Time seemed to flow quickly after that day. With the addition of the siblings, the moods of the mother and daughter drastically brightened. Without the looming threat of Micky's drunken rage hovering over them, their shoulders stood more upright, holding their heads higher.
Joe and Sarah not only helped with menial tasks such as laundry or putting away clean dishes, they also diligently dove back into their studies. They had both gone without formal schooling or studies ever since the death of their mother. With Allison's helpful guidance, they swiftly caught up to the expected level of their peers.
Soon, the summer break came to an end. The new semester began with two new additions to the school. Allison couldn't help but feel a tinge of loneliness as she watched the backs of the three slowly make their way to class.
Immediately after arriving at the school grounds, Laine separated from the siblings and made her way to her respective classroom. The siblings slowly made their way to the administration office with their enrollment paperwork in hand.
In this country, the school system broke up the levels of education into initial, intermediate, advanced, and final. The initial level began at age five. Intermediate at age ten. Advanced at age fifteen. Final, however, was optional. Starting at the age of eighteen, new adults could choose to directly enter the labor force, attend a college for studies in fields such as science, or attend one of the military academies.
Unlike the other colleges throughout the world, the military academies were highly exclusive. Only individuals with awakened abilities were eligible to take their entrance exams. These were the pinnacles of society. By attending and graduating from one of the major academies around the world, an individual would be afforded opportunities the civilian populous could only dream of.
After turning in the enrolment papers, Sarah was guided by the intermediate, grade three counselor to her new classroom. Joe watched her back grow more distant for a moment before turning and following the grade five counselor.
Standing before the door he would be regularly walking through from here out, Joe had to take a deep, slow breath to prepare himself for what was to come. A pause followed his light but decisive knock on the otherwise ordinary door. From inside, a stern "Enter" followed his knock.
"Everyone, this is the transfer student that will be joining you in your studies starting today. Introduce yourself to your new classmates."
Looking straight ahead, Joe gave a light bow of his head before beginning his introduction before his new classmates. "I'm Joe. I am looking forward to learning beside all of you and making new memories." Just as he was about to lift his head back to its otherwise neutral position, a slight yell was heard from within the sea of desks.
"No way!"
Briefly casting a glance across the numerous unknown faces before him, it took little time for Joe to pinpoint the source of the yell. Standing behind one of the desks with her chair pushed against the next desk behind her, was a short, brown-haired girl. Her enormous smile radiating her excitement against the sunlight beaming through the window to her side.
"We get to spend time together at school too! This is the best day ever!"
Laine's excitement was barely being contained. After spending extensive time together at home ever since the siblings had moved in, she had been crestfallen as she entered the classroom only a short while ago. The time she spent with the two had quickly become her favorite time of day. Especially when it came to the time she spent growing closer to Joe.
A light smile slowly crept across Joe's face as the realization hit him. His heart began to heat up, understanding that Allison had arranged for the two to be in the same class. Whether that was out of concern for his adjustment to a relatively normal life or simply a decision made after seeing the two interact in recent days was not even a consideration in his growing gratitude for the woman.
Any reservations he had prior to stepping through that door hastily vacated his mind. The only thought that remained derived from this realization and the impossible to ignore excitement dawning Laine's face. 'I will keep this family safe at any cost.'
With a light nod, Joe began the brief walk to the only empty seat in the room. The back most seat nearest the window. As he passed by the still beaming Laine, Joe couldn't help but raise his right hand and lightly pat the girl's head.
"You should sit back down. Class is about to start."
Seeing the light tint of red that had surfaced from his gesture explode into a neck-to-ear blush at his words, Joe could only smile. Turning back towards his new desk, Joe took his place two places behind Laine.
Despite the morning's events, class flowed smoothly before the bell signaling lunch resounded through the halls. Removing a plain paper bag from his bag, Joe was preparing to enjoy Allison's cooking before he noticed a growing shadow surrounding him. Lifting his gaze from the food before him, he noticed a growing number of expectant faces crowding his desk.
Having already expected this, after all, he was the new kid. Not only that, but Laine had also expanded the target that came with that title exponentially with her earlier outburst of excitement. In response, Joe simply came to his feet with the paper bag in hand before firmly making his way past the crowd.
The expectant gazes were briefly replaced with disdain as his new classmates thought he was just brushing them off. A thought that was halted when they saw Joe pick up a desk and place it determinedly beside Laine's. The pause in realization afforded Joe time to adjust himself for the onslaught of questions that would surely follow.
To him, curiosity is a predictable element of the human mind. Every question that followed was expected. Where he went to school prior to the transfer. Why he had chosen to transfer halfway through the year, and in the final year of his intermediate studies. All basic and predictable questions when it came to the situation.
What he hadn't expected was the question that came from the back of the crowd. Looking towards the individual that had broken away from his expectations, Joe noticed another male classmate, slightly taller than the rest.
"Why are you two so close?"
The disapproval and disdain in the boy's voice was not missed by Joe. Where the rest of the crowd heard an otherwise innocent question, Joe understood the underlying meaning. Having come from outside the scope of expected questions, Joe found himself at a loss for a quick response as he had done with all the others. Before he could devise a response that would satisfy the curiosity while not revealing the true nature of his relationship with Laine, Joe noticed another unexpected element that explained why this question had been brought up to begin with.
Standing just behind the taller boy stood another two. A knowing smirk adorning both their smug faces. Understanding the likely meaning of the question, Joe, inwardly, wore a devilish smile. To see if his hunch was correct, he decided to stir the pot with two follow-up questions.
"Am I not allowed to sit near somebody I know and care about? If so, who are you to tell me I can't?"
Whereas the first question was delivered with a neutral tone, the second carried a hint of malice. A slight pressure began to radiate from his body, direct toward the stunned face of the taller boy and his underlings. Cold sweat began to form on the backs of the three. Their bodies visibly shivered under the eyes of the new kid. With slight panic and a smothered ego, the tall boy's survival instinct kicked in and he backpedaled his question.
"I was just curious how a transfer student could already be close to Elaine when it's your first day. I didn't mean anything by it."
The boy's anxiety was not missed by Joe. Every word came out more shakily than the last. Pleased with the outcome, Joe turned his attention back to the innocent girl sitting beside him and the lunch before him. Opening the bag, Joe offered an otherwise obvious answer to the tall boy's question. An answer that dragged salt through the open would that was the boy's ego.
"I thought it was obvious from her little outburst earlier. We know each other from before I transferred here."
The remainder of the day went by without another incident. Before they knew it, the two siblings and Laine found themselves walking side by side on their way home. Exactly as they had arrived that morning. Entering the house, they were greeted by the now familiar aroma of Allison's cooking.
Feeling their mouths begin to slightly water, each of them hastily ran to their rooms to drop their bags before washing up and returning to the joined dining room and kitchen. Joe briefly left the two girls sitting at the table while he entered the kitchen. When he returned, the girls noticed he was carrying all the dining ware needed for the family of four. Having placed all the plates and utensils in their respective spots, Joe silently took his seat beside Sarah and continued their discussion of the day's event they were in the middle of on their way home.
Sarah was surprised to hear that Laine and Joe were in the same class and felt mild jealousy rising in her stomach. Ever since she could remember, the two had always been together. What really caught her off guard was noticing the smile that never seemed to leave Joe's face ever since coming to this house. Despite her best efforts, she failed to remember a single time prior that she had witnessed her brother happy. The jealousy that had begun to boil within her was abruptly snuffed out when she heard the genuine laughter leave Joe's mouth. Even at her age, she could recognize just how much their lives had changed and improved