Chapter 1

Kids' conflicts flare up fast and fade just as fast.

The two boys who had been fighting joked around as they ran outside, with another kid's mom hurrying after them.

Only Morris Freeman stayed behind, standing there quietly and looking at me. His gaze wasn't intense, but it wasn't exactly calm either.

"Have you been well these past years?"

I kept smiling, the same polite expression I used with every other parent, and nodded.

"The workload's heavy, but the students are mostly well behaved. Mr. Freeman, you should talk more with your son at home. Even though he admitted his mistake this time, if he hits someone again, the other parents won't let it go."

His throat bobbed, and he suddenly changed the subject.

"I meant, in these past years, have you…"

"Dad!"

I instinctively stepped back.

Zach Freeman's voice rang out from the end of the hallway.

"Let's go home. If we're late, Mom's gonna be mad!"

He swallowed the rest of his words. My smile didn't change.

"Drive safe, Mr. Freeman."

By the time I turned back to my desk, he was already gone.

The math teacher, Maggie Love, walked in from outside and casually asked me, "Did Zach get into another fight?"

I was grading papers, and my hand paused. "Another?"

"Oh, right. You just transferred here, so you're not familiar yet. Zach's the troublemaker in Class Three.

"He messes up every week, and we have to call his parents. But his attitude's good. He cries and admits fault every time, and he even hits his own hand with a ruler. Then he does it all over again next time.

"No idea how his parents are raising him."

I frowned and pulled up Zach's file.

Father: Morris Freeman.

Mother: Courtney Freeman.

"You know that tech company downtown, Silverarch Tech? His dad runs it. His mom owns an art gallery. Both are highly educated. One's an entrepreneur, the other's an artist. On paper, they've got everything. And yet, they ended up with a real handful of a kid."

Maggie clicked her tongue helplessly and handed me a form.

"By the way, Mr. Perkins said you only filled in yourself under family information. He asked you to complete it."

I gave a soft hum. "I grew up in foster care. I don't have any other family."

"Oh, I'm sorry… I'll bring it back to him later."

She stood across from me, sorting other documents. Maybe out of guilt, she kept sneaking glances at me.

Finally, she worked up the nerve to say, "Ms. Langstaff, it's okay. Once you start dating and get married, you'll have a family, too."

She even showed me photos of her friends and said she could introduce me if I liked any of them.

I shook my head and thanked her for the thought. "Many years ago, I was in a relationship. I almost had a family."

"Oh, what happened, then?"

I smiled and didn't answer.

Later, he built a family with someone else, and I was on my own again.

She looked displeased, her eyes full of judgment.

"So you ran into a real jerk, huh? Where did you meet him, a trash can or a sewer?"