My Plump Physics Teacher

Chapter 6

Nicole

We sat at the table with a gentle air of curiosity in the air. Everything was still new, but there was a warmth there, as if I had already had lunch with them before, as if that home had been waiting for me for a while. Mrs. Vera, with her sweet yet firm manner, arranged the plates while Sophia was still napping on the living room sofa. When she placed the food in front of me, I couldn't hold back my smile.

"Sweetheart, everything is fresh. It's simple food, but I hope you like it. Today I even managed to get everything ready early because since Sophia felt so comfortable with you, I could relax here," she said with that sincere tone that warms the heart.

The plate was impeccable: light and fluffy rice, steaming beans, a colorful vegetable salad, and perfectly cooked chicken with okra. It smelled like home, like care. I thanked her wholeheartedly, feeling that this lunch was more than a meal, it was a sign of acceptance.

"Everything is perfect, Mrs. Vera, really. I'm very grateful for this welcome," I said with a genuine smile, adjusting my chair.

"And what do you recommend for the next steps with Sophia?" she asked as she sat down, resting her elbows on the edge of the table.

Before answering, my eyes stopped at the head of the table. Urso.

He was already there, silent, with a plate that looked like a mountain of food. Rice to the brim, chicken with okra almost spilling off the plate, beans overflowing. And even with his mouth full, his gaze was on me. Intense.

It was that look.

The same one he gave me at the bar. The same one that undressed me in silence, as if he wanted to see through all the layers I had built with so much effort.

I held the fork firmly and maintained my composure.

I might tremble inside, but on the outside, I was professional. Firm. Unshakable.

"Well, I believe Sophia has very good motor potential. We'll work a lot on balance, sensory stimulation, and core strength. What caught my attention the most was how well she responds to playful stimulation. That's gold. We'll make great use of that."

I looked back at Mrs. Vera.

"Regarding speech, do you already have speech therapy sessions?"

"Yes, once a week. But I confess I'm not sure if there's been much progress."

"If possible, I'd like to see the speech therapy reports. I'll also request a report from the clinic on what has been recorded regarding her progress," I said, taking out the notebook from the folder where I note down the clinical data I'm given.

Urso wiped his mouth with the napkin, still staring at me. His voice came out hoarse, low, as always:

"And the tests? Do you want to see the latest ones we did?"

"If possible, yes," I replied, maintaining eye contact.

"I'll be right back," he got up from the table, without much ceremony, taking his phone out of his pocket and disappearing down the hallway.

That's when my head spun for a moment.

He didn't just know everything.

He was on top of everything.

Every detail. Every term. Every result.

And that… really caught me off guard.

He came back with a black folder in his hands. He set the phone aside and handed me the exams like he was giving me his most prized possession. And, indeed, it was.

"This one is the latest heart exam. And these are the routine ones from last month. I read everything. I ask questions, note down what I don't understand. I make it a point to attend the appointments. And if I can't, my mother goes with me, or the doctor comes here. Sophia doesn't leave the house for just anywhere. And I don't let just anyone in here," he spoke with a raw confidence that didn't seek approval. It clearly showed how important his daughter was to him.

"I'm impressed, seriously. Few parents I know are this involved. It makes a huge difference."

"I have no choice. Since the day her mother disappeared, it's just me and my mother in this fight. And this girl is all I have. So if you're going to enter her life, you have to be all in. If you're going to take care of her, do it right. I pay well, but it's not just for the service. It's for the respect, the care, the love," he said, and the words came out unfiltered.

I was silent for a moment. The weight of what he said fell over the table like an undeniable truth. And I saw in his eyes: he wasn't saying this to impress me. He was opening a part of himself that probably few people had access to, it was the father in him speaking, the truly present father, far beyond everything I imagined and pre-judged about him.

"I work with children because," I started slowly, not quite sure why I was opening up, "because I grew up wanting to change something in the world." And children don't lie. Children feel. Children give back everything we give them. I didn't want to work to fix adults. I wanted to help form a new beginning. And when I saw I had a talent for it, I dove in headfirst.

He looked at me for a second as if trying to understand how someone with so much firmness could be so… sweet. So giving. So certain.

"You're different. It doesn't seem like it's just a job for you," he said while sitting down, looking at a paper and then diverting his gaze to me.

"Because it isn't," I replied immediately, without thinking or hesitating, it was direct, just like his words.

Dona Vera just observed. Smiling with her eyes.

She knew something was happening there.

That table was no longer just a meal.

And I didn't quite know what it was, but I knew I cared a lot about Sophia, just like all my patients.

The atmosphere at the table was light, but inside me, it was a whirlwind.

Urso said nothing, but he also didn't take his eyes off me. It was a warm, silent gaze that burned more than the midday sun on a zinc roof. I felt my whole body vibrate. And there he was, just staring at me, as if studying me. As if every bite I took was a reason for him to observe me even more.

I took a deep breath, pushed the plate aside, and smiled to break the tension.

"Your food is excellent, Dona Vera. Your seasoning is amazing," I said sincerely, wiping my mouth with the napkin. "It doesn't surpass my mom's because, well, a mom is a mom, right, but what a special meal. Thank you so much for your hospitality."

She laughed, pleased with the compliment, with that light laughter of someone who knows the value of what they do.

"A mother's cooking is truly one of a kind, isn't it, dear? This one here sometimes eats at the diner, but he's always after his mom's cooking too," she said with a provocative tone, playing with the truth.

I turned my face to Urso, with a slight, challenging smile.

"Yeah... my mom works at the diner," I said to her, but looking directly at him.

"Her food is really good, isn't it?"

Urso looked at me firmly. And I saw in his eyes that he got the message.

I wasn't going to pretend those looks and all the situations of the last few hours didn't happen, I'm not that kind of woman.

Dona Vera didn't even notice the tension we were creating in silence.

"Oh, how nice! Do you live here in the neighborhood?" she asked excitedly. "Oh, I asked so much for it to be a girl from around here, and they managed it. Wow, that's great! Where do you live?"

"Alley six, just behind the small field," I replied, smiling. "Born and raised."

She widened her eyes, hitting the table.

"What?! And I've never seen you? Girl, I'm upset I didn't meet you sooner!"

We laughed together, and Urso remained silent. But each of my laughs drew a different look from him. He absorbed everything. Felt everything.

It was only when Sophia whimpered in the living room that he got up immediately, as if he had a radar on her. He left the table in a rush and soon returned with her in his arms, all cuddled up, her face buried in his neck, the little bunny clutched in her tiny hand.

And what a scene, my God. What a scene.

Seeing him there, at home, without a weapon, without the posture of a kingpin, just with his daughter in his arms, it would melt any woman.

Sophia so small, and he so big. And yet, it seemed like she was the one carrying him in her arms, the way he held her with all the care in the world.

Dona Vera started talking again, and I forced myself to snap out of that trance.

"My dear, so can we keep this time? Is it your first appointment in the morning?"

"We can!" I replied excitedly. "Tomorrow at the same time, I'll be here."

"Oh, I'm so happy you're from here," she continued, with that sweet way of someone who already considered me part of the family. "We can even do some activities in the community with her, right? In the little park. Because that way you won't be afraid to walk around here in the neighborhood, or anything like that, right?"

"We can!" I agreed with enthusiasm. "With your authorization and accompaniment, we can do several activities, yes. Including some that really help with speech, like color games, associative movements... it will help a lot."

She looked at her son.

"You authorize it, right, my son? She's from the neighborhood, she's one of us. And besides, we have plenty of security, nothing would happen to us."

Urso didn't respond. He just looked at his daughter with that protective gaze, as if shielding her from even shadows. His hand gently stroked her curls, and his distant eyes were calculating risks, fears, and perhaps a bit of trust, still forming.

And then I understood.

The biggest challenge wouldn't be Sophia.

It would be Urso.

"Well, Dona Vera, thank you so much for the hospitality, okay? You have my number for anything. Just call or message me. Whatever you need, I'm available. Now I have to head to my next appointments for the day, it's a busy one. "I said lightly, getting up from the table."

She protested when I went to wash my plate, but I insisted. I washed, dried, and put it away.

I went to say goodbye to the little one.

"Soso…" I whispered, running my hand over her back while she was still in her father's arms. "Auntie's leaving now, okay? See you tomorrow."

"No, auntie," she started to cry, whining.

Her speech doesn't match what it "should" be for her age, but we can work on that, talk to the speech therapist, which is why I want to see her full performance report.

"Can I hold her?" I asked Urso, who handed her to me without a word.

I picked her up, and she clung to my neck.

"Tomorrow, auntie will come to play with you. We'll do lots of new games, with colors, with balls, with shapes. It'll be really fun. Okay?"

"Do you promise, auntie?" she asked with that childlike, slurred voice that could melt the coldest of men.

"Auntie promises. Pinky promise." I extended my pinky to her, and we sealed the pact.

I was impressed by her poise, focus, and response to commands. Her potential was immense.

I handed her back to her father, now calmer.

"Have a good day. See you tomorrow," I said with a gentle smile.

"Be careful on the street, doctor. If anything, just call," he said in that low, suggestive tone.

"See you tomorrow."

As I walked past him, I felt his hand touch my arm.

It was light. But it felt like my whole body responded to the touch.

"See you tomorrow, Urso."

We stood there, looking at each other.

Wordless.

Time suspended between one look and another.

And my heart racing, breath caught in my chest.

I said goodbye to Dona Vera with another smile and went to the car. I got in, took a deep breath. I started the engine with trembling fingers.

And when I looked in the rearview mirror, there he was.

With all his confidence, at his doorstep, with a joint between his fingers, he brings it to his mouth and exhales while staring at me, with that air of someone who knows they're attractive, but that doesn't impress me on its own.

Even though I admit that everything I saw from him today was impressive.

He notices that I'm still standing there, and my body hasn't stopped trembling yet, so he gives a mischievous smirk, a wink, and that's when I returned to the real world. I started the car and sped down the hill.

The day was intense: six kids, a hectic schedule, and a postgraduate course at the end of the day. I came up with this idea just this week, and I'm already almost regretting it.

But it's the area I love, my beloved children, and Sophia's case made me even more excited for this postgrad.

I arrived on the hill past nine at night, tired and exhausted. I just wanted my bed. I passed the barrier and heard the lookouts whispering on the radio. I found it strange, but I didn't care.

I passed the main spot and there he was.

Urso.

Arms crossed. Stern face. Staring at my car as if I had done something. I don't even know what it was. But I didn't engage. I moved on.

I took a long, cold shower as soon as I got home to extinguish the fire that this man effortlessly ignites in me.

I wrapped a towel around myself and went straight to my phone, intending to message my mom to see where that crazy woman was. But there was a new notification. Unknown number. No name, no photo, nothing.

Single message:

“You took a while to get home today, doctor…”

My heart skipped a beat.

I already knew who it was.

And now I knew he wasn't going to leave my life easily. My body was on fire again, forcing me to seek relief.

I lay in bed, not replying to his message, but reading it again and again, remembering his gaze and imagining him speaking to me. And my vibrator took charge of relieving all that tension from my body, something not even all the showers in the world could do.

“Good night, doctor! See you tomorrow, Sophia is eager to see you.”

"Damn, this man can't be from God," I curse as I climax wildly, imagining his deep voice in my ear.