The Betrayed Warrior Mate

04 : Where our fates intertwine

Alyna never had an affinity with kids. They were good as long as they belonged to others. Responsibility for immature kids wasn't her favourite thing to carry.

As life would have it, she was now stuck with 30 of them for five days a week for an indefinite period of time.

And she couldn't even blame anyone but herself for choosing this line to make a living.

Her class consisted of a bunch of chicken like third graders who didn't want to stay in place for more than ten minutes at a time. It was stressful. And what was even more stressful was that Little Fred was also in her class.

He never went to school before so based on his interview, he was stuffed along with the third graders.

He called her auntie more than once according to how Sofia taught him to address her. It took three days of eyeing him at every slip of tongue to correct his way of addressing.

"Class is over. Have fun on your way back! I mean, be safe!" Alyna waved at the kids at the door.

She waited until all of them were gone to organise her things and wait for Destiny in the staff room. She waved at Sofia and Fred on the way.

The head teacher Christen walked in with a grin on her face. Alyna sat in an inconspicuous corner, munching on her cookies.

Spotting her, the cookies went back into the drawer. She wiped her hands and smiled in a welcoming manner.

"Yes, ma'am?"

Christen places a paper on her small desk. The desk was barely big enough to keep two stacks of notebooks. It was already filled. Alyna fished it out before it got lost in the mess and read it out.

"A private tutor job?" Alyna knew to lower her voice when speaking about such things. "Are we allowed to provide private tutoring outside of school hours?"

Christen nodded, "We don't restrict after school activities for primary teachers. The salary isn't enough to get you by. Besides, aren't you a newcomer? It will do you good to have some extra income to move out of the accommodation soon."

Alyna was tempted.

She did need money. Destiny was a growing kid and soon she'll want things that other kids have. The salary really wasn't enough.

"This is a good offer. Look at the address. It's in the upper East, one of the posh localities. Although the hourly wage isn't written, it shouldn't be lower than your current salary. Think about it. Call them on this number if you are interested."

Christen didn't linger around for long. She left as soon as the last bell rang. Alyna stuffed the paper in her bag and left the staff room.

Her colleagues waved goodbyes on the way out. Alyna politely waved back as well. She wasn't expecting to be accepted so easily within the pack.

It's been three days and she already had lunch three times with these colleagues and they were warm to her. It was a strange feeling.

Acceptance after so many rejections felt strange.

It felt temporary. So Alyna didn't get too close. She grabbed Destiny and took the bus home. On the way back she kept thinking about the private tutoring job.

"Here. Take this." Destiny patted her and opened up her palm. Alyna looked down to see a piece of candy being placed in her open palm.

"What's this for?"

"A classmate's birthday. She gave it to everyone. I saved it for you because you like sweets." Destiny shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal.

That's it. Alyna decided to call as soon as she got home. Sitting in the living room, she used the pre-installed land line in the house to make the call.

"Hello?" A deep male voice came through the receiver.

Alyna put on her recently acquired professional voice and read through the paper. "Hello, is this Mr Melvin?"

"Yes, who is this?"

"I am speaking from Boris Bright Public School. I saw your note, are you looking for a private tutor?"

The man on the other side did not answer immediately. There was a little bit of commotion on his side. Alyna waited patiently.

After a while he answered, "Yes. It's for my nephew. He's in 6th grade right now. He needs tutoring for math and geography. Three hours a day. Can you do it? The pay will be sufficient."

Alyna immediately agreed after he said the actual number. It was double the amount of her current salary. Enough to move out within two months if she does a good job.

Destiny walked in with a bowl of popcorn and a bottle of water. She saw Alyna's pleasant smile and felt weird.

"What are you smiling about?" She asked, setting the popcorn between them.

"Kid, I got a part time job. I'll be tutoring for three hours a day. It pays well." Alyna didn't hide the news from Destiny.

"Why do you need a part time job? You work hard enough at school."

"The more money the better."

Destiny didn't protest after that. They silently ate popcorn for dinner while watching a local comedy show. Alyna fell asleep at the c***k of dawn.

It wasn't new for Alyna. In fact it was rare for her to sleep through the entire night. She developed the habit when that one day became her nightmare. Not sleeping became a better alternative to being trapped in that humiliation every night.

It worked for Alyna just fine. She woke up, got herself and Destiny ready for school and took the bus.

After a long five hours at school, she dropped Destiny off at home and set out to the location given by Mr Melvin. She took a cab to the place because buses don't go that way.

It was indeed a rich location with villas lined up on both sides of the street. The villas had their own driveways and lawns.

The villas were not her destination though. It was the mansion standing at the end of the street, a bit uphill and surrounded by thick and lucious trees.

The guard brought her in with a car designated to pick and drop visitors from the main gate and the front door.

There was a fountain, a garden with various flowers and even a swimming pool. It was the dream home for the rich. Alyna admired them briefly.

No wonder they were willing to pay that much. That money must be spare change in their pocket. Alyna composed herself. She has seen everything. These villas and mansions shouldn't surprise her.

"Miss Westwood, this way." A butler in classic uniform was already at the porch to show her the way.

The inside of the mansion was exactly how you'd expect. A wide entrance, followerd by a hall with sofas and a fireplace. Two set of stairs going up on both sides, joining at the balcony of the first floor.

The chandelier hanging above her head was probably worth more than her life.

Not thay I'm worth anything, she thought.

The butler guided her to the couches and asked if she would like anything to drink.

"Master is currently on a phone call. He will be here any minute." He informed her and left.

A maid soon brought some coffee and biscuits as a snack. Alyna couldn't resist. She grabbed a biscuit and finished it in a few bites.

Once she started, she couldn't stop. As she continued to eat the biscuits, a figure came down the stairs. His eyes were on her since the beginning.

He stood behind her, watching her eat the last piece of biscuit as if it was a treasure she was sad to part with.

The Alpha had his hands in his pockets, watching with interest. Nobody had the courage to interrupt his amusement. The maids scurried away from the scene.