279: Dominic's one day friend

Dominic's one day friend

The parent-teacher meeting discussed school matters and upcoming school events, and the children's progress. Each student performed reading, reciting poems, singing, or interpretative dancing as part of the meeting.  1

The parents felt pride and satisfaction as they watched their children participate in the activities. The teachers were relieved that the meeting went smoothly without any problems.

As the meeting came to an end, Heaven, Dominic, and Sebastian idled in the hallway just right outside their classroom. 

"Gosh… my Basti is so good." Heaven squatted down while cupping her son's cheek. "I'm so proud of you so so much. I'm swooning!"

Sebastian grinned, satisfied at his mother's reaction to his performance in reciting a poem. 

"Basti, my baby, what do you want as a reward, hmm? Should we eat ice cream again?" she asked, having this strong urge to reward her son for doing well. "Or do you want to go somewhere?"

In the meeting, the teachers also announced the honor roll and the student's average grades. Sebastian got the highest with only a point less from getting full marks. Although grades didn't matter to Heaven, they still gave her this inexplicable sense of pride. 

"Hmm…" Sebastian pondered about what reward he should get. 

This wasn't the first time he did well in school, and most of the time, Dominic would ask what he wanted. However, Sebastian rarely asked for anything because his father couldn't give him what he truly wanted. But now that his mother — his only prayer since then — wanted to celebrate this small win, he also felt hyped.

"How about…" as he pondered on how he could use this opportunity's maximum potential, Sebastian's eyes slid to the corner. He turned his head, setting his eyes on Riley, who was sitting alone inside the room while everyone else was busy. 

"Hmm?" A hum came out of Heaven's throat before her brows rose. She followed where her son was looking with her gaze, only for it to land on the boy that was sitting beside Sebastian earlier. 

"Isn't that your friend?" she murmured. "His parents didn't come?"

"He said they were busy." Sebastian pressed his lips into a thin line to face his mother once again. "Mommy, should we take Riley with us and eat some dessert?"

Her expression softened at her son's request, making her ruffle his hair mildly. "Sure, but we have to ask for the school and his parent's permission first."

"Alright."

She kept her smile, looking up at Dominic, who was standing beside them. The second their eyes met, Dominic nodded quietly before glancing over his shoulders. 

"Ask the school and the boy's parents if we can take the boy with us for lunch," he ordered to Dane, which Dane immediately executed after a bow. 

"Mommy, can I stay with Riley until the school and his parents allowed him to go with us?" requested Sebastian after hearing his father's orders.

"Sure, of course." Heaven smacked her lips, watching her son run back inside the classroom. She slowly planted her hands on her thigh, pushing herself up, eyes still on her son approaching his classmate. 

"I was worried Basti wasn't making any friends," she muttered with a subtle smile. "But I guess I worried for nothing."

Dominic glanced at her, standing beside her. He gazed at his son and the other kid, heaving a sigh of relief. 

"I'm relieved as well," he replied cooly. "Thanks to you."

"Why are you thanking me?"

"Your presence in his life made its magic." He cast her a knowing look. "You should take credit."

"Well…" Heaven drew a deep breath and smacked her lips once again. "I'm just making up for the years I wasn't in his life."

"The present is what matters. It's never too late for the both of us to be parents." Dominic slid his arms across her shoulder, squeezing her shoulder blade while offering her a warm smile. "Don't be too hard on yourself and congrats on making it through the first PTA meeting."

The corner of her mouth stretched, biting her bottom lips to stop it from stretching even broader. "I feel like a real parent now." 

"Haha." Dominic couldn't help but laugh. "I felt the same when I attended the first meeting."

"It's strange, right? I'm actually a mom."

"You are. Have always been."

The two of them stared at each other, smiling. After letting out another wave of laughter, they set their focus on the room while their son chatted with his classmate. The other parents had already left while there were still those who lingered in the hallway. 

The Zhu couple didn't mind the constant looks they received from others, as they were just glad to watch their son socialize. With Sebastian's personality, they had worried that he might not have friends. But watching him now, they thought they underestimated their son's social skills. 

Sebastian could actually get along well with children his age!

"Were you friendly when you are at that age, Dom?" Heaven asked out of curiosity, looking at his side profile. "Hmm?"

"I don't know."

"Huh?"

"I tried befriending my classmates when I was in school, but they think I was a freak."

"What?" A frown instantly dominated her face. "Who are those fools? I'm going to teach them a lesson. The nerve for them to call my husband names."

Dominic laughed at her reaction. It seemed his wife would burn them if he gave her their names. 

"We were kids, so we're all clueless," he explained, shaking his head mildly. "Though I did have some friends in middle school and high school. I still see them sometimes, especially those friends in college."

"Ohh…" Heaven rocked her head, eyes still fixed on his side profile. 

Because of her sudden silence, Dominic cast her a side-eye. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Nothing. It's just that… as a kid, it would have been nice to have friends."

"It's fine." Dominic smiled but then remembered a vague memory at the top of his head. "Oh. I did have a friend when I was a child."

"You just said you didn't have."

"Well, I only met that kid once, so I can't remember her face that well." Dominic peeled his eyes from her, smiling. "She said she didn't have friends as well, so she suddenly adopted me to be one of her people just because we were around the same age. I never met her again after that, but I've always wished to meet her again to thank her for saving me."

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