★ Gerald Aldrick ★

She raised her eyebrow at him. He couldn’t tell the emotion behind it at all. 

His mind was completely scrambled at her presence.

“I apologize again. Could we talk about this? I understand your frustration and I’m sincerely sorry about the worry Bastion caused you—”

“Bastion? You think this is his fault?”

She cut in, sharp, accusatory. 

He smiled back gently. 

“No, of course not. That’s not what I meant. Indeed, I must have…”

He considered his options. Really, he did. 

He cleared his throat, preparing to make the speech of his lifetime.

Anything to get her to stay.

“I’m sorry, I got caught up in the heat of the moment and released my frustration on that poor boy. Truthfully, this was the third time he had broken something in the house, and I’ve been in charge of fixing everything. But I was out of line and I will apologize to him.”

She gave him another look, and once again he couldn’t decipher it. There was no anger, no suspicion—at least none he could see…

Suddenly, she released a pointed and short laugh, rolling her eyes to exaggerate the motion. 

Gerald was utterly lost for words. 

“Ah, Mr. Aldrick—you really are a terrible liar.”

The call-out did not even rile him. Truthfully, his mind melted at just the way she said his name. It was so playful, downright seductive.

Hypnotizing.

She laughed again. This time with less venom. 

“Oh, you useless man. Just like everyone else.”

She exhaled heavily, and his eyes caught the gentle rise and fall of her chest. She was so petite, so delicate in that dress.

“But I haven’t the time to speak to a doormat.”

He could be a doormat.

She turned on her heels again. 

Wait, no. He couldn’t be a doormat if that meant she left.

Quick, Gerald Aldrick, Colonel of the First Squadron. Act.

“Can you at least tell me how you knew I lied?”

It was desperate—not that he really cared about the answer. Deceit  was likely written all over his face anyway. 

Thankfully, she took the bait. She didn’t look back, but it was enough.

“Bastion didn’t break any toilet. I assume you would know that if you were the one who was doing the shouting.”

Oh, right. It was Nicolas… 

She shrugged, and because her robe was loose at the back, that small movement exposed a patch of skin beneath the flowing fabric.

He stared—as respectfully as a man of his stature should.

“And since there’s two homeroom teachers per class, I guess that leaves the witch as responsible for this particular offense. It’s simple logic.”

He nodded, realizing his mistake only later. She was still turned the other way after all.

But she didn’t wait for an answer; she walked off. Only now, he realized she was wearing high-heeled sandals. 

She was even shorter than she seemed.

“One last thing—” He was reaching on instinct. His gloved hand extended toward her before his mind could catch up.

“I’m so sorry, but… I didn’t catch your name…”

He heard the faintest chuckle from her, but she didn’t stop her stride this time. She walked toward the exit, holding the door with those delicate painted nails, about to close it behind her. 

She graced him with that look in her eyes, so magnetic. Her smile, so confident. 

“Robin Taylor.”

She moved to close the door, but Gerald expected it.

“Ms. Taylor.”

The name left his mouth like it was the most natural thing ever. Like he had been calling her for a lifetime. 

Thankfully, she stopped. But her eyes were directed at him, an expression as cold as ice. This was his last chance before she truly left…

“I … I wasn’t lying about your beauty. That part, I meant that.”

She smiled; it was genuine. His heart melted at the sight. She liked that. In fact, she had to look away for a moment, shaking her head as she considered her response.

She was flustered.

He waited. He would wait however long it took.

Finally, she looked back at him; her smile now more mischievous.

“I know...”

The door clicked shut, encasing the room in a deep silence. 

Gerald collapsed back into his chair immediately.

But somehow, he didn’t feel empty. 

His gloved hands were shaking, hovering over his thighs. 

He was still nervous.

Robin Taylor.

Robin Taylor…

He etched the name into his mind like a mantra. 

Robin Taylor…

His heart was racing, his cheeks hot. Had she caught it, or did they flush after she already left?

He cleared his throat, yet he couldn’t shake the image of her. She lingered in his mind, still screaming at him, if only he shut his eyes.

And that smile at the end.

Was he imagining it? 

Perhaps…

No… 

He shouldn’t assume. 

All he could hope was that he didn’t make her uncomfortable.

Perhaps…

He reached for the calendar on his desk.

Just as he remembered, in two weeks, they had a scheduled check-in for a future student in Trizstan Attila’s Spiriter Home. 

He asked Ms. Solbakken to handle it. After all, he…

Trizstan Attila…

Gerald weighed his options…

Get a chance to see Robin Taylor again, or avoid him. 

No, that didn’t matter right now.

Not when his long dead heart was finally beating again. 

Perhaps he could apologise to Ms. Solbakken for today’s dismissal by taking the Spiriter Home visit for her?