleep.


    “Wake up! It’s the first day of school!”


    I cracked my eyes open to see E standing above us with a wide grin on her face. Beside me, Edrick


    groaned slightly and finally sat up.


    “Alright, alright,” he said, rubbing his eyes and swinging his legs over the side of the bed. “Come on.


    Let’s all have breakfast together before your first day of school.”


    The night prior, I had already helped E pack her backpack andid out her uniform. I had also


    packed my own bag filled with the things that I would need for the day, and set our bags out by the front


    door together. I had to admit that I felt a little nervous as I got dressed that morning, but I was also


    excited, and seeing E in her adorable little id uniform and Mary Janes made me smile.


    After breakfast, it was time to go. Selina packed a lunch for both of us, and even gave E a little


    squeeze and a smile before sending us on our way. Edrick walked to school with us; once again, E


    walked between us and held each of our hands, and I felt like we were a little family once more. I


    hoped that this would be a tradition of ours.


    As we arrived at the school, the front yard was bustling with the activity of the hordes of other little girls


    who were excited for their first day. The disy ranged from preschool children who were crying and


    being carried in by their exhausted parents, all the way to bored high school students who just seemed


    happy to see their friends and to know that they would be graduating this year. E was clearly


    nervous, and clung to Edrick’s leg tightly as we walked up to the parent drop-off point.


    “Daddy, I’m scared,” E whined, looking up at Edrick with big saucer eyes. “There are so many kids.


    And it’s loud.”


    Edrick smiled and crouched down to her level. He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and then


    held her firmly by both shoulders.


    “You’re going to have a lot of fun,” he said. “I promise. And Moana will be here all day if you need her,


    and I’ll be waiting right here for you when the day is over. It’ll go by before you know it. Okay?”


    E hesitantly nodded, sniffling a bit. Edrick nted a kiss on her cheek.


    Almost as soon as he did that, it seemed that another group of little girls had already taken interest in


    E and were slowly inching their way toward us, fiddling nervously with their backpack straps.


    “Um… What’s your name?” one of the little girls, a scrawny little thing with wispy blonde hair, said


    sheepishly.


    “E,” E replied, her face turning red.


    From N?velDrama.Org.


    One of the other girls, a slightly bigger girl with brown hair and freckles, stepped out from behind the


    rest of the group and grinned widely. “I’m Stacie. Wanna y with us before school starts?”


    E hesitated and looked up at Edrick. He nodded, and as though she had known these girls for her


    entire life, E took off toward the yground with them. I couldn’t help butugh at how simple it was


    for children to make friends; I missed those days. By the end of the day, I was certain that she would be


    calling them all her best friends forever.


    Finally, Edrick turned back to look at me and smiled.


    “You sure you’ll be okay?” he asked.


    I nodded. “I’ll be fine.”


    “Just… Call me immediately if you start to feel sick or anything.”


    I couldn’t help butugh a bit. “Edrick, it’ll be okay,” I said, giving his arm a squeeze. “I’ll see youter,


    okay?”


    Edrick nodded hesitantly. I gave him a little wave and turned to leave, but suddenly, I felt his hand on


    my arm. He pulled me back, turning me to face him so that I could see the worried look in his eyes.


    And then… He kissed my forehead, making my face turn beet red.


    “Be careful,” he whispered, taking a step back and releasing me. He shoved his hands in his pockets,


    and without another word, he walked away and left me standing there with a racing heart and


    butterflies in my stomach.


    …


    Once the bell rang, all of the students lined up to go inside. E was still with her group of little friends,


    which made me feel a bit relieved, and I made my way up to my ssroom as the teachers began to


    march their students through the hallways for homeroom. I noticed that quite a few kids, of all ages,


    were giving me strange looks; but I just waved and smiled, and unlocked my ssroom door.


    I still had some time before my first ss would begin, so after I settled in a bit I made my way over to


    the faculty lounge for some coffee. There were a couple of other teachers in there; the music teacher,


    whose name was Jeff, and one of the science teachers, Deborah. I had already bumped into them a


    couple of times over the summer, and so we exchanged brief pleasantries before I scurried back to my


    ssroom to get ready for my first lesson.


    It didn’t take long before the first ss came in; and, much to E’s surprise — although I already


    knew, and was looking forward to seeing her smile throughout my first ss — it was her third grade


    ss.


    “Good morning, everyone,” I said as the students filed in with their teacher standing in the doorway.


    “I’m Miss Fowler, but you can call me Moana. Sit anywhere you like.”


    As the kids hurried around to pick their seats, I stood up at the front and waited patiently. I had set up


    the desks in a semicircle around the room to make the atmosphere more weing, and there was a


    carpet on the floor in the middle with cushions that I would let the students sit on if they wanted. Almost


    immediately, E and several other girls beelined for the cushions. The other girls got their first, and


    almost shoved E out of the way in the process.


    “Hey!” E said, frowning. “You pushed me!”


    “You should sit in the back, half-blood,” one of the little girls snarled. She was a little girl who was taller


    than the rest, with ginger hair and blue eyes. Her face was pointed, like a little fox, and she had a bit of


    a nasty look to her.


    My eyes widened. I opened my mouth to say something with the intention of shutting that sort of


    nastiness down immediately, but before I could, E folded her arms and puffed her chest out.


    “You know…”