Chapter 2

Conrad's POV

"I'm screwed. I know I'm screwed. When everyone entered the classroom, my soul dropped to my feet. Seeing a bunch of teenagers near me made me feel old, and even though we all looked almost the same, I felt completely out of place. I was standing, looking at the kids, and they were looking at me, waiting for me to say something, but I didn't know what to say or where to start. I didn't even want to do it.

Each face was different, people of different races, mixed people, people who seemed to be able to have the world at their fingertips, and people who seemed to be in the same situation as me, with nothing. I was impressed by the looks they had, they all seemed to want to run away from here as much as I did.

"Well, guys, my name is Conrad and I am your substitute teacher. I won't be here for long, just coming in to give you a couple of classes. Okay with you?"

"He looks gay!" someone yells in the back, and the others laugh. I sigh not to scream a stupidity and put on my best poker face. These kids won't do what they want with me, I'm tired, my knees hurt, and I'm about to throw the marker I have in my hand at the cute dark-skinned boy who shouted that at me.

"Are you homophobic?" I ask, leaning against the desk. The kids fall silent, and he looks nervous. Out of malice, I wait for him to answer something and stare at him fixedly. My mother used to do that when she wanted me to confess something; she always liked to make me tremble until I cried and told her everything I knew. My family is not normal, but I like them all, I think I got used to them over time, and the fact that they accept me as I am has also influenced me.

The boy at the back is about to answer when the classroom door opens and a girl with long black hair, gray eyes, and white skin enters. She's beautiful, her body is defined, her legs are somewhat thin, and her face seems to be made of porcelain. I stop looking at her because of how strange it is for a teacher to observe his student and let out a resigned sigh. The girl's eyes land on me, and she raises an eyebrow.

It's a reaction I've received a lot today, I look too young to be here as a teacher when I should probably be sitting with them watching the class. However, I managed to graduate much earlier. My grades had always been excellent, and despite being carefree and hating sports, I never had trouble integrating with some people.

"Can I come in?" Her voice surprises me, it's soft and delicate, without being childish. I nod my head, and she almost runs to sit with the dark-skinned boy from earlier. I avoid not laughing at the bad taste in friends he has and focus on what I will give today, which is nothing. I never liked teachers who did that, and I'm sure they hate it too. I won't become the teacher who doesn't give class, because then the parents will hate me. I need to be in balance, and I need Jeremias not to regret giving me this job.

"I'm twenty-four years old, I'm not that old, you guys must be around that age," I comment. "I don't want you to be those students who torment their teachers, and I don't want you to be so heavy, okay? We're not going to have class today, but you can't leave yet."

"Why?" the boy I was smoking with earlier asks.

"Because I said so, and it turns out I'm the teacher. You do what I say here."

"The gay teachers shouldn't be allowed in this university, especially with Jeremias breathing down our necks," someone said.

"I asked you if you were homophobic a while ago, but you didn't answer anything, you didn't even look at me after that. Could it be that you're in the closet?" I replied. Laughter erupted, and his face turned red. The girl next to him looked at me with a furrowed brow, upset that I had humiliated her beloved friend, boyfriend, whatever. But I didn't regret it, someone needed to take him down a notch.

"Teacher, how did you end up here?" asked a short boy wearing glasses similar to mine and dressed in excessively formal clothes.

"My girlfriend broke up with me."

"Did you love her?" a girl asked. "I've always wanted to know what a man thinks of his girlfriend."

"I don't think I should be talking about my love life," I smiled. "Don't you want to know something else?"

Everyone shook their heads, and I closed my eyes. Why am I here telling them how I ended up in misery? Maybe I could tell them things without mentioning that I'm in ruins and that's why I'm teaching them, or I could tell them so they can compare themselves to me and act better. Although knowing people our age, I doubt they'll behave better. I wouldn't, I'd be happy to ruin the new teacher and pretend I don't hate him. That had always been my school role.

"Well, let's see. I liked a girl, and we went out to eat. She was beautiful, and I always thought we would be together for the rest of our lives. I know I'm young and stupid, and I think my old mind led me to believe that she was like me. I have no idea if she's with someone else now, but I think so. At dinner, she told me we were breaking up, and I... was thinking of proposing to her."

"But you're only twenty-four years old! You're too young to get married!" a blonde girl exclaimed, tilting her head without knowing what to say to that.

"Did you ever cheat on her?"

"No, I didn't."