Resisting Her || BBANGSAZ

II

Hessick Academy, less than ten minutes away, was tucked on acreage that couldn't be seen from the street. I didn't even know the school existed. The driveway was flanked by large sycamore trees and flowering shrubs. The school itself towered at the end of a circular drive. I imagined my new nanny salary rivaled Hessick's tuition. Hanni pulled into a parking lot beside the school's main building.

"This looks like a private-college campus," I said.

"It is large, but it's kindergarten through middle school. Thankfully, Lucian has to worry only about finding his homeroom class and the gym. His teacher, Ms. Minnie, is very nice and is great with the kids." Hanni slipped out of the car and opened the back door for Lucian to climb out.

I reached for his backpack, surprised at how heavy it was. "How many books do you have in here? This thing weighs a ton." I made a production of trying to heave it over my shoulder and got a smile out of both of them.

"I'll take it." Lucian reached out, and I helped him into it.

According to the plaque by the door, Hessick Academy was built in the 1880s and looked as charming as one would expect. The inside, however, was a completely different story. Security cameras and automatically locking doors prevented anyone from just barging right in. Hanni walked to a window marked Administration and flashed her credentials.

"Good morning, Mary. I need to get my assistant registered here so she can pick up and drop off Lucian. Also, I want to see Minnie Kim for a moment, if you could call her." Hanni was direct, to the point, and gave off an aura that denying her wasn't an option. Mary nodded and buzzed us in.

"And you are?" Mary looked at me expectantly.

"Kim Minji. I go by Minji." I smiled, hoping to get one in return, but dour Mary turned back to her computer screen and actually pressed her lips together in a frown.

"Look right here." She pointed to a circle on the back of her monitor.

"Why?"

"I need to take your picture for your identification card."

I flashed Mary a brilliant smile that was snarkier than I intended, but it got my point across. I heard a small laugh that morphed into a cough from Hanni. Mary shook her head at me and busied herself getting my credentials in order.

A woman about my age with long brown hair opened the security door and smiled at us. "Ms. Pham, Lucian, good morning."

It certainly was for me. She was super cute. Was this Lucian's teacher? Damn kid was surrounded by beautiful women. "Hi. I'm Minji."

"Minji's helping me with Lucian, so she'll be your point of contact if he gets sick or is behind in a subject."

Minnie nodded and reached out for my hand. "It's nice to meet you, Minji."

She was so genuine and downright gorgeous that I almost forgot about Hanni standing next to me.

"It's nice to meet you, too."

"Let's head to the classroom, shall we?"

Lucian led the way, and Minnie filled me in on the school's policies and classroom etiquette. Hanni lagged a few paces behind us, scrolling on her phone. The tap tap of her heels weren't as pronounced, but I was still aware of her. When we reached Lucian's homeroom and Minnie gave us the tour, I was surprised the class had only ten students.

"Minji, look at Leonardo." Lucian pointed to a large aquarium with a box turtle resting on a flat rock.

"Lucian's pretty animated today." Minnie looked at Hanni. Hanni gave her the single nod but offered no other information. Minnie turned back to me. "Normally, Lucian is pretty quiet. He must really like you."