Up to the challenge
[Teacher/Single parent AU]
“What has she done this time?”
Regina looked up from the papers strewn about her desk as a tall, dark, and yes, quite handsome man strode into her classroom. “Can I help you?”
The man stopped before her desk, seeming to gather himself before he replied. “Please forgive my lack of manners. I am Killian Rogers, Alice’s father.”
Realization dawned on her at the name of her student. “Ah, yes, Alice. I sent her home with a note requesting to speak with you.”
“Yes, that is why I’m here,” Rogers said, sounding vaguely impatient, making Regina frown. “What did she manage to do that couldn’t be handled with a few days of detention and instead required my presence here?”
Her frown deepened. She could see where the girl got her attitude problem from. “I didn’t call you here to discuss Alice’s behavioral problems, Mr. Rogers-”
“Call me Killian,” he interrupted seemingly offhandedly, though Regina got the feeling the name preference was important.
“Killian,” she tried again, fixing him with her best no-nonsense stare. “I wanted to speak with you about her academic performance.”
This caught his attention. “Oh? Have her grades been slipping again?”
“No, actually, which is the issue.”
Rogers frowned. “I don’t follow.”
She sighed, sifting through the papers on her desk until she found the ones she was looking for. “Alice appears to be bored in class, which causes her to be disruptive and act out. Based on her tests,” she continued, handing Killian the papers, all marked with red circled 100s in the corner, “she is quite intelligent, even though she is taking in almost no information during class itself, she still manages perfect scores on all her assignments. I wonder if she wouldn’t be better off in a more advanced class.”
Killian looked at the papers thoughtfully for a moment before turning a smirk her way. “Well, of course she is intelligent, she is my daughter after all.”
Regina had to fight the urge to roll her eyes, settling for sending him a dull look instead. “Yes, well, that’s why I wanted to bring this to your attention Mr.- Killian,” she corrected, narrowing her eyes at the way he smirked at her slip. “Alice needs more academic stimulation to keep her focused, and I’m not sure I can provide that in my class.”
“Oh? Not up to the challenge, Miss Regina?”
[continue reading on AO3]
