Under His Wing

chapter 08

"Hey, hun how was your first day?" Mariah asked me as soon as I entered the kitchen, where I was engulfed by beautiful scents.

"Hey, Mariah. It went amazing and I already have a friend group!" I exclaimed with a smile.

"Oh, honey. I'm so happy for you! I knew you'd fit in immediately," Mariah hugged me tightly.

"Thanks, Mariah! I guess you were right after all. Now, I do realize I was worried for nothing," I admitted shyly.

Mariah pulled away smiling.

"You see now? Lila, you must give yourself more credit. You're an amazing young woman, who has achieved so many things at this young age. Like I said before, anyone would be lucky to have you in their lives. Don't forget that." She claimed.

"I know, and I promise I'll trust myself more. Also, I've been meaning to ask, what are you making that smells so good? It's making me drool all over." I inquired.

"Since, it's your first day here at Wellspring, I thought of cooking a dish that you've longed for a while. That is, a homemade Mexican pizza. What do you think?" Mariah looked at me amused.

I smiled brightly.

"Are you serious right now? I haven't had that for a long time indeed. I will honor it greatly!" I smiled, making a fake bow.

Mariah's face lit up. "I am very pleased to hear that, hon. Now sit, and tell me all about your day. I want the details." She prodded.

"Well, for starters, meeting the Principal wasn't as awkward as I anticipated. She was very nice and welcoming, and was willing to assist me in any way I needed," I said, enjoying a big and delicious piece of pizza.

"That's great, love! I'm not surprised at all, though. Miss Pierce is one of the best educators out there." Mariah stated.

"She certainly looks like it. She seems like a great person as well." I smiled. Mariah smiled back.

"She really is. She's one of the few people who can handle hormonal teenagers, so well. I've never seen anything like it." She let out a little laugh.

"She did give me that vibe." I agreed, mouth full of pizza.

She had outdone herself in cooking this time.

"How about after that? How were your classes?" Mariah continued.

"The first person I met, was this guy Luca, whom I bumped into after leaving the office. He was kind enough to help me find my locker, and we sort of clicked after that." I said, chugging down my glass of water.

Mariah looked at me with a not-so-subtle look. "Luca, huh? What's he like? Tell me everything." She looked at me in amusement.

I rolled my eyes at her. "Okay, before you say anything, no, I don't like him like that. And you know why not, too. Other than that, he's a very nice guy. Kind, welcoming. And very funny too. He's one of those people, that you can immediately tell, they have a good heart. His friends are very cool too." A smile formed on my face at the thought of Maddox and Theo.

"Lila," Mariah looked at me with a loving, motherly kind of look. "You went through something horrible and unimaginable. But look at yourself now. You've managed to move on, yet, you have kept the memory of Alex alive. There is no reason, for you to strip yourself from happiness. If you think that Luca, could be the right guy for you, then I say go for it. Of course, I don't mean diving in head first. You can spend time getting to know him and find out what he's like. He doesn't necessarily have to be your boyfriend. He can easily just be your friend. What matters, is that, in either scenario, you will have someone who will take care of you and love you, just Alex did. I just want to see you smile and be full of life, like you were two months ago." She grabbed my hand, squeezing it.