"Ca.s.sie, are you going to Ms. Bennet?" Martin asked her.

"Yes, uncle Martin," Ca.s.sie answered.

"Alright, let's go." Martin leads the way outside.

During weekends, she attended Ms. Bennet's French lesson and her uncle Martin want to drop her first before he goes to his Sat.u.r.days' work.

"Take care of going home after your cla.s.s has done."

"Yes, uncle," she answered.

"Okay, am going now."

"Goodbye, uncle Martin. Have a safe drive."

Ca.s.sie watches her uncle's car turning around the next street. She went inside the building and climbed the stairs to the third floor. After her cla.s.s ended, she went to that place.

"Ca.s.sie! Hurry up!"

"Why?" she asked.

"Look!"

They pointed at someone doing a harder stunt. It was Levi who was having his moments. So he able to sneak out again? Ca.s.sie thought. The teenagers who were circling around amazes how Levi could pull that stunts.

Levi is three years older than her, and it was he who introduces her to everyone and became her friends.

"What do you think, Ca.s.sie?" Levi asked her after he's done showing off to everyone.

"Cool…" she said.

"That's all?" Levi laughs.

"So, you did sneak in again," she teases him.

Levi is fluent in English so he is the one she often talk to. She began learning French but not yet that good enough. Since then, she often hangs out with them when she has time, and Levi could sneak out from the watch of his Security.

Been a year now. Finally, her uncle Martin brought her a bike as her 13th birthday gift, and she could ride to go to her school.

"Ca.s.sie?"

Ca.s.sie glance at the car where a man calls out her name. It was Mr. Bastien, Ms. Loura's boyfriend. They were in the middle of the traffic and the officers let the crowd cross the road first.

"Going to School?" Mr. Bastien asked her and she nodded.

Ca.s.sie glance at the man who sits on the front seat of the car.

"Quinn! Wake up! Are you not sober up yet? We have a meeting later!"

She heard Mr. Bastien spoke to that person but he only groans and ignores him. She saw Mr. Bastien shaking his head.

"d.a.m.n it, Quinn! What are you doing? It's been a year since they have died and you still like that."

Ca.s.sie heard Mr. Bastien scolding the man but the traffic officer already gesturing for the traffic flow to resume. She began pedaling her bike and watch the car past her and speeds ahead.

Her life in Paris continues. Sometimes, she will join the kids to go biking around the city. She was now 14 years old and fluent in French, at last.

"Where have you been!?" Lydia shouted at her. "Does you want your uncle to be angry at us!?"

She was very surprised to see her aunt Lydia and Mimie home. They said they will have a two days vacation at Amsterdam since her uncle Martin been in Italy for a whole week because of work.

"Your uncle will come home tonight! Go and cook something for us to eat!" Her aunt dictated.

Ca.s.sie quickly began preparing something. She is afraid Lydia will tell her uncle she went out.

"Is this what you only know to cook? Am sick of it!" Mimie complains.

"That's right! You should learn how to cook other dishes!" Lydia narrated at her.

Ca.s.sie began thinking about it, then she decided. She knocks at Baudelaire Academy.

"Oh, Ca.s.sie? Can I help you? Anything?"

"Good morning, Mr. Bastien. Did I disturb your cla.s.s?"

"Ah, no. I cancel my cla.s.s this morning. Why?"

"Oh, okay… I just wanted to ask if how much to pay you to teach me how to cook."

She saw Bastien was surprised. Then he chuckles.

"You want to know how to cook?"

Ca.s.sie nodded. Larry then invited her inside.

"Then come on. Help me make soup."

She followed him inside. Ca.s.sie was admired by how pleasant his kitchen that stands also as his lecture hall during field demo.

"So you are expecting for a visitor, Mr. Bastien?" She asked because of the big pot he uses to boiled water.

"No. Someone still drunk from last night. Am going to bath him with this soup."

She was staring at him, dumbfounded. He laughs and amused at her reaction.

"Nah. That guy. He has been like that since his adopted parents and sister died. He still doesn't accept it. He goes drowning himself if he got a chance."

She just listens to him.

"Okay. Here, help me slicing them into cubes."

Larry began discussing each of the ingredients of the soup he's cooking.

"Hey, where's your shampoo?" asked of a man who suddenly came out from one of those closed doors.

Ca.s.sie glance at the man but she quickly turn around because he only wearing a towel to cover that part of his body.

"Why are you walking around in my lecture hall just wearing that? Are you planning to give a heart attack to my student?"

"You said you have no cla.s.s this morning?"

The man speaks, he sounded bored but her heart skips a beat hearing that s.e.xy voice of him. Why her heart suddenly racing inside?

"Yeah but still…" Larry paused.

"Okay... go back inside now and wait in the bathroom. Stop staring at my student, you are making her uncomfortable."

"Ca.s.sie, can you watch for the soup?" Mr. Bastien patted her shoulder and she was startled.

"Umh…" she nodded, never dares to glance, or looking in that direction.

***

She felt a warm hand brus.h.i.+ng her face.

"Good morning," Shun greeted her. She smiled shyly. She still embarra.s.sed for the second time.

Shun get up and reach for her lips. At first, it was only light kisses, but later on, it was deepening until Shun covered her naked body and she felt weak underneath him. She began feeling the heat arising one more time. She gasped.