"Welcome to the institute, the job is yours, Miss Rocci" says the principal.

"Thank you very much, Miss, I appreciate the opportunity" Lizzy smiles.

She is a sweet young woman who has just graduated with a degree in special education. She was very excited to get her first job. She leaves the office and sees the playground where the children are playing happily. She can't help but smile, she deeply loved children, but her smile is overshadowed when she sees a little boy in a wheelchair who is just sadly watching the others play. She approaches slowly...

"Hello little one" she says

But the child does not flinch and remains silent.

"Do you want to go play with them?" she asks

"Are you blind? Can't you see I can't walk?" he says annoyed.

"And who says you can't play?" she insists

"I just want to be alone" he shouts

"Miss Rocci" they call her

Lizzy takes a last look and sees who is calling her.

"Yes?" she replies.

The principal calls her aside, a little hesitant.

"Miss Rocci, you don't have to have contact with little Lorenzo, he's difficult" she warns

"He's a child" Lizzy says surprised

"He has his personal tutor, his father pays him for everything the best, I suggest you stay away from him" having said this, she leaves and leaves her full of doubts.

Lizzy takes a step towards the exit, but takes one last look at Lorenzo, his tutor was by his side, she was an older woman, who could barely stand, she leaves the place a little worried.

When she arrives at her house, her dog Napo was waiting for her anxiously, Lizzy unloads her bag and grabs her dog's favorite cookies.

"I have a job Napo, you're not going to eat the leftovers anymore" she smiles as she kisses his cheeks excitedly.

She prepares a tea and sits down to study some dynamics for her new students, she was really happy and enthusiastic, in her mind the image of that little boy who seemed to be very sad and grumpy wandered.

The next day Lizzy arrives early at the institute, from her new desk she could see the main patio, she had the best view from there, the vans that parked at the entrance caught her attention, she observes carefully, a man opened the door of the vehicle and someone got out of there, a very handsome man, with an impeccable suit and his perfect hairstyle, takes her breath away, his features were those of a very rude, cold and calculating person, she could not take her eyes off him, he was a magnet that man, until she sees little Lorenzo get out, he smiled when that man took him in his arms to carefully put him in his chair, seeing him smile gave her hope.

"Miss Rocci?" they say

Lizzy startles

"Yes?" she says somewhat embarrassed

"Nice to meet you, I'm Fiona" says the older woman who was with Lorenzo yesterday.

Lizzy smiles at her and offers her hand.

"You can call me Lizzy" she replies

"The principal asked me to show you the facilities, but my knees hurt, I think you can get to know the place on your own, right?" she says somewhat irritated

"Don't worry Fiona, I can take the tour alone, take a seat and rest" Lizzy replies and leaves the room.

She walks through several hallways of the institute, and greets some teachers who cross her path, she knows the classrooms and beautiful and colorful gardens.

"Miss Rocci" they call her

"How are you Mrs. Ferrer?" she replies

"Just Sonia, we're in confidence now" she smiles

Lizzy observes her attentively, the principal now looked warm.

"I suppose Fiona's knees hurt" she mocks

"Well, something like that" she smiles

"Fiona, Fiona, she's a lazybones, she's the oldest teacher in the institute, she'll be retiring soon" she says nostalgically

"Good for her, it's time for her to rest and give her knees peace" Lizzy says humorously.

The principal bursts out laughing, she seemed to be in a very good mood.

"I like your sense of humor, no doubt your students are going to love you" having said this Sonia walks towards the exit.

"By the way, your students are waiting for you, classroom 808" she smiles and leaves.

Lizzy walks anxiously looking for her new classroom, she manages to locate it and to her surprise everything was silent, this causes her anxiety, there were only four children, and they all seemed locked in their little heads, An assistant was waiting for her equally shocked.

"Are you Miss Rocci?" she asks

"Call me Lizzy" she replies without being able to stop looking at the little ones.

She approaches carefully and caresses their heads, while she begins to sing sweetly to them, this makes the little ones look at her for the first time, the assistant joins her and they sing together.

"You are a good teacher" her assistant tells her

"Thank you, I'm sorry, what's your name?"

"Maggi, my name is Maggi" she smiles

Lizzy grabs her hand.

"Thank you for helping me, I love doing this and it's possible if my assistant has the same vocation, you have it without a doubt" she smiles at her.

"We are in this together, I also love what I do" says Maggi

Both observe the little ones trying to paint some drawings.

"Help!!, Help!!!, someone come quickly" the deafening screams that come from the adjoining classroom are heard.

Lizzy runs scared and finds little Lorenzo lying on the floor, convulsing, while Fiona watched the scene terrified, Lizzy positions him on his side and puts something on his head.

"What's wrong with him?" Fiona shouts nervously

"It's an epileptic seizure, it will pass soon" she tries to sound calm

"It's the first time this has happened to him" says Fiona

Lizzy notices that the little one is starting to turn blue, and this upsets her, she tries to grab his tongue, he was choking.

"Why doesn't the ambulance arrive?" Lizzy shouts.

She manages to grab the little one's tongue, immediately the child stands still and the normal color returns.

The paramedics arrive and help him.

"We are going to take him to the clinic, someone must go with him" says a paramedic

"You go Lizzy, my knees hurt, I don't have the vitality for this" says Fiona

"But my students, they are with..."

"I'll help Maggi with them, go the principal will meet you" Fiona interrupts

Lizzy leaves with the paramedics and little Lorenzo.

They arrive at the clinic and immediately attend to the little one, Lizzy stays outside with her nerves on edge, until she sees the handsome man enter very upset, she stands up, looking for the right words to say in a moment like this, the nurse points her out, and the man looks at her with an intense look, he runs towards her.

"Who are you?" he asks annoyed

"Mmh, well I'm Lizzy, a teacher at the institute" she replies shyly.

"Where is Fiona, what happened to my son?" He shouts

"Sir, calm down, Fiona is a little sick, I just brought little Lorenzo, he was stable" she replies calmly

"Little Lorenzo?" he shouts furiously

"Sir please," she tries to speak

"My son is not little, he is Lorenzo Manccini, don't feel sorry for him, it is forbidden to minimize him" he says with a cold look.

"He is a child, how dare you question my treatment of the students and please don't yell at me, I hear you perfectly" she raises her voice a little.

Lizzy prepares to leave but the nurse arrives, taking them by surprise.

"Are you relatives of Lorenzo Manccini?" she asks

"Only me, I'm his father" he replies

"Come with me sir, the patient has woken up" she says and they leave together.

Lizzy feels a lump in her throat, without a doubt that man had destabilized her.

Lizzy remained seated in the waiting room, only worried about the little one's health, she watches Sonia arrive very agitated.

"Has Mr. Manccini arrived yet?" she says nervously

"Yes" she replies curtly

"Damn" she says with frustration

"You can leave, I'll take care of everything here, rest and thank you" she tells her

"I want to stay until I know Lorenzo is okay" Lizzy says

"It's not a good idea, I'll call you" go and rest

Lizzy had no other option but to leave, but before leaving, she comes face to face with Lorenzo's father who was heading towards them.

"Mr. Manccini, how is Lorenzo?" Sonia asks nervously

"You're still here, please leave, miss" he says directly while observing Lizzy.

"She was already leaving, Mr. Manccini" Sonia replies

"How is the child?" she asks, ignoring his request.

"Lizzy, please go and rest, everything will be fine" Sonia says nervously.

Lizzy grabs her bag tightly and prepares to leave, but before leaving she gives a scathing look to the man in front of her, she could swear that his gaze was full of fear, but he wanted to maintain a facade of an unshakeable man.

As she walked out onto the avenue, she could breathe the cold air, she cursed herself because she was far from her house and didn't have a penny to pay for a taxi, not even a bus, compared to the institute that was a few blocks away, so she sighs deeply and starts walking, it was late and the icy wind covered her body, she passes by some restaurants where the food looked delicious, the smell was enveloping, she wonders how long it had been since she had given herself a good feast, the lack of employment had her on the verge of starvation, her poor napo was the direct victim, she urgently needed the first payment or she would starve to death along with her friend.

Two hours later she arrives home safe and sound, it was very late and she was hungry, despite everything her dog greeted her happily, she smiles at him and gives him the last cookies that were left.

"I'm sorry friend, I have nothing more to give you, I promise this will end soon, we're going to eat very well" she says sadly.

She prepares tea and accompanies it with the soda crackers she had, then takes her faithful friend for a short walk.

The next day Lizzy wakes up, she felt tired, her stomach was hungry and she didn't want to imagine her napo's.

She heads towards the institute, thinking about how little Lorenzo would be.

Upon arriving, Sonia was waiting for her.

"Lizzy, come to my office" she orders

Lizzy enters worried, she sits down somewhat restless.

"How is little Lorenzo?" she asks directly

"He's already at home, he's doing very well, you did a good job" she tells her

"It's nothing, tell me what you need me for?" she asks

"I'm very sorry for Mr. Enzo's behavior, he is impenetrable and becomes hysterical when something happens to Lorenzo."

"And his mom?" she asks

Sonia shifts uncomfortably in her chair.

"I suggest you never ask about her again, but I'm going to answer you, Lorenzo's mother abandoned him when he was a baby, as soon as she realized his illness, since then Mr. Manccini has taken care of his son as a single father."

"How can a mother do this, it's horrible, now I understand Mr. Manccini's attitude" she expresses.

"He is the owner of this institute and as it may not seem, he is a generous person, he pays for absolutely everything for the children who are here."

"No way!" Lizzy exclaims surprised

"Lizzy, Mr. Manccini has asked me to fire you, you were insolent yesterday and he does not tolerate these acts of disrespect."

"Please no, you can't imagine how much I need this job, I love this, I will apologize to Mr. Manccini on my knees, but give me a chance" she says agitatedly

"Calm down Lizzy, I managed to convince him that you were a good teacher and I managed to get him to let you keep your job, but no longer at the institute, now you will take care of Lorenzo full time."

"What?, but... Lizzy is left speechless"

"Lizzy, you are going to earn twice what you could earn here" Sonia informs her.

"He hates me, Lorenzo doesn't tolerate me, how am I going to do this" she says anxiously.

"Step by step, I know you are going to earn Lorenzo's trust" Sonia says enthusiastically

"What will happen to the children in my charge?" Lizzy asks worriedly

"Maggi will take care of them, until the new teacher arrives, don't worry" she smiles

Sonia stretches her hand across the desk and hands her a card with an address.

"They are waiting for you, everything will be fine, good luck" she smiles

Lizzy looks closely at the card and can see that she had to move to the most exclusive area of the city and by exclusive she meant on the outskirts, she couldn't walk there, it could take all day, Sonia can see her worry.

"Everything okay?" Sonia asks

"It's far, I'm thinking about the transfer to my house" Lizzy replies

"Don't worry, a van is waiting for you outside, Mr. Mancinni treats his employees well."

"Sonia, why me?, Fiona is not yet retired and seems to be Lorenzo's confidant" she asks curiously.

"I do not question Mr. Mancinni's decisions, in the end he always has the last word" Sonia replies

Lizzy smiles and leaves the office, indeed a van was waiting for her outside, an old man smiles at her and opens the door of the van.

"Miss Rocci?" he says kindly

"Thank you very much" Lizzy replies

She sighs in relief, her transfer seemed easy.

Her stomach rumbled loudly, she was starving, she felt weak and this was starting to worry her.

After several minutes the driver finally turns off and enters a gravel road and in the distance she sees a luxurious mansion.

"Woww, it's a beautiful place here" Lizzy expresses

The driver smiles at her in the rearview mirror.

Finally the driver stops and Lizzy gets out surprised, an old lady was waiting for her at the entrance, upon seeing her she smiles warmly.

"Miss Rossi?" she asks curiously

"I am"

"I'm Mila, the housekeeper here" she smiles as she offers her hand.

"Let's go, Mr. Manccini is waiting for you" Mila says

Upon hearing that surname, her whole body tingles, she doesn't know what she's up against and to be honest she didn't want to miss the opportunity, she silently follows the lady.

They cross several huge and elegant rooms, all very beautiful and clean, it was clear that everything was placed with care, she was afraid to touch the floor.

"Would you like something to eat?" she asks

"Yes, please" she replies immediately

Mila smiles and nods, while Lizzy enters Enzo Manccini's office.

Lizzy felt breathless, a kind of adrenaline rushing through her bloodstream. She didn't understand why talking to Mr. Manccini generated so much fear in her.

"Come in!" a deep, direct voice said from behind the door.

Lizzy carefully opened the door and put on her best face, even though her legs seemed unable to hold her up.

"Mr. Manccini, good morning, thank you," she interrupted.

"Miss Rocci, are you always so chatty?" he said sternly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, no," she replied with embarrassment.

"I just need you to tutor my son here at the house. Lorenzo doesn't want to go to school anymore, but I want him to be active," he said directly.

"Of course, when do I start?" she said enthusiastically.

"Don't you want to know a little about Lorenzo?" he said severely.

"I'll find that out, I just need his medical history to make an exercise and diet plan," she replied.

"You're not his babysitter, you'll just be his teacher, understood?" he said annoyed.

"Being his teacher involves more obligations, I'm not just going to teach him, I must—" she interrupted.

"You only have to do what I tell you, I'm only going to pay you to teach Lorenzo, not to think you're his nutritionist and doctor, don't you understand, Miss Rocci?" he said sternly.

Lizzy stood up angrily from the chair and grabbed her purse tightly. She was enduring hunger, but she wouldn't allow that guy to yell at her like that.

"Go to hell!" she shouted furiously and slammed the door as she left.

Mila, who was arriving with a tray of food, froze when she saw Lizzy's behavior. She didn't miss the opportunity and grabbed a few bites as she walked out.

"This is delicious, thank you very much," she said with her mouth full.

She cursed the long way she would have to walk home, but her fury and frustration were greater. Before crossing the door, she felt a strong dizziness and fell to the ground without being able to hold herself up.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a very luxurious room, the sheets were the softest she had ever touched.

"How do you feel?" someone asked.

"Who's talking to me?" she replied.

A middle-aged man peeked in, he had a white coat and seemed like a warm person.

...****************...

"Enzo, you can't treat her like that, she seems like a good girl," Mila said sternly.

"She's not qualified to take care of Lorenzo, besides she's insolent, how dare she talk to me in that tone," he said seriously.

"She doesn't have to lower her head, she has character. For the first time, there's a girl who stands up to you and will take care of your son for doing her job and not for your pretty face," Mila scolded.

Enzo adjusted his tie and took a glass, it was true, the girls ended up flirting with him and didn't do their job well with Lorenzo.

"You'll go and apologize to Lizzy, right now, that's an order," he ordered severely.

"Of course not, I won't do such a thing," he said hesitantly.

"Enzo?" she asked annoyed.

"Okay, I'll go see how she is, but I don't know if I should apologize, she told me to go to hell," he said puffing.

"You deserve it," she said this and left the office.

Enzo kept swirling the little liquid left in his luxurious glass. What Mila said was real, no one had ever confronted him like that and it seemed that she really loved what she did. Without much enthusiasm, he headed towards the room where Lizzy was.

"You must eat better, your exams show your lack of many vitamins and you're underweight," the doctor told Lizzy.

"I know, these are bad times, I hope everything gets better," she said sadly.

Enzo, who was about to enter, managed to hear this. He was a generous person and felt some remorse, so he went to the kitchen.

"Prepare a good banquet and take it to the room where the young lady is," he ordered.

He returned again and knocked before entering.

"Come in," the man replied.

Upon entering and observing Lizzy, he could see a fragile girl. Their eyes met and only for a moment he got lost in them. It was real, he hadn't paid attention to the details, she was thin. She tried to hold his gaze, but ended up giving up and looked towards the window.

"How is she, Fito?" he asked.

"She's better, I'll send her some supplements and a high-protein diet," he replied.

"Perfect," Enzo replied.

"I must go, follow the instructions, Lizzy, and you'll be fine," he ordered.

"Thank you very much," she said curtly.

Fito left the room and Lizzy tried to get up, but Enzo stopped her.

"What are you doing?" he said annoyed.

"I must go," she replied.

"Of course not, you must eat and rest," he said worriedly.

"Now you're behaving kindly?" she reproached.

"I can't let you leave like this, you fainted in my house, now you're my responsibility," he said looking into her eyes.

"I didn't accept the job, so you have no obligation," she said seriously.

"People who are in my house are my responsibility, Miss Rocci, I don't intend to argue anymore," he replied sternly.

At that moment, the employees entered with a food cart, there was a bit of everything and Lizzy, observing all that, couldn't help but smile enthusiastically. Enzo noticed this and smiled internally.

"Enjoy," Enzo said to her.

But Lizzy was focused on the amount of food they had brought her. She was about to eat and Enzo took the opportunity and left the room.

"Everything okay?" Mila surprised.

"It wasn't that difficult, just give her food and surely she forgot the incident," he smiled evilly and left.

Lizzy ate happily and enthusiastically, she was so hungry. She thought of her faithful friend, so she saved some to take to him, it was unfair not to share some of what she ate, while her friend could die of hunger.

"How do you feel, dear?" Mila asked Lizzy.

"I'm fine, thank you," she smiled.

Mila entered and sat at the foot of the bed.

"I apologize for Enzo's behavior, deep down he's not so bad," she sighed.

"I think Mr. Mancinni is grumpy, but I understand his position as a protective father," she smiled weakly.

"We really need you, I know you're the perfect person to take care of my Lorenzo," Mila said.

"He doesn't think the same, but I would love to do it, I love children and I don't know how to explain it, but since I observed Lorenzo, I've been interested in him," Lizzy replied.

"So you'll stay?" Mila asked.

"Only if Mr. Manccini wants it," Lizzy replied.

"Then you'll stay, he knows perfectly well that you're devoted to your profession," she said while grabbing her hand tightly.

Enzo, who was listening behind the door, put on his coldest face and left.

He arrived at his office and called his trusted man.

"Patrick, come to my office," he ordered.

He poured himself a glass of whiskey while he sat down, thinking that in the end he always won and Lizzy would be no exception, she clearly needed the job and he needed someone to take charge of his son's education.

"Mr. Mancinni," Patrick said.

"I need you to investigate everything about Miss Lizzy Rocci, she was a teacher at the institute, there you can get more information, I want you to watch her."

"Are we looking for something in particular, sir?" Patrick asked.

"Just do what I tell you, I need results for tomorrow," he said in a curt manner.

Lizzy

Enzo

Lorenzo