Chapter 99: Called a bastard
The little children sat in their classroom, their small heads focused on the teacher who was lecturing them. The teacher had drawn a tree on the board, and beneath it, she wrote the word family. She was teaching them about the importance of family.
Later, the teacher smiled and called on the students.
"Children, last time we talked about mothers, and each of you told me what you love about your mother. Today, we will talk about fathers. I will call on each of you—especially those who think they are the smartest—and you will tell us what you love most about your father."
When she finished speaking, she started calling students from the last row, asking each of them to step forward and share what they loved most about their fathers.
Little Tobi sat at his desk with a small smile, listening to the teacher. But his mind was elsewhere—he was busy talking to Darius in his head.
"Darius, she’s talking about fathers... do I have a father?" Tobi asked.
"I don’t know," Darius replied, "but I feel like we do... we just don’t know who he is."
While Tobi was lost in thought, the teacher suddenly called his name.
"Tobi, it’s your turn. Come and tell us what you love about your father."
He stood up and looked at his teacher. What did he like about his father? But... what could he say when he didn’t even have one?
**