Chapter 33: Sera Was His Destiny

Chapter 33: Sera Was His Destiny Soon, the bell rang, and the homeroom teacher walked in with the new student. "Good morning, teacher," the students greeted in unison as they bowed slightly. "Morning, everyone," Teacher Amber said as she motioned them to sit. "As you all know, we have a transfer student joining us today. Please welcome her." She gestured to the door toward Sera. "Come in and introduce yourself." Sera stepped inside with a hopeful smile on her face. It was the beginning of a new life that she had never been able to live in her previous one. "Hello, I’m Seraphina Lan," she said. She purposely dropped the rest of her surname. She wanted to avoid being linked to the Lancaster family. But what she didn’t know was that Melissa had already spread rumors, labeling her a leech before she even arrived. "I hope to get along with you all," she added, bowing politely. There was complete silence. No one spoke. There were just cold stares and sneers. Just as I expected, Seraphina thought. Her smile faded as she looked toward the teacher, ignoring the glares around her. "Where can I sit, Ma’am?" she asked, her voice quiet but cold. There was no seat. And even where one might have been, someone had already placed a bag there, loudly declaring she wasn’t welcome. Everyone was acting cold toward her, only one pair of eyes, which was Emma’s, that looked at her with warmth. Amber scanned the room, but there wasn’t a single seat available that she could assign without causing a stir. Deep down, she knew why this was happening.. Everyone in this class came from wealthy and influential families. They weren’t ordinary students. Most of them were close to Melissa, and given the soft warning she received from her, she couldn’t take Seraphina’s side. Taking Seraphina’s side or even just giving her a seat could cost Amber more than just her job at the school. In the end, she chose to turn a blind eye. She raised her hand and pointed to a seat at the very back of the middle row. "You can sit there," she said. "What?" "How could it be?" "There’s no way!" The room was filled with gasps as students muttered in disbelief. No one could understand why Amber had chosen that seat. But Sera didn’t flinch. Without a word, she walked over and sat down, ignoring the noise around her like it was nothing. "Youngsters these days are so annoying," she muttered, placing her bag on the desk and taking out her things. "Who are you?" Just as Sera decided to ignore the world and focus on her studies, the boy sitting beside her, who had been sleeping this whole time... lifted his head and looked at her with a dazed expression. She glanced at him but didn’t reply. That face... it looked oddly familiar. But she didn’t care. There was no way she wanted to be associated with any of the brats in this school. All she wanted was to attend her classes and study, but she never got the chance to do so in her past life. "Damn it! He woke up." "There’s no way he’ll let her sit there." "That seat’s been empty forever." "I know, right? He’s never had a deskmate. Will he even accept her?" "I bet he would chase her away the moment he looks at her." Seraphina heard the hushed whispers echoing around her. She looked again at the boy beside her, who was still looking at her unblinkingly. "Hello, deskmate," she said with a polite smile, and also warned him at the same time. "Let’s just stay out of each other’s way." "I didn’t ask for a greeting," he muttered, voice low but sharp. "I asked... who are you?" Sera sighed, irritated by his tone. "Seems like my deskmate has trouble both hearing and seeing." Gasps filled the room once again. "What did she just say?" "Did she really talk back to him?" The whispers kept growing louder, but Seraphina ignored them. "I’m sitting here, which makes me your deskmate," she said coldly. "And if it’s my name you want, be polite enough to tell me yours first." "Oh, my bad," the boy said casually, rubbing his eyes. "I’m Maxmilian Julius." Seraphina froze. Maxmilian Julius? Her mind went blank for a second. Wasn’t he the one who used to obsess over Melissa? The MJ? Her eyes widened, and her jaw almost dropped, but she quickly composed herself. Smile, Sera. Smile. Whoever he is, it’s got nothing to do with you! "Nice to meet you, Max," she said smoothly. "I’m Seraphina Lan." "Who said you could call me Max?" Maxmillion snapped, his glare turning sharp. "Oh—my bad," Seraphina said quickly, not sounding sorry at all. "If it bothers you so much, just call me Sera instead." She smiled. "That is all I can offer you right now." She had done it on purpose, and she was aware of what exactly she was doing. Only Melissa and a few of Maxmillion’s family were allowed to call him Max. But Seraphina couldn’t care less. The way he acted like he was better than everyone, like the whole class had to walk on eggshells around him, made her want to tease him until he lost his cool. "Whatever!" However, Seraphina had not expected such behavior in return. As Maxmilian had waved his hand at her, and went to sleep once again. What the hell was that!? ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ At Lucien’s office. "Did you drop her off safely?" Lucien asked, eyes still fixed on the papers in front of him. "Yes, Master," the driver replied. Lucien finally looked up. "Was there anything... unusual? Something that felt off or out of place?" The driver hesitated, but shook his head. "Nothing stood out, sir." Lucien leaned back in his chair as his jaw clenched. That morning kept replaying in his head. Seraphina had walked away... no, she ran away right in the middle of their conversation. He had asked her to stay with him for her own safety. Was that so wrong? He didn’t understand. He didn’t want control... he just wanted to protect her. But she didn’t even answer. She just... left in the middle of the conversation. "However, boss," the driver began. "This is something I would like to share with you." "What is it?" Lucien looked at the driver and leaned toward his desk. "It seemed that Miss Sera was still scared that someone might harm her and her loved ones." The driver told Lucien, and he briefly summarized everything about Sera’s conversion to Emma. "Oh! So, Melissa was really the person who was behind all this," Lucien whispered and dismissed the driver. He already got what he wanted to know. It wasn’t like he didn’t believe in Seraphina; instead, he had faith in her, but he still wanted to make sure that what Sera said was right. After all, Melissa was also Adrian’s sister, and he didn’t want to accuse her without any proof. "Adrian, just what do you want from me?" Lucien closed his eyes and murmured. He pinched between his brows and started to think about something. Knock Knock A slight knock on the door made Lucien come out of his thoughts. "Come in," "Boss, here are the files you were looking for," an assistant said, handing Lucien a file. "As you can see, Miss Seraphina Lan had never been in a relationship, and oddly, she was said to be autistic, but I couldn’t see any sign of that." Lucien took the file and started to inspect it instantly. He read every single page twice before closing it. "Was there a possibility that she might have been mol... molested or something?" Lucien’s voice cracked while asking this. "No, Boss! Fortunately, there were no such things. She’s clean, and no one has ever laid a hand on her." The assistant replied. "That’s a relief," Lucien felt strangely relieved. For some reason, his mind was racing, and he couldn’t help but think that something unthinkable must have happened to Seraphina. But if everything is fine, then why was she crying for her child? Just what more is she hiding? Lucien’s mind was spinning with all these thoughts. He had stood tall since the age of fifteen. No one had ever been able to surpass him or give him a hard time, but there he was, unable to understand a woman who was slowly capturing his heart. "You can leave now," he said to the assistant. "But don’t forget to keep an eye on the Lancasters, especially at Melissa. I want everything about her." "Sure, boss," the assistant said and left. "Just what the heck is wrong with me?" Lucien rose to his feet and walked to the glass window. "Why am I being so involved with you that my heart and mind couldn’t stop thinking about you?" Lucien was troubled with all sorts of thoughts in his mind, but what he wasn’t aware that Sera was his destiny.