Rebirth of the Broken Luna A Second Chance at Luna's Heart novel Chapter 63

Chapter 63

“How wonderful!” Silvia clapped her hands beaming at her words as she nodded her head approvingly.

Hell Sophia could vomit and Silvia would call it an achievement in her eyes. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as Silvia added.

“That’s such a coincidence – that’s where Ollie goes to school.”

“Is it really?” Sophia spoke as she seemed genuinely surprised by it but I knew better than to be taken by her false acting.

“Well, that is lucky in my situation. He won’t be alone in his new school. I was hoping Riley would be able to make friends quickly, and it sounds like he

already has one.”

“Actually,” Sophia continued, as she glanced at the two boys who were still engaged in their own private conversation,

“the principal mentioned to me that there might be space in Ollie’s specific class. Apparently, they’re the same age and at the same grade. It would be wonderful if they could be in the same classroom – Riley would feel so much more comfortable having a familiar face around as he navigates a new chapter

in his life.

My blood ran cold hearing these words from her mouth. The same class. She was doing everything possible to have her son in the same classroom as mine, making sure that they would be seeing each other daily instead of this once in a while perfectly planned dinner.”

“Oh, that would be perfect!” Silvia exclaimed, turning to Xenois with a bright smile as she spoke to her son. “darling, you’ll have to make some calls tomorrow. Make sure the school understands how important it is for these boys to be together.”

“Mother-” Xenois started, but Silvia cut him off with a wave of her hand, shaking her head as if realizing that he was going to protest about this.

‘No arguments. These children have formed such a sweet friendship, already. Just look at them having fun together. It would be cruel to separate them

now, wouldn’t it, Ollie?”

Our son looked up from his conversation with Riley, his face furrowed in confusion at being included in the adult discussion. “What, Grandma?”

“I was just telling everyone how excited you must be that Riley will be going to your school. Maybe even in your same class.”

‘Really?” Ollie turned to Riley with genuine enthusiasm as he nodded his head.

“That would be so cool! We could sit together at lunch and play together at recess and-”

“That sounds wonderful, buddy,” Xenois interrupted gently, although I could hear the strain in his voice, that told me he wasn’t happy with this one bit.

‘We’ll see what we can arrange.”

I found my voice at last, as I cleared my throat and spoke up.

“Wouldn’t it be better for Riley to have his own classroom at first? To find his own friends and establish himself and his identity at school? Sometimes

being paired up right away can make him get adjusted to school life even harder.”

The table fell silent, and I felt all eyes turn to me. Silvia’s expression had changed to one of disapproval as she rolled her eyes at me, while Sophia

looked hurt and confused.

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“I appreciate your concern, Lumina,” Sophia said carefully, trying to garner sympathy from Silvia as usual, “but Riley has always been quite adaptable, no matter the circumstances he has been thrown in. That’s one of his many remarkable qualities. And given how well he and Ollie get along, I think having a friend nearby would actually make the transition easier for him.”

“Of course it would, Silvia agreed quickly, shooting me a glare that clearly showed what exactly she thought about my interference.

“Children are known to thrive and excel better when they feel supported and connected than being secluded and alone and often the victim of bullies. It’s only natural that these two boys would want to stay together, given that they know each other.”

Riley himself hadn’t said anything during this entire conversation that seemed to be revolving around him and Ollie. And I knew he was listening in. He sat quietly beside Ollie, pushing food around his plate without eating much and his expression remained blank and unreadable.

There was something about his attitude that struck me as odd – not shy, exactly, but almost… disconnected from everything that was going on. Like he was physically present but mentally somewhere else entirely.

“Riley, sweetheart,” I found myself saying, addressing him directly for the first time that evening. “Are you excited about starting at a new school?”

He looked up at me with those piercing green eyes, and for just a moment, I saw something flash there, in a way that made my skin crawl with something bad as I looked away and looked back at him wondering if I was being paranoid. But it was gone so quickly I might have imagined it.

“Yes, ma’am,” he said politely, a far change from the happy boy that I had seen in the grocery store. The first time we met and he was excited to meet

with Ollie.

“I’m looking forward to learning new things.”

“He’s always been gifted,” Sophia said proudly, her hand moving to rest on Riley’s shoulder as she continued speaking. “His previous teachers all said he was reading well above his grade. I think he’ll fit right in with the advanced programs at Silver Creek Elementary.”

“Ollie’s in the advanced reading group too,” Silvia said, nodding her head with satisfaction as she gestured to them. “See? They’re perfectly matched. It’s

almost like fate brought them together.”

Fate. That was the same word that she’d used earlier when making her disgusting comment about Riley’s real father might be. I felt Xenois tense beside me again, and I quickly reached under the table to place my hand on his thigh, silently pleading with him to stay calm.

The rest of dinner passed quickly with Sophia and Silvia discussing her future plans while making it clear that the Blackwood family stood ready to provide whatever support she might require.

Samuel made polite contributions to the conversation but remained quiet, his discomfort with the situation becoming more apparent as the evening

kept on going.

And worse of all, there was nothing I could do to stop this from happening.

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