Chapter 3: Newton Academy

Chapter 3: Newton AcademyEthan threw on a plain t-shirt and a pair of jeans before grabbing his backpack. His hands moved on autopilot, muscle memory guiding him through the process.

His thoughts were filled with only two things, he had really regressed to the past, and the OmniTech System was real.

The ten thousand dollars in his account was proof of that.

But right now, he had a more immediate problem, he was late for work.

He stuffed his cracked Samsung J5 into his pocket, slung his bag over his shoulder, and dashed out of the apartment.

Newton Academy was only four blocks from his apartment, but with the morning traffic at its peak, running was his only option.

"Damn you, young me. You really let yourself slack off," Ethan muttered, already feeling slightly winded. "Even 35-year-old me wasn’t this lazy."

He immediately made a mental note to start working out since the body didn’t feel like his anymore.

_______

Five minutes later, Ethan arrived at the school gates. The place was exactly as he remembered, blue worn out paint and a modest three-story structure that had clearly seen better days.

The Newton Academy sign above the entrance was slightly faded, and the security guard at the gate—Mr. Willis, an old man who always smelled like strong coffee—gave him a tired look.



"You’re late today Mr Carter" Mr Willis said in a tired tone.

Ethan forced a breathless smile, still catching his breath from the sprint. "Yeah, rough morning. You know how it is."

Mr. Willis shook his head but didn’t push further, lazily gesturing for him to go in. "Get moving before Miss Harper gets angry."

"Angrier than she already is?" Ethan chuckled as he walked past the gate.

"Just hurry, kid," the old man said as he closed the gates again.

Inside, the familiar morning chaos of Newton Academy greeted him—students laughing and shouting, teachers herding kids to their classrooms, and the occasional late straggler slipping past faculty eyes.

It was exactly how he remembered it.

He barely made it to the faculty office before Miss Harper, the academy’s administrator, stormed up to him.

She was a woman in her late thirties, always dressed in crisp office attire, her dark hair tied in a severe bun. Her sharp eyes locked onto him like a missile guidance system.

"You’re late."

"I know," Ethan said, lifting his hands in mock surrender. "Traffic was brutal."

"Traffic?" Miss Harper crossed her arms. "You live four blocks away."

"...Construction."

She narrowed her eyes but sighed. "Just get to your class. The students have been waiting."

Ethan nodded and made his way toward Room 302, his assigned classroom.

The moment he stepped in, a wave of nostalgia hit him.

Rows of desks, outdated computers that barely ran modern software, and a whiteboard covered in half-erased notes from the previous lesson.

And then there were the students.

A group of teenagers, mostly uninterested, some tapping away at their phones, others chatting quietly.

A few, however, actually looked up when he entered.

’Right... what was this class about today?’ Ethan glanced at the schedule taped to his desk.

"Introduction to AI and Programming."

_________



The class lasted a couple of hours before he dismissed the students and headed towards the administrator’s, Miss Harper’s, office.

Ethan had never planned to continue his part-time teaching, that would be stupid considering he now had the OmniTech system and future knowledge.

Although resigning would be a lot harder than he thought, after all this was the place that indirectly funded his first creation.

He soon arrived at the administrator’s office and knocked.

"Come in," Miss Harper’s voice came from within.

Ethan gently turned the door knob and pushed the door open before walking inside.

Miss Harper’s office was small but neatly arranged. The first thing Ethan noticed was the brown wooden table, behind which Miss Harper sat, buried in some documents.

Behind her was a wooden cabinet arranged with folders and some school trophies. To add variety, Miss Harper added some plants at the corners of the office and the top of her cabinet.

"Are you going to keep gawking at my office or will you take a seat?"

Ethan chuckled, stepping forward and settling into the chair across from her desk. "Just making sure I remember all the details before I break the bad news."

Miss Harper raised an eyebrow, setting her pen down. "Bad news?"

He took a deep breath. "I’m resigning."

Silence.

Miss Harper stared at him, her expression unreadable. Then, with an almost disappointed sigh, she leaned back in her chair. "Ethan, I’m going to pretend I misheard you. Try that again."

Ethan smiled wryly. "I’m serious. I really appreciate everything this school has done for me, but I have other plans for my future. Part-time teaching was never meant to be a long-term thing and you know it."

Miss Harper folded her arms, giving him a look that could make students shrink in their seats. "You’re one of the few competent young teachers we have, and you just want to throw that away?"

"It’s not about throwing it away," he said carefully. "I just have different opportunities now."

She exhaled through her nose, clearly annoyed. "At least tell me this isn’t about money. If the pay is too low, we can see if—"

Ethan shook his head. "It’s not about the money." Not entirely, anyway. "I have something bigger in mind, and staying here would hold me back."

Miss Harper’s fingers tapped against her arm. "You do realize I can make your life very annoying if you quit like this, right?"

"You wouldn’t do that. You like me too much" Ethan said with a grin.

Despite being a walking ball of anger, miss Harper cared greatly about her employees and that included Ethan too.

Miss Harper let out a resigned sigh but didn’t deny Ethan’s words.

"Are you sure this is not just an impulsive decision?" she asked, her tone softer now, as if hoping he’d reconsider.



Ethan shook his head. "I’ve thought it through. Trust me, this is something I need to do."

She tapped her pen against the desk before finally sighing again. "Fine. I won’t stop you. But I need at least a two-week notice, and I expect you to finish out your current lessons. Understood?"

"Of course," Ethan agreed easily. He had no intention of leaving them scrambling last minute.

Miss Harper leaned back in her chair. "And if this grand plan of yours falls apart, I expect to see you back here, eating your words."

Ethan grinned. "If that happens, I’ll buy you coffee for a month."

"Make it two," she countered, a rare smirk playing at her lips.

"Deal," Ethan said, standing up.

As he turned to leave, Miss Harper’s voice stopped him.

"For what it’s worth, Carter... you were a great teacher."

"Thanks, Miss Harper. That actually means a lot." Ethan glanced back, giving her a genuine smile.

And with that, he walked out of the office, feeling a strange sense of closure.

It was finally time to get to work.