Oh, Saturday. The one day of the week where you can both sleep in late and go to bed late. Not think about your job, ignore your priorities, and spend time at a café with your boss whom you're dating.
Haven't thought about that much, have I? Nothing a sip of coffee can't do with your thoughts.
Was there a rule against employee relationships established? The school regulations pass through my thoughts as fast as a train whizzing by. Who cares? Rules, rules. Already breaking the one about not thinking about my job. Like I care. Dating my boss? Guilty as charged. Worth it.
Today's a pleasantly strange day. Everything almost seems to be basking in a golden filter, as if the warm metallic hues from a sunrise decided to linger and bathe the town in its shiny orange-yellow tint.
The café where Kenneth and I are chatting in holds a snug and homey vibe. A few customers sit at tables with books and bulky headphones, while we chat away with nothing but the comfort of each other and a warm cup of coffee.
The way that the sunlight filters through the window and highlights Kenneth's features makes him look like melted gold. Or maybe the melted part is just my giddy head.
He's talking about some books he's been reading, but frankly, I'm not listening very well. I'm pretty zoned out to put it bluntly. Everything around me feels like it's been plucked from a cliché romance movie. Not that I have a problem with that, it's just that the euphoria is stirring from head to toe, like a drug, bubbling inside me.
I can almost hear Kenneth's soft, therapeutic voice in my head, murmuring my name.
Baldi.
Baldi...
"Baldi?" The blurry filter around my consciousness melts away slowly. "Baldi? Are you listening to me?"
"Mmm... huh?" And so the drug's effects wear off.
"You look high as a kite," says Kenneth firmly. "Guess I could say your head was in the clouds."
"Aha, sorry. I guess I wasn't really all here."
"What's on your mind, chump?"
"Oh, nothing, I guess I'm just love dazed."
"Ha, ha," says Kenneth flatly. "I'm just boring as hell, don't sugar-coat it for me."
"Well that's just because you're as sweet as sugar." I manage to crack a teeny tiny smile from Kenneth. "Aw, come on, come on, you know you wanna smile!"
His head flops down submissively, his fluffy hair dangling in front of his eyes, but I can still see his cheeks stretched in a wide grin as he groans at me.
"Let me see that pretty face," I bug smugly.
"I'm not pretty," huffs Kenneth, looking up at me with furrowed brows and a pair of squinting eyes, looking dead serious if not for the goofy smile plastered across his features.
"Not with that face you're not, or that attitude," I state with a smirk.
"I'll strangle you, you, uh, stupid idiot," he snarls.
"I'd love to see you try, pretty boy."
And just like that, he reaches across the table and pulls me into a kiss. I have almost no time to react before he severs the connection of our lips with an audible "mwah" and pulls away.
"I'm not pretty. I'm ruggedly handsome," he says seriously.
"You're not pretty. You're ruggedly handsome," I echo, hypnotized from the surprise kiss.
The chime of the bell signalling a customer's entrance jingles lightly in the shop, and a familiar sound comes into earshot.
Chatting. But not just any chatting – the chatting of children.
But not just any children – my students.
I cast a quick glance over my shoulder, and my suspicions are confirmed. A group of four students from my math class enter the shop – Billy, Arthur, Franklin, and Penelope. They're quite the diverse little friend group, from what I can tell. Billy's a tough guy, Arthur's an art kid, Franklin's a science geek, and Penelope's a sweetheart. Good kids.
Good kids who will see me getting coffee with my boss, alone, and if they pay enough attention; wearing the same clothes as last night. Hopefully they didn't see us kiss. Now that would be some conclusive evidence of our little affair.
I shoot a look to Kenneth, and he nods slightly, not breaking eye contact with me. He sees.
Now, I know it's a little immature to be hiding from people like you were in a spy movie – especially when you're a teacher and those people you're hiding from are your beloved students. But I don't need another rumor going around about me. In not even a week, I'd be both gay and a child-beater.
So here I am, looking out the window at our booth and trying awkwardly to rest my face in my hand and cover the side of it. Kenneth sits there blankly. He's the principal, after all, so if he's seen, it'd be a much more awkward situation if he were the one looking like he had ticks to evade children.
He meets my gaze. He knows. He knows I know he knows. We nod and stand up from our booth to leave.
Just as we set our empty cups down, the children begin to order their beverages. We pace quickly towards the door, just a few steps away, eye on the door handle as we near closer, when my hand finally reaches the door and I begin to-
"Hi Mr. Baldi! Hi Mr. K!"
Penelope's cheery tone heavily contradicts the feeling of grandly-weighted shackles locking me in place. I hear Kenneth come to a halt as well.
I slowly turn my head with a forced smile, raising my hand in a weak wave. "Hi kids!" I force out.
The rest of the group turns their heads to meet our gazes and eyes us from head to toe, their expressions unreadable. Penelope stands straight with her hands behind her back. The corners of her mouth are lifted in a warm smile.
"Well we best be off, but you kids have yourself a nice day," says Kenneth genuinely with a gentle wave. He turns so elegantly and strides to the door, holding it open for me. I walk through with a loss of breath. He takes the rear as we exit the coffee shop and step onto the sidewalk.
We get a few meters between us and the shop before I turn around to face Kenneth.
"How the hell did you do that?" I ask, bewildered.
"My principal survival instincts kicked in," he answered, dead-serious. "It was like I was on auto-pilot."
"Well that setting just made up for my malfunction, so thank you, you amazing beast."
He smiles. "They're kids, so you know they'll joke, but not likely any more than that," he says calmly. It's like he can read my thoughts.
"I hope so."
Kenneth takes my hand and leads me down the street, to wherever our desires guide us.
And so we continue our day.
●●●
Hey readers! Sorry for the lengthy wait, I'm a freshman in high school, and homework tends to pile up. I thank you all for your patience and kind comments - they all brighten up my day. The next chapter should be on its way soon, but no promises. :P
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Teach me How (Baldi x Principal)
Fanfiction"I'm a dude. I like a dude. Meanwhile, we're trying to thwart an awful lie about me before it spreads too far." ●●● Baldi has been teaching for 11 years, and he's never been happier. His students absolutely adore him and are alwa...
