The first day of school after summer break was supposed to be just another boring morning, but as soon as I walked into the classroom, my stomach dropped.

Standing at the front of the room, adjusting her glasses and smiling confidently, was Mrs. Hale—my mom.

"Good morning, everyone," she said, her smooth, authoritative voice filling the room. "I’m Mrs. Hale, and I’ll be your new literature teacher this year."

My face burned with embarrassment. I could already feel the stares of my classmates. Some of the guys exchanged glances, clearly impressed by her striking appearance—long black hair, piercing blue eyes, a crisp white blouse tucked into a sleek black skirt. I wanted to disappear.

Then, to make it worse, she looked directly at me.

"Ah," she said, a small smirk playing on her lips. "Why don’t we start with a simple question? What was the last book you read over the summer?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but in my panic, the wrong word slipped out.

"Uh… M—Mom… Oops. Mrs. Hale.."

The entire class burst into laughter. My stomach twisted in horror as my mother—Mrs. Hale—raised an amused eyebrow.

"This is going to be a very interesting year," she said, crossing her arms.

I just wanted the ground to swallow me whole.