Zoey was still at her desk in the office when she heard that Nolan had injured his forehead.

She rushed to the classroom, where she found only a few drops of blood on the floor and a child crying out of guilt so hard he was nearly hyperventilating. "Ms. March, it wasn't on purpose... I didn't mean to," he sobbed.

Seeing the child hiccupping between sobs, Zoey quickly comforted him.

"It's okay, it's okay. Don't cry. Let's go check on Nolan."

The child was still clutching a stuffed cat, his eyes rimmed red. "I wanted Ms. March's cat. I didn't see him standing behind me."

Zoey felt a tug at her heartstrings, ruffled his hair gently, and said, "The cat's yours now, let's go apologize to Nolan."

"Okay."

Holding his hand, Zoey led him to the school clinic. Through the corridor window, she could see the principal was already there.

The principal's face was twitching with anxiety, and when he saw her, he came out with a tone of accusation.

"Ms. March, what happened here? It's only the child's first day in class, and such an incident occurs. How am I supposed to explain this to Mr. Haskins?"

The two spoke outside the clinic, not wanting Fitch to overhear.

The principal was clearly on edge, afraid of Fitch holding him accountable.

It wasn't Zoey's class, but as the person in charge, she had to step in. "Principal, I'll take the kid over to apologize."

"Apologize? How can an apology suffice? You must realize who Nolan's guardian is. If Mr. Haskins decides to pursue this, the child you're holding might be expelled today."

Zoey's expression soured, and she covered the child's ears.

"Principal, please don't discuss this in front of the kids. It was an accident. These little bumps and bruises are part of childhood. Why taint their innocence with the complexities of adult life?"

The principal's face was aflame with anger, thinking she didn't realize how furious Mr. Haskins was to dare say such things.

"Ms. March, go ahead and try apologizing."

The child, with his ears covered, knew the principal was angry. Tears streamed down his face, still clutching the stuffed cat, terrified.

The principal, fed up, waved them off. "Go and see for yourself. Sometimes it's not about being harsh, but the pressure I'm under is immense."

Zoey didn't argue and knocked on the clinic door, taking the child inside.

The school nurse was carefully bandaging Nolan, blood spots on his shirt.

Upon seeing Fitch's grim expression and feeling the tension in the room, Zoey took a deep breath and asked in a soft voice, "Will he need stitches?" "No, but Nolan's blood clots slower than others, so it looks a bit more frightening."

Zoey exhaled in relief and stepped forward to grab Nolan's hand.

"Nolan, you got a scare, huh?"

Nolan's hand trembled, and he looked up at her quietly.

Zoey smiled at him warmly.

"I've reviewed the surveillance footage. The child who bumped into you didn't mean any harm. I've brought him here to apologize."

She then pulled the sobbing child forward.

"Now that you've seen Nolan, what should you say?"

"I'm sorry, sob sob, Nolan, I'm sorry."

Nolan glanced down at the stuffed cat in the child's hand, silent. Fitch, however, spoke up.

"An accident, so that's it? It's settled?"

Zoey knew Fitch was a tough nut to crack, and with his unpredictable nature, he might be very particular.

She kept a smile. "Mr. Haskins, children's play shouldn't be blown out of proportion."

Fitch's expression turned colder. "I've been caring for Nolan for four years. Knowing about his clotting issue, he's never been hurt like this in my care. Ms. March, this is negligence on your part."

Zoey knew she was being held responsible, but at that time, she had been preparing for a storytime session. The teacher who was supposed to be watching the class had been a few minutes late. If blame had to be assigned, it wouldn't fall on her, but since she was in charge of the class, she had to provide Mr. Haskins with an explanation.

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