bucket list || l. norris

04

* this chapter somewhat broke my heart lol - enjoy nevertheless, and please let me know your thoughts by commenting throughout and voting, too! *

04 || 20/12/2007

"Yes, Mrs Davis, my dad took me karting at the weekend," Lando sat beside his old teacher at the table in her classroom. She'd asked for a few minutes of his time, after hearing his news, and his current teacher, Mr Wilson, could only agree. Lando wasn't going to be at school for much longer. "I've been going for quite a long time now, and I'm quite good at it. Dad says I'm improving each time I go."

Today, the school term ended for the Christmas holidays. Today was Lando's last ever day at school. The only people who knew about him leaving and being homeschooled were his teachers and his parents. Even Mila had absolutely no idea. She would find out today, with the rest of their classmates. Lando wanted to tell her sooner, but Adam and Cisca told him to wait after discussing it with Mark and Amanda, who were certain that their little girl's already fragile heart would be broken. They thought leaving it until he told everyone would be better. In some ways, they were totally right, but in many others, they were completely wrong.

"That's amazing, Lando, you should feel very proud of yourself," Mrs Davis was Lando's favourite teacher. Even after leaving her reception class, he continued to meet with her every so often to discuss his progress. When Adam contacted the school to inform them of the changes to his son's education, Mrs Davis felt overwhelmingly proud of the young boy, yet rather sad because he was such a great asset to their school. Lando was very popular, even with those who were older and younger than he was, but he only ever cared enough for Mila. Mrs Davis knew that she would have to look out for the poor girl when she no longer had her best friend by her side at school all of the time. "Are you excited to be homeschooled?"

"Not really. I don't want to leave Milly by herself," he frowned, his eyebrows dropping as he looked at the floor, fiddling with his fingers which were clasped together over the table. "Mum and dad said she will be really upset. I feel really bad because I don't want to upset her, but now that I've won a race and I'm putting so much time into karting, it's hard to come to school."

"I'm sure Mila will be just fine." Mrs Davis tried to reassure Lando, but inside, he was having none of it. He knew that she didn't really get along with anyone else in their class like they did. It was obvious that Lando and Mila were perfectly content being with one another all of the time, and although Mila spoke to plenty of other people in her class, it wasn't the same. It would never be the same as having Lando with her. Lando didn't mind telling everyone about his decision, but he felt a little sick whenever he thought about telling Mila. He could already see the sadness on her face and the tears which would roll down her cheeks. Lando would be the person responsible for making her so upset. That didn't sit well with him.

"Will you look after her, Mrs Davis? She really needs someone," Lando frowned, picking at the skin beside his fingernail as his heart filled with sadness. He didn't want to cry in front of his old teacher. "She's a very independent girl but she still needs someone. I want her to be happy when I'm not at school."

Of course, Mrs Davis was aware of Mila's health condition. The school were informed before she even began attending and they always ensured to keep a close eye on her. Every teacher who knew of Lando and Mila knew the type of protective role Lando played in her life. He wanted to ensure that she would be happy and safe, even if he wasn't around.

"Yes, Lando, I'll look after her," Mrs Davis nodded with a soft smile poking through on her lips. He smiled at her, but it was very obvious that he still wasn't satisfied. He wasn't ready to leave Mila behind. "You don't need to worry."