Spank Me, Daddy

The Unexpected Encounter

Chapter 3

ANN'S POV

"Twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven..."

I stared at the questions on my notebook, trying to memorize every single detail.

"Twenty-eight, twenty-nine..."

My phone suddenly vibrated beside me.

I glanced at the screen.

NATALIE 💗

Girl, are you studying or flirting with your teacher in your imagination? HAHAHAHA.

I rolled my eyes.

Seriously, what was wrong with this girl?

I typed my reply.

ME: I'm studying, you i***t.

NATALIE 💗: Sureeee. Study hard, bestie. Maybe Sir Ethan will give you extra points for being his favorite student.

I nearly threw my phone across the room.

ME: HE IS NOT MY FAVORITE!

NATALIE 💗: I didn't say he was yours. You said it yourself. HAHAHAHAHA.

I stared at the message.

That girl was going to be the reason I lost my sanity.

I locked my phone and returned to my notes.

Tomorrow was the quiz, and I wasn't about to let my annoying best friend distract me.

Besides, I had more important things to worry about than Ethan Reyes.

Like passing my subjects.

And waking up on time.

And surviving another day without embarrassing myself in front of my teacher.

Easy, right?

THE FOLLOWING DAY

For the first time in my entire school life, I arrived at school fifteen minutes early.

Yes.

You read that correctly.

FIFTEEN MINUTES.

I practically wanted to give myself a medal.

As I entered the classroom, Natalie looked up from her phone.

Her eyes widened.

"WHO ARE YOU, AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ANN?"

I rolled my eyes and dropped my bag onto my chair.

"Very funny."

"No, seriously! You actually arrived early!"

"Well, I don't want another lecture from Sir Ethan."

Natalie gave me a knowing smile.

"Of course. It's definitely not because you want to impress him."

I pointed a finger at her.

"One more word, and I'm leaving you here."

She laughed.

"Okay, okay! Good luck on the quiz, bestie."

I sat down and reviewed my notes one last time.

When Ethan finally entered the classroom, everyone immediately settled down.

"Good morning, class."

"Good morning, Sir!"

He placed his books on the table and glanced around the room.

Then his eyes briefly landed on me.

"Everyone is present today. Good."

I couldn't help smiling a little.

At least I wasn't the late student anymore.

"Let's begin with our quiz."

My smile disappeared.

Oh, right.

The quiz.

The next thirty minutes felt like torture.

I stared at one question for so long that I began questioning everything I had ever learned.

But somehow, I managed to finish.

When I handed in my paper, Ethan glanced at it.

"Finished already, Ann?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Make sure you've checked your answers."

"I did, Sir."

He nodded.

"All right. You may return to your seat."

I walked away, hoping my answers were correct.

For once, I had done my best.

And that was enough for me.

AFTER SCHOOL

"ANN! I'M STARVING!"

Natalie dramatically leaned against my shoulder as we walked toward the school gate.

"You say that every single day."

"Because I'm hungry every single day!"

I laughed.

"You're impossible."

"And you're buying me snacks."

I stopped walking.

"Excuse me?"

She smiled sweetly.

"Bestie privilege."

"That's not a real thing!"

"It is now."

Before I could argue, she grabbed my arm and dragged me toward a small convenience store across the street.

I eventually gave in.

Because honestly, I was hungry too.

We bought some snacks and drinks before sitting at a small table near the store's front window.

Natalie was halfway through her sandwich when she suddenly nudged my arm.

"Ann."

"What?"

"Don't look now."

Naturally, I immediately looked.

"YOU SAID DON'T LOOK!"

She covered her mouth to suppress her laughter.

"You're so easy to trick!"

I glared at her.

"You're so annoying."

She pointed toward the other side of the store.

"But seriously, look who's here."

I followed her gaze.

And nearly choked on my drink.

Ethan Reyes.

He was standing near the counter, wearing a plain black shirt and jeans instead of his usual classroom attire.

His sleeves weren't folded neatly over his elbows.

He wasn't holding a marker or a stack of papers.

And he wasn't standing in front of a classroom, looking like he was about to scold someone.

He looked... different.

More relaxed.

More approachable.

Almost like an entirely different person.

I stared for a second longer than I should have.

Then Natalie whispered, "Girl, close your mouth. You're going to catch flies."

I immediately shut it.

"Shut up!"

She laughed.

"Why is he here?"

"How am I supposed to know? Do I look like his personal assistant?"

"Maybe he's buying snacks for his secret girlfriend."

I frowned.

"Why would you say that?"

Natalie slowly turned toward me.

Then a mischievous smile spread across her face.

"Oh?"

I realized my mistake.

"No. Don't even start."

"You're jealous!"

"I'm not!"

"You answered too quickly!"

"NATALIE!"

She burst out laughing.

I grabbed my drink and took a long sip, pretending that I couldn't hear her anymore.

Unfortunately, my peaceful moment lasted only a few seconds.

Because when I looked toward the counter again, Ethan was already walking in our direction.

My heart skipped a beat.

No.

Please, no.

Of all the tables in this store, why ours?

"Good afternoon, Sir!" Natalie greeted cheerfully.

I nearly dropped my drink.

"Good afternoon, Sir," I mumbled.

Ethan looked at both of us.

"Good afternoon. You two are classmates, correct?"

"Yes, Sir!" Natalie answered.

I nodded.

"That's good," he said. "How did the quiz go?"

Natalie immediately pointed at me.

"Ask Ann, Sir! She studied so hard last night."

I turned toward her in disbelief.

TRAITOR.

Ethan looked at me.

"Is that true, Ann?"

I scratched the back of my neck.

"I just reviewed the lesson, Sir."

"That's what you're supposed to do."

I nodded.

"Yes, Sir."

He glanced at the snacks on our table.

"Make sure you eat properly, too. Studying is important, but you shouldn't skip meals."

I blinked.

For some reason, I hadn't expected him to say that.

"Yes, Sir. Thank you."

He gave a small nod.

"Enjoy your afternoon."

Then he walked toward the exit.

Just like that.

No lecture.

No warning.

No reminder about being late.

He had simply asked about our quiz and reminded us to take care of ourselves.

I watched him leave through the glass doors.

Something about that brief conversation stayed with me.

Maybe because, for the first time, I had seen him outside the classroom.

And for the first time, he hadn't seemed intimidating at all.

NATALIE'S POV—NO, WAIT. ANN'S POV.

"ANN!"

I jumped.

"What?!"

Natalie was staring at me with the biggest grin I'd ever seen.

"You were staring at him again!"

"I was not!"

"Girl, I literally watched you follow him with your eyes!"

"I was looking at the door!"

"The door is on the other side!"

I looked away.

Why did I even bother arguing with her?

Natalie leaned closer.

"So, what do you think?"

"About what?"

"Sir Ethan."

I sighed.

"What am I supposed to think? He's our teacher."

"That's not what I asked."

I fell silent.

I thought about the way he had spoken to us.

The way his voice sounded different outside the classroom.

The way he had reminded us to eat properly.

It was such a small thing.

Something any decent teacher might say.

Yet somehow, it had surprised me.

"I guess..." I started slowly. "He's not as scary as I thought."

Natalie's mouth fell open.

"OH. MY. GOD."

I immediately regretted speaking.

"Don't you dare!"

"YOU'RE FALLING FOR HIM!"

"NO, I'M NOT!"

"YOU THINK HE'S NICE!"

"BECAUSE HE WAS NICE!"

"AND HANDSOME!"

"NATALIE!"

She laughed so hard that the people at the next table glanced in our direction.

I covered my face.

I was never going out with this girl again.

Never.

THAT EVENING

After dinner, I sat on my bed and opened my notebook to review the lesson again.

But instead of reading the words, my mind wandered back to the convenience store.

To that unexpected encounter.

To the way Ethan had asked about our quiz.

And to the simple reminder he had given us.

Studying is important, but you shouldn't skip meals.

I stared at my notebook.

Then I shook my head.

"Get a grip, Ann."

He was my teacher.

He was simply being kind.

There was nothing special about it.

I repeated those words until I finally convinced myself to close my notebook and prepare for bed.

Tomorrow would be another school day.

Another lesson.

Another chance to prove that I could be a responsible student.

And I was determined to make that happen.

But just before I turned off the light, my phone vibrated.

A message from Natalie appeared on the screen.

NATALIE 💗: Good night, future Mrs. Reyes.

I stared at it.

Then I screamed into my pillow.

"I HATE YOU, NATALIE!"

Somewhere in the back of my mind, however, I knew the truth.

I didn't hate Ethan Reyes.

Not even a little.

And that realization scared me more than any quiz ever could.

Because sometimes, feelings begin with something so small that you don't even notice when they start to grow.

And sometimes, the hardest person to stop thinking about is the one you never intended to think about in the first place.