As Steffy stepped out of the school gate, she noticed the dark clouds gathering overhead. "Fuck, it's going to rain," she muttered, walking lazily down the slippery path, hands shoved in her pockets, her small leather bag hanging loosely by her side.
It took her a moment to pull out her ringing phone, but when she did, she was relieved to see it was her father. "Hola, Papa. Yeah, I'm here. I've already met the target. Did some digging during lunch—found out he's one of the top employees at the school. Still need to get his schedule so I can... alright, I'll stop now. I'll update you soon. Yo Tambien te que—"
The call cut off before she could finish. Steffy felt that familiar sting of disappointment but shoved it down. She'd just have to confront her father some other time. Right now, she had to stay focused on the mission so she could get out of this hellhole as soon as possible.
As she kept walking, the sound of her black school shoes kept tapping on the cemented parts. "Fucking hell," she cursed under her breath as the first raindrops hit her skin.
"Language, Miss Rivera."
Startled, Steffy looked up to see Teacher Greg approaching with a large black umbrella. She stared at him for a moment, her heart unexpectedly thumping hard at the sight of him.
"What are you doing, sir?" she asked as he came to stand beside her.
"It's raining, and it looks like you don't have an umbrella with you."
"I didn't expect it to rain today," she replied.
"Neither did I," he said with a lopsided grin. "But I still came prepared."
Of course, she thought, rolling her eyes internally at his fussiness.
"Let me walk you to that waiting shed while you wait for your...?"
"My dad," she answered. "I'm waiting for my dad."
"Good," he nodded.
They walked in silence, the rain falling harder now. Steffy became acutely aware of Teacher Greg's hand resting on her shoulder, and the sensation made her uneasy.
"How long have you been behind me, Teacher Greg? Did you overhear my call?"
He glanced at her. "No. Why? Worried I caught something about a boyfriend?"
Steffy flushed at his comment. "I don't have a fucking boyfriend," she muttered. "Boys are stupid."
Teacher Greg chuckled. "Just teasing, Miss Rivera."
"Yeah, sure."
"I heard your parents are engineers," he continued after a moment. "They're working on that new mall in the next town, right?"
"For a teacher, you sure know a lot," she replied dismissively, not wanting to dwell on the details of her fake life. He seemed too interested—uncomfortably so.
"It's normal for an adviser to be curious about their students," he said. "I just want to get to know you better."
"Sometimes it's best not to get too close, sir," Steffy shot back. "You might push the wrong button, and I could end up stabbing you."
"Oh," Teacher Greg laughed. "That's an intense way to talk to your teacher."
Who cares? I'm not a real student anyway, she thought.
"Relax, no one's stabbing anyone, okay?"
"Fine," she grumbled, more annoyed by his constant probing.
When they reached the waiting shed, Teacher Greg closed the umbrella and handed Steffy a handkerchief to dry her arms. "Thanks," she mumbled, despite her irritation.
"Why do I get the feeling you don't like me?"
"W-what?" Steffy stammered as she was caught off guard.
"You've been on edge since I showed up with the umbrella. But in class, you're different—you are actually smart and respectful."
Steffy smirked, hiding the nervous flutter in her chest. "I'm like this with all men, sir. Don't think you're special."
"Ah, I see."
They stood quietly for a few minutes, both watching the rain. Steffy's eyes wandered to the muddy puddles forming around them, and she cringed. Raised in luxury, she wasn't used to such a rundown environment, but she swallowed her complaints.
"So, your file says you're 17," Teacher Greg broke the silence. "How's your first day been?"
"It's fine, I guess."
In truth, she had turned 18 just a few nights ago and celebrated it with the Alphas. Her father had arranged everything—new identity, new background. Now, she was just waiting for the perfect time to kill the target.
Just then, a fancy car pulled up, and the window rolled down to reveal a large man in the driver's seat. Relief washed over Steffy. "My dad's here," she said, quickly heading to the car without saying much to the teacher. She was already soaked upon getting inside. "Thanks, Sir Greg. See you tomorrow!" she called out, trying to make him believe that she was as normal as everyone else in that school.
The teacher smiled and nodded at the driver—who waved back with a brief chuckle. Once the tinted window rolled up, they sped away.
Inside the car, George, the massive man posing as her father, smirked. "That guy's got a thing for you, Miss."
"Shut up, George," she groaned, rolling her eyes. "I don't like older men—or any men, for that matter."
"Me neither," George replied. "Especially not creeps like that. Fucking predators…"
"Don't worry about him," Steffy said, pulling out an expensive cigarette. "They'll be dead soon enough."