A Hero I Look Up To

An Amateur Cook with a Preschool Class

Today is the day of the cooking and baking project! Tobio has arrived to school a little earlier than his usual time because his mother had to go to work early. This time, a lot of kids were walking into their classes with happy looks. Some were crying because they would miss their parents. Tobio ignored all of the fuss and went straight into his classroom, only to find a familiar face—a face that he could easily recognize—a man that he would always see whth with brown hair and that same pair of glasses and white dress shirt, sitting across from his teacher. Tobio checked to see if it was Chris, and to his surprise, it was! Seeing Chris made Tobio decide to sneak up on him from behind, but knowing Chris...

"Trying to sneak up on me without a plan, huh?" Chris chuckled.

This surprised Tobio as he got backfired. Chris laughed it off while Tobio's preschool teacher was smiling at the two of them.

"I came... a little earlier than usual. I reminded my college professor that I had something to do, so I may be behind on studies..." Chris said without hesitation. "By the way... I found some easy recipes for the kids. Well... cookies... but I'm also planning on doing something a little more simple for the kids for cooking, haha."

Tobio was surprised. He hasn't tried cookies since his parents never brought them during his time at home. In fact, there were no sweets in the house at all. Maybe the kids would be more excited than Tobio because they have more experience in sweets and desserts than him, and that they would know more than him. That's another difference Tobio is worried about. Chris started to notice the worry on Tobio's face, so he tapped his shoulder to say a little something.

"Change... is something that may be a little new to you, Tobio. Well... even though we had ice cream yesterday... you don't seem to have eaten cookies yet... and I understand. That's why it'll change today. The cookies you make in class... that, will be your first."

Tobio looked confused. Yes, he never had cookies before, but he's unsure on what the teacher would think. Tobio looked at his teacher, and she smiled back agreeing with Chris.

"I think he's right." The teacher got up from her seat and walked to Tobio. "I've known some 3 year olds who had cookies. Even if you haven't tried one yet, don't think you're different, alright?"

"I'm sorry," Tobio apologized and looked down onto the floor. The teacher was surprised that Tobio apologized for something small.

"You didn't have to apologize Tobio, you didn't make a mistake at all," she said as she smiled at Tobio.

"I didn't?"

"Nope, change is normal in kids. Even adults! Your guardian here has experienced change at least once or twice Tobio, so you don't have to worry a lot."

Tobio calmed down a bit. Hearing those words from his teacher made him smile and not worry about anything else. As Tobio was about to go to his desk, a voice called out to him.

"Hey Tobio!" It was Mia, who had just entered the classroom with a smile. Something must've happened on the way here. As she approaches Tobio, she was surprised to see Chris. "Is this... someone you know?"

"Oh, this is Chris, my babysitter," Tobio answered. "The reason why he looks like that is because he's in college."

Mia looked at Chris with her jaw on the floor. She doesn't know what college is, but she was surprised that a college student is teaching a preschool. The first thing she thought was if Chris was the substitute teacher. In return, Chris was surprised and looked at Mia. The first thing He thought was if she was Tobio's friend that Tobio talked about earlier.

"You're Mia, right?" Chris asked due to Mia talking to Tobio a lot since she came in.

"Are you talking to me?" Mia was surprised Chris knew who she was. She pointed to herself and asked, "How do you know my name?"