Tangled Hearts And Classroom Smiles

Chapter Seven: First Love and Faded Dreams

Fourth had always been a dreamer. As a kid, he spent hours imagining what his life would be like when he grew up. He pictured himself living in a big city, studying hard, graduating from university, and landing a stable job in finance. His parents had worked hard to make sure he could pursue his education, and Fourth was determined not to let them down.

At eighteen, those dreams started to feel within reach. After months of cramming for exams, Fourth passed his university entrance exams with flying colors and was accepted into one of the best universities in the city. He was going to study Accounting and Finance. It felt like the first step toward the life he had always imagined.

The first year of university was a whirlwind—new people, new challenges, and a mountain of coursework that kept him busy day and night. But amidst the chaos, there was one person who made everything feel manageable: Pond.

Pond was calm, collected, and mature in ways that the other students weren't. As Fourth's assigned mentor, Pond had helped him navigate the academic hurdles of university life, offering guidance with a level head and the patience of someone who had already seen it all. Fourth had been in awe of him from the start. He was smart, confident, and kind in a way that felt effortless.

It didn't take long for Fourth to fall in love with him.

It was inevitable, really. Pond had this quiet charisma that made people gravitate toward him, and Fourth was no exception. Every moment they spent together, whether studying late in the library or grabbing coffee in between lectures, made Fourth's heart flutter. Pond never treated him like just another student. He listened, offered advice, and was always there when Fourth needed him.

But Fourth never said anything. He was too shy, too unsure of what Pond would think if he knew about the feelings brewing just beneath the surface. It was a crush, Fourth told himself, a silly crush on someone so far out of his league. First loves were like that—intense but fleeting. And Fourth knew better than to expect it to last.

By the time Fourth entered his second year, Pond had already graduated. He'd left university to work in the corporate world, and though they'd promised to stay in touch, life had gotten in the way. Texts became fewer and fewer until, eventually, they stopped altogether.

And just like that, Pond was gone from his life.

Fourth tried to focus on his studies, but things were different without Pond around. The spark that had driven him through his first year had dimmed, leaving him feeling unmoored. And then, everything changed.

It was nobody's fault, really. Fourth had been stressed, juggling coursework and projects, and in the chaos of it all, he had forgotten to refill his suppressants. It wasn't the first time he'd been careless, but this time, it had consequences.

His heat hit him out of nowhere.

He had been on his way to the pharmacy when the first waves of dizziness swept over him. Panic had gripped him as he felt the familiar burn begin to pulse through his body, a heat that he wasn't prepared for. Desperate for shelter, he ducked into a nearby building—an old bathroom at the edge of campus, hoping to wait it out until he could make it to the pharmacy.

What he hadn't known was that there was an alpha in there.

The alpha had been minding his own business when Fourth's presence triggered something deep and primal in him. Fourth's heat ignited the alpha's rut, and everything after that was a blur. The haze of pheromones, the intense need, and the desperate closeness—they were all fragments in Fourth's memory. What happened was instinctual, overwhelming, and beyond his control.

When he came to his senses, it was already over. He barely remembered the alpha's face. They hadn't exchanged names, hadn't said anything meaningful. Fourth left the bathroom in a daze, shaken and confused, but trying to move past it.

And for a while, he did.

It wasn't until months later that Fourth realized something was wrong. He had been feeling off for weeks—more tired than usual, queasy at odd times, and struggling to focus. When his cycle didn't return, he took a test, not expecting anything, but there it was: positive.

He was pregnant.

Fourth's world collapsed around him. He was five months along by the time he found out, far too late to do anything about it. Dropping out of university felt like his only option. He couldn't keep up with his studies and raise a child on his own. His dreams of graduating, of working in finance, all of it crumbled in the face of this new reality.

Nan was born a few months later, and from the moment Fourth held her in his arms, he knew he'd made the right choice. She was his world, his everything, and even though it had cost him his education, Fourth couldn't imagine his life without her.

For the next few years, Fourth devoted himself to raising Nan. He took odd jobs, saved what little he could, and when Nan started walking, he knew it was time to figure out a more stable future for them. That was when he enrolled in a teaching certificate program. It wasn't the career in finance he had once dreamed of, but it was something that would provide for him and Nan.

Two years later, Fourth had his teaching certificate in hand, and now, here he was—working as a kindergarten teacher, raising his daughter, and trying his best to forget the man he had once loved.

It was a different life than the one he'd imagined, but it was his life. And despite everything, Fourth was grateful for it.