Rocking the Boat

"Teacher Alba," said Aurora, "You need to call Daddy. Whenever Alex is like this, only Daddy can knock some sense into him."

Alex turned to glare at Aurora, gnashing his teeth while she smiled sweetly at him and put up a peace sign.

Alba sighed inwardly and knew that she had no choice but to do so now - unless she was willing to force him to leave by dragging him away. Looking at his posture, she knew that not only would she not be able to do this, it was against her principle anyway.

If a student refuses to listen to the teacher, what can he (or she) really do?

In the past, teachers were given complete autonomy over what they did in their classroom. Even if they had been given some sort of physical punishment (such as twisting the ear, rapping on the knuckles with a dustboard), no one batted an eyelid.

Any complaints home resulted in them being punished at home, too.

With such 'power', students generally towed the line.

Such punishments weren't really meant to hurt the child but instil discipline, but there were some who used it to vent their anger. Added to that, there was countless research that stipulated such punishments were more detrimental than beneficial.

Thus, it got scrapped at school.

Teacher Alba took out her phone, wishing that there was a better way to do this. Calling Alex's father was like she was a failure, unable to control her class and not getting the respect that she deserved as a teacher.

Then again, Alex was truly a child who was normally obedient and never caused trouble in class. His behaviour right now only indicates how strongly he felt, and that he was in the right.

Though Alba wasn't the type to disregard her student's feelings, his uncompromising attitude wasn't something that she was partial to either.

Was he like this at home?

Alba took a glance at his rather serious and unrelenting expression and suddenly felt sympathy for his parents.

✿ Author posts on WN and neovel ✿

Kyle leaned back in the car while listening to the report on Wolfdogs as his driver, Rachael, drove him to Paws Shelter.

Rachael was unique i.e. not only was she not MIB, but she was also female! The only such person actually allowed to work closely with Kyle.

It wasn't that there were no female employees working with or for Kyle, but there were rules.

If you were MIB, there was no restriction. MIB were loyal and regarded Kyle like some deity to be admired from afar. Not a single MIB would entertain any thoughts that should not be entertained.

If you're not MIB, then the female employee would not be allowed to have close contact with Kyle. It was rare enough that there were female employees allowed near Kyle, but she was also one that had the most chance of actually being alone with Kyle.

No one thought Sayuri would allow it - because yes, Sayuri was the one that made the final call. It was much easier to nip it in the bud rather than have to go all She-Hulk on women who inevitably overstep their boundaries.

No matter how capable you were, Sayuri didn't trust women being around Kyle. No one, not even the cleaner, could be alone with Kyle in any way and in any manner.

She didn't care how people viewed her. She didn't care that people labeled her as being an enemy of women, not letting them work with Kyle.

These women disdained her and scoffed at her, saying that she did not trust her man enough - and that they, the women, were that desperate.

Sayuri really didn't care.

It wasn't like she stopped them from collaborating with Kyle in any matters. If they were capable, then go ahead and do so.

She didn't stop Kyle from hiring women, but it's just that they weren't allowed to be anywhere with him, alone. Even the cleaners had to come in after he had gone, and the tea lady would give the drinks to Sam.

Sayuri was undeniably possessive and would not tolerate any women near her man. She, as a ninja proficient in the women's arts, knew very well just how insidious some women can be.

Pretending to be uninterested, meek or what-not.

Pah.

It wasn't that she didn't trust Kyle but why should she subject him to that when all he wanted to do was work? Having to fend off such women, or dispel their thoughts was taxing.

So why did Sayuri allow Rachael to be Kyle's driver?

Yup, you guessed it.

Rachael was one woman that would never fall for Kyle.

As Kyle was immersed in listening to the Wolfdog report, he heard a beep. Opening his eyes, he glanced at the screen on the back of the chair in front of him.

<Sir, we're arriving>

"Thanks, Rachael," Kyle responded.

There was another feature why Rachal was perfect as Kyle's driver: she is unable to speak. She would use sign language to communicate, though she preferred to use her phone to text her words.

Not many people were patient enough to talk to her, and most regarded her as 'dumb'. Why would people think that was one of the mysteries of Life.

Rachael just couldn't speak, but there was nothing wrong with her brain!

The car she used to drive Kyle was specially equipped whereby she would only need to use the levers located on the steering wheel to communicate. While driving, only the standard replies were needed such as what she had given earlier.

It was similar to one using the thumb to change radio channels or volume. In her case, it was to choose the standard replies in the choices given.

If there was a need to talk longer, she could use the virtual keyboard to type sentences - but that option was only available when the car stopped.

"I don't know how long I'll be," Kyle said, "So you can go back first."

Rachael started typing on the virtual keyboard that popped up at the steering wheel, where the airbag should be.

<That won't do, Sir. I will wait.>

She had nothing to do anyway.

Kyle thought for a minute then nodded, "Okay. I'll call you when I've settled things."

<Noted Sir>

As Kyle was about to go out, with his hand on the handle, he paused and asked, "Are you okay with animals?"

<You mean, in the car, Sir?>

"Yes, of course," Kyle replied, "I wouldn't expect you to walk the dog or anything. It's not in the job description."

Rachael smiled and nodded, replying, <I'm fine, Sir.>

"Alex may be coming home first," Kyle told her, "With his new pet. Just to give you a heads-up."

Rachael gave a thumbs-up sign and Kyle left the car, immediately attracting the attention of the people that were outside.

The car he was in was not flashy and rather low-key, but it was still sleek looking with its Polestar Engineered design. The latest hybrid Volvo XC60, that had been 'updated' and gone through a slight 'facelift' from before. To the untrained eye, it was an SUV but looked rather 'sporty'.

As nice as the car was, the person that got out was what caught their attention the most.

Long, slim yet muscular legs came into view, followed by a body that was half bent. When he straightened up, the shirt seemed to be screaming as it clung to the muscular frame. Despite just getting out of the car, there were no creases on the white shirt, as it was tucked well into his dark pants that were held up by a sleek and slim black belt with a silver buckle.

Kyle squinted his eyes at the brightness outside and quickly put on his shades that hid his striking blue eyes. He remembered where the dog area was from the map he had seen earlier and headed straight there, ignoring the gazes that were locked on to him.

As he was about to head in, however, he visibly took a deep breath and deliberately lowered his presence.

Since Alex wanted a wolfdog, and from the report Tammy had given him.

His son was not only having a face-off with the teacher, he had boldly declared that he was the Pack Leader of Max.

Since that was the case, Kyle would not be doing anything to jeopardize Alex's position. The bond was just created, and Max was most likely vulnerable at this point. He may have taken Alex to be the Leader, but if he was to see Alex obeying another, then Max could get confused.

Kyle rolled his eyes inwardly.

This was one of the reasons why Sayuri didn't want Alex to adopt the wolfdog. Kyle's presence was just too strong and if he was to 'overthrow' Alex, then the wolfdog could then become 'his'.

Alex would not like that at all and it would only serve to add on another reason for him to 'hate' his father.

Kyle took a deep breath and walked in.

Time to settle this without rocking the boat.