From Ashes of Scandal to His Embrace (Laurinda) novel Chapter 55

“Does the school know you’re dating already? Did your parents send you here just so you could fall in love? Is this really how you repay your teachers for all their hard work? Wasting time on this mess, you might as well go do a few more math problems.”

“What is it, not enough homework? Are your grades just too good? Have you completely lost sight of what you want in life? You came here just to chase after me? Sorry, but I’m not interested. You should really focus on your studies right now.”

Laurinda didn’t even give the boy a chance to say anything. She just walked right past him and didn’t look back, leaving him standing there in the hallway, completely lost.

Her words kind of rocked his whole world. For a second, he started questioning everything.

A few girls who came out behind Laurinda watched the boy with a mix of sympathy and disbelief. They couldn’t figure out what he was thinking—trying to pursue Laurinda took guts. Maybe too much.

He glanced up, saw the girls looking at him, and instantly felt his cheeks burn. Face bright red, he dropped his gaze and hurried off down the hall.

“What are you all doing here? Where’s Laurinda?” Bonnie’s voice made the girls jump. She came over and saw a cluster of girls peeking around the back door. Bonnie recognized them—they were Laurinda’s roommates, and they all seemed pretty close.

“Hi, Ms. Bonnie. Laurinda went to get lunch,” Shirley said, grinning. She was already a big fan of the new English teacher. Bonnie was so pretty that even as a girl, Shirley couldn’t help but admire her.

“Lunch? Why didn’t you all go with her?”

“She said she already had food, so she didn’t eat with us. Have you eaten yet? Want to come with us?”

The other girls chimed in, eager for Bonnie to join them for lunch at the cafeteria.

Bonnie had actually planned to take Laurinda out for lunch—and maybe ask her about Fabian while they ate. But with Laurinda gone and these sweet girls inviting her, it just felt right to go along with them.

When they got to the cafeteria, Bonnie was honestly amazed. The food stalls stretched out along the wall, and there were barely any lines. Grabbing a meal was just so easy.

“It’s okay. I think I just got a little chilled walking over. Winter is the worst.”

Laurinda really didn’t like winter, especially when it snowed. No matter how many layers she wore, she never felt truly warm.

Adolphus set a bowl of steaming chicken congee in front of her. His voice was gentle. “Have some soup first. It’ll warm you up before you eat the rest.”

Laurinda looked at the beautifully arranged dishes, took the spoon Adolphus handed her, and glanced up. “Do you ever worry you’re spending too much time making everything look this nice?”

“It’s not hard at all. I prep everything ahead of time, then cook it right before your class finishes. Now eat while it’s hot.”

Just then, someone burst in. “I’m back. Wow, it smells amazing in here. I could smell it all the way down the hall.”