I Became a Kindergarten Teacher for Monster Babies!

Sable walked closer. "Rocky," he said again. "Your face is sad. Very sad. Like the saddest stone I’ve ever seen."

Rocky looked up. His eyes were wet.

"I’m okay," he whispered.

Sable’s eyes widened. "You’re crying."

Rocky wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "I’m not crying. I’m... expressing moisture."

Kelpie turned around. "Expressing moisture?"

Rocky nodded. "Yes."

Kelpie frowned. "That’s not a thing."

Lucien walked over, his expression calm but curious. "Rocky, what’s wrong?"

Rocky looked at the altar. At Dante. At the path where Alina would appear.

He swallowed hard.

"I thought," he said quietly, "that when I grew up... I would marry Teacher."

Sable blinked in shock. His mouth fell open.

Kelpie’s water droplets froze mid-air.

Lucien’s red eyes widened.

Dante, who had definitely been listening, coughed.

Sable finally found his voice. "You what?"

Rocky’s face crumpled. "I wanted to marry Teacher. I was going to grow big and strong and build her a house made of stones. The smoothest stones. The prettiest stones."

He sniffled.

"But now... now Principal is going to marry her. And I’m just... a student."

His lower lip trembled.

"Teacher won’t wait for me."

Kelpie’s mouth opened and closed. "Rocky, Teacher is... Teacher is old."

Rocky’s eyes flashed. "She’s not old. She’s perfect."

"She’s older than us."

Rocky crossed his arms. "Age doesn’t matter when it’s love."

Sable looked at Lucien. "He’s got a point," Sable whispered.

Lucien shook his head. "He doesn’t have a point."

Dante had been standing at the altar, trying very hard to maintain his composure. But watching Rocky, sweet, tiny, heartbroken Rocky, confess his love for Alina was testing every ounce of his self-control.

He stepped forward.

Rocky looked up at him, his stone eyes still wet, his small hands clutching his polished pebble.

Dante smiled.

It was not his usual cold or sharp smile. This was a gentle, fatherly smile.

Rocky’s heart did something strange. It fluttered. Then it froze. Then it fluttered again.

"Why is Principal smiling at me?" Rocky whispered to Kelpie.

Kelpie leaned in. "I think he’s being nice," he whispered back.

"His teeth are showing."

"That’s what smiling is."

Rocky swallowed. "It’s scary."

Kelpie shook his head. "It’s not scary."

"His eyes are red."

Kelpie sighed. "They’re always red."

Rocky took a small step back.

Dante noticed. His smile softened further.

"Don’t worry," Dante said, his voice low and warm. "The teacher is about to marry me. But you... you can marry another pretty girl. Someone your own age."

Rocky’s eyes widened. "Really?" he asked, hope creeping into his voice.

Dante nodded. "Of course. You will meet some stone princesses. Or other pretty girls. When you’re older."

Rocky’s whole face changed. The sadness vanished. The tears stopped. His stone cheeks, which had been gray with grief, seemed to glow.

"Really really?" he asked again.

Dante chuckled. "Really really."

Rocky nodded seriously. He looked down at his pebble. Then back at Dante.

"But Teacher will always be my first love," he said firmly.

Silence.

Dante blinked. Then he laughed. A real, warm, genuine laugh that echoed through the gathering.

Nearby, Elder Roman, one of the retired elders who had once tried to kidnap Alina, was sitting with Elder Haron and Elder Hellder. They had been invited despite everything. Dante believed in second chances, and Alina believed in forgiveness.

Roman leaned toward Haron. "Did the Shadow Lord just laugh?" he whispered.

Haron’s eyes were wide. "I think he did."

Roman shook his head. "I didn’t know he could laugh."

Haron smiled. "Neither did I."

Hellder nodded slowly. "He sounds like a normal person."

Roman stared at Dante, who was now ruffling Rocky’s hair. "He is a normal person. Today."

Roman shook his head in amazement.

Suddenly, soft and ethereal music began. It drifted through the ancient trees like morning mist, wrapping around every guest, every leaf, and every falling star and then she appeared.

Alina stepped onto the aisle.

The world seemed to hold its breath.

She walked slowly, her arm linked with her mother’s, her fingers trembling slightly against Amelia’s sleeve. Behind her, a small train of children followed. Luna in her reluctant tutu, Boo floating just above the ground, Drake trying to walk straight without tripping, and Vlad Jr. and Felix followed behind.

But no one was looking at them. Everyone was looking at her.

Her dress caught the silver light from the trees, the black lace seeming to shimmer as if woven from the night sky itself. The tiny silver threads stitched into the fabric sparkled like distant stars. The delicate lace overlay moved like falling water with every step she took.

Her face was glowing. Her makeup was perfect. Soft gold on her eyelids made her hazel-brown eyes appear larger, warmer, almost luminous. A hint of rose colored her cheeks. Her lips were the color of ripe berries, soft and inviting.

But it was her expression that took everyone’s breath away. She was smiling, and her smile reached her eyes, which made her look breathtaking.

Dante stood at the altar, and for a moment, he forgot how to breathe.

His crimson eyes fixed on her. His lips parted slightly. His hands, usually so steady, trembled at his sides.

She was walking toward him.

She was wearing the dress he had designed. The lace he had chosen. The silver threads he had requested. But he had never imagined, never in his wildest dreams, that she would look like this. Like something from a dream he didn’t deserve to have.

His throat tightened. His chest ached.

She was leaving her world for him. Leaving her family. Leaving the life she had known. To be with him. In his domain. Among his people.

His eyes grew warm with emotion.

She reached the altar. Her mother kissed her cheek and stepped back, her own eyes wet with tears. Aunt Lyla was already sobbing into a handkerchief.

Alina looked up at him.

Her eyes were bright and filled with happiness.

Dante’s breath returned. He reached out and took her hands.

Her hands were soft and smaller than his. They fit perfectly, like they had always been meant to be there.

"You look beautiful," he said.

He didn’t blink. He was unable to look away from his most beautiful bride. He didn’t even seem to remember that anyone else existed. His crimson eyes stayed fixed on her face, tracing every line, every curve, every small detail he had memorized long ago but wanted to see again.

Alina’s cheeks turned pink.

"You look super handsome yourself," she said.

He chuckled. A low, warm sound that vibrated through his chest. He leaned down and pressed a gentle, brief kiss to her forehead. But she felt it everywhere.