BOYFRIENEMIES

MAPLE II

Maple cried silently as she clasped the end of her clothes tightly.

In front of him a child with his mother was arguing with a homeroom teacher.

"It's just a little fight between kids, Maple might just accidentally push Ashley, and again Ashley just scratched a little, we don't have to exaggerate her," the young teacher spoke politely to Ashley's mother.

"Little fight?! My son was pushed down to get hurt. Ashley try to explain what's going on, why is this kid pushing you?" ashley's mother orders her son in an angry tone.

"Maple forced me to borrow my shoes and my ballet, I didn't want to lend it and Maple was immediately angry" Ashley said softly with her eyes moist from tears.

"You hear? this kid's in trouble, he's got a bad temper that's endangering other kids, I don't want Ashley to go to school with a kid like this.

The homeroom teacher squatted down and aligned herself with Maple, in the soft elbow of the boy's head.

"really so? You pushed Ashley because she wouldn't lend you her shoes and ballet?" ask the teacher slowly.

Maple just lowered her head and nodded slowly at the sign.

"I only want to try it once" said Maple slowly.

"Begging your mother to buy you, why would you want Ashley's belongings. Is your mom's income at the bar not enough? Not that he prostitutes himself every night at the bar, he should have a lot of money. No one knows who your father is, an illegitimate child like you really gives you a headache" Ashley's mother said.

"Don't insult my mama!" Maple shouted and pushed the blue-blezer woman with all the strength of her small hand.

But as expected, the strength of a 7-year-old child is not worth that of an adult. Ashley's mother pushed Maple back and made her fall to the floor, and her head fell on the table leg until it bled. This time Maple could not help her crying voice.

The homeroom teacher immediately helped Maple to stand up and look at the woman before him furiously, but she could do nothing.

Ashley's father was a prosecutor and her mother a businessman who was close friends with the principal, one of her relatives and a very influential local official, it would be a problem to deal with someone who has that kind of power.

"I have papa!" Maple screamed again in between her sobs.

"Well, if anything, I'm sure your father was one of those drug-addicted thugs who used to go in and out of jail!"

"You shouldn't talk like that in front of the kids!"

"What right do you have to yell at me like that, who do you think you are? I was just educating the kid. You're always defending bad boys because that's why their mischief is getting worse. Did you call her mother to come? I need to get my compensation because my son is hurt!" ashley's mother raised her voice.

"But Maple is also hurt because of you!" the young master could no longer contain his anger, Maple was indeed guilty but not supposed to be a child as small as Maple was treated harshly.

Someone knocked on the door of the counseling room and the door opened.

Sean goes into the room followed by Ethan who goes straight to Maple, while Sean just stands next to the door he has closed again.

Dozens of men in black suits lined up neatly in the school corridor, they were the bodyguards Ethan had brought along. Not only in the corridor, at the entrance, at the gate and the school yard was filled with black-clothed guards who were ready to monitor the situation.

Ethan usually only takes a few people to escort him when he goes out. But this time is different. He will meet his precious son, he does not want his enemies, or business rivals to know Maple's whereabouts and intend to hurt him.

And the person Ethan is most wary of is none other than Arnoldo Ricci, because up to this point, the man has not given up on destroying Ethan.

Ethan grabs Maple and holds her in his arms, drowning the little Maple in his arms.

"Don't cry papa here" Ethan patted Maple on the back, trying to calm her down.

Maple wrapped her hands around Ethan's neck while he cried. Actually he was confused why there was someone who suddenly came and claimed to be his father, but his chaotic mood made him unable to stop crying and asking. Ethan's presence somehow makes Maple feel comfortable and secure instantly.

Her mother Ashley and the homeroom teacher looked at Ethan with astonished looks, the man before her wearing expensive clothes, from top to bottom, and the man before her, ethan says he is Maple's father, making a surprise for them.

As far as they know, Maple is not from a wealthy family, and she only lives alone with her mother who works in a bar, no one ever knows who and where her father is.

"You're Maple's father?" Ashley's mother asked to be sure.

"You look familiar" he added, looking at Ethan's face.

"Sean tells the driver to get ready, we have to go to the hospital" Ethan ignores Ashley's mother's questions and walks to the door to take Maple out.

"Aren't you Ethan Zie from Gold Medical, and you're Sean?" The homeroom teacher appoints Ethan and Sean in turn, and he gets to know Ethan because he often appears on television and in magazines, although he rarely appears in the media lately, but Ethan's handsome face is easy to memorize for everyone. And after replacing Ethan with a Gold medical lead, Sean is also now quite famous.

"You're the homeroom teacher Maple? It's nice to meet you. I'm Ethan, Maple's father" Ethan took a business card from his suit pocket and gave it to the young lady.

"You can call me anytime if anything happens to Maple at school. And I'd appreciate it if you'd be a witness in a trial" Ethan said politely.

"Witnesses?"

"Yes, he hurt my son" Ethan stared intently at his mother Ashley and the woman stared back at Ethan fearlessly.

"I will also file a lawsuit on defamation charges, for the humiliation she committed against my wife by calling her a prostitute"

"If it's not a whore, then what the woman who works in the bar serves the men, after all, the son of a bitch himself who first hurt my son, I should sue you" Ashley's mother ruffled around looking at Ethan haughtily, though in her heart she was a little scared because Ethan was no ordinary person.

"Fighting 7-year-old children with only scratches, I don't think it can be brought to court. Another case with the abuse of a child by an adult" Ethan spoke confidently.

"My husband is a prosecutor, you think it's easy to fight me in court" Ashley's mother remained in her haughty manner.

"I'm not saying this to threaten you, but take it as a warning. Your husband will be fired soon, I'll make sure of that" Ethan's sharp eyes make Ashley's mother bow, he wants to threaten Ethan back but not a word he can say.

Ethan throws his face away and comes out of the counselling room with Maple still crying in her cradle.

*

Maple grimaced in pain as the antiseptic cotton touched her wound. His little hand held Ethan's arm tightly without letting go.

Sean glared at Maple and countered Maple with his tongue sticking out. Sean felt Maple was very similar to Chaerin, and to him it was very annoying.

"Already, for a while try not to expose the wound to water" the doctor patted Maple's head and gave her a large lollipop.

"Thank you" Ethan smiled at the doctor and led Maple down from the high chair he was sitting in.

Maple stared at Ethan without moving from where he was standing, but Ethan had already pulled his hand to carry him away.

"You who?"

Finally, after she calmed down, Maple began to question who the man she was with was.

"Mama doesn't let me talk to strangers" Maple said.

Ethan crouches down to align his height with Maple, looks the boy right in the eye and thinks what to say to Maple, confessing that he is his father after all this time must have taken Maple by surprise, Ethan thought hard to string the words together so Maple could understand.

"He's your father" Ethan wanted to talk, but Sean interrupted quickly.

Ethan glares, upset that Sean took over one of the most important moments of his life.

Sean lowered his head and retreated away from Ethan and Maple, giving them space to talk together.

Sean holds onto his cheek which inexplicably feels pained, the memory of Ethan's slap a month ago being traumatized for him.

"That's impossible, Mama said my papa was dead" said Maple convinced, even though he had always denied his mother's speech.

Ethan looks disappointed to hear Maple's words, Chaerin could have said that he was dead, it's the same as praying for him.

"You see this, this is my picture with your Mama" Ethan shows a picture of her with Chaerin in his wallet, the exact same photo Chaerin had torn off.

Maple looked at Ethan confused, for a 7-year-old boy, Ethan's sudden appearance could not be digested by his brain.

"really?"

Ethan nodded in spirit while smiling as brightly as possible.

Mapel suddenly hugs Ethan very tightly and Ethan hugs him back.

"How did you survive the whale?" Maple let go of his embrace and looked at Ethan with a serious face.

"Pope?"

"Yes, Mama said that papa was eating a big whale" Maple said as she widened her hand to describe the big word.

Sean's clumsy voice rang out, he did not expect Chaerin to give such a ridiculous excuse at all. And once again Ethan glared at him.

"When I was in Japan, I always took Jiji to the beach near the house to wait for papa, hoping for the whale to spit out its food" Maple started crying and Ethan hugged her.

He knew how much Maple loved him even though they had never met before.

"Papa must not eat fish anymore" Maple's cry grew louder and the people around them stared curiously.

"No, papa killed the fish and made it sushi" said Ethan, holding Maple to bring her home.

"Is the sushi good?"

"Lumayan, do you want to try it?"

"Can you pack it for Mama too?"

Maple's plain speech made the atmosphere that had been serious turn into more carefree.

Along the way, Ethan endlessly laughs at Maple's innocent behavior as well as silly questions from her.

Sean, who rarely laughed, was made to laugh out loud when Maple told me that he had ever wanted to have a sister and Chaerin made her a sister from bread dough, and then he would make her a brother, when the bread was finished on the toast it did not move and Chaerin said that his sister was dead, so Maple cried and brought the bread to the back of the house to bury.

"What Chaerin was thinking about when he made such a crazy lie" Ethan closed his eyes with his hands and laughed.

The whole way was fun with Maple.

*

Christopher quickly pushed his wheelchair to the front door to welcome his master.

The news that Ethan will bring his son home makes him very happy, he even prepares a room for Maple with pink furniture and walls, as well as dozens of dolls and toys for girls. Ethan only plans to take Maple home for a while, and then bring her back home.

Ethan does not dare to take Maple from Chaerin, because it will make Chaerin rampage and hate him even more.

"You're beautiful like Miss Chae" Christopher stroked Maple's face with his wrinkled hands.

Maple looks at Ethan to find an answer to who the old man before her is.

"He's the butler here, you can call him Christopher"

"Mama said I shouldn't call the old man by his name, so I'll call him grandpa, nice to meet you grandpa" Maple lowered her head to give her a greeting.

"Miss Chae educated him very well" Christopher smiled happily at the very polite Maple.

"The nature of the two of them is very different, even though their faces are similar but this child has manners" Sean chided Chaerin.

And for the umpteenth time Ethan glared at him and Sean apologized immediately.

*

Chaerin ran into the counseling room and found Maple's homeroom teacher there.

The homeroom teacher Maple looks surprised by Chaerin's arrival. The teacher was thinking what else Chaerin came for when Maple was picked up by his father.

"You're here?"

"Yes, sorry to be late, where's Maple? What other problems did the boy have?" chaerin asked still with his breath gasping.

"She's mother Ashley wants to bring the matter to justice"

"What! Just because of the children's fights he was willing to extend this matter to the court? The rich woman in this world has always been crazy!" a million expletives from Chaerin's mouth, this is a good opportunity to speak rudely, because all this time he always kept his words in front of Maple, he did not want Maple to imitate his bad nature.

"Initially it seems like it will be over if you come and apologize as usual. But Maple's father came and provoked Ashley's mother" explained the homeroom teacher.

"Maple Father? Who?" chaerin asked confusedly, all this time the one who always pretended to be Maple's father was Inguk, but Inguk had been missing for months and he did not know from him. Inguk does have a hobby of disappearing and coming as he pleases.

"After I saw more clearly, it turns out you are indeed his wife, I once saw you on the news" said the Maple homeroom teacher, leaving Chaerin even more confused.

"What does that mean? Whose wife?" ask Chaerin again.

"Ethan Zie, CEO of Gold Medical"

Chaerin widened his eyes as the woman before him called out Ethan's name.

His memory seemed to be replayed, when the beginning met until he finally escaped from the man.

"Don't tell me Ethan took Maple away"

"Yes, Mr. Ethan, take Maple away" the homeroom teacher Maple nodded with a sinless face

"Why did you let that jerk take my son!!" Chaerin was hysterical.

"Isn't he the father??" the homeroom teacher looked puzzled at Chaerin's exaggerated reaction. Like a mother whose child has just been kidnapped.