Chapter 299 Danielle Has a Dad
"Originally, the grandparents picked up and dropped off the kid, but when the parents heard their child got hit, they rushed to the kindergarten. They're still in the principal's office, waiting to meet Danielle's parents," the teacher said nervously, glancing at Gabriel.
The parents of the kid who got hit were tough to deal with. The principal was having a hard time with them inside, but these two guys in front of her, though quiet, seemed even more intimidating.
Gabriel walked over and looked down at Danielle.
Danielle looked up at him, her eyes red from crying earlier, but now she stubbornly kept them open without shedding another tear.
He gently touched the red mark on Danielle's face and, instead of asking why she hit someone, he looked at the teacher and asked coldly, "Did Danielle hit the kid, or did they fight, and the other kid got hurt worse?"
The teacher was taken aback by his direct question. "They fought, but the other kid's eyes are bloodshot, and his face is scratched."
Landon, standing nearby, said coldly, "Danielle's face is hurt too. Didn't you see that?"
The teacher looked at Danielle with some difficulty. "Earlier, inside, the kids were all crying, so we didn't pay much attention."
Gabriel's eyes turned sharp, and his voice carried an invisible pressure. "Didn't pay much attention? Kids have minor conflicts, sure. But now both kids fought, and you immediately sided with the other kid, accusing Danielle of hitting first. Your account is very different from the truth. Is this how a preschool teacher should act?"
The teacher was immediately embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I was just anxious and wanted to explain that the other kid's parents are demanding answers from the school, so I said..."
Gabriel said sternly, "Blaming one kid first, as an adult, you think it's okay to wrongfully accuse a four-year-old in a moment of anxiety? Do you understand how much impact your words can have on a child's mind?"
The young teacher stood there, hands clasped nervously, unable to speak a word.
Gabriel no longer looked at her and turned his gaze back to Danielle. "Danielle, tell us, why did you fight with the other kid? What happened?"
Danielle, suddenly asked, stared at him with her red eyes for a few seconds before saying, "Tommy said I don't have a dad. He also said I got a fake dad to sign my drawing!"
The first few words were clear, but the latter half was already choked with sobs.
Gabriel's hand, resting on her head, paused because of her words. He looked down at her for a long time. Danielle's eyes were filled with tears, but she refused to let them fall.
Danielle thought in her heart, 'Mommy said girls shouldn't be bullied and shouldn't cry easily in front of others.'
'Anyway, I had fought back and already cried.'
'Now I wouldn't cry.'
'Absolutely not!'
Even though she thought that, when Gabriel knelt down to her eye level, Danielle's tears still fell.
"What's up?" Gabriel, though kneeling in front of Danielle, turned his cold gaze to the teacher.
The teacher recalled the events of the day. "This afternoon, I asked the kids to hand in their homework. When Ms. Jenner enrolled Danielle, the father's section in her records was blank. We knew Danielle didn't have a dad, so I thought her drawing assignment might be blank. But she actually drew something and had a parent's signature. I casually asked Danielle if her dad had come back or if someone else had signed it. Before Danielle could answer, Tommy, sitting next to her, suddenly said she didn't have a dad."
At this point, the teacher stopped, but it was clear the kid had said more.
Danielle suddenly turned to the teacher and shouted, "Tommy said I was a liar and laughed at me! He said I drew a fake dad and got a fake dad to sign! He said I could never have a dad! He said I was a wild child that no dad wanted!"
After saying this, Danielle turned back to Gabriel. "I'm not a wild child!"
Gabriel looked at Danielle's angry eyes and pulled her into his arms. "No, you're not. Danielle has a dad. Daddy is right here."
Gabriel's words left Landon slightly stunned and the teacher in shock.
Danielle was initially stunned in his arms, but after a few seconds, she suddenly burst into tears, hugging Gabriel's neck tightly, as if all her grievances were pouring out at once. She said nothing, just kept crying while holding him.
Gabriel squatted at the kindergarten entrance, patiently patting her back, not rushing to stand up, giving her the right to cry as a four-year-old should.
When Danielle was tired from crying, still sniffling in his arms but not letting go of his neck, he gently stroked her head. "If you haven't cried enough, you can cry more at home tonight. You can tell me all your grievances. But now we need to go in and handle this matter. Danielle, be good. Whether we were wrong or the other side was wrong, since it happened, we need to solve it and face it. Let's go in together, okay?"
Danielle, pouting in his arms, whispered worriedly, "Tommy's mom and dad are very fierce."
Gabriel sighed and smiled.
Landon, who had been frowning at the kindergarten's mishandling of the situation, couldn't help but smile too.
Gabriel stood up and held Danielle's hand until she nodded. He looked calmly at the teacher who had been standing there in a daze. "Which floor is the principal's office on? Lead the way."
"Oh, okay." The teacher quickly turned and walked inside, but her expression was still anxious.
Gabriel held Danielle's hand and walked in, with Landon following.
The principal's office was on the third floor. As they walked up, they heard a woman's voice from two meters outside the office, "Our Tommy was beaten like this. If his eyes have any problems in the future, can your kindergarten afford to compensate?"
