"How was your first time babysitting?"  Darian questions then takes a bite of his lunch.  "It was great.  Her son Jacob absolutely loves me.  He even gave me a kiss on the cheek."

"Have you ever considered being a teacher?  Since you like kids so much."  "Of course.  That's what I wanna do, actually."  "You'd be a great teacher, Malaysia.  Like, Ms. Smith in the house."  Darian says with a smile.  I smile at him and giggle.

"Do you two go out?"  Some random girl says to us.  "No."  I politely reply.  "Oh."  The girl walks away.  That's a common thing for us.  People always assume we're a couple or ask us if we are.  I've never thought about Darian that way.

Don't get me wrong, he's a good-looking guy with a great personality, but it's just never crossed my mind, and I'm pretty sure he's never thought about it either.

Darian's like a brother to me, but could I ever consider crossing that line if he wanted to?  Yes.  Is there a guarantee of us being together?  No.  We would just have to see what happens.

"Um, so, anyway, does she pay you good money?"  "Well, I got $75 for 3 hours on my first day, so yeah, I'd say so."  "Ah, that's generous pay."  "I know, right?  I think I love being Mrs. Lassiter's babysitter."

"What does her room look like?"  I chuckle.  "Fool, I don't snoop through her room.  I only know what the kitchen, dining room, living room, and Jacob's room look like."

"Does she have a nice house?"  "Oh yeah.  Most definitely,"  I say, nodding my head.  "It's pretty big, and very modern."

The bell rings, and we go to class.

.....

Mrs. Lassiter's POV

"What's been going on with you, Rachel?"  I say to my friend.  She used to have feelings for me back in the day.  We kissed once, but girls just weren't for me.  We were able to still just be friends, and I'm glad we were.

"Nothing much.  My wife and I just went on vacation in a tropical paradise."  "Oh wow.  How was that?"  "It was amazing.  Jet skis, cabanas, drinks in coconuts.  It was the bomb."  "That sounds relaxing."  "Sure was.  How about you?"

"Well, I just got a new babysitter."  "Oh really?"  "Yeah.  She's this cute little thing from school.  She loves kids, and Jacob instantly liked her.  Her name's Malaysia Smith.  She's my favorite student."

"How much do you pay her?"  "Twenty-five bucks an hour."  "How did she do?"  "She did a great job."

"So, you completely trust her?"  "Oh yes, most definitely.  I completely trust her with Jacob."  "Maybe I could use her one day."  "What do you mean?"  I say with a brow raised.  "I have exciting news.  Cherie and I are having a baby!"

"Oh my God, Rachel, that's amazing!"  "I'm so happy.  I've always wanted to be a mom, and now it's finally gonna happen."  "So, are you guys adopting?"  "Nope.  We're working on getting a surrogate.  We feel it's more natural that way.  Plus, we get to truly raise the child."

"I'm happy for you guys, but please be careful.  I've read a lot of urban books, and the surrogates always try to keep the babies for themselves."  She laughs.  "We'll be sure to be careful, Ethena."