WINNING THE NANNY’S HEART

Chapter 29: Anxious

Madison nodded and felt supported. 'Right! For Mom and my sisters!' she whispered to herself. Now that she had nobody next to her, Madison took a deep breath. Her eyes wandered around the spacious hall and saw that many seats were still unoccupied at this hour.

"Scusi, è occupato questo posto?" a voice suddenly asked.

Madison turned her head to the young woman next to her. "Huh?" she asked. It had only been a minute when Emily left, and somebody was already asking Madison something she had yet to learn. It was unexpected, so Emily's last reminder vanished in Madison's mind.

"È occupato questo posto?" the stranger repeated while pointing to the seat next to Madison.

Madison could feel her chest racing in anxiousness and embarrassment. The young woman assumed that Madison did not hear the question correctly. It seemed both of them did not understand each other. "I'm sorry, what?" Madison asked.

The young woman licked her lips before speaking in English. "I'm asking, is this seat taken?"

Madison wanted to roll her eyes. 'Why didn't she ask in English right away when she knew how? Did she want to torment me?!' she complained inwardly. "I'm sorry I didn't catch that. That seat hasn't been taken," she replied.

The young woman smiled and said, "Thanks." She sat next to Madison, who quietly fixed her gaze on the whiteboard now. But the young woman spoke again. "I'm Zia. How about you?"

The confusion that Madison felt earlier was written on her face again. "Why did you tell me your name when I didn't ask?"

"You don't have to ask before I say it because I want to make friends with you," the strange young woman replied with a smile. She extended her hand to Madison and continued, "Just call me Z. What's your name?"

Madison thought it was funny that Zia preferred a shorter name. The former returned the handshake as Emily told her. Since Zia introduced herself in English, Madison used the same language. "I'm Madison. Pleased to meet you," she awkwardly said.

Zia smiled and rested her chin on her hands. "I noticed you were alone, so I approached you," she explained while staring at Madison. Madison tried to maintain eye contact but felt even more awkward when Zia went closer to whisper, "Our blockmates will be here later. They're mean, so don't be friends with them."

"Mm-hmm," Madison mumbled out of awkwardness.

Zia sat up straight. "By the way, I noticed earlier that you didn't understand my Italian. Why is that?" she asked in curiosity.

"I don't understand Italian. I'm a full-blooded American. I'm working as a maid, and my employer helped me get admitted here. They're half-American and half-Italian," Madison admitted.

Zia was surprised at Madison's honesty. "They must be kind," she commented. She flashed a genuine smile and added, "And I admire you. You didn't deny that you're a maid. Now we should be friends."

Madison smiled. Zia seemed a kind person. For somebody who did not know anyone on a big campus other than Emily, who was Madison to refuse Zia's offer?

Zia's eyes sparkled with delight. "Thank god, I finally have a friend now!" she blurted out.

"Are you serious? Why weren't you friends with any of them?" Madison asked in astonishment as she glanced at their blockmates in their bubbles.

"They only wanted to be friends with me because I'm the daughter of the proprietor of this university," Zia explained. She glared at the three ladies entering the hall and continued, "I'm better off alone than being friends with others for their ulterior motive."

"Did you just tell me you're the daughter of the owner of Campbell University?" Madison asked, staring at Zia as though seeing a ghost.

"I believe you understand American English," Zia said, a little perplexed at Madison.

"Our friendship begins and ends here then," Madison declared.

Madison was about to stand up to move to a seat at a distance when Zia's hand blocked Madison. "Wait, what?!" It was the first time somebody had rejected Zia, so she was baffled. "Why?!"

Madison pressed her lips. "I don't want to cut classes. I have a dream to achieve," Madison explained, feeling apologetic.

"Oh, my god!" Zia exclaimed and burst out laughing. "I like you so much! I was right when I thought to sit next to you!"

Madison frowned. 'Should I be friends with her? It seems she could be as crazy as Sir Dylan...,' she thought.

Zia was about to speak again when a woman in her forties walked inside and stood in front.

Although the older woman was not in uniform because the university had no dress codes for professors, Madison stood up from her seat and loudly greeted, "Good morning, Professor!"

Laughters echoed in the hall. Madison turned to the students on the left and raised an eyebrow. 'What the hell is so funny about greeting a professor?!' she wondered.

Zia pulled Madison's arm, motioning for her new friend and blockmate to sit. "We usually greet our professors without having to stand up. Wait for them to greet us before greeting them back next time," Zia informed.

Madison nodded as she listened to Zia. In Madison's primary school, some teachers preferred to be greeted as they entered the room and instructed students to stand up when doing so. Others preferred what Zia described. There was always a first time for everything, so the gesture was not bad for a first-year student.

"I bet she thought a good impression would make her ace this class," snickered the woman seated in front of Madison and Zia. Another wave of mocking laughter echoed off the walls.

"I bet you don't know how to respect a professor," Madison retorted, loud enough for the woman in front to hear. Just like that, the room fell silent.

When Madison glanced at the person next to her, she found Zia's curved eyelashes clapping. Madison thought it was silly, so she ignored it and focused on the whiteboard. The professor looked at her and greeted her back with a smile. The kind gesture and a newfound friend excited Madison to learn something new today.