《Teacher's Girl (Aflyingwhale)》 Chapter 1: Happy Birthday Chapter 1: Happy Birthday EMMA''s POV : "Happy birthday, bitch! Wee to the club!" I could hear Tiffany''s voice all the way from the living room. Within moments, the front door flew open and my two best friends came barging in. "Happy birthday Emma!" Carrie cheered loudly, she was holding a small red velvet cupcake with a single candle on top. "Make a wish!" Tiffany ordered and Iplied. I closed my eyes and made my little wish. "Tonight will be my special night," I said in my head. When I opened my eyes and blew the candle, my two best friends pped and roared happily. "Aren''t you guys being a little loud? It¡¯s only 10 AM in the morning," I said as I covered one ear my hand. Thankfully my parents are both at work already, otherwise they''d say something too. "And aren''t you being a little too underdressed? It¡¯s 10 AM! We gotta go, there¡¯s much to do before tonight," Tiffany replied. She had a point.She was referring to the fact that we¡¯d be driving down to Oxford to visit my boyfriend Zach at Emory today, and I was still sitting on my couch in my PJs. For my birthday today, I told my parents that I didn¡¯t want a party, I''d much rather get a car instead.So, yesterday my dad brought home this gorgeous blue 2010 Ford Mustang convertible as my birthday present. So,st night, my best friends suggested an impromptu road trip for today so ! could see Zach.Zach just started his freshman year at Emory University.We''d been dating for almost a year now and I loved him to bits. We first got together when I was a sophomore and he was a senior at school. He had blonde hair and gorgeous blue eyes, he looked a lot like Patrick Schwarzenegger. I''d been crushing hard on him ever since freshman year. I never thought he¡¯d notice someone like me, but he did. We met at a house party.Tiffany was dating this jock, Robb, at the time.He invited us to his house for a small get-together. It turned out to be a full on rager,plete with beer kegs and hard liquors. Zach and I started talking that night, and the rest was history. He was my first love, my first boyfriend, and my first kiss. We hadn''t gone all the way yet. He''d asked me about it a few times already, but I never felt like I was ready. But ever since he moved away for college at the beginning of summer, I hadn¡¯t seen him in weeks and I missed him so much.I missed his smile, his touch, and his kisses.If I didn¡¯t think I was ready before, I was totally ready now. I guess it''s true what they say: absence makes the heart grow fonder. Zach''s freshman orientation was the same day as my birthday, which was why he couldn¡¯t drive home to see me. But that won''t be a problem since I got my new car and my two best friends to support me. "Yeah,e on and get ready, chop-chop," Emma said, pping her hands to get my attention. "Okay, okay, I''ll go get changed," I jumped to my feet and headed for my room. I had already prepared the perfect outfit for tonight. I got this little ck dress with thin shoulder straps and it hugged my figurepletely. The dress was little bit too short, but it outlined my slender curves in the best way possible. There was just enough cleavage, not too revealing, but it made my boobs looked intriguing. Oh yes, I feel sexy as hell. Tiff and Carrie¡¯s jaws dropped when they saw me in the dress. "Girl, you are so gonna getid tonight," Tiffmented as she reached for my hair brush. "Zach''s gonna lose his mind," Carrie agreed. Tiff helped me with my hair as I started on my make up, and Carrie yed some upbeat music to get us all hyped for the trip. "I hope this isn¡¯t too much," I said to my friends. "Are you kidding me? You look drop-dead gorgeous," Tiff replied. "Yeah, don''t overthinking it," Carrie said as she rummaged through my closet for some shoes. "I''m so nervous for tonight," I admitted. "The first time¡¯s always nerve-wrecking.But, you two love each other.So, it¡¯s gonna be great," Tiff said reassuringly. My two best friends have had sex already.Tiff¡¯s first time wasst year with Robb.They did it at the back of his Jeep.She said she didn''t like it at first, but things got better with time. Carrie¡¯s first time was when she was fourteen.It was with a boy she met at summer camp.Hested for a good thirty seconds, she said.Needless to say, it wasn''t great either.But now Carrie¡¯s dating Mark, our school body president, and they seemed to hit it off great. My best friends¡¯ stories about their awful first times got me scared about mine.Which was why I never got past third base.But that was all gonna change tonight. Tonight, we''re going all the way. Carrie found the perfect heels for me and I was ready to go. My long hair was perfectly curled, my make up was impable, and I loved how this dress made me feel. We grabbed some snacks and I packed some necessities in a duffel bag.By 12 PM, we loaded everything into my car and we started the drive.It was a three-hour drive to Emory and we wanted to stop by at my favorite Italian ce, Lombardi¡¯s for lunch.By that calction, we should reach Emory just before 7 PM. Anta''s an amazing city, and Emory¡¯s an awesome school.I nned that maybe I would apply there too, so Zach and I could be closer than ever.We reached the college area at half past six.We''d been driving for hours, my butt needed a rest from all that sitting down. I checked with Zach and he said he was having dinner with his freshman ss.I didn¡¯t tell him I was driving down here, of course.It¡¯s gonna be a surprise.I could only imagine the look on his face when he sees me tonight, all dressed up like this. I was gonna wait until Zach''s finished with dinner and I would go surprise him in his dorm room.We had some time to kill before that, so Tiff suggested we should check out this bar called Puzzles. Puzzles was a lively bar, filled with college kids ying ping pong, darts, pool, and they even had a karaoke machine. Tiff, who was currently single AF, started talking to this college guy named Steve. Carrie had borrowed her big sister''s ID, and she managed to get us all a round of beers. The atmosphere around me was an all-time high, and I couldn''t help but get carried away. Carrie and I started dancing, and by the second round of beers, we were singing karaoke with a group of sorority girls. Two sses of beer was a lot for me. I suddenly felt the strong urge to pee. Tiff was still talking to that guy and Carrie was busy talking to the sorority girls about campus life, so I headed for the bathroom alone. I was trying my best to walk normally, but the alcohol was getting to my motor skills. And suddenly, this tall guy turned around and blocked my way. I tried to go around him, but it made me stumble and I hit his chest with my head instead. "Oh! Sorry!" I said as I pulled away. "No, it''s my bad," he replied. I looked up at him and noticed how tall he was. I was around 5¡¯4, he was probably a foot taller than me. "Wow, you''re tall," I found myself saying. "Yeah, I get that a lot," he smiled, and my goodness his smile was gorgeous. He had luscious dark hair and dark brown eyes. His skin was tan and his right arm was covered in a sleeve of tattoos. He was also wearing a in ck t-shirt that outlined his sculpted body. "You look like Shawn Mendes, except older and hotter," I had no idea why I said all of those things out loud. This was not how I normally talked to strangers. I med the alcohol. "You''re funny," he smirked. God, that¡¯s a sexy smirk. He was talking to some blonde girl with lips like Kylie Jenner. But he was leaving her hanging as he kept talking to me. The girl was starting to give me the stink eye. I realized it would be unwise if I continued to stand there and talk to him. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. Only God knew what else this unfiltered mouth would say. So, I took a step away from him, but he was quick to stop me. Meanwhile, the girl behind him didn¡¯t look so pleased. "Where are you going?" he asked. "To pee," I stated simply. Heughed again and he unblocked my way. I went past him and made it to the girls¡¯ room in no time and I felt much better after I relieved myself. I checked my phone to see if Zach was home yet. He told me he was still out and that he would be home in an hour. One more hour to losing my virginity. I fixed my hair and straightened my dress. I figured I should stop drinking and start sobering up. I wanted to make sure I remember everything about my first time. And what''s the best way sober up quickly? Dancing. After leaving the girls¡¯ room, I headed straight for the dance floor. There was a band ying some upbeat rock and a crowd of people jumping around to it. I joined the crowd and started to let loose. Bodies were moving, people were shouting, the music was loud and exciting. I raised my hands up and my body moved to the beat. I was feeling amazing, until suddenly I felt a strong, hard, body pressed up from behind me. I turned around, and there he was - the guy from before. "Hey funny girl," he said to me. "That''s not my name," I replied. "What''s your name then?" "Emma," "Nice to meet you, Emma," He gave me his hand and I was being polite, so I shook it. When I was about to pull away however, he tightened his grip and pulled me closer, twirling my body around in the process like it was a dance move. That was pretty cool. "Wanna dance?" he asked. "Aren''t we already?" I replied. Wow, who am I? This alcohol¡¯s making me say some crazy things. Smirking, he seemed to like my response.He closed the distance between us with his body and he started moving to the beat. There was something about the way he moved. He knew exactly how to move his body. It was smooth, yet solid movements. I couldn''t take my eyes off of it. "Are you dancing or are you just gonna stare at me?" he caught me off guard. I was embarrassed, so I quickly turned my body around so that he couldn''t see my face. My back was pressed up against him, however, and ! felt his every move. His moves made me want to move too. My body swayed from side to side, aligned with music. He put his hands on my hips, keeping our bodies connected. I swayed my hips slightly and arched my back so that the back of my head rested on his chest. He liked what I was doing as his body tensed and enveloped me even more. As my nips moved, my ass was grazing his groin area, ever so, slightly.His grip on my hips tightened in response. "Hm, so you like to tease, huh?" he whispered to my ears. He was so close to me, I could smell his masculine scent. It was heavenly. I didn¡¯t respond and I just let my eyes roll back, enjoying the moment. His hands started to trace the curves of my body as I continued to tease him. And suddenly, he put one hand over my stomach and held me in ce. He pulled me back so that I was flushed against his body and I couldn''t move. Then his other hand found my chin and tilted my face to the side. I looked up at his face, his eyes staring darkly into mine. I took in a sharp breath as I was caught off guard by this sight.He was just so¡­ handsome.He lowered down his chiseled jaw until I could feel his breaths fanning my cheeks. I was sure my heart had stopped beating.I had never felt anything quite like this before.We were so close. Only inches away from each other.I saw his lips parting slightly as it touched my The small contact sent my stomach tingling and my heart racing. He would be so delicious to kiss... Chapter 2: Falling Short Chapter 2: Falling Short EMMA¡¯s POV : "No!"I yelped and pulled away in an instant. That was so close! Suddenly it dawned on me that I was about to kiss a random stranger in a bar. What the hell was I thinking? I should not be doing this! I needed to be with Zach! I knew that second ss of beer was a bad idea.Meanwhile, the guy looked at me, bewildered and confused. He was also still breathless from all the dancing.That look in his eyes, I couldn¡¯t tell if he was angry or disappointed.Or both. "I¡¯m sorry.I have to go," I said and turned to my heels as fast as I could. "Hey ¡ª" I could hear him calling after me several times, but I didn¡¯t want to turn back. I spotted Tiff making out with Steve and I wasn¡¯t gonna cock-block her, so I left her alone.Carrie was still with the sorority girls, so I pulled her to the side and quickly told her my n. "Carrie, hey," "Hey, Em, where you''ve been?" "I was dancing...but listen, I''m gonna go, okay? I''m gonna wait in Zach¡¯s dorm room.He said he''ll be home soon,"I had to yell to her ears because the music was so loud. "Okay! Don¡¯t worry about us.We''ll get an Uber and stay in a motel.I''ll keep an eye out for her,"Carrie was referring to Tiff. "Alright, I''ll see you guy in the morning,"I hugged her before we parted ways. "Have fun! Be safe!"I heard her screaming over the music as I walked away. The college dorm was arge was a co-ed building in the outskirts of the Emory campus.Tonight, it was filled with drunk college freshmen fresh from orientation night.After turning down this slurring guy that hit on me at the front door, I made my way inside the building. People just assumed that I was a student, so I had no problem getting in.My heart was pounding in excitement as I climbed the stairs to the second floor.My eyes went to scan the long corridor for room no.223, Zach''s room.My heart was beating faster and faster as the numbers got closer. 220... 221... 222¡­ "223,"I whispered under my breath as I stood in front of my boyfriend¡¯s door. I hoped his roommate wasn¡¯t home.Zach should be home anytime soon, so I thought I would just sit on his bed and wait for him. My hand reached for the handle and I realized the door was unlocked.I pulled down the handle happily and pushed the door open.But as soon as I saw what was inside the room, my smile fell to the floor.I wasn''t prepared to see what was happening in front of me.I could never be. Zach was lying on his bed, naked.In front of him was a girl, also naked.She straddled him on the bed, so I was only able to see her hair and bare back.She was humping him, all the while moaning his name out loud.One of his hands were gripping her bare ass, clutching them tightly as she bounced and bounced on him.The other was on gripping her bare breast, kneading her as he groaned aloud. My jaw dropped open and I couldn''t close my eyes no matter how much I wanted to.This image would forever be etched into my memory.And suddenly, air escaped my lungs and I couldn''t breathe. "Wait ¡ª Emma?!"Out of the corner of his eyes, Zach finally noticed I was standing on his doorway. He pushed the girl to the side abruptly as she yelped ,¡±Ouch!" He scrambled for his pants on the floor and staggered over to me.The girl turned around and saw me, but she didn''t look surprised.She simply pulled the nket to cover her chest.And then she gave me this ugly, devilish smile. "Emma? What are you doing here," Zach said breathlessly. He was still panting and sweating, smelling like awful sex.I hated it.I wished I could puke my guts out. "How could you?" my voice cracked. Tears were filling my eyes. "I can exin..." he stammered as he stepped outside and closed the door behind us. "Well, exin," I demanded. "It was nothing, okay? Jenna and I ¡ª It¡¯s just physical ¡ª" he started talking but I didn¡¯t want to hear it. My hand instinctively flew to his face to stop him from talking, pping his cheek harshly.He looked taken aback and I was shocked too, I was never this violent person.Slowly, his eyes then turned from shock into anger. "What was I supposed to do, Emma? You didn¡¯t wanna have sex with me!" he roared. "I wasn''t ready, Zach.You said you''re okay waiting," I reminded him. "It''s been year.How much longer was I supposed to wait?" "So instead of telling me like a mature adult, you went behind my back and did this?" I knew I struck a chord. He was quiet. He didn¡¯t have any good excuses. "How long?" I asked, choking on the tears that started falling. "Go fuck yourself," I spat before turning to my heels and left. I ran out of there as fast as I could. All I could feel was the gnawing pain in my chest as I sped away in my car. Zach tried calling me several times and I blocked his number instead. I never wanted to hear his voice or see his face again. Ever. I called Tiff and Carrie to see where they were, but none of them picked up. I decided to head back to the bar, thinking maybe they were still there. I double- checked all the corners and the girls¡¯ room, but they were nowhere to be found. "Hey, where the hell are you guys? Something bad happened. Please call me back," I said to my phone, leaving a message on both their phones. I walked over to the bar aimlessly and took a seat on one of the stools. I was tired. I was hurting and alone. Every time I closed my eyes, the image of Zach and that girl popped into my head. I wanted to just scrape my brains out. It was a long day and I just wanted it to be over. "You look like you could use a drink," suddenly, a familiar voice spoke to me. I turned to my side and I saw that guy again, the gorgeous guy that danced with me earlier. He was leaning casually against the bar. I wasn¡¯t in the mood to talk, so I ignored him and turned my face back to the front. "Rough night?" he spoke again. I didn''t respond, thinking that he''d get the hint and go away. But he didn¡¯t. Instead, he was waving the bartender toe over. "One gin and tonic please, for thedy," he said as he put down some money on the counter. The bartender nodded and started on the drink. "It might help," he said to me simply. He wasn''t waiting around for a response. He gave me onest smirk before turning to walk away. I thought I should feel relieved that he was going away. But weirdly enough, I felt like I didn¡¯t want him to leave. The bartender put a tall ss in front of me, filled with ice, sliced lime, and a clear liquid inside. I didn''t know what got into me, but I suddenly felt the urge to speak out. "Hey, wait up," I said to the guy. He stopped his tracks and turned around, waiting for me to continue. I grabbed the drink and downed it all at once. The alcohol burned my throat, but I didn¡¯t care. The burn was better than whatever it was I was feeling. He looked at me with eyes wide open as I mmed the empty ss back on the bar. "You wanna get outta here?" I said again. "Where to?" he asked. "With you? Anywhere," My heart was broken and my mind was nk. All I had now was my body and the burning inside my chest. I strode closer to him as he stood his ground. I stopped when I was only an arm''s length away from him. I looked at him, and he looked back at me. He was studying my face as I bit my bottom lip and tilted my head to the side, waiting for his response. There was a moment of silence between the two of us. And all of a sudden, a wild smirk curved as he moved forward and his hands reached for my face. He tilted my chin up as he leaned down, and his lipsnded roughly on mine. The impact made the fire in my chest burn greater. I locked my arms around his neck and pulled him closer. He kissed me with more urgency as hisrge hand gripped my neck, and I kissed him back. His delicious masculine scent enveloped my nose and I felt even more intoxicated. His lips devoured mine and he tasted like alcohol and mint. He was absolutely a great kisser, he knew exactly just how much to give for me to want more. My breath hitched when I felt his tongue grazing my lips, looking for a way in. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. Iplied and opened my mouth slightly. He took his chance and his tongue thrust right in. Our tongues met and they started dancing passionately, causing me to whimper. I gripped his shirt tighter as his hands traveled down my back and stopped at my butt. He grabbed my backside with such fervor, pushing my front side hard against his pants. He groaned lowly as used my upper thigh to stroke his hardening groin area. Shoot! I could feel myself getting so wet. And suddenly, he pulled away, breaking off the kiss. My eyes shot open in shock, and I was panting breathlessly. He gritted his teeth as his deep brown eyes bore into mine. Slowly, he leaned forward until his mouth touched my left ear, and he whispered with raspy voice against my skin. "Come with me," Chapter 3: Broken Barrier Chapter 3: Broken Barrier EMMA¡¯''s POV : I instinctively nodded my head. He grinned brightly at my response. Without giving me a chance to change my mind, he pulled my hand forcefully and we were headed out the back door in no time. "Shit," he muttered suddenly. "What''s wrong?" I asked as we stepped into a dark alley. "I can''t wait anymore," he said in between breaths. He narrowed his eyes at me like a hawk, stalking its prey. I didn¡¯t say anything, I couldn''t. I was still struggling to slow my breathing, catching my breath. He stalked closer to me and I was taking small steps back until I hit myself back against the wall. He took both my hands and ced them above my head, pinning me against the red brick. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. He looked down at me with those dark eyes and said, "I have to have you now," I swallowed hard at his words. My head was spinning. I couldn''t tell left from right anymore. All I knew was that my body was heating up and there was this clenching feeling in my lower stomach, aching to be released. "Okay," I breathed finally. He didn¡¯t waste his time. He closed the distance between us as his lipsnded on mine once again. He kissed me possessively and so passionately. No one ever kissed me this like before, not even Zach. So I kissed him back wantonly, biting on his lower lip, causing him to growl. Without breaking the kiss, he released my hands, gripped my legs, and he linked them to his waist one by one. He propped me up so that all my weight was on him. There was such power in every move he made. My hands curled to grip his shoulders, feeling his strong, hard body under the thin fabric. His hand traveled from my thigh to the hem of my dress. He slid his thumb underneath the fabric as his hand continued moving up. The feeling of his fingers touching my bare skin lit me on fire. His thumb stopped when it reached the band of my panties. My heart had absolutely given up when I felt his fingers cupping my wet area through theced fabric. I let out a slow moan in response,pletely involuntarily. "Baby girl, you''re so wet," he murmured to my ears. Baby girl...? Somehow that made me drip even more! His lips then trailed the bottom of my ear, down my cheek, and itnded snuggly on my neck. He nted soft, wet kisses on the crook of my neck and my head rolled back in response, giving him more ess. It was a feeling I had never felt before. His body was warm against my pounding chest. His kisses sent tingles up and down my spine. And before I could process it all, he stuck a finger over my panties, causing me to gasp. He started stroking my clit his finger and I was whimpering against his touch. My back arched up so I was exposing more of myself to him. All the while, he hadn''t stopped kissing and sucking on my neck. I was moaning unintelligible words at this point. "You alright there?" he chuckled lowly, finding my actions amusing. "Mmm--just keep going," I mumbled out. "Yes, ma¡¯am," With that, he pushed his finger deep inside me and I almost couldn''t breathe. His thumb stroked my clit as the other finger circled my opening, pulling out, and pushing back in ever so slowly. It felt so damn good. Zach had tried to finger me once before. It felt weird and awkward. I didn¡¯t like it, so we stopped. But this was different. This guy knew exactly what he was doing and how to control my body. And before long, he slid another finger in and I was losing my vision. He started thrusting into me with his two fingers, and I was feeling the bittersweet pain. "Fuck, you''re so tight," he said through gritted teeth. I didn¡¯t know what he meant by that. Wasn''t that supposed to be a good thing? My body was tensing up and he felt it too. He started moving his fingers slower and gentler. "Rx, baby girl," he ordered. My bodyplied right away. His two fingers then started doing this scissor movement, parting my core slightly each time. All the while, his thumb was still working on my now swollen clit. What kind of magic is this? "Ahh," I couldn¡¯t help but whimper and moan as my nails dug deeper into his shoulders. "You haven''t had a good fuck in a while, huh?" he asked and I chose not to answer. Things were going so well and I didn¡¯t want to ruin things by saying I was a virgin. I had never felt anything like this before, and I never wanted it to stop. The clenching in my stomach was getting more and more intense with each of his strokes. He knew it too, and he started moving his fingers with more speed this time. And just when I thought this couldn''t get any better, something exploded in me and my body convulsed in shock. I let out a breathless scream as my core clenched around his fingers and I came unraveling all over his hand. All the tension that was built up in me had evaporated into thin air. My vision turned ck and I felt nothing but warm, tranquil bliss. "F u c k," he hissed as he pulled out, "You''re so fucking beautiful," I was still reeling from the high that I felt moments before. I didn¡¯t even notice that both his hands were now cupping my ass, his nails digging into my skin. And then I heard the sound of fabric ripping and I felt cold air blew against my butt cheeks. He had ripped my underwear open and the broken piece of fabric fell graciously on the ground. I waspletely exposed to him. The cold air stung my bare skin and I shivered. His one hand then reached for his back pocket, revealing a shiny gold packet. "Open it," hemanded. I took the foil packet from him and ripped it open slowly. His free hand now reached for his belt and unbuckled them. It was hard to do since I was still wrapped around him, so I uncrossed my legs and stood on my feet. I felt wobbly as soon as my feet touched the ground, like my Knees were too weak to stand on it¡¯s own. Thankfully I had the wall behind me to lean against. Once I finished opening up the gold packet, I looked down and I saw hisrge erection had sprung out. Holy...s h i t. Granted, it was dark and I couldn''t see it very clearly, but it was big. I could see that much. He took the condom from my hand and rolled it down his erect manhood. I gulped at the sight of him. Suddenly I felt so scared. He noticed it too, because he then turned to me and said, "It''s gonna be good.I promise," He closed the distance between us again and I didn''t say a word. I just stood flushed against the wall, thinking somehow that the stupid wall would protect me. Smiling that gorgeous smile, he then grabbed my left thigh and lifted it high and open. I waspletely exposed to him once again. He linked my thigh around his waist as his lips went back to attacking my neck. I gasped appreciatively and my hands reached for his luscious dark hair, running my fingers wildly through them. "Do you want it?" his raspy voice spoke and I felt his hard length on me, grazing against my wet, bare area. I wanted to feel that feeling again. I wanted to feel full like when his fingers were inside me. So I arched my back and flushed myself to him, shamelessly. "Answer me," he demanded. He was taking his sweet time, purposefully teasing and torturing me. I was a squirming mess as I kept trying to reach for him. He positioned himself so he would let his tip enter me, but only a little bit, before pulling away. I was now writhing in agony. "Please," I begged. He didn¡¯t say anything and he just smirked. I was getting too impatient. I started thrusting myself forward to meet him. I was so wet, I was practically dripping. "Stop!" he growled suddenly and I stopped moving. "Please, I want it now," I pleaded again. "You''re not there yet. It¡¯s gonna hurt you," What was that supposed to mean? "I don''t care, just do it," He stared at me with his dark, mesmerizing eyes. For a while, he didn¡¯t say anything. He just stood there, thinking. What could he be possibly thinking about right now? "Just fuck me," I said again, causing him to blink in shock. But as soon as the word left my mouth, his lips enveloped me once again. I kissed him back hard and hungrily. His nails dug deep into my skin and I was practically pulling at his hair. Then, without warning, he thrust himself into me all at once. It was the most painful thing my body had ever endured. "Ah!" I let out a scream, but he caught it with his kiss. He stopped for a moment to let my body took in his full size, then he pulled out slowly and mmed himself inside me again. He did it several more times, until there was no sounding out of my screams. It was pain and pleasure, all mixed into one. I couldn''t have one without the order. I didn¡¯t feel as tense as before, and I was getting used to the pain. He then picked up his pace and started thrusting deeper and harder. I was sandwiched between the wall and his rock, hard body. His thrusts caused my body to slip up against the wall, and my one foot that was on the ground was practically floating. "Baby girl, you feel so fucking good," Our eyes were locked into each other¡¯s as his dark gaze bore deeply into mine. This was getting too much. I felt something building up inside of me, demanding a release. He responded by moving in and out of me vigorously. The sound of his body smacking against mine filled the air. His breaths were heavy and coarse. I couldn''t hold it together anymore. I trashed my head back and my core clenched around him, hard. "S h i t," he growled. I came excessively. I felt the warm liquid was oozing out of me, and that didn¡¯t faze him. It only made his penis pulse harder. He continued pounding himself into me, so fast and so forceful. "Fuck," he said through gritted teeth. All the while, his hands curled into my ass cheeks almost violently, causing me to squirm. But also, it lit a fire inside of me. I felt it again, the buildup racing through my veins. I pushed my legs tighter around his waist, signaling how much I wanted the release he could give me. He groaned lowly in response, but I could tell he liked it. Because if he was being rough before, he was almost barbaric now. His thrusts were aggressive and brutal, my soft walls tightened around his thickness responsively. My body was under so much pain and pleasure, I had to close my eyes because it was just too much. "Ah," I was moaning unintelligible words as his lips attacked my neck, sucking harshly on that sweet spot. And with that, we both came almost at the same time. My wet core clenched so hard around him, it made his thick cock pulsed in response. He mmed his whole length into me onest time as he cum. He stayed inside me for a while as he let out a deep relieved sigh. When he finally pulled away, he gave me the widest,sexiest grin I had ever saw, feeling absolutely satisfied. Chapter 4: Stranger Danger Chapter 4: Stranger Danger EMMA¡¯''s POV: "I can''t believe Zach cheated on you!" Carrie gasped in anger. "I can''t believe you had sex with a random guy in the back of a bar," Tiff followed. This morning, I woke up sleeping inside my car. I didn¡¯t even remember driving it. I was parked at a Walmart parking lot, I didn¡¯t even know there was a Walmart around. I checked my phone to find dozens of messages and missed calls from Tiff and Carrie. I called them up and we decided to meet at a diner nearby. Tiff had spent the night with that guy, Steve, and Carrie stayed over the sorority house. After we met up and! chugged an entire mug of coffee, I was finally able to tell my friends everything that happenedst night. Or, the parts that I remembered at least. "Damn, girl," Tiff paused for a moment before saying , "Hey, I''m sorry I wasn¡¯t therest night. I didn¡¯t know it was gonna go down like that," "It''s okay. It¡¯s not you guys¡¯ fault," "How do you feel now?" Carrie asked. "I don''t know. I''m still processing everything," In just the span of one night, I lost my boyfriend and my virginity, in that order. Everything after that ss of gin and tonic was a blur. I only remembered bits and pieces, but I definitely knew I had sex. For instance, when I woke up today, I wasn¡¯t wearing any underwear. I couldn''t find them anymore. And I was sore, like very sore. My inner thighs were throbbing like mad. "Who was this guy anyway? What did he look like?" "Just some random guy I met at the bar.He was tall...Gorgeous..." "What''s his name?" "I don¡¯t know," "You don¡¯t know?" "Yeah, it never came up..." "Damn," Tiff sighed. "He was probably in Emory. Most of the people in the bar were Emory students," Carrie said. "Yeah, maybe," "Do you think you''ll see him again?" "Probably not.But maybe that¡¯s for the best," The three of us were quiet for a while. Taking it all in. "He wore protection though, right?" Tiff asked the inevitable. "Yes," "Was it bad? Do you regret that it happened?" Carrie said finally. I thought about it for a while and said, "No.To be honest, it wasn¡¯t a bad experience...I¡¯m not too sure, but I think I came, like more than once," My two best friends started grinning maniacally, waiting for me to continue talking. "I thought I was gonna bleed or whatever, but I didn¡¯t.It did hurt for a bit in the beginning, but then it got really good..." "Yeah, it did," Tiff said to Carrie and they high fived each other. "So, what happened next after you guys...did it?" Careri asked. This was the part that I mostly don¡¯t remember. I remembered that he came, and then he pulled away. He got rid of the condom and adjusted himself back. I remembered my knees were shaking and my thighs were sore. My head was spinning, and I couldn''t make out what he was saying to me. "I didn¡¯t want a conversation.All I wanted was to lie down on a bed.So, to spare me from the awkwardness, I just ran," I told them. "You ran?" they gaped at me. "Yeah, I didn''t know what else to do. I just said thank you and I bolted," "You said thank you?!" Their eyes were wide and their mouths opened in shock. "Is that so wrong?" I asked them. Tiff and Carrie started cracking up andughing like crazy. They were being so obnoxiously loud, people were staring. "Guys,e on, I just got my heart broken and you''re allughing at me," I scolded them, but they didn¡¯t stopughing. "Yeah, but that¡¯s not the only thing that broken inst night," Tiff winked and Carrieughed harder. "Honestly, Em, I didn¡¯t know you had it in you," Carrie said in betweenughs, "but hey, I¡¯m d you had fun and you kept your manners," Tiff and Carrie went onughing. I just rolled my eyes at them and continued eating my eggs and toast. We drove back home after we got breakfast. I changed my outfit and wore a snuggly hoodie and sweats that had I brought. Carrie was driving at I slept the entire way. Tiff woke me up one time to tell me that Zach''s been looking for me, he kept calling Tiff''s and Carrie¡¯s phones. I told her to block him and went back to sleep.Mom and dad were at home when I got back. It was a Saturday, they didn¡¯t have to work. They asked me aboutst night and I told them everything was fine. Of course, they didn¡¯t know that we went to Anta. I told them I was sleeping over at Carrie¡¯s and that we had a birthday party sleepover. The next few days went by so fast. I spent my days listening to sad songs and ignoring all calls and texts from Zach. I was in my room most days and cried a lot, because he did hurt me. What he did to me that night was beyond repair. And what I did next closed the chapter on us entirely. Sometimes I caught myself wondering about what I did with that stranger in the bar. I wondered if I''d ever see him again. I wondered if he¡¯d thought of me the same. Meanwhile, Tiff and Carrie would try to get me out of the house from time to time. Some days they seeded, mostly they failed. But it was okay because they understood that I just needed time. Unfortunately, time was of the essence. School was starting again tomorrow, and sooner orter, I''d have to leave my room. "At least now I have the car, I don¡¯t have to take the bus anymore," I said to myself, trying to motivate myself for tomorrow. Normally, I wouldn''t mind going to school. I actually enjoyed some of the sses, like English, Art, Spanish ..even P.E. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! I was pretty social and I was active. I was part of the swim team and I just found that I made the cheerleading squad this year. I also had two amazing best friends, so the list was endless. But with everything that happened with Zach, I lost my fighting spirit. Some days I wondered if it was my fault. Maybe I didn¡¯t treat him well enough. Maybe I should have had sex with him early on. But, the more I thought about it, the more it didn''t make sense. I had loved him with all my heart, but he chose to betray me. That was not my fault. "You''re right.It wasn¡¯t your fault," Carrie stated. Tiff, Carrie, and I were making our way to homeroom. I was just telling them about what I was feelingst night, and I was d they confirmed my thoughts. "He was an asshole.You deserve so much better," Tiff added. We made it to homeroom and grabbed our usual seats. I said hi to some people and when they asked how was my summer, I''d just smile and say it was great. Carrie¡¯s boyfriend, Mark walked in momentster, and he immediately took the seat next to Carrie. They looked at each other with big googly eyes and I couldn''t help but be a little jealous. "Hey, you," Mark said to Carrie. "Hello yourself, Mr.Student Body President," Carried said to him. They leaned closer to each other and then they just started making out. Tiff and I waited for a while and finally we shared a look. "Ehem," Tiff coughed and the two broke it off, looking slightly embarrassed. "So, what electives are you guys taking this year?" Mark said to us. "I''m taking drama ss.You know how much I love drama," Tiff replied. "Emma and I are both taking AP Studio Art," Carrie told Mark as I nodded. "Oh, did you know there¡¯s a new art teacher?" Mark replied. "What happened to Mr.Dawson?" I asked him. "Retired.Finally," he answered. "Who''s the new teacher?"Carrie asked. "His name is Mr. Hayes.I saw him earlier in the principal''s office.He looked all right.But he¡¯s also kinda...young," "Compared to Mr.Dawson? I sure hope so," Carrie said as theyughed. I wasn¡¯t paying much attention to homeroom or my next few sses, or even lunch. I barely touched my sandwich. I just didn¡¯t feel like doing anything. By the time Art ss came around, I was relieved. It was myst ss of the day. I couldn''t wait to get this day over with, so I could go home and listen to some more Cigarettes After Sex. "So, you got cheer practice today?" Carrie asked as we walked inside the art room and took the middle seats. "I think I''m just gonna bail.I''m not feeling very...cheerful,"I sighed. The bell rang as more students piled up into the room. Our new teacher wasn¡¯t in yet, so Carrie and I decided to talk some more. "Em, I know this is tough, but I¡¯m your friend so I¡¯m gonna have to say this.Please don¡¯t throw your life away because of some jerkhead.Isting yourself in your room all day¡¯s only gonna make you feel worse in the long run.Just talk to me or Tiff.We¡¯re here for you.And don''t let whatever happened cloud the bright future you got ahead of you.You deserve to go out into the world and get happy," All that Carrie said was true. It was just harder said than done. So, I just gave her a smile and I hugged her. "Thanks, I don¡¯t know what I''ll do without you guys," I said. "Anytime," Carrie smiled back as we pulled away. "Good afternoon everyone," Carrie and I turned our heads to the front of the room to find our new art teacher standing there. He had his back to us as he was facing the board. From his back figure, I noted that he was tall and muscr, but lean. He wore a long-sleeved slim-fit shirt that outlined his figure, and some ck cks. He took a marker and started writing his name on the broad. MR. IAN HAYES His right hand was stretched out as he wrote, and I could make out some sort of tattoos hidden behind the shirt¡¯s cuff. That looked familiar... "Wee to AP Studio Art,"he said in a low voice. I feel like I¡¯ve heard that voice before...Mr.Hayes turned around to face the ss. I gasped instantly as soon as I saw his face. It was the face that haunted me at night. The face that kept popping Into my head every time I try to forget about that night. My heart was racing so fast, I was getting hot shes. "Damn, he¡¯s hot," Carrie whispered to me under her breath. I couldn''t respond. I just kept staring up at him.His eyes nced around the room until it met mine.It widened instantly as the thought registered to him. He looked at me with an expression I couldn''t read.Confusion? Happiness? Intrigue? "I will start with the roll call,"he said again. He began calling out people''s names and they''d answer to him. He looked so calm and nonchnt; it made me wonder if I was imagining things. "Emma Sinir," his voice cut through my thoughts like a knife. "...Here," I croaked and lifted my hand just a little bit. He looked at me and smiled. Actually, he smirked. We stared at each other for a few more seconds before he went back to his list and continued calling other names. Holy...shit. Times a million. Chapter 5: Recently Played Chapter 5: Recently yed EMMA¡¯s POV: "I¡¯m Mr.Hayes and this AP Studio Art.As many of you already know, you''ll be required to submit an art portfolio for the AP exam..." The Bar Guy¡ª I mean, Mr.Hayes, was exining things about the portfolio we needed to prepare at the end of the school year. Very important stuff. But I couldn''t seem to concentrate. Every time I looked at him, I saw glimpses of that night. How gorgeous he looked as he pinned me against the wall. I was arching my back and I exposed myself to him, shamelessly. How I wanted to feel that feeling again. I wanted to feel full like when his fingers were inside me. He was taking his sweet time, purposefully teasing and torturing me. He would let his tip enter me, but only a little bit, before pulling away. I was squirming in agony and hunger. "Please," I begged. "Please, I want it now," I pleaded to him. "You''re not there yet. It''s gonna hurt you," "I don¡¯t care, just do it," Whoa, girl! Pull yourself together, woman! 3 I shook my head quickly to get the image out of my head. My cheeks were ring up and I was getting sweaty and my heart was racing for no good reason. I tried looking down at my knees, but that actually made things worse. I remembered the moment his hand traveled from my knee to my lower thigh and to the hem of my dress. He slid his thumb underneath the fabric as his hand continued moving up. The feeling of his fingers touching my bare skin lit me on fire. His thumb stopped when it reached the band of my panties. And then, I felt his fingers cupping my wet area through theced fabric. When he pushed his finger deep inside me, I almost couldn''t breathe. He circled my opening with that finger, pulling out, and pushing back in. It felt so damn good. And when he slid another finger in, I was on the verge of copsing. That feeling when his two fingers then started doing this scissor movement, parting my core slightly each time, that was the best feeling ever¡ª "Miss Sinir? Are we paying attention?" Mr.Hayes¡¯ voice abruptly brought me back into reality. "Uh, yeah, sorry," I muttered quickly, crossing my legs together since it was getting ufortable. I can¡¯t believe I''m actually getting wet in the middle of ss. His ss. Oh, just kill me now. "I know this ss is thest period of the day. Many of you are probably dying to go home already, so I''ll make this quick," Mr.Hayes spoke to the ss, but somehow I felt like that was directed right at me. "This is your ss sybus, they''re pretty self- exnatory.Take one before you leave the ssroom.Feel free toe to the studio or send me an email if you have any questions.If not, I''ll see you next week," Everyone let out a happy cheer as Mr.Hayes dismissed the ss. "He''s such a cool teacher, I like him already," Carrie told me as she packed her things into her backpack. I didn¡¯t know what to say to that, so I just nodded as if I agreed. Carrie and I walked to his desk and grabbed the ss sybus. We were about to head for the door when he called out to me. "Miss Sinir, may I have a moment with you before you go?"His tone sounded serious. I gulped instantly. "Go ahead Car, I''ll see you tomorrow," I motioned for Carrie to leave and she nodded. "See you tomorrow, Em," After saying goodbye to Carrie, I walked back slowly to his desk. He was sitting on the chair behind it, arranging some papers and books. I purposefully waited until everyone had left before I started to speak. "Hi," was all that I could muster up.He looked up at me, and his gaze bored into mine.He gritted his teeth and he lookedpletely¡­ angry. "So, I guess...you remember me?"I bbed. "You''re a high school student?" his tone was t and cold. "Yes," I gave him a small shy smile, but he wasn¡¯t amused. He stood up tall and walked around the desk until he was facing me. "You were at a college bar and you were drinking.I thought you were at least 21," he spoke finally, after a while of silence. "Wow, did I actually look that old?" I didn¡¯t mean to be a smart mouth, but I cracked jokes whenever I got nervous. Though now didn''t seem like a good time. "That''s not the point," he hissed. "You look mad," "I am mad,"he growled lowly and I took a step back in response. "What the hell, Emma? What were you doing at a bar, getting drunk, and dressed like that?" he said again, and now he was sounding too much like an adult. I didn¡¯t like that. "It was my birthday, okay? We were celebrating.But, whatever, it¡¯s none of your business," I spat. "None of my business? Do you realize what we did was wrong? I could get fired, no I could get arrested¡ª"¡ª ¡°No you won''t," I said quickly :"I¡¯m at a consenting age and you''re...twenty something.Last I check, it''s perfectly legal in the state of Georgia.You weren''t my teacher when we first met so that doesn¡¯t count.We did nothing wrong.You''re good," He let out a deep sigh, but his face was still stern. He didn''t say anything for the longest time and he just studied my face. It was getting unbearable. "What were you doing at a college bar anyway? I thought you were a student," I said to him to break the awkward silence. "I was.I was celebrating with friends.I just finished grad school and I got a job teaching.Here," he made sure I heard thatst part right. "Oh," I mouthed. "Damn it.I knew you were inexperienced but I didn¡¯t peg you for a...high school student,"he said suddenly, letting out a deep frustrated breath. "Inexperienced?" Somehow I felt offended. I thought I did a pretty good job considering it was my first time. "Forget I said that.Just...forget...all this mess, whatever this is," he said as he raked his hair with his hand and walked away.But of course, he didn¡¯t know it was my first time. And this was probably not the right time to mention that either. "So, what now?" I asked cautiously. "Nothing," he replied quickly, "It was a stupid mistake and it will never happen again," "Right,"I said bitterly, "Now that we''ve established that we haven''t done anything illegal in the past, present, and future, can I be excused?" I asked him, pausing for a moment before adding, "Mr.Hayes?" He looked taken aback by what I just said. He didn''t say anything for a while, but finally he nodded his head for an answer. "Goodbye, Mr.Hayes," I said onest time before exiting the room. That night, I couldn''t sleep at all. I just kept thinking about that guy¡ªMr. Hayes. It felt so weird to have to call him that. I was debating whether or not I should tell Tiff and Carrie, but I decided I shouldn''t do it. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. They would absolutely freak out and I didn¡¯t want to deal with that. Whatever it was that happened with Mr. Hayes won''t ever happen again anyway. There was no use to mull over it. Yet somehow the thought of it never happening again made me feel empty. Before I knew who the Bar Guy was, he was my beautiful fantasy. He was the perfect distraction that helped me get over my breakup with Zach so quickly. I had fantasized that maybe someday I''d meet this gorgeous stranger again at another time and ce. He would still look as sexy as ever and he¡¯d do me like he did before. It was a sweet and tantalizing thought. But all that fantasy was shattered now that I knew who he really was. My freaking art teacher. Could life be anymore cruel? Out of all the people in the world, why did it have to be him?! I trashed my head back on the pillow in anger. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, hoping I could erase everything with a good night sleep. But every time I closed my eyes, I was seeing his face again. The way his eyes lit up and his sexy smirk. The tattoos running down his arm... His lush jet-ck hair...His chiseled, rock hard body... All these thoughts were making me wet and needy. I decided that it was a futile effort trying to forget about him. I relented and gave into my burning desire instead. I took another deep breath as I pictured the way Mr. Hayes would look without his shirt on. I wondered if there''d be other tattoos on his body. I wished I''d gotten a better look at his huge penis. With these thoughts running through my head, I slowly slid my fingers under my panties. As images of him from that night reappeared, my breathing got harder and I started stroking my clit with my finger. I tried mimicking what he was doing to me that night, but my fingers didn''t feel quite as right. Still, I didn¡¯t want to stop. I was so restless and hungry for release. "Rx, baby girl," his husky voice echoed in my ears. I remembered the feeling when Mr.Hayes was pinning me against the wall. He mmed his huge penis into me so hard, I wanted to cry. I felt my core loosening up around him, getting adjusted to his size. He then picked up his pace when I started to feel good about rxed, and he started thrusting deeper and harder. I was sandwiched between the wall and his rock, hard body. The pain and pleasure were sending me over the edge. His thrusts were causing my body to slip up against the wall, and my one foot that was on the ground was practically floating. "Ah, Mr.Hayes," I found myself moaning aloud. Please take me back to that night. Take me to that moment when his lips enveloped me possessively and passionately. I was kissing him back hard and hungrily. His nails dug deep into my skin and I was practically pulling at his hair. He was mming himself into me over and over again, rougher and harder each time, sending me to oblivion. I felt it again, the buildup racing through my veins. I pushed my legs tighter around his waist, signaling how much I wanted the release he could give me. He groaned lowly in response, but I could tell he liked it. His thrusts became more aggressive and brutal, my soft walls tightened around his thickness responsively. My body was under so much pain and pleasure, I had to close my eyes because it was just too much. "Ah," I was moaning unintelligible words as his lips attacked my neck, sucking harshly on that sweet spot. And with that, we both came almost at the same time. My wet core clenched so hard around him, it made his thick cock pulsed in response. He mmed his whole length into me onest time as he cum. He stayed inside me for a while as he let out a deep relieved sigh. When he finally pulled away, he gave me the widest, sexiest grin I had ever saw, feeling absolutely satisfied I was so close. My fingers moved faster in and out of my core aggressively. I was doing everything I could to make myself cum. And finally, after a run of sloppy thrusts, I was able to cum. Warm liquid ran down my thighs and I let out the biggest sigh of relief. It was truly an amazing high. But nowhere near as amazing as it was with Mr.Hayes Chapter 6: Crash Landing Chapter 6: Crash Landing EMMA¡¯''s POV : The next day at school, I was avoiding Mr. Hayes at all costs. It was the right thing to do. I just needed to get him out of my system so I could function normally again. A Mr.Hayes detox, I called it. I was doing well since Mr.Hayes mostly stayed in his art studio and I didn¡¯t have that ss today. I chose to focus my energies on my friends and studies instead. Tiff, Carrie, Mark, and I were having lunch in the quad. It was still September, so the weather was warm and nice. Mark was telling us gossips he heard from the teachers¡¯ lounge. Something about Ms.Diaz, our Spanish teacher, was being set up on a date with Mr.Hayes. I rolled my eyes as soon as I heard his name. The detox was gonna be harder than I thought. "Why would Mr.Hayes go out with Ms.Diaz?" Tiff asked as she took a bite of her sandwich. "Why not? She¡¯s hot.He¡¯s hot.They''re both single,"Carrie replied. Carrie had a point. Ms.Diaz had the body of Jennifer Lopez and the face of Penelope Cruz. She was in herte twenties and it amazed everyone at school how she was still single. I remembered so many guys had a crush on her when taking her ss, my ex Zach would be included in that list. "I think Mr.Hayes could do better," Tiff interjected. "Really?"Mark asked in disbelief. Of course, he would take Ms.Diaz''s side. "He is So gorgeous and tall.He looked a lot like Ashton Kutcher.And he¡¯s got a charming personality too, right Em?" Carrie turned to me, asking for affirmation. I responded by choking on my chocte milk. "Yeah, sure," I mumbled out. I didn¡¯t enjoy this conversation we were having. I got away from the art studio so! could stay away from Mr. Hayes, not to be talking about how gorgeous and tall he is. I sighed and turned my gaze away, hoping I could just tune out of this debate between which two teachers are hotter. And suddenly, I saw something resembling a football came flying right at us. It was followed by a guy who was racing to catch it. "Watch out!" he yelled and all of us jerked away in response. He jumped and managed to catch the ball right before it was going to hit my face. Still, I closed my eyes and put my hands over my face in response. He caught the ball, yes, but then his body fell andnded straight on myp, hitting my knees and thighs with a loud thud. All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. "Ouch!" "Oh god, I''m so sorry," the guy immediately got up to check on me, "Are you okay?" "Uh, yeah, I''ll be fine. No worries," I nodded. "I''m Ryan, by the way. You''re Emma, right?" he said suddenly and I looked up at him. Seeing his face, now I remembered who he was Ryan Russo. He was a senior and the wide receiver on our football team. I remembered because cheerleading practice would coincide with football practice from time to time. "Yup, that''s me," I nodded my head and gave him a smile. "Look, I¡¯m really sorry about what happened.But if you give me your number, maybe I could make it up to you?" he said suddenly and everyone gasped in response. I was taken aback, I didn¡¯t know what to say. "Her number''s 404-572..." Tiff started yelling my number out and I red at her. "No, seriously, would that be okay?" Ryanughed as he pulled out his phone and handed it to me. I thought about it for a while before nodding my head. He was just trying to be nice. Least I could do is to return the favor. It was just a phone number. And anyway, what¡¯s wrong with making new friends? My friends were being ridiculous, as they started cheering and hollering. Ignoring them, I focused on the task at hand. After I tapped in my number, Ryan took his phone back and the biggest smile appeared on his face. "So, I''ll see you guys around," he nodded to all of us, but his gaze stayed at me a little longer than the others. When he finally ran back to his friends, my friends had gone berserk. They were chanting,ughing, and falling over their asses. "Stop it, you guys are embarrassing," I scolded, but it made themugh even harder. "Look at you Miss Thang, you broke up with Zach and now younded Ryan Russo," Tiff teased. "Or actually, Ryan Russonded on her," Mark chimed in. "Guys, you''re being ridiculous.It''s just a phone number. He''d probably have tons of other girls¡¯ number in there too," I told them. "I don''t know, Em, I have a good feeling about this one," Carrie said in a mysterious way. "Oh, you have tea! Spill it!" Tiff demanded. "Word on the street is that Ryan''s been interested in you sincest year, but Zach got to you first.But, who knows? Maybe now it¡¯s his time," Carrie said and everyone started oohing and aahing. I had seen Ryan around the school a lot. He was always friendly and he would smile whenever I passed by. But I never got any weird vibes from him. I didn¡¯t think anything of it. My mind was wandering around aimlessly when I turned my head to the side and caught a glimpse of someone staring right at me from the ssroom window. I squinted my eyes to get a better look and I gasped as soon as I realized who it was. Mr.Hayes. His face looked serious and rigid. When he saw that I was looking at him too, he took a deep breath and bit his lip. Then he fet out his breath, turned around, and walked away, away from my sight. I wondered if he had seen all that. I wondered if that even matters. After swim practice, I got back home from school and started on my homework. I wondered if I should start thinking about my art portfolio, but then it reminded me of Mr.Hayes so I pushed that task aside. Desperate for some distraction, I was d when I suddenly got a text from Ryan. Hey, sorry again for almost hitting you with a football today. Ryan I texted him back: It''s alright. Could¡¯ve been worse. Before I knew it, we started full-on sending messages back and forth. His funny memes sessfully diverted my attention from Mr. Hayes. We texted until it was 1 AM, and we both agreed we should get some sleep. But, when I put my phone away and try to sleep, my thoughts started racing again. Thoughts about him. Except for that one time at lunch, I didn¡¯t see Mr. Hayes at all. I thought it was a good thing, I was getting him out of my system. But turned out, my body was craving him more than ever. I was starting to think that it was a mistake losing my virginity to him. The only reason why I wanted to do it with a random guy at a bar was so that I didn¡¯t have to deal with the emotional attachment. I didn¡¯t think that the guy would ever show up, mind you, in my own school and be my teacher. I was tossing and turning around my bed, desperate for some rest. Turning my body over, I buried my face into my pillow, Jetting out a frustrated groan onto the linen fabric. "Sleep, just sleep," I told myself. Closing my eyes shut, I started thinking about every boring thing out there in the world to lull me to sleep. It was working. I felt my body rxed and my breathing got deeper. I was sleeping. Yet all of a sudden, my ears picked up the soft sound of my door creaking open. And then I heard the sound of footsteps stalking over. I was too tired to open my eyes or turn around, so I did absolutely nothing. Then I felt something warm enveloping my entire body from behind. No, it wasn''t something, it was someone. I shot my eyes open and turned my face around. "Mr. Hayes?"I gasped. He was smirking as his body leaned down on me, rendering me unable to move. "How did you ?" I started to speak, but he put his finger over my mouth to shush me. "Do you miss me?" he whispered to my ear and his lip nted a small kiss on the back of my earlobe. I didn¡¯t respond, but I didn¡¯t move away either. He nted soft, wet kisses on my jawline, reaching down to my neck and corbone. His one hand slid under my body to grab my right boob, and the other hand trailed my back and gripped my left ass cheek. I found myself whimpering uncontrobly beneath him. "Good, ¡®cause I miss you too," he murmured to my skin. His body was pressed up against my back and I could feel something hard grazing my lower spine. My hips jerked up once I realized what it was. "You''ve been avoiding me, haven''t you?" he said again, and I chose not to respond. His right hand started massaging my right boob over my shirt, and his left hand lifted up before pping my left butt cheek raw. "Ouch!" my breath hitched. "Such a bad girl," he hissed. It was a weird feeling to be pped on the butt, but somehow it triggered my pussy to start clenching. His left hand started running circles around my burning butt cheek, caressing it softly, and then he lifted his hand pped it again. I chewed my lip together to stop myself from screaming. "You can avoid me all you want, but I know I''m already inside your head. And I know you want me inside of you too," he grunted, pausing for a moment before saying, "and fuck you senseless, baby girl," My body responded by arching itself closer to him, all without my control. He chuckled lowly as he lifted my hips higher, positioning himself right in between my butt. His left hand moved from my behind and over my body, sneakily snaking its way through my underwear. When he slid his finger across my slit, I was brought back into ecstasy. He ran circles around my clit, skillfully rubbing and pinching the bud with his thumb and index finger. "Ah," I moaned involuntarily. "Ssh, don¡¯t wake your parents," he said as brought his right hand to cover my mouth. Wet cream was pooling around my core as he started rubbing his manhood on my behind. His fingers were dancing around my clit, and suddenly he flicked the flimsy fabric of my underwear to the side, exposing my opening to the cold air. Without warning, I felt a hard deep thrust prating my inside. If it weren''t for his hand over my mouth, I would be a screaming, slobbering mess. He pushed himself into me slow and gentle at first, but as I started expanding around him, his thrusts grew violently and with no remorse. My walls started contracting around his hard length and I pushed back against him as he pounded into me mercilessly. My whole body was shaking in need. His fingers continued assaulting my clit while his rock-hard penis hammered my dripping wet core. "Let go, baby girl.Cum for me," his husky voice murmured to my skin. I couldn''t hold it any longer. Everything was spiraling out of control. My eyes rolled back and I let go, clenching tightly around him as I exploded. It felt like I was seeing stars. The feeling was too much, I had to bit on his fingers to keep myself quiet. And when he was done, he let go of my hips and my body copsed on the bed. My heavy breathing was slowing down and I felt a warm, sweet kiss on the back of my neck, sending me to an even higher paradise. "That''s it.Now, go to sleep, baby girl," And I did. Chapter 7: Lucid Dreaming Chapter 7: Lucid Dreaming EMMA¡¯''s POV : I woke up that morning to a weird sensationing from under me. I pried my eyes open slightly and I saw that both my hands were stuck inside my underwear. Two of my fingers were still inside of me, the pathetic remains ofst night. "Gah, I''m so stupid,"I rolled my eyes and mmed my head against the pillow. It was all just a dream. Of course, it was. What was I thinking? Did I actually believe that Mr.Hayes would find me in my room at night and f u c k me senseless? But somehow...I wished that he did. After pulling myself together for a quick shower and breakfast, I made my way to school. Carrying the heavy books on my hand, I was walking mindlessly towards my first period Chemistry ss when I saw Ryan striding over to me. He smiled real wide as soon as our eyes met. He was wearing his usual red football jacket and I didn¡¯t know why I hadn¡®t noticed this sooner, but he was low-key kind of cute. "Hey Emma,"he greeted. "Hey Ryan,"I replied. "You got chemistry with Mr.Gagher?" "Yeah, you too?"I asked. "No.I got chemistry with you,"he grinned. Okay, yeah, that was high-key very cute. "Smooth,"I muttered and rolled my eyes. Turning to my heels, I made my way inside the ssroom and Ryan followed right behind me. I took an empty seat by the window and Ryan naturally took the chair next to it. To be very honest, I didn''t want toe to school today. I didn¡¯t want to be in the same building as Mr.Hayes, I had anxiety every time I turn a corner. But being with Ryan, somehow I forgot about all of that. First period chemistry ss turned out to be a lot of fun. Ryan and I were cracking jokes the whole time and I wasughing my butt off as Ryan did a mean John Mney impression. Mr.Gagher had to shush us repeatedly and even threatened to change our seats. I wanted to be a goodie-goodie and focus on his lectures, but Ryan was very distracting. By the end of ss, Mr.Gagher gave us both detention. "I''m sorry you got detention because of me,"Ryan said as we walked out of first period. "It''s fine, it was worth it," "I still owe you for falling on you yesterday, and now this.You must let me make it up to you," he was being as smooth as butter. "Well, what do you have in mind?" "Wanna go out with me? Like on a date?" My breath was caught in my throat as I didn¡¯t see expect this at all. "Oh..." I was trying to find the words to say when I heard the second bell rang. "We could go see a movie? And there¡¯s this new Mexican ce that just opened, the reviews are pretty good," he asked again. "I...guess ¡ª" "The second bell had rung.You two need to get to ss," suddenly I heard a familiar voice spoke loudly, drowning my voice. I spin my head around and saw Mr. Hayes standing in the middle of the hallway. His gaze was dark and serious. Too serious for my liking. "Alright, I''ll talk to youter?" Ryan quickly said as he moved a couple of steps away. "Yeah.See youter," Ryan waved goodbye as he headed to his second period ss. Mr.Hayes was still standing there, at the same spot, keeping his eyes on me. "What?" I asked him. "Why are you looking at me like that?" "You need to get to ss, Miss Sinir," he said sternly. Rolling my eyes at him, I stomped my feet and headed for second period. When I passed by him, I caught his familiar delicious scent and my breath hitched. "You''re really acting your age now," he said suddenly when I was a few feet away from him. "What does that supposed to mean?" I narrowed my eyes athim. "Nothing," he muttered and walked away. What the hell was that? "Ryan Russo asked you out? Dude, what did you say?" Tiff almost blurted out her pepperoni pizza when I told her what happened with Ryan in first period. Tiff, Carrie, Mark, and I were sitting at our usual spot in the quad, enjoying pizza day for lunch. "I haven''t said anything yet," I answered her. I couldn''t. I was interrupted by the mean, staring eyes of Mr. Hayes. "Well, do you wanna go out with him?" Carrie asked. "I don¡¯t know," I sighed. "I just broke up with Zach a few weeks ago. It feels too soon," "Girl, listen.The best and fastest way to get over someone is to get with someone.Trust me, it''s a proven fact," Tiff stated. "Zach¡¯s a total ass.I heard about what he did to you.Man, you deserve someone better,"Mark added. My friends had some good points. I could easily have said yes to Ryan this morning, but somehow I didn¡¯t. It was like something was holding me back. At first, I thought it was my breakup with Zach, but now I was thinking it might be something else entirely. My eyes darted to therge window where I saw Mr.Hayes stood yesterday. It was the window to the art studio. Wait, was I looking for him?I thought I wanted to stay away from Mr.Hayes. I thought I needed to avoid him at all costs. Which was why I never even took a step anywhere near the art studio. I''d purposefully took the long way around to get to my sses so I wouldn''t have to face the awkwardness that was Mr.Hayes. Yet now I was wondering where he was? As if on cue, a tall figure appeared at the corner of the window. I tilted my head to the side to get a closer look. The figure looked a lot like Mr.Hayes, but I wasn''t sure. Original from N?velDrama.Org. It looked like he was talking to somebody. "Hello? Earth to Emma? Hey, what are you looking at?" Carrie¡¯s voice broke my daydream. "Oh, nothing,"I muttered quickly and looked away. "Hey! Is that Mr.Hayes and Ms.Diaz in the art room?"Mark was practically yelling. My eyes shot up instantly and I saw it. The two of them.They were talking. She wasughing, a lot. Somehow this made my stomach twist in an unpleasant way. "Holy cow! Is it happening? Are they actually dating?"Tiff squeaked. "They look mightyfortable with each other,"Carriemented. "Is the school even okay with this?"I found myself being salty all of a sudden. "There are no rules against it,"Mark wasn¡¯t being helpful. "I bet they¡¯d make cute babies,"Tiff said and I wanted to gag. "Ew, Tiff," "What? It¡¯s true," Tiff defended herself, "you two are so lucky you picked the art elective.I wish I''d done that.Now instead of having Jamie Dornan as my teacher, I''m stuck in drama ss making wigs with Mrs.Applebaum," Carrie and Mark startedughing, but I couldn¡¯t bring myself tough. My mind was still stuck on Ms.Diaz and her perfect rack talking to Mr.Hayes. Why does that even matter, you moron? He''s your teacher and he¡¯s a free man. He can do whatever wants and talk to whoever he wants! "Em? Are you okay? You seem pretty out of it," Carrie said as she waved her hand in front of me. "Uh? Yeah, no, I¡¯m good.I just need to go to the bathroom real quick," I said as I stood up. "Want me to go with you?" Tiff offered. "Nah, I¡¯m good.You guys stay here," I made my way through the long corridor and debated whether or not I should do what I was about to do. I lied about the bathroom, obviously. I was making strides over to the art studio, the one ce I swore I would note near. "Oh,n, you''re hrious" I heard Ms.Diaz''s cheeryugh as I neared the art studio¡¯s door. The door wasn''t closed all the way, so I made sure that I was standing at the perfect spot where they wouldn''t see me. "They''re ying that film you know, down at the McGee Theater," she said again. "Oh, really?" "Yeah, we should go check it out," "Sure.When is it?" "How¡¯s Friday night for you? We can also get dinner?" she asked. "Yeah, that sounds great,"he replied. It didn¡¯t even take him one second to think about his response. Then I heard Ms.Diaz''s giggling grew louder, and all of a sudden the door swung open. I was frozen in shock as both Ms.Diaz and Mr.Hayes were standing at the doorframe, looking right at me. "Emma? Are you okay, dear?"Ms.Diaz said. "Um, yeah..."I was scrambling for an excuse, "I just have some questions to ask Mr. Hayes about the AP art portfolio," "Oh, okay,"she said and turned her head back to Mr.Hayes, "I''ll see youter, then?" Mr.Hayes smiled and nodded. Ms.Diaz was glowing in confidence as she strode away, leaving the two of us alone. "You have something to ask me?" Mr.Hayes¡¯ gaze sharply turned to me. "I...uh, was wondering if I could borrow some...chisel for my art piece," The chisel was the first thing I saw when my eyes darted into the room for help. "Sure, just sign your name and make sure you return it,"he gestured to the sign-in sheet on the desk. "Okay," I made my way into the ssroom awkwardly, grabbed a chisel from the cab, and wrote my name on the sheet. All the while, Mr.Hayes was just standing there, leaning against the doorframe, looking at me with dark, brooding eyes. I got everything I needed and I was about to walk out the ssroom, but I couldn''t help myself and my mouth blurted out, "So, I guess the rumors are true.Are you going out with Ms.Diaz?" Mr.Hayes looked taken aback by this question. Cocking his head to the side, he studied my face and said, "What I do with Erica Diaz is none of your concern, Emma," "Right..."I trailed. "I didn¡¯t say anything about you and that jock-kid,"he sneered. Jock-kid? Did he mean Ryan? Oh, so he heard us this morning. We looked at each other for a while as our eyes were narrowed sharply at each other. There was this unspoken tension in the air and it was getting ufortable. ¡°Whatever, this is pointless.You''re right.I''m sorry I even said anything," I said finally, breaking off the staring contest. Mr.Hayes didn''t say a word in response, so I decided to walk away. "Enjoy your date," he said suddenly and it made me stop my tracks. His words sounded bitter.Or maybe I was the bitter one. Without turning around, I breathed out, "You too, Mr.Hayes," Chapter 8: Party Favor Chapter 8: Party Favor EMMA''s POV : "I don¡¯t think I''m ready for a full-on date yet.I get all nervous just thinking about it,"I groaned into my pillow and threw my head back on the bed. Tiff and Carrie were sitting next to me. It was a typical Thursday night for us girls. We were binge- watching Sex and the City for the gazillionth time when I got a text from Ryan. He was asking if we could go out tomorrow night. "We can all go as a group? Maybe that''ll take your mind off things,"Carrie suggested. "Actually, that¡¯s not a bad idea,"my body shot up in response. If we were all going out as friends, it might even be fun. "And I know just the thing.There¡¯s a party tomorrow night at Madison Davis¡¯ke house.Everyone will be there.It''ll be perfect,"Tiff made a good point. "That''s a great idea, Tiff.And Em, if the date turns out to be sucky, you can always hang with us," Carrie added. I nodded at their suggestions. Not wasting any more time, I replied to Ryan¡¯s text, asking him about going to the party at Madison¡¯s house. "He says he''ll be there!" I squeaked as soon as I read his response. "Yay! This is gonna be fun," Tiff shot Carrie and I aM knowing look. It had been a while since I got a chance to let loose and have fun with my friends. Thest time we did that was for my birthday and look at how it all turned out. I just hoped that things would start looking up from here on now. Friday night came in a blink of an eye. Tiff and Carrie came over after school so we could get all get ready at my house. Mark would pick us up at 8.30 or so and we''d all head to Madison Davis¡¯ke house. I had to admit, it was fun trying out clothes and getting ready for a party with my friends. All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. We yed a lot of J Balvin and Bad Bunny songs to get us in the mood, and it was working. I was thoroughly happy and I felt great when I stepped out in my crop tank top and skirt and my girlfriends started fake drooling. "You''re gonna give Ryan a heart attack with them skirts!" Tiffmented. "Yeah? Tell that to your cleavage," I motioned to her choice of outfit, a very tight ck tank top. "Guys, Mark is here. Come on, we have a party to get to," Carrie said as we scrambled to get our things and shoved them into our tiny purses. "Hey, do you want one?" Tiff whispered to me suddenly, revealing a pack of condom in her hand. "Oh, no," I muttered quickly "I don''t think things are gonna go that far," "Just better be safe than sorry," she said again and quickly slipped the condom into my purse. "What are you two chit-chatting there about,e on, chop-chop!" Madison Davis was the Queen Bee at our school. She was head cheerleader and her parents were loaded. She reminded me a lot like Regina George from Mean Girls, except she wasn''t that mean and she loved throwing parties. She was dating Brad, captain of the football team, and they were the power couple of West Lake High. The Kanye and Kim K, if you must. Which was why it was important for them to throw awesome parties every now and then to assert that dominance. Tiff, Carrie, and I were the in-betweeners. We were social and somewhat popr, just not at the top of the food chain. But I liked that about us, it gave us a range. We can party like animals when we want to, study like nerds when we need to, and still have the best of both worlds. The Davis¡¯ke house was this huge awesome two- story ss mansion that you would often see in Architectural Digest. As soon as we pulled up to the driveway, we noticed the already many cars that were parked there. "Seems like the party has started," Tiff said in a singsong way. Leading the way, she pulled my hand so we would walk faster toward the door. As soon as the door opened, I saw people in every direction and they were drinking, dancing,ughing, making out, ying beer-pong¡ª basically everything hormonal teenage kids would love to do when the adults weren''t around. "Hey, you made it," I heard a familiar voice as we entered the living room. I turned around and saw Ryan, smiling his mega-watt smile at me. He was with his other football friends, but he left them and strode over to me. "Hey," I said to him. "Can I get you a drink?" I looked at Tiff for a split second and she was grinning at me with two thumbs up. "Sure," "Okay, I''ll be right back," he said as he slipped toward the kitchen. "You two kids talk and I''ll go get myself my own kind of refreshment," Tiff winked naughtily. "And if you ever need anything, juste look for us," Carrie said sweetly, gesturing between her and Mark. Momentster, Ryan was back with two red stic cups in his hands. Tiff, Carrie, and Mark took this a sign to scoot away. "So, how''re things?" Ryan started with small talk. He looked kind of nervous. "It''s great. How was practice?" "It''s good. Just a bit tired.But all good," Somehow we both were being awkward and didn¡¯t know what to say to each other. Thankfully, Madison and Brad were walking by and they stopped to talk to us. "Guys! Come join us, we''re ying a game. We need another couple to y," Madison was _ slurring her words a little bit. Couple? "Upstairs.Now," Brad was motioning for Ryan and me to follow him.Ryan and I exchanged a look and we just shrugged. Secondster, we were climbing up the stairs to the second floor master bedroom, right behind Madison and Brad. Madison flung the door open and revealed four other people were sitting around in the middle. "Found us some more yers!" Madison cheered. Everyone weed us in and gestured for us to sit around the circle. Brad closed the door shut and joined Madison around the circle. "So, what are we ying?" I asked the group. "It''s a couple truth or dare," some girl answered me. "Pretty self-exnatory," Madison added as she picked up an empty beer bottle and ced it in the middle of the circle. "Oh, but we''re not..." I looked over to Ryan and he just grinned sheepishly. "Let¡¯s start!" Brad announced as he spun the bottle around ferociously. Before I could say anything else, the bottle was spinning and spinning until suddenly it stopped directly in front of Ryan. "Ryan! Truth or dare?" the group cheered in excitement. "Uh..." Ryan thought about it for a while and said, "truth?" The group looked at each other, grinning mischievously before one person asked, "What are you guys¡¯ favorite position?" I almost spat the drink in my mouth, but I quickly held it together. I shot a look over at Ryan, who was looking right back at me, not knowing what to say. "Err, we actually haven''t done anything," Ryan admitted finally. "Boo! No way!" The group protested. "Come on, man!" "Stop lying!" "It¡¯s the truth," Ryanughed and the group continued to groan. Meanwhile I just smiled sheepishly at everyone. Guess they picked the wrong couple for this game. "Okay, okay, just spin it," Madison ordered and Ryanplied. The bottle spun again for a few seconds, and lo and behold, itnded in front of me. "No more truths for you two," Madison said quickly before I could say anything else. "So...that means...dare?" I asked cautiously. "Yes!" The group cheered and pped. "I dare you two to make out in the bathroom for seven minutes," Madison squeaked and the group cheered harder. "Seven minutes in heaven, ssic choice, babe," Brad added. I looked over at Ryan who just smiled and shrugged. I gave him a small smile back as he gave his hand out to me. People started oohing as Ryan and I made our way to the bathroom. As soon as the bathroom door closed, we heard someone yelled, "seven minutes starts now, lovebirds! Make it count!" I could hear the group¡¯s giggle andughs in the background. Ryan shuffled nervously and he raked his dirty blonde hair with his hand. "Yeah, this is stupid.We don¡¯t have to do anything if you don¡¯t want to," he said finally. "Okay," I breathed, thinking for a while before saying ¡°But they probably can tell," "Well, maybe we should, like do something to make it look like we made out," I raised an eyebrow and asked, "Like what?" "Like..." he took a moment, scanning around the room, and then he came over to me and started ruffling my hair with his hand, "Like this!" "Hey!" I protested and moved to ruffle his hair in exchange. Next thing we knew, we wereughing and chasing after each other. We ruffled each other¡¯s hair and pulled each other''s clothes so it looked all crumply. I was standing at an arm¡¯s length away from him, my hands were fisted into his shirt, trying to crumple them. When I looked up, I saw his bright blue eyes gazing deeply into mine. We stared at each other for a few more seconds and all of a sudden, he closed his eyes and leaned in until his lipsnded on mine. My breath hitched immediately as I didn''t expect it. His kiss was nice and sweet, so I let him kiss me for a bit, before I finally relented and started kissing him back. After a little more kissing, I felt his tongue grazing against my lip. I parted my mouth slightly and allowed his tongue to delve inside, meeting and intertwining with mine. His hands were on my hips and my hands were on his chest. As our kiss grew deeper, hands traveled around my back and gripped my butt tightly. I let out an involuntary moan as he let out a muffled groan. The kiss was getting too hot and heavy and I had a feeling that I should stop this, when suddenly we heard the door rattled and it swung wide open. "There it is!" Brad yelled with his fist pumped in the air. The others were cheering andughing right behind him. Ryan and I immediately pulled away.I shook my head and stifled augh at how disheveled we both looked. "Guess seven minutes were up," Ryan said as he gave out his hand. I took his hand as we walked back into the room. And for the rest of the night, we never let go of each other''s hands. The rest of the night was quite trivial. The group continued ying a few more rounds and by the end of it, they all took a side of the room and started making out with their partners. Ryan and I looked at each other ufortably before he finally said, "Wanna get outta here?" "Yes please," I couldn''t nod fast enough. "What do you mean?" I looked at him quizzically. He didn''t answer me in words, he just smiled and bit his lip.Then slowly, he pulled my hand and led me out of the house.We walked through the row of cars in the driveway until we arrived in his car. Next thing I knew, we were in the backseat of his car, making out.My hands were tangled in his hair, our tongues were dancing with each other, and his hands were massaging my chest over my shirt.He was breathing heavily and making all sorts of noises. I was closing my eyes the whole time, but suddenly I saw an image sh before my eyes.It was the image of the tall dark-haired stranger and how he kissed me against the wall at that bar in Emory. Mr. Hayes. No, stop thinking about Mr.Hayes! "Are you okay? You seem kinda out of it?" Ryan said suddenly. "Uh," I pulled away from him a little bit and propped myself up. "Did I do something?" he asked again. "No, no, it''s not you.It''s just...I''m not in a good ce right now and this is moving way too fast," I sighed heavily. He studied my face and took my hand as he said, "We can take things slow," His eyes were pleading with mine.I cocked my head to the side and gave him a small smile. "Yes, Ryan.I think we should," I paused for a moment before continuing, "In the meantime, it¡¯s getting late and I''m tired.I think I should go," "Let me take you home," "No, it''s okay.I have my friends," "So...then I''ll see you at school?" "See you at school," I nodded. Chapter 9: Wishful Thinking Chapter 9: Wishful Thinking IAN¡¯s POV : "I had a really good time tonight,"Erica Diaz purred and batted her eyshes at me. "Yeah, me too,"I replied shortly. It wasn¡¯t a lie. I was driving her home after our dinner date, she picked this Italian ce and the food was decent. Conversation with her was decent too, and she was easy on the eyes. She''s got a nice ass and a good set of rack, and a pretty face to match. She kept mentioning how she¡¯d been single for the past six months. Clearly, she was hungry for some. If this was me a month ago, I wouldn''t think twice about throwing her sexy ass on the bed and giving her what she wants. But after that night at the bar, that crazy whirlwind night, I couldn''t stop thinking about Emma. She was all I wanted. Anyone else was just...a distraction. I couldn''t forget the way she moved and the way she teased. How warm and wet she was when she was wrapped around me. God, just the thought of her was enough to get me all worked up again like some horny motherfucker. "This is me," Erica said suddenly, breaking my train of thought. The car came to a screeching halt in front of this white house with a white picket fence. Erica took off her seatbelt, but she didn¡¯t open the door immediately.She was ying with her keys. "Would you like toe up for a drink?" she asked as she bit her lip. Honestly, I was tired of more small talk. I wanted to get home and I needed to get her out of my system. "I''m kind of tired" "It will be a quick drink," she said simply, and I knew what that meant. I took a deep breath and sighed before saying: "Alright, sure," And as soon as I said it, the biggest smile curved up her face.It wasn¡¯t long before we started making out on her couch.We were both adults, and this wasn¡¯t my first rodeo. Reaching down my pants, her hand stopped at my length and started massaging me over the fabric. I let out a pleasant groan and she started to unzip me. She smiled widely as her hand found my cock and she pulled it out, revealing its full length. "Wow," she couldn''t help but lick her lips hungrily. I watched her as she leaned down and took my tip into her mouth. Her tongue swirled and danced around me, leaving hot saliva all over my length. I threw my head back in response, my hand palmed her by the hair tightly. Her mouth felt nice around me, but I wondered what Emma¡¯s would taste like.Original from N?velDrama.Org. S h i t. "Don''t be so tense, big boy," Erica murmured as she nted wet kisses around my tip. Her hand was holding onto the base, keeping me in ce. I rxed myself and focused my thoughts on this, instead of somewhere else. Erica¡¯s mouth began to take me in, inch by inch. She went as far as she could until my tip hit her throat, and she pulled out. I tightened my grip around her hair and within seconds, Erica''s head started bobbing ferociously along my length. I jerked myself up and down, following her movements, thrusting into her throat like there was no tomorrow. In the heat of the moment, Erica¡¯s face disappeared and I was seeing Emma''s instead. Emma¡¯s hand was wrapped around my length and her little mouth was wrapped around the tip of my cock. I pushed even harder into her mouth and she gagged in response. "Fuck, E-!" And I came, hard and heavy, spilling my seed into her mouth.I stopped myself before I said Emma¡¯s name out loud, and thank God I did. Erica took my spill and swallowed hard, licking her lips victoriously as she finished.My chest felt like it was sinking when I saw Erica''s face, and not somebody else. She was looking up at me, eyes dark with lust and hunger.Not wasting too much time, I took her by her hips and flipped her body around on the couch.She gasped pleasantly at what I was doing.She ced her hands on the side of my face and she pulled me in for a kiss. We continued kissing for a while, my tongue was roaming the inside of her mouth and her body whimpered at my touch.She wasn¡¯t a bad kisser, but it wasn''t great either.Still, I was determined to make this work. Sheid t on her back as I positioned myself above her.My hands trailed her curvy hips all the way to her busty chest.Yanking her tube dress and bra down, I released her breasts and they bounced.I delved down to capture her nipple with my mouth, sucking and nipping at her hardening bud.Erica was moaning and screaming my name like there were no other words in her dictionary. My other hand went down the length of her dress before pulling it back up,revealing the ckce panties she was wearing.I pulled down her panties in one swift move, causing her to gasp. Her wet throbbing core was exposed to me. Slipping a finger through her slit easily, I started ying with her clit. She threw her had back and thrashed her hips up in response, craving for more. I responded by plunging a finger deep inside her, and another one followed quickly. "Oh,n..n..n!" She was a moaning mess. And somehow I didn¡¯t like it. Grabbing her crumpled panties on the floor, I stuffed it inside her mouth, and she took it dly. Her moans became muffled groans and I was more okay with that.I wondered if I''d like Emma to scream my name. S hit, what kind of thought was that? Shoving away the stupid image in my head, I pulled my fingers out of Erica¡¯s throbbing core and flipped her body around effortlessly. Her back was now facing me, the dress had hiked up to show her gorgeous ass. My hands instinctively went to grope her ass cheeks. Damn, they felt good. Parting her legs wider with my knee, I slipped my fingers into her core once again, thrusting even rougher this time. My other hand went to grab her tit, squeezing it tightly as my fingers pinched her erect nipple. Erica was panting and screaming through the fabric in her mouth. Yeah, it felt good, but not as good as hers. I never had anything as good as hers. "S h i t," I muttered lowly to myself, cursing the fact that Emma¡¯s face kept popping into my head. ".n?" Erica asked through muffled breaths. "Get on your knees," I said rather curtly. Sheplied in an instant. Her body was flushed against the couch, her knees on the floor, and her ass was Sticking out into the air. I liked this position better, at least I didn''t have to see her face. "Please,n..." she begged. God, I hated the sound of her voice. I wished it was Emma''s instead. "Shut up!" I said out loud. I meant to direct it to myself, but Erica piped down instantly. That works too. Taking my spot behind her, I held my pulsating manhood and started stroking it gently, all the while I was thinking about Emma. I knew it was wrong, I wasn¡¯t supposed to be thinking about fucking my own student. But it wouldn''t be wrong if I didn''t actually do it, right? After rolling some rubber on my length, I ced my hard erection against her slits. She responded by opening her legs further, allowing me more ess. Her core was glistening, almost dripping. Gripping onto her ass cheeks tightly, I shoved myself inside her with one hard thrust. Her body jerked in response and she threw her head back. Not giving her a chance to say anything, I pulled out quickly and mmed into her one more time, even deeper and harder this time. Next thing I knew, I was riding her pussy in fast, ragged moves. I kept my hold on her hips firmly as I pulled her body in and out of me. Her nails dug deep into the couch as her hips bucked up in response and she kept screaming after my name. Somehow I wasn''t enjoying this. She was way too easy and way too eager. So I closed my eyes and imagined that it was Emma instead. How fucking beautiful she would look with her ass up like this. And then I would fuck her from behind, and her tight pussy would clench around me, fitting into me like a snug glove. "Fuck!" The thought of her made me harder than a rock. I was thrusting into her with such force and speed, Erica¡¯s whole body convulsed as she came unraveling around my cock. She let out onest scream as her pussy tightened around me and the warm liquid trickled out of her. I thrust into her a few more times before I let go and released myself. It wasn¡¯t the best, but I needed that release. I pulled away from her and adjusted myself. She was still lying breathlessly, face down on the couch. I took the panties from her mouth and tossed it to the side. She was smiling at me from ear to ear. "Wow,n, that was amazing," she was still panting. "Yeah," I gave out a small smile. Connections, chemistry, and the art of fucking¡ªthey weren''t one-way streets. Many people didn¡¯t get this, though. If they thought they were having a good time, they would just assume that their partner did too. Erica got up to her feet and started straightening out her dress. She walked towards the kitchen and began raiding her fridge. "So, about that drink ¡ª" she was about to say something, but I cut her off before she could finish. "So, I''ll see you around," I said as I gathered my keys from the coffee table. She whipped her head up quickly in shock. "Or you can stay?" she asked. "I have some work to get to," "Oh, okay," she looked disappointed, but she was trying her best to hide it, "I''ll see you around then," Without turning back to look at her, I headed for the door. I couldn''t get out of there fast enough. As soon as I got into my car and closed the door, my fist curled into a ball and I hit the steering wheel several times in frustration. Fuck. I just fu cked some chick while I was thinking about my damn student the entire time. What the f uc k is wrong with me? I didn¡¯t have the answer to that. So I took a deep breath and I kept telling myself that this was just a glitch in the system. I''d forget about Emma soon enough.And with that, I started the drive home.Not thinking about Emma was a lot harder than I thought. I liked this girl ever since I saw her at the bar. She was gorgeous and wild, but she had _ this innocence about her that I couldn''t put my finger around.And when I saw her again at school, I was floored. The fact that she was my student hit me like a boulder to the head, but the fact that I could see her again¡ªit made my heart double in size.? I felt like such a shit motherfucker for even feeling this way about her. But that was what I felt. I could lie to Erica, but I couldn''t lie to myself. My eyes driftedzily at the side of the road as I was driving, and suddenly I caught sight of something familiar. I hit the brakes immediately and took a double My eyes driftedzily at the side of the road as I was driving, and suddenly I caught sight of something familiar. I hit the brakes immediately and took a double look, thinking that my brain was ying tricks on me. I rolled down the car window to get a better look, and I was right. Emma was walking all alone, in the middle of nowhere, in the dead of night. "Emma?" As soon as she heard my voice, her head turned towards me and her eyes widened in shock. "Mr. Hayes?" Chapter 10: Honest Truth Chapter 10: Honest Truth EMMA¡¯s POV : "Emma?" Mr. Hayes¡¯ voice kept ringing in my ears and I was rendered mute. My brain and body were too tired from the party that I thought I was sleepwalking. "Mr. Hayes...?" my small voice croaked as I squinted my eyes to get a better look at him. "What are you doing here?" Mr. Hayes¡¯ tone was serious and demanding. "I''m¡­ walking home," I replied casually. He looked at me up and down, and somehow he looked pissed off¡­ or worried? "Get in, I''ll give you a ride," he said in amanding voice. I was honestly d that someone was willing to offer me a ride home. After telling Ryan that I needed some time alone, I went back to the party to look for my friends, but they weren''t anywhere to be found. After failing to reach them on their phones, I gave up and decided to walk home. I actually thought six miles was a walk-able distance. But then again, if I got into a car with Mr. Hayes, it would just be super awkward and terribly weird. So I quickly shook my head at him. "No thanks, I''m fine," He didn¡¯t look happy with my response. "Emma," he paused for a second before saying "It¡¯ste and you''re alone.Get in the car,"He sounded angry. I gulped instinctively and reached for the car door. Next thing I knew, I was seated on the passenger seat adjusting my seat belt. He asked for my address and typed it into his phone for GPS. Momentster, the car began to move and slowly picked up its pace. Turning my head slightly to the side, I noticed Mr. Hayes¡¯ cool and handsome feature. His jawline was so sharp, you could cut through cold butter with it. His dark brooding eyes looked straight into the road, as if he was thinking hard about something. He was wearing a fitted buttoned down shirt, one that perfectly hugged his toned body, but not constricting it. "Emma," he said suddenly and my eyes shot up in response. My cheeks flushed red for no reason, hoping he didn¡¯t notice that I was gawking at him. "Yeah?" I tried to sound as calm as possible. "You wanna tell me why you¡¯re walking alone at night, in the middle of nowhere?" There was a slight tone of worry in his voice. I debated whether or not to tell him, but it was probably best not to, so I shook my head and said, "No"He sighed at my response. The atmosphere in the car turned sour real fast. I wanted to lighten up the mood somehow, so I started raking my brain for a conversation starter. "It¡¯s Friday.How was your date with Ms. Diaz?" I asked cautiously and his gaze turned almost mad. He shot daggers at me and I quickly piped up. "Sorry, I just wanted to make small talk," Mr. Hayes was quiet for a moment. He took a deep breath as a crease formed on his forehead. Then, while focusing on the road, his one hand reached to the backseat and he pulled out a gray jacket. Heid the jacket on myp, covering my thigh and my mini skirt. I looked up at him quizzically, but he still kept his eyes on the road. "You look like you''re cold," he said simply. I agreed.I was cold.I grabbed the jacket used it to cover more of my body. "Thanks" "Emma, You''re still so young," he started off. "You need to be careful with what''s out there.You don¡¯t just go walking around in the middle of the night dressed like¡ª" "Like what?" "Nothing," He was sounding somewhat condescending to me, and it got me all riled up. "Tell me, Mr. Hayes, what would a girl like me found walking around in the middle of the night, huh? A guy like you, maybe?" All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. "Emma," he warned me. "That''s right, I did," I pressed on. "Emma, stop it," "Yeah, I was just a little girl who didn¡¯t know any better "I said stop," "¡ªWho found some random guy at a college bar and gave my virginity to him in the back of an alley ¡ª"" The car came to a sudden screeching halt. My body jerked forward and back in response. "What?" He gazed at me intently, his eyes were inplete shock. "What do you mean, what?" I asked back. "You were a virgin?" "You...didn¡¯t know? I thought you said I was inexperienced," "Yeah, as in you don¡¯t seem to have much experience, bul I never thought you were a virgin," There was a look in his face that I couldn''t decipher. Maybe he was feeling sorry for me, or ashamed. I didn¡¯t know what it was, but he was clearly upset. "Shit, Emma," he muttered under his breath, "I''m sorry," "Why are you sorry? It was my choice," I reminded him. "Emma, if I had known..." he started to speak but stopped himself. "Would you have done it differently?" The words escaped my mouth without me realizing it. Mr. Hayes was absolutely caught off guard too. His jaw dropped to the floor and he couldn''t answer me. "Would you?" "I..." he started speaking, but he paused and finally said, "No," My breath hitched at his honesty, and somehow my legs clenched itself together. I remembered moments from that night again¡ªhow rough he was being with me. And the fact that he wouldn''t change a thing caused a stirring in my stomach. "Emma, I..." he looked up at me and when my eyes met him, he couldn''t speak. We were staring at each other for what felt like an eternity. His deep brown eyes looked so piercing, yet gentle. Until suddenly, as if on cue, we both moved at the same time. I grabbed his neck and he grabbed my face. Our lips crashed into each other like a wave to a rock. He kissed me hungrily and passionately, and I returned the kiss with the same fervor and need. His tongue pushed through my lips and he started roaming and tasting each corner of my mouth. I found myself moaning appreciatively. His hand moved to the back of my head, pulling me closer to him. The seatbelt was being too restraining, so I clicked the switch with one hand and it came pulling away in an instant. Leaving the seatbelt behind, I scooted myself closer to the side and Mr. Hayes¡¯ handnded on my hip. He grabbed my small body with his strong hands and the next thing I knew, I was pulled into straddling him on the driver¡¯s seat. Wait, what''s happening? I knew this was wrong, but my body had no control to stop. I had been aching for his touch and he was lighting a fire deep inside me. I could tell he was feeling the same way by the hardening bulgeing from under me. He let out a soft groan as his mouth now moved to the nape of my neck, leaving wet open kisses all over me. I gripped onto his jet-ck hair and arched my head back to give him more ess. Holy s hit, Mr. Hayes and I are making out! His hands were gripping my butt cheeks through my mini skirt, and he dug his nails deep, causing me to flinch. I was a squirming and writhing mess, but he was holding me firmly in ce. This is getting so out of hand, one of us has to stop this! None of us said anything or did anything the other one didn¡¯t want. He kept kissing and sucking on the sweet spot on my neck, while I ran my fingers through his gorgeous hair. "You don¡¯t know how much I want you," he said through ragged breaths. I couldn''t say a word as I felt his hand traveled down my inner thigh and it stopped right at my panties. He slipped a finger through the fabric and my breath was caught in my throat. "And now I know how much you want me too," he said as he pulled his finger out, dripping wet with my juices. I was so embarrassed by this, I quickly turned my head away and started kissing him instead, hoping he didn¡¯t notice my face turning bright red. He found it amusing as he chuckled slowly and continued kissing me. His hand went back down again, hovering over my wet area. I was waiting in anticipation when suddenly¡ª * RING RING RING * My phone''s ringtone pierced loudly into the air, causing both of us to jerk up in response. "Shoot," I muttered and pulled away. I moved back to the passenger seat and grabbed my phone from my purse. It was Carrie calling me. "Hey," I said lowly to the phone. "Where the hell are you? Did something happen?" she sounded really worried. "I got a ride, I''m on my way home. Don¡¯t worry about me," "Are you sure? Sorry I missed your calls.Tiff here passed out in the bathroom," and I could hear Tiff¡¯s faint slurring in the background. "You seem busy, but don¡¯t worry about me. I''ll talk to you tomorrow," "Okay, Em. Love you, talk to youter," "Bye," I turned off the call and get out a sigh. I turned to face Mr. Hayes and he let out the same long sigh. Our eyes met for a moment and a sorry smile crept up our faces. "I...I don''t know what happened, I¡¯m sorry¡ª" he started but I cut him off. "It''s my fault, I''m sorry," I didn¡¯t want him to think that he was the adult that took advantage of me. I wanted it just as much as he did. Maybe even more. The air turned awkward all of a sudden and Mr. Hayes started the car again. We were driving inplete silence, until minutester, we pulled up to my house. "Thank you for the ride," I said finally, breaking the silence. "You''re wee,"It didn¡¯t seem like he was going to say anything else, so I took off the seatbelt and reached for the door. "Wait, Emma¡ª"" he said suddenly, pausing for a moment before saying, "I think we need to talk about what just happened," "Okay," I gulped and leaned back down. "Look, it¡¯s pretty obvious that.. I feel certain things towards you. But I am your teacher. I won''t let that happen again, I promise, He feels...things...for me? I knew he meant well by what he said. But I was feeling disappointed. I didn''t want to hear him say that it won''t happen again. "I''m sorry if I hurt you that night at the bar, I didn''t know it was your first time.I am sorry but I don¡¯t regret any of it," he continued. "You didn¡¯t hurt me," I said slowly, throwing my gaze to the floor. He took a deep breath and sighed. With one hand, he tilted my chin up so I was facing him once again. "Emma, you''re still so young.There''s still so much that you don¡¯t know.I''m the adult here and I need to make the conscious decision," "Mr. Hayes,"I cut him off before he could nail my coffin shut. "Can we talk about this some other time? I''ve had a lot to drink and I¡¯m really tired.I¡¯m not thinking straight right now," He was studying my face intently. His gaze was warm and gentle and it sent shivers up and down my spine.His thumb ran a few circles around my chin softly and he gave out a weak smile.I smile back and he nodded his head, and he let me go. "See you at school, Mr. Hayes" I said as I stepped out of the car. He looked at me with his head cocked to the side anh said: "Good night, Emma, Sweet dreams." Chapter 11: Breaking Bad Chapter 11: Breaking Bad Damn you, Mr.Hayes! Damn you and your charming good looks and your piercing brown eyes and your delicious kisses.Damn you! All weekend long I was haunted by thoughts of Mr.Hayes and our car ride together.The worst part was that I couldn''t tell my two best friends about it.If only I could discuss the situation and talk my feelings out with them, I wouldn¡¯t be so tortured. I met up with Tiff and Carrie the day after the party.It was Saturday afternoon and we were getting food at the mall.They were filling me in on things that I missed out on while I was on the second floor master bedroom ying seven minutes in heaven.And then I told them about my make-out sessions with Ryan, and how I wasn¡¯t ready for anything too serious. They thought it was because I haven''t moved on from Zach.But the truth was, I couldn''t move on from Mr.Hayes. I didn''t say anything, though.I let them think what they think.I didn¡¯t want to get Mr.Hayes in trouble and I didn''t want to jinx any chance that we might end up together. Wait, does this mean...I like, like Mr.Hayes? Like, like him-like him? "So, what are you gonna tell him?" Carrie¡¯s voice broke my daydreaming. "What? Tell who what?" my eyes snapped immediately. "Ryan.What are you gonna tell him when you see him at school on Monday? He probably thinks that you still have the hots for him," "Yeah, especially looking at all those hickeys on your neck.Damn girl," I blushed instantly at the mention of my neck.I woke up in the morning and saw various, and I meant numerous, hickeys all over my neck.The worst part though, was that I wasn¡¯t sure who gave it to me.It could Ryan, or it could be Mr.Hayes...or both. "I guess I''ll tell him the truth," I sighed before continuing, "The kiss was a spur of the moment thing, and I¡¯m not looking for anything serious, and that I don''t see him that way," "Aw, poor kid¡¯s gonna get his heart broken," Tiffmented. "But it''s better than stringing him along," Carrie replied. "Yeah, just be quick and clear about it, Em.Put him out of his misery," After the car ride with Mr.Hayes, I realized how much I didn¡¯t have real feelings for Ryan.It wouldn''t be right to just leave him hanging, especially when he was nothing but nice to me.He kept texting me all day, asking me where I was and how I was feeling.I figured the best way to do this was to talk to him at school, face to face. I just had to tell him quick and clear... "Hey, Ryan.Listen, you''re an amazing guy.You''re funny, and sweet, and you''re really cute.But the thing is, I don¡¯t feel that way about you.I¡¯m sorry if I led you on.But I just have to tell you, I''m not looking for anything serious right now and I just don''t see you in that way.I''m sorry," I was practicing that speech all morning long as I made my way to school.My n was to talk to Ryan during lunch, and avoid him at all costs before that.After dealing with Ryan, I figured I could start sorting things out with Mr.Hayes. I didn¡¯t even know where to begin with Mr.Hayes. What would he say about that kiss in his car? Did it mean something to him? And would it be enough to risk everything in his life? I was just walking aimlessly to my lockers, when I saw Ryan walking my way on the corner of my eye. I wasn''t ready to face him right now, I quickly turned to my heels and took the nearest exit before he could see me. I was too busy running away from Ryan, I didn¡¯t realize I was walking towards the art studio. I hid behind arge pir so that Ryan wouldn''t see me as he walked by. I let out a relieved sigh as soon as he went away. "I had a really good timest Friday night," suddenly I heard a familiar voice. I whipped my head around and I saw Ms.Diaz standing next to Mr.Hayes.They were alone in the art room, and I managed to keep myself hidden behind the door so they wouldn''t see me.Ms.Diaz was beaming at him, batting her eyshes ferociously.Mr.Hayes drank his coffee and gave her a small smile. "I''m d you did,"Mr.Hayes replied, though his tone was rather polite. "It was definitely different.I was still sore all weekend long," She purred seductively and Mr.Hayes remained quiet. She walked around him to grab her things, purposefully brushing her body to his elbow. Flipping her hair back, she eyed him from head to toe like she was hungry for something. "We should do it again sometime," she said lowly, but I could hear it. I made sure I was out of sight when Ms.Diaz walked out of the art studio, sashaying down the hallway. Suddenly, I felt a pang in my chest and my lips tasted bitter. Of course, they went on a date Friday night. Of course, they probably had sex. They were two gorgeous, consenting adults. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. Of course they would. I saw images in my head of the two of them together. Maybe he pinned her against the wall like he did to me. Maybe he said the same dirty words and kissed her with the same urgency. My eyes turned watery and air was escaping my lungs. I had never felt this angry before, even more than when I caught Zach cheating on me in his college dorm. I knew this was a bad idea, but my feet had stepped towards the art room and my hand pushed the door open. Mr.Hayes was shocked to see me, his eyes widened and he almost spat the coffee in his hand. "Emma?" "Did you sleep with her?" I asked point-nkly. "What?" he noticed my glistening eyes and his gaze turned from shock into worry. "Ms.Diaz.Did you sleep with her?" My tone was firm and serious. Mr.Hayes sucked in a deep breath before letting out a long sigh. "What does it matter, Emma?" he said finally. "It matters to me.Please answer the question," "We...did have sex," "Was that before or after you kissed me in your car?" "Emma ¡ª slow down," "Tell me," "It was after," "Why would you even do that? Why would you have sex with someone and kiss another girl five minutester?" "Emma, she was ¡ª and you were¡ª" he stopped to take his hair in frustration and then he continued, " ¡°Emma, listen.You''re a great girl and I won''t deny that I have feelings for you.But this is wrong and that''s that.We don''t have to talk about this any longer.It is what it is.What I do with Ms.Diaz or with anyone else for that matter is none of your business," His tone was t and cold. And with every word, I felt my heart shatter into tiny little pieces. "So the kiss...it didn¡¯t mean anything to you?" "It was...a spur of the moment thing," he paused for a moment before continuing, "Emma, please, try to understand¡± "Oh, I understand," I said as I choke back the tears. "Emma..." "I was just some y thing for you, aren''t I? It was fun having the around, wasn¡¯t it? The fact that we''re not allowed to be together excites you¡ª" "Emma, stop it.I mean it," his tone was stern and he sounded angry. But I couldn''t help myself.I was upset too. "Right.Because what else would it be?" I wiped the single tear that fell to my cheeks and turned to my heels.I didn''t want him to see me like this.All weak and teary eyed. "Emma," he called out for me once more, but I was already out the door. "I was a stupid, stupid girl.¡±Why would someone like Mr.Hayes think twice about a girl like me? Of course it meant nothing to him, of course I was nothing but a random stranger he fucked once behind a bar. "Girl, what happened to your mascara? Are you okay?" Tiff asked worriedly. Tiff and Carrie found me minutester by my lockers.I was trying my hardest to hide the fact that I was a sobbing mess, but of course my best friends would know. "Was it Ryan? Did he say something to you?" Carrie was being her normal protective self. "No, it wasn¡¯t him," I croaked. "What happened?" Tiff and Carrie opened their arms and I went to hug them, letting my tired face rest on their shoulders. "I''m just...really...sad.I liked him, I really, really liked him.And now I got my heart broken for it..." "Aw, baby," Tiff cooed "Zach really doesn¡¯t deserve you," "He''s an ass.You''ll find someone better.Someone who will treat you right.I promise," Carrie added. They were stroking my hair, calming me down. I wasn¡¯t talking about Zach, but this worked too. "It¡¯s only been a couple of weeks since the whole Zach debacle.You can¡¯t get over a guy overnight, Em.You can give yourself some more time, it¡¯s okay," "Yeah, Carrie¡¯s right.Time heals everything," "You''ll be okay.You have us," I nodded my head meekly at their words. I never even realized that someone I barely knew could hurt me this much. Somehow I felt like this hurt more than what Zach did to me. I was such a fool to think that our silly one-night stand could mean something more to him. He was older and he had probably done it a thousand times. I was just a dumb virgin who expected too much.If I should be angry at anyone, I should be angry at myself for my idiocy. "Oh, a group hug in the middle of the hallway?" We then heard Mark¡¯s voice and saw he opened his arms wide to hug us all. "Okay, this is getting weird," Tiffmented and all of us Paee away. I stifled augh as my friends smiled at me. Before long, we all burst out into wildughter.I was feeling much better now, thanks to my friends.How could I ever survive the world without them, I''d never know. The second bell rang just in time and we gathered our things and went to ss. Tiff had her arms around me, Carrie squeezed my hand, and Mark had his arms around Carrie. As we were walking, I nced past the art room and saw Mr. Hayes standing by the door, his face look distraught. My stomach felt like it was kicked in the guts every time I saw his face.Not wanting to give it any more thought, I whipped my head around and shoved away all thoughts of himpletely. I just have to fake it ¡®til I make it. This morning I came to school thinking that I was going to break someone''s heart. I had a speech prepared and everything. But life was unpredictable all right, turns out the joke was on me. The only heart that was broken that day was my own. Damn you, Mr.Hayes.Damn you. Chapter 12: Eyes Closed Chapter 12: Eyes Closed I wished I could wrap her in my arms. Emma was so upset that day, barging into my ssroom and asking me if I had slept with Erica.She had no care in the world that we were inside the fucking school building. What would have happened if someone had heard us? If we were anywhere else in the world, I would have put her in my arms in a heartbeat. If I was anyone but her teacher, I would have hold her tight, kiss her forehead, and tell her that with Erica it all meant nothing. I only went for Erica because I couldn''t get to her. And the only thing that mattered to me was her. I wished I could stop those tears from falling, but I couldn''t building. What would have happened if someone had heard us? If we were anywhere else in the world, I would have put her in my arms in a heartbeat. If I was anyone but her teacher, I would have hold her tight, kiss her forehead, and tell her that with Erica it all meant nothing.I only went for Erica because I couldn''t get to her.And the only thing that mattered to me was her. I wished I could stop those tears from falling, but I couldn''t. Several days had passed since then, and Emma could never look at me in the eyes again. Even during art ss, she¡¯d always look away and pretend she was listening, but I knew she was trying to tune me out.I could be an asshole and call her out, but I didn¡¯t want to. I knew I had hurt her, though I never wanted to. I never had many problems with girls before. The reason Call it infatuation or lust, or whatever it was, I figured it was best to be left alone. It would suck ass now, but it would be better in the long run. So now every time I saw her around school, I just switched my brain off and looked the other way. She wasn¡¯t making it easy for me, though. One day at school, she was wearing this short dress and ripped leggings... I almost fost it right then and there in the middle of the ssroom. Some part of me thought that she was doing it on purpose, that she wanted to punish me or something. Because since that day, she kept confing to school with these clothes that no young girl should be allowed to wear Fuck, I sound like her motherfucking parent. Anyway, it didn¡¯t matter. Whatever shit that was going through my head, I just had to wait it out like some bad flu. This would blow over...soon. Aside from avoiding Emma around school grounds, I also I turned her down so many times already, I made the worst excuses too, and still she wasn''t getting the hint. The craziest part was, the teachers at school were conspiring to get us together since we were the only young single faculty members there. They even made us chaperones to this stupid Halloween dance they were having. Don¡¯t get me wrong, I loved art and I love teaching. But things like chaperoning dances shouldn''t be included in my pay grade. I had no interest in watching teenage kids y dress up and sneak vodka coolers into the punch. Either way, the principal had spoken, so I must go. "Emma! Wait up!" I was just doing some paperwork in the art room when I heard someone called out her name. I hadn''t seen Emma in days and I realized she must be nearby. Out of curiosity, I stepped away from my desk and took a peek out the door. She was wearing the school¡¯s cheerleading uniform and her long hair was tied into a ponytail. She looked good. Damn, she always looked good. She¡¯s way too young, man, and still your fucking student. Let it go. She was talking to this jock kid in a football jacket. I had seen him around before, always trying to talk to her.I think his name was... "Ryan? Hey, what''s up?" she said to him. "So, um, you know the Halloween homing dance ising up¡­ think you¡¯re gonna go?" "Yeah, I thean, all my friends are all going, so..." "I mean with me?" he chuckled and said, "Will you go to the dance with me?" My fists curled up involuntarily and I felt ridiculous. "Ryan ¡ª" she started to speak, but she couldn¡¯t continue. "I know, I know.You said you don''t see me that way and you''re not looking for anything serious.But I was thinking, we can go as friends?" That''s a bullshit thing guys would say to girls. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. I hope she knows better. Emma didn¡¯t answer for a while, and this kid, Ryan, was making stupid puppy-dog faces. I wished I could punch that stupid face. "You''re smiling.Is that a yes?" he asked her. "Okay, sure," she said finally, "as friends," "Absolutely," he beamed at her. Damn, why did she believe that bullshit? - The two of them started walking away and I had to mentally punch myself in the face to get my shit together and not go over to her and tell her off. She¡¯s young and still in high school.She should go to these stupid events with stupid kids her age. Why was I getting so worked up over nothing? Suffice to say, after overhearing that conversation at school, I had a lousy rest of the day. As soon as I got home, I cracked open the fridge and grabbed a bottle of beer. Walking over to my art desk, I flipped my sketchbook open and thought about doing sketches to ease the stress. But when I was going through the pages, I saw a sketch of Emma that I did weeks ago, after our encounter at the bar. At that tune, she was just a stranger to me. A beautiful, mysterious stranger. She left without ever saying anything more than a name, but her eyes haunted my sleep every night since then. "I don''t care, just do it," she looked at me with pleading eyes. I stared at her for the longest time and I didn¡¯t say anything. I just stood there, thinking about how beautiful she looked and how I wanted to freeze this moment in time. "Just fuck me," she said again, causing me to blink in shock.But as soon as the word left her mouth, I couldn''t hold it anymore and my lips crashed onto hers once again. She kissed me back hard and hungrily. My nails dug deep into her soft skin and she was practically pulling at my hair. She tasted so sweet, like nothing I had ever taste before. And the way our bodies moved against each other, it was like we were the first andst lovers on earth. I couldn''t stand not feeling her, so without warning, I thrust myself into her all at once. Her body jerked up in pain, me held onto her tight. "Ah!" She let out a scream, but I caught it with a kiss. I stopped pushing for a moment to let her body took in my full size, then I pulled out slowly and mmed myself inside her again. She was so fucking tight and so fucking warm, it was a feeling iparable to any other feeling. I pushed myself into her several more times, going deeper and harder each time, until there was no sounding out of her screams. These were the thoughts that kept me up all night. I couldn''t sleep for days after that encounter, so I ended up doing a sketch of her face. I didn¡¯t think I was going to see her again, I wanted the memory tost. Oh, it¡¯ssting alright. "Fuck," I muttered to myself and mmed the book closed. Art was always my outlet to release pent up anger and stress. I knew I needed to release all the frustration within me, and suddenly I got an idea. I went to my closet and started raiding for my old pair of jeans, the one I wore to that bar that night. Once I found it, I scootpad the pocket and pulled out some torn-up redce panties. Seeing the torn-up fabric took me back directly to that night in that alley. I didn¡¯t know her then, but when I looked into her eyes, it was as if we were meant to find each other. I never had a need that strong before. The torn-up panties were the only thing left of her because as soon as we were done, she got into her car and left. Normally, I wouldn''t care about such things, but she was different to me. Like a stupid idiot, I picked up the torn-up fabric and kept it in my jeans pocket. Like some fucking Cindere and a ss slipper bullshit. Bringing the fabric up to my nose, I inhaled her scent that still lingered there, and god she smelled divine. I remembered holding into her¡¯ass cheeks that night, and they fit so perfectly in the palm of my hands. I was so filled with this deep hunger inside me, that I couldn''t wait to get her out of her panties. I ripped it open with my fingers and she gasped in shock, but the little glimmer in her eye gave it away. She liked what she saw. "Yeah, I was just a little girl who didn¡¯t know any better¡ª who found some random guy at a college bar and gave my vit to him in the back of an alley¡ª" Her words started ringing in my ears.She didn¡¯t look like the kind of girl that would sleep around.She barely made any eye contact with that jock kid when he asked her out. How did she end up having sex with me in the back of a bar? What happened to her that night? I never asked her these things and now I would never know.She was an enigma to me. If the circumstances were different, I would have spent all my time adoring this girl. I would want to know everything about her, what makes herugh, what makes her cry. I would do anything to keep her smiling and be the one to wipe her tears. She would be my muse and I would be anything she wanted me to be. We could have had a great ,story.Call it love, call it whatever you want, I just knew we_could be great together. The kind of connection and chemistry we had, it wasn''t something anyone could fake or made up. It was the darndest real thing I had ever felt in my entire twenty- four years of existence. Man, we could have been...amazing. But instead, all we ever could be were two people sitting separatet by a desk in a ssroom. Chapter 13 : Little Mermaid Chapter 13 : Little Mermaid EMMaA¡¯s POV : "Little Mermaid, Cindere, or Princess Jasmine? Go ahead, pick one," Tiff brought over these costumes andid them neatly on my bed. The girls thought it''d be fun to dress up as sexy Disney princesses for this year¡¯s Halloween homing dance was going as Elsa and Carrie as Belle. Though it might sound tame, trust me, these weren''t your average princess costumes. "I don''t know," I shrugged, much to Tiff¡¯s dismay. "I would go for Jasmine.That tube top and choker¡¯''s gonna look great on you, Em," Carrie suggested. "I mean I don¡¯t know about going to the dance. Maybe I''m just not gonna go," I sighed and threw my body on the bed, right next to the costumes. "What do you mean you''re not gonna go? We were gonna be sexy princesses.And you even promised Ryan you''d go with him," Tiff reminded. "As friends," I added quickly. "Why don¡¯t you wanna go to the dance, Em? What''s eating you up?" Carrie asked, ever the caring friend she was. "I''m not really in the mood to, you know, dance.I just wanna curl up in my bed and binge-watch something on Netflix," Carrie arf Tiff exchanged a worried look. "Em, I know things have been hard for you, especially with Zach and everything¡ª" Carrie started. "But you can''t let that son of a bitch ruin your junior year.Stop mauling over his stupid ass ande to the dance with us,"Tiff finished. "It''ll be fun.We''ll all be there," Carrie said as she sat next to me and started caressing my hair. "Okay, let''s make a deal.We all go to the dance, but if you''re not having fun, we''ll alle back home with you and watch Netflix and order pizza,"Tiff made one hell of an argument. My friends were so excited about this dance, I felt bad being the Debby downer in the group.So I took a deep breath and looked over the costumes once again. "Fine,"I sighed finally, "I''ll take Little Mermaid," "Yes!"Carrie and Tiff cheered in unison. The little mermaid costume was made up of this shell bikini looking thing and a high slit long green sequin skirt. I must admit, it was a sexy outfit and it highlighted all the right curves of my body. The night of the dance finally came. Tiff, Carrie, Mark, and I made our way into decked out the auditorium. The disco ball was shimmering, music was in full swing, and people in all sorts of costumes were dancing,ughing, and having a ball. "Hey, you made it," Ryan strode over to us as soon as he saw me. He dressed up as Prince Eric because I told him I was Ariel. "Hey," I greeted him back and he immediately leaned in for a kiss on the cheek. My friends looked at each other awkwardly as I pulled away from him. "Guys, let''s get some drinks," Mark proposed and we all agreed. As we made our way to the refreshment area, I noticed a tall, handsome dark haired guy standing in a suit. He looked way too cool and proper to be a student.My heart ached as soon as I caught his eyes and he caught mine.Mr.Hayes could wear anything and still look like a million bucks. Next to him was none other than Ms.Diaz. She was wearing a red strapless dress, showcasing her gorgeous long legs that could go for miles. She was whispering something to his ear, and she was giggling. She was radiating happiness of joy. The total opposite of what I was feeling right now. This is exactly why I didn¡¯t want toe in the first ce. I downed my drink and looked away quickly. I wished I could tell my friends that I want to go home already, but that wouldn''t be right. They were enjoying themselves, I didn¡¯t want to ruin their night. So, I put on my best fake smile and joined them as they dance. Dancing was fun for a while. I let myself go with the music and all my anxiety seemed to have left me in peace. I was just jumping about the dance floor with Tiff and Carrie, shaking my head to the sky without a care, when suddenly I felt a hand snaked around my hips. I turned around and saw Ryan standing behind me. I thought nothing of it at first since we were all just dancing. So I let him stand right behind me. But as time went on, I felt his body moving closer and closer unti! my back was pressed up against him. His hands were gripping my sides tightly, somewhat forcing me to grind against him. "Ryan, what are you doing?" "What? We''re just dancing," he replied casually, and I noticed his breath reeked of alcohol. I didn''t like this position he put me in. Using all my strength, I broke away from his grip and turned my body around so I was facing him. He didn¡¯t seem bothered by it and continued dancing. I didn¡¯t want to make it weird, so I carried on dancing too. But suddenly, Ryan grabbed my shoulders with both hands and pulled me towards him. He leaned his head down and within seconds, his lipsnded on mine. He tried to kiss me, but I quickly shoved him away. "Ryan!" I gaped at him. "What?" asked shamelessly. "Why did you do that for?" "Oh,e on, Emma.We''ve done way more than just kissing¡ª" "I thought you understood when I said I just want to be friends," "Yeah, we can be friends,"he replied as he leaned his face down again, his hand reaching for my face, but I quickly swatted him away. "You''re unbelievable!" I gave him a little shove and turned to my heels. "Oh,e on, Emma.Don''t be like that!" I heard him shout over the music, but I was already gone. I headed over to the girls¡¯ room, I thought it would be a safe ce to hide. Turns out, the girls¡¯ room was packed. Some sophomore girls sneaked alcohol into the party and now they''re throwing up in the stalls. Rolling ny eyes at my luck, I stepped out of the smelly bathroom and _ started walking aimlessly down the hallway. I was away from all the bright lights, loud music, and bodies dancing and ! quite enjoyed the solitude. I was walking without a direction, but somehow I ended up standing in front of the art studio. I knew that Mr.Hayes was in the auditorium, so I decided to push the door open and hide inside. The art room was dark, the only source of light was from the windows. I didn¡¯t mind the darkness, I thought it suited my current mood. Making my way around the room, I stopped when I noticed something on Mr.Hayes¡¯ desk. It was a sketchbook with leather bound and an initial I.H. I knew I shouldn''t be snooping around like this, but I couldn''t help myself. Standing right in front of the desk, I flipped the cover and the first few pages open, and I saw so many great sketches by the artist. He sketched the park, he sketched buildings, he even sketched flowers. But there were no sketches of faces or people in it. Until finally, I got to thest page and I found the only sketch with a person''s face on it. It was a sketch of a girl and she looked very familiar. Too familiar... "Emma? What are you doing here?" I heard amanding voice and my eyes shot up instantly. I gasped as I saw Mr.Hayes standing by the doorframe. "You''re not supposed to be here," he said again when I couldn''t respond. "What is this?" my voice cracked somehow. I lifted the sketchbook up, showing him the sketch of the girl. The sketch of me. "Shit ¡ª you''re not supposed to see that," for the first time in my life, I saw that he was nervous. He closed the door behind him and walked a few steps closer to me. "You drew this right?" I asked him even though we both knew yet to that. "This is dated the day after we met at the bar," I pointed out the little date and signature at the bottom of the paper. Mr.Hayes chose not to respond. He was just looking at me, swallowing hard at my words. "That night meant something to you too, didn¡¯t it?" I pressed forward. Mr.Hayes just sighed and his hand went to rake his hair in frustration. "Why didn¡¯t you tell me?"I said again. "Would it have mattered?"he replied finally. His tone wasced in despondency. "Of course it would,"I paused a second before saying, "I wouldn''t have hated you," "Maybe I deserved it.Maybe it¡¯s better off this way," My heard was breaking with every word he said. But it wasn''t breaking because of him, it was breaking for him. He thought he was protecting me by making me hate him. "I don¡¯t want to hate you," I said finally. "Me too," he sighed, pausing for a moment before continuing, "But you are still my student, Emma.You belong out there on that dance floor, kissing that stupid kid.Not here with me," He sounded angry and...jealous. He must have seen me with Ryan.He probably didn¡¯t like it very much either.I couldn''t help the small smile that escaped my lips. "My friends gave me three options for a costume, but do you know why I picked this stupid littke mermaid one?" I asked rhetorically as he waited for me to continue. "The true story of Little Mermaid go¨¦s like this...Little Mermaid was a girl that threw herself into the sea because the guy she liked didn''t like her back.She died without ever getting a chance to profess her love," "Emma, what are you talking about?" "I liked ybu, you know? I thought you didn¡¯t like me back," "Emma..." "You should have told me, instead of letting me think that you were some monster that didn¡¯t care about me at all," With shaky legs, I took a step closer to him. He didn''t move an inch, so I kept on going until I was standing right in front of him. "Emma, listen..." "Tell me when to stop," I waited a few seconds to see if he was going to stop me, our eyes met and burned with desire. He never said stop. So I reached for his face and lunge my body towards him. And to my absolute surprise, he_leaned his head down and received my kiss with both arms. My arms were linked around his neck and his hands gripped my waist. His lips were tangled with mine, and he kissed me with such heat and passion, my knees became jelly. I inhaled his intoxicating scent and I was instantly brought back into that paradise again. Butterflies ran wild inside mf stomach and I could only hold him tighter in response. This time, I didn¡¯t wait around and I let my tongue graze his lower lip, wanting to taste the inside of his mouth. He teased me a little, refusing to part his mouth. I replied with biting on his bottom lip, causing him to groan appreciatively. Secondster, our tongues were dancing in each other''s mouths. At one point they were inside my mouth, the next they were inside his. It was a feeling so intimate, my stomach twisted into knots. We were kissing for the longest time. None of us wanted to let go of one another. When we finally pulled away minutester, it was because we were all out of breath. Damn you, oxygen. Why do I need you? I was smiling from ear to ear as I kept my gaze on him. His eyes bored into mine deeply, and there was this gentleness and joy that [ hadn''t seen in those eyes before. He looked a little uncertain at first, but slowly, the straight line on his mouth formed up a small smile. "We need to talk.But not here.Can we go somewhere?"he said ify. "Where to?" He took my face in his palm, and his fingers started drawing circles around my cheek.Then, and without warning, he gave me his trademark wild and sexy smirk. "With you, anywhere," He was using the same line I used back at the bar. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! My heart had melted into a puddle on the floor. I blushed instantly and shoved my face into his chest. His smirk will be the end of me, I swear. Chapter 14 : Secret Affair Chapter 14 : Secret Affair EMMA¡¯s POV "We''re only here to talk,"Mr.Hayes stated firmly. We ended up ditching the school dance and headed to his apartment. We thought about talking in the school parking lot, but even that seemed dangerous. So we got into his car and jetted away. I sent some messages to my friend, I made up someme excuse that I wasn¡¯t feeling well and I wanted to be home alone. Mr.Hayes told Ms.Diaz that he had an emergency to attend to, and we were good to go. "Okay, so let''s talk,"I took a seat on his dark leather couch as he chose to stand a few feet away from me. I was still wearing my Little Mermaid costume, a seashell bikini top and a sexy sequin shirt.I was definitely underdressed and he was having trouble keeping a straight face.I looked up at him and he looked so gorgeous just standing there, I couldn''t help but smile. He was trying to maintain a serious face, but my smile made him smile too. "Don''t look at me like that, you''re very distracting," he said as he ran his fingers through his hair. "Okay, okay..." Iplied at put my gaze away. My eyes started ncing around the room, and I was still pinching myself over the fact that I was sitting in Mr. Hayes¡¯ freaking living room.The first thing I noticed was the amount of artwork ced all over the room. He didn¡¯t have pictures of himself or his family, none of that. There was just an obscene! amount of paintings and sculptures and sketches.He also had a lot of books, he had a record yer and a stack of vinyl records. His eyes followed me as I got up and started going around the room. I picked up a few books from his shelves and read the titles. "1984...Wuthering Heights...John Steinbeck..."I paused for a second and continued, "A sad soul can kill you quicker than a germ," "You like Steinbeck?"his eyes shot wide open. "Yeah, Emily Bronte too.Wuthering Heights is one of my all-time favorites," He cocked his head to the side in amusement as I kept going, "Also Charles Dickens and Jane Austen," "You know your books," "Only the good ones,"I said as I moved to his music collection. "Never thought you''d be the emo type.The Smiths...The Cure...Death Cab for Cutie?" My fingers raided his records collection, "This is interesting," "What is?" he asked. "You know you can tell a lot about a person by their taste in music and books. I think I just got a glimpse into your soul," He let out a soft chuckle and his bodynguage rxed. He took off his jacket and threw it on the coat rack. I found myself trapped watching his every move, noting the tattoos that peeked out from behind his neck, and how his shirt moved as he took off the jacket "I told you not to look at me like that," he said suddenly and I whipped my head away, hiding my crimson embarrassed face. "I''m guessing you also like contemporary art?" I muttered quickly to change the topic. "Oh, yeah," "Are these yours?" I was referring to the rows of paintings on the wall. "Yeah..." "They''re really good," "Thanks," "This one reminds me of Barbara Kruger¡¯s works," I pointed to the one on the left, and his eyes widened instantly. "That''s because it was a coborative work, with Barbara Kruger," "No way!" I gaped and he just shrugged. "Wow, that''s like...so cool!" I said again. "I''m surprised you know a lot about these things," he said as he moved to sit on the couch. "I guess we have a lot more inmon than we thought," I replied, biting my lip as I looked into his eyes. Tick...Tock...Tick...Tock... Mr.Hayes didn¡¯t say a thing and I could hear the sound of the clock¡¯s ticking. There was such a heavy feeling in the room, a big fat one and its name was sexual tension. "Emma," he said finally, capturing my full attention, "l think we both know what''s gonna happen if you keep talking like this and giving me that look," I gulped. "You don¡¯t know how much I¡¯m restraining myself from bending you over on that couch," I gulped, harder. "But we both know that¡¯s not gonna happen," My heart sunk instantly. "We do?" "I''m still your teacher, Emma. Even though you¡¯re of age, it¡¯s still against the rules," Rules were made to keep people out of trouble, or from hurting each other. We weren''t in any trouble and we weren''t hurting anyone and yet we couldn''t be together. It was the most unfair and unnecessary rule I had ever heard. I looked to my feet and sighed, "It¡¯s a stupid rule and we both know it," "Either way, I can¡¯t risk losing my job, or worse, cause you any harm.So..." "You''re not causing me any harm," I cut him off quickly. I found myself moving towards him slowly, and he looked up at me. "I like you and you like me...or at least, I think you do," I said and took a step closer to him. "I do," he replied, unmoving. "I wanna get to know you some more," "Me too," "And we''re not hurting anyone.So why can¡¯t we just let it be?" "What are you saying, Emma?" I was standing right in front of him now. He wasn¡¯t going anywhere, so I braved myself and reached for the armrests. My body was leaning down towards him, my face was only inches away from his. "I''m saying we should just let things happen..." "Emma¡ª" "And no one has to know," He swallowed hard at my words. His gaze turned dark as his eyesnded on my lips. I didn¡¯t say anything but f let my breaths fan his cheeks, and I could feel his breaths on mine. "I want to say no..."he paused before continuing, "But I can''t," "Just say yes then,"His lips twitched into a smirk and that smirk was the death of me. I let go of all my inhibitions and I dove right in. His lips met mine gently and he was still smiling through the kiss. "You''re gonna be the death of me, you know that?"he murmured. His hands reached for my neck and waist and he pulled me down, closer to him. I adjusted myself, straddling him, without breaking the kiss. "Are you sure about this?"he said when his lips moved to kiss my cheek, then my jaw, and now it landed on that sweet spot on my neck. I replied with an unintelligible moan. "And we won''t tell anyone?"he said in between kisses. I pulled away slightly and I put my hands on both sides of his face, capturing his full attention. And with full certainty and confidence, I whispered to his ears, "You and I are the only Ones that need to know.It''ll be our little secret," Our eyes met and his gaze turned to fire, burning with passion. He pulled my chin down in one swift move and brought his lips to mine. I gasped at the sudden movement and he used the opportunity to slip his tongue inside my mouth. With my eyes closed, I gripped his shirt cor and pulled him closer. He let out a low growl and his hand gripped my thigh even tighter. My skin was on fire and I wanted to feel more of him. So, my hands reached down his shirt and I started undoing his buttons one by one. His shirt came off in one swift move. I had full ess to his rock-hard upper body and { couldn''t be happier. My fingers ran from his shoulder des down to his chest and to his abs. He shuddered at my touch as I rolled my fingers to trace his many tattoos. He responded by pulling the strap of my seashell bikini and the little thing fell off in one swoop of his fingers. The cold air hit my bare breasts and I found myself shivering. Mr.Hayes pulled away from the kiss and his gaze went to admire my body. I suddenly felt so self-conscious, so I looked down and pulled away instinctively. Mr.Hayes put a hand on my chin and tilted my face up so I was looking at him. "Emma, you''re so beautiful,"he said in an almost whisper. I had normal breasts, small even.They were nothingpared to Ms.Diaz''s awesome rack. "Yeah, right,"I rolled my eyes at him, "You''re just saying that," His warm gaze turned dark all of a sudden. He grabbed my hand briskly and ced them over the bulge of his pants forcefully. I gulped when I noticed how hard he was underneath the fabric. "You''re so fucking beautiful, this is what you do to me," he stated firmly, causing my stomach to twist into knots. His hands traveled from my waist, up my stomach, and they rested gently under my breasts. Slowly, he cupped them with both hands and started massaging them. His thumb ran circles around my nipple and I found myself squirming under his touch. He leaned his head closer and now his mouth reced one of his hands, kissing and sucking on my breast. I could help the moans that came out of my mouth as his tongue swirled and licked my hardened nipple. His free hand traveled down my skirt, grazing the exposed area of my thigh thanks to the high slits. His fingers slid under the skirt effortlessly and reached the band of my panties. He yed around with the band, teasing me as his finger ran across the length of the panties. And just when I least expected it, one finger slid inside and reached for my wet core. "Fuck," he groaned through the kiss, "You''re so f uc k ing wet already," "I want you..." I said breathlessly, "So bad," He pulled away to look at my pleading face. A wild smile appeared on his face and the next thing I knew, he brought me up with his strong arms, andid me down on the couch in one swift move. His body hovered over mine as his lips went to attack my neck. I gripped his shoulders with both hands, pulling him down because I wanted more of him. His hands grabbed the sides of my panties and pulled it down to my knee. I shuffled them away without a thought and reached for his belt buckle. His erect length sprung out as soon as the zipper and boxers went down. I was able to get a clearer look at him and my eyes widened instantly. "Don''t look so surprised, it¡¯s not like it¡¯s the first time you''ve seen it," he chuckled lowly. I didn''t have any smart replies.I couldn''t even move. He was grabbing a condom from a nearby drawer and I just stared at him. I was still in awe, marveling at the beauty.It was long and it had girth. My eyes traced the veins going around his length up to the glistening mushroomed tip as his hand rolled the condom down effortlessly. "Here¡¯s your chance to change your mind,"he said suddenly, "If you¡¯re not sure about this, we don''t have to¡± I didn¡¯t give him a chance to finish his sentence. Using all the power I had within me, I pulled his face to mine and kissed his lips hungrily. He kissed me back with more dominance and fervor. His hand pulled one of my legs up and linked it around his waist. He positioned himself over my slit and let his erect manhood grazed my wet core yfully. I arched my hips up in desperation, wanting so much more of him. ¡°Mr.Hayes...please," I groaned in despair. "You can call men," My eyes shot up at his words. He pulled away from the kiss and his eyes bored into mine, showing me those intense dark brown eyes. "Ian..." I breathed, "Please..." The widest smile appeared on his gorgeous face as soon as his name rolled down my tongue. "Yes, baby girl," he said through gritted teeth, "I got you," And with that, he slowly pushed his hard length into me. It felt like time had stopped and all the air escaped my lungs. He stopped when he was all the way in, allowing my core to adjust to his size. Slowly, I was able to breathe again. "S h i t," he grunted. "What?" I asked breathlessly. "You''re so fucking tight, I can cum right now if I''m not careful," I had to bit my lip to stop myself from smiling. Slowly, he started to pull out and push back inside. When he finally found his rhythm, his thrusts grew wilder and harder. My hips went to match his rhythm, moving up to meet him as he went down. "Fuck, Emma," he groaned, "I¡¯m trying to be gentle, but it''s so fucking hard with you like this," "Then don''t," the words escaped my lips. His eyes met mine and he stopped moving for a second. And suddenly, his one hand gripped my neck and the other gripped my waist, holding me in ce. Without warning, he thrust into me so hard, I felt like I was being torn apart. He pounded into me with such force and strength, my eyes rolled to the back of my head. It was the exact sweet pain and bitter pleasure I had been aching for. My hoch moved in sync with his erratic moves and the next thing I knew, I was seeing stars. I had to close my eyes because the feeling was just too much. I clenched hard and came unraveling around him, all the while he didn''t stop crashing himself into me over and over again. It was crazy, but I felt like the buildup was starting again inside of me. I linked my other leg around his waist and bucked my hips up, giving him even more ess. He pulled my waist up slightly that my butts weren''t even touching the couch. I was practically suspended in the air as he continued pounding into me mercilessly. With each thrust, he was hitting on my g-spot and I was brought hard over the edge. n!" I couldn''t help screaming his name out loud as I reached my climax for the second time. My core clenched tightly around him as I came even harder and longer than the first time. He pushed into me onest time and his length pulsated inside me. "Fuck," he grunted, reaching his climax. It was as intense for him as it was with me. He had to close his eyes for a while and grit his teeth, riding out the waves of pleasure that overcame him. When he finally opened his eyes, his gaze was tender and warm. He let out the deepest sigh as his hand went to caress my face. Running his thumb around my cheek, he gave me the sweetest, most genuine smile I had ever seen on his face as he said: "Baby girl, you killed me, literally,"Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! Chapter 15: Marvin Gaye Chapter 15: Marvin Gaye EMMaA¡¯s POV "Girl, where have you been? I feel like I haven''t seen you in weeks!"Tiff eximed dramatically. Normally I would call her out for being a drama queen, but she wasn¡¯tpletely wrong this time. Yes, I had been MIA, missing in action, for the past couple of days and I tell my friends where I went. Not unless I wanted to be interrogated by the FBI. ¡®Because yes, I was spending a lot of time with Mr.Hayes ¡ªI mean,n. "Sorry, I¡¯m just a little busy with...my art portfolio,"I said as I closed my lockers shut. Thest period bell hand rang, but my friends had stopped me before I could leave school premises. "That thing¡¯s not due until the end of the school year.We still have, like eight months,"Carrie argued. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! "I know, but I¡¯ve been feeling very inspiredtely.I wanna make sure I got a kickass portfolio, I might even use it for my college application," This part wasn''t a lie.Spending a lot of time with my art teacher had its benefits. Any free time I had in school, I''d spend it in the art studio working on my...craft. After school hours, when I wasn¡¯t in swim practice or cheerleading, I''d head over ton¡¯s apartment and we''d make more...art. ¡°Okay,"Tiff eyed me cautiously, "You do seem surprisingly happy.You''re not hiding anything from us, are you? ¡®Cause thest time we saw you was during the dance ar(d you didn''t seem so well¡ª" "That was in the past," I cut her off quickly. "After the dance, I did some soul searching and now I¡¯vepletely turned over a new leaf," Tiff and Carrie exchanged a look before studying my face even further, trying to detect if I was lying."Guys, I''m serious.I''m so over Zach already and I just wanna work on myself for now.Believe me," I said reassuringly. "Well, okay, in that case, I know you don¡¯t have swim or cheerleading today.What do you say we head to the mall?"Carrie asked. "Oh...actually, I can¡¯t.I promised my mom I''d help her run some errands," I paused and noted the disappointed faces of my friends, "But we can hang out on the weekend?" "Alright, it''s a date.Don¡¯t bail on us," Tiff and Carrie agreed finally. "Absolutely.Now I gotta go.My, uh, mom¡¯s waiting.See you guys" I waved my hands quickly and disappeared out of the door in a sh. School was over for the day and I couldn''t be more excited.n had invited me over to his ce and he was going to make dinner.It still felt surreal to call him by that name. I found myself blushing every time I said it out loud.I needed to work on that. I arrived at his door at exactly 7 PM. I was wearing my yellow summer dress, even though it was definitely fall, but I just wanted to look cute. He opened the door and greeted me with his gorgeous mega-watt smile, that smile alone could send me into puddles. He kissed my cheek, ushered me in, and took my coat. "Hmm, it smells good in here,"It was the first thing I noticed as soon as I got into the living room. "Hope you like pasta,"he said as he hanged my coat on the rack and proceeded to the kitchen. My feet followed after him instinctively. "I like ev¨¦rything you make," I replied, "I''m biased like that," He chuckled at my response and went to set the food on the table. The record yer was ying smooth jazz and a candle was burning in the middle of the table. There was also a bottle of wine, and a bottle of grape juice I assumed he got for me. "Grape juice? How romantic,"I rolled my eyes at him and he ignored me. He went to pull the chair nearby instead, gesturing for me to sit down. Iplied and took a seat. He sat across from and started pouring the drinks. "Trust me, I can handle some wine," I said as I lifted my empty ss, waiting for him to pour the wine, but he shook his head and poured grape juice instead. "I know you can.But, I can¡¯t.I can barely handle you sober,"he grinned and I just gaped at him. He raised his ss and said, "Cheers," Reluctantly, I raised my grape juice and replied, "Cheers," We start on dinner and I must admit,n could make a mean pasta dish. I was enjoying myself, but I noticed he was being a little different. He kept looking at me as I was eating, and he was barely touching his food. "Everything okay?"I asked. "So, how¡¯s school?"he asked. We said it at almost the same time. We stopped for a second and noted the awkwardness, before stifling augh. "Really? You''re gonna ask me about school?" I raised an eyebrow at him and he just shrugged, "School is just school, I mean you know, you were there," "That''s not what I meant,"he sighed. "What do you mean? You''re being so formal today, I don¡¯t understand what''s going on here," "I just," he paused for a moment before continuing,"I just wanna have some dinner with you and talk," He wasI being a bit too serious and I felt a little ufortable. Biting on my lip, I cocked my head to the side and gave him a yful look. "Or we can skip dinner and get right to dessert," Normally he would smirk or make a funnyeback, but he said nothing this time.His gaze was still deadly serious.I decided toe even bolder, I let my feet graze his leg from under the table seductively. "Emma,"he scolded, his tone was stern. "What?" "Stop it, please,"My leg fell back to the floor and I let out an irritated sigh. "What''s wrong? Did I do something?"I asked him. "I just want to talk to you, okay? Get to know you a little bit,"he said as he reached for my hand, caressing my skin with his thumb and he made all the frustration in me subside. "Things have been moving so fast, I think we need it 7 take it slow,"I looked up at him, searching his eyes. He was being very genuine and gentle, and it took me by surprise. This was my fourth time in his apartment and I never saw him like this. He was always yful, flirty, and one might even say rough. What is this side of him? "Because I want this tost, Emma.I want us tost,"he said again and I felt my heart just leaped out of my chest. "Okay, fine," I breathed, "We can talk.What do you wanna know?" "Uh, I don¡¯t know,"his hand went to rake his lush jet-ck hair, "Like, what''s your favorite music or something?" I couldn''t help but smile, "You''re really bad at small talk, you know that?" He took a deep breath and sighed. "I know.I''ve never done this before,"he admitted slowly. "Done what? Talk to girls?"I asked in disbelief. "Getting to know someone,"he replied, pausing for a beat before saying, "I never did the whole rtionship thing," My eyes widened as I gaped at him, waiting for him to continue. "I never met anyone I wanted to get to know like this.Until now," My lips twitched into a smile instinctively.I couldn''t hide it even if I tried.I got up to my feet and his eyes followed my every move.I walked over to him and leaned down, my face stopped a mere inches away from him as I spoke. "Well, lucky for you, I don¡¯t really like talking," He swallowed hard and his gaze turned dark. "Yeah, you''re right.Who needs to talk anyway?" The next thing I knew, I was pinned against the wall, and his lips were ravaging mine hungrily and passionately. I ran my fingers through his hair as he pulled me closer, deepening the kiss. Our bodies were pressed up against each other and I could feel his hardening bulge. I couldn''t help but smile. I liked the effect I had on him. I could never get tired of kissing his beautiful lips, and I could never get tired of his kisses. Not breaking off the kiss, I linked my legs around his waist and secured my arms around his neck. He held onto me tightly as he walked us to his bedroom. Heid me down gently on the bed and climbed on top of me. I was lost in the high of his kisses, when a sudden unpleasant thought came over me. I pushed him back so heid on the bed and I climbed on top of him. Straddling him, I brought his chin up to my get high, and make out with girls. I don¡¯t know, I figured maybe you''d get tired of me soon enough," How is this man so adorable? I literally can''t anymore. I had never seen this vulnerable side of him before and it made my heart swell in size. "You''re way too good for me, Emma.I don¡¯t know what I did to deserve you,"he looked kind of in pain when he said it, and it broke my heart a little. "So that¡¯s why you invited me over dinner and talking? You''re afraid you''re gonna lose me to an adolescent lifestyle?" I asked sarcastically and he chuckled. "Trust me, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s ever gonna happen," I said as I cupped his face with my little hands. We stared at each other for a good minute, just marveling at each other''s features. I knew there was still so much that was left unsaid. So many We stared at each other for a good minute, just marveling at each other''s features. I knew there was still so much that was left unsaid. So many things we haven''t figured out. But there was no rush. I just wanted to enjoy this moment with him. If I could pause any moment in time and just live there forever, this would be it. We''ll figure everything out as we go. And with that thought, I pulled him in for another kiss. The kiss of death, I called it. Chapter 16: Relationship Defined Chapter 16: Rtionship Defined IAN¡¯s POV : We were making out and things were getting hot and heavy. She was sprawled on my bed, her arms were linked around my neck, and hands were all over her body. Our tongues were tangled, dancing back and forth with each other as we kissed. Suddenly, her hands reached for the hem of my shirt and she lifted it up in one swift move. Her eyes widened as they roamed my body, and I let her be for a while. Putting both hands on my chest, Emma then pushed me back on the bed and she climbed on top of me. By the way she was moving, sometimes I forgot that she was only a high school student. Or that she only just started having sex recently. I would probably go to hell for this, but this felt too right to be wrong. I was never one to follow the rules, which was why art was always my thing. There was no right or wrong in art. This felt exactly like that. "Oh,n," Especially when she moaned my name like that. "Yes, baby girl?" She was looking at me with pleading eyes. I knew exactly what she needed, but J just wanted to hear her say it out loud. "I need you..." My hands went the hem of her dress, slowly pushing it up her thighs, before pulling it over her head swiftly. She had the most gorgeous body, her skin was like porcin. I swallowed hard as my head leaned to the crook of her neck, finding her sweet spot. She tilted her head back to give me more ess, and her hands reached to the back of my neck, pulling me closer. I nted long, wet kisses up and down her neck. I knew I was leaving marks that her friends would question her aboutter, but I didn¡¯t care. I wanted my mark on her skin. I wanted her to think about my touch when I wasn''t around. She was getting restless, her body squirmed and writhed at my touch. She started grinding her hips, rolling them over me in desperation. I couldn''t help but smile. n,"she pleaded again. "Patience, baby girl.Good things take time,"I reminded her. My one hand traveled to her back to find the sp of her brare one flick, her bra fell open and I pulled it out of her. I had clear ess to her breasts and my mouth watered instantly. I was just about to delve my tongue on her delicious nipple, when suddenly we heard a loud knock from the door. n? Are you home?"a female voice called out. "Shit,"I muttered and our bodies pulled away abruptly. "Who is that?"she whispered. "I don''t know..." n? It¡¯s me, Erica,"the voice called out again. Fucking hell. "Erica? Ms.Diaz?" Emma gaped at me. "What is she doing here?" "I don''t know," I groaned slowly. n? Your neighbor said you''re home.I just came by to give you something.."Erica said again. "What do we do?"Emma looked at me, panicking. "I''ll get rid of her,"I paused for a second before continuing, "Just hide for a bit," - I pulled away from her and Emma jumped from my bed quickly. She grabbed her dress from the floor before making a dash into my closet and closed the door. Sighing out loud, I grabbed my shirt from the floor and staggered to the front door. When I finally opened the door, Erica¡¯s eyes lit up as soon as she saw me. "Hey," she beamed. "Erica? How did you find my ¡ª" "I got your address from the school file.I hope you don''t mind.I was around the neighborhood and I just wanted to drop by and give you this,"she said as she pulled out a leather agenda from her bag. It was my agenda book. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! That thing helped me keep track of meetings, deadlines, and other things. "You left in such a hurry earlier, you left it at the teacher''s lounge.I thought it might be important,"she said again, batting her eyshes ever so viciously. "Thanks, but you could¡¯ve given this to me at school,"I said as I took the book from her. She held onto it for a little too, refusing to let go, trying to y some kind of game with me. But I wasn''t in the mood. "I know, but this gives me an excuse toe and find you," she said as she finally let go. "Look, Erica, now¡¯s not a good time,"I said, and she started noticing the candles and food that were prepared on the table. She also noticed the coat hanging on the coat rack. "Oh, you''re with someone?" she looked taken aback, clearly disappointed. "Yeah," I replied, closing the door slightly so she couldn''t see too much. "I see," her voice croaked "I''m sorry, I¡¯m very embarrassed.I just thought that what we had meant something," She was waiting for an exnation. So I took a deep breath and sighed before saying, "I...I''m kinda with someone," "You have a girlfriend?" "Not exactly.We''re still getting to know each other, but I really like her," I made sure that I wasn''t saying it too loud. I didn¡¯t want Emma to hear any of this, "I¡¯m sorry if I''ve misled you, Erica," "Hey, we''re both adults.I understand,"she smiled bitterly.I didn¡¯t say anything and I just looked down, waiting for this awkwardness to end.She finally got the hint as she shuffled on her feet and said, "I''ll see you around then.Goodbyen," "Goodbye," I smiled politely at her and closed the door as soon as I got the chance. I waited a few more seconds to make sure that Erica waspletely gone before I ran for the closet. I opened the door and Emma was curled up on the floor, clutching her yellow dress in her hand. "Hey, are you okay?"I said as I bent down to her. She looked up at me with worried eyes and said, "What did she want?" "She just wanted to deliver my book.I left it at school," "Oh,"she said simply, but her eyes were still full of doubt. "Emma, what''s wrong? Tell me," She thought about her words for a while, biting on her lip before she finally sighed and said, "Do you like her? I''d understand if you do..." "No, I don''t like her like that," I said quickly, "We went on one date and that was it," She looked at me as if she didn¡¯t believe me. So, I sat down in front of her and cupped her little face with hands. "I only went out with her so I could forget about you.Because I thought I couldn''t have you," I said as my thumbs fan circles softly on her cheeks. "Really?"her small voice croaked. "Yeah," I said reassuringly, "You''re the only one I want.You''re the only girl I care about," My eyes bored into hers deeply, I was just wishing that she could see right through me and know that I was being honest. Finally, a small smile curved up her face and she nodded her head slightly. "Do you wanna leave? I understand if this is too much for you,"I asked cautiously. "No,"she shook her head lightly. "Do you wanna talk about it? About where this is going," I said again, knowing full well we couldn''t avoid the talk any longer. I knew we had to get this done. "Okay,"she breathed, pausing for a moment before asking, "Where do you see this is going?" "Honestly, I don¡¯t know.I told you I''ve never done the whole repeuonsnp thing before.I don¡¯t even know where to begin, let alone how to do this...and with you, someone that I''m not supposed to be with," Her face turned solemn as she heard my exnation, but I tilted her face up so she would see me again. "But despite all that, I know I want you, Emma.It feels right when we''re together.I really do like you," "You do?" "Absolutely," I smiled confidently, "But, how about you? How do you feel about all this?" Emma pulled away slightly and I felt my heart sinking. If she said she didn¡¯t wanna do this anymore, it would feel so damn shitty. "To say that all this has taken me by surprise, that¡¯s the understatement of the century.I never thought I''d get my heart broken on my birthday.Never thought I''de up to a random stranger at a bar and lose my virginity to him.Never thought I''d see him again, let alone as my teacher at school..." She started speaking and I was hanging at her every word. "This is definitely not ideal, but I wouldn''t have it any other way.This crazy life has brought us together, and I''m so d that it did,"she said finally, and my heart felt so full. "I was heartbroken and I was in a hopeless daze.But you came along and you showed me a whole different side of life.I felt things I never thought I could,"she said again as her hand reached for my face this time. Her fingers ran across my cheek gently, caressing me. "I feel the same way.Honestly, at first I thought it was just hormones or whatever, but now I think it¡¯s something else," I paused for a moment before continuing, "Because I think you¡¯re something else, Emma Sinir," The biggest smile formed on the lips. I had never seen her smile like this before and I was proud to know that I was the one to put that smile there. "I want you.I just want you," I admitted, putting our foreheads together as I rested on her. "Me too,"she sighed softly. "I know this is a lot to process.And we need to be more careful...But if you¡¯re down for this, I wanna do this with you," "What exactly?" "An actual rtionship,"I said firmly, "I''m.still learning, but¡ª" She didn''t give me a chance to finish. She pulled me close to her and her lips found mine, gently and urgently at the same time. She was smiling through her kiss and it made me smile right back. "So we''re doing this? You and me, all the way?"she asked as she pulled away from me slightly, though our noses were still touching each other. "All the way," I nodded with full certainty, letting my nose graze hers up and down. For the longest time, there was a void in my heart. I tried filling it with all sorts of things but I never could. And one day, I met this girl. She made me feel things and the void was no longer there. I became so content, even just to hold her in my arms like this inside my closet. There was nothing else I wanted. There was still so much that we didn¡¯t know. There was still so much I needed to learn. But the only thing that was certain was her. I didn¡¯t want to let go of her . And I was willing to do anything ,anything at all for her. A rtionship included. Chapter 17: Comeback Kid Chapter 17: Comeback Kid EMMaA¡¯s POV : "Can''t believe it¡¯s already thanksgiving break.Junior year''s going by so fast," Tiff sighed dramatically as we made our way to the parking lot. "I Know right.Next thing you know, boom, college applications,"Mark added. "Please don''t say college applications.We don''t have to deal with that for another year,"Carrie responded. "Yeah, guys.Let''s not get ahead of ourselves.It''s Thanksgiving break, let¡¯s just take it easy," I said and all my friends turned their heads on me. "You''ve been surprisingly chill.I like this new you, so very Zen," Tiff narrowed her eyes at me yfully. "I''m just grateful, you know.I have amazing friends, I have a great life, and school is actually kinda fun..." The past couple of weeks had been amazingn and I were doing great.Even though he said he never did rtionships before, I couldn''t tell.He was being such a great boyfriend. I saw him every day during lunch where I''d be working on my art portfolio in the art room, and after school I¡¯d go to his apartment after swim or cheerleading practice. Spending time withn was always fun.He had an amazing taste in movies and he was showing all the old ssics. Sometimes we''d y games on his yStation or cook dinner together. And don¡¯t get me started on our after-hour activities. Being with him, I had never felt more alive! : "Whoa, who are you and what have you done to our Emma?" Carrie narrowed her eyes at me this time. "What can I say?" I shrugged casually, "I like school," "Oh my god, you''re not turning into a nerd are you?" "Oh, please¡ª" "Emma!" A familiar voice called my name and I was certain it must be a mistake, because it sounded like Zach. My friends and I stopped our tracks and we turned around to see Zach, my ex-boyfriend, standing in our school parking lot. "Is that Zach?"Tiff gaped. "What the hell is he doing here?"Carrie asked. Zach cafne running at us. He was wearing his Emory sweatshirt and sweatpants. He was waving his hand and smiling at us like we were all old friends or something. I mean, we were.But not anymore. "Hey guys,"he said to everyone, but all my friends remained silent and cold. "Emma, hi,"his eyes zeroed in on me. "What are you doing here, Zach?"I asked point-nkly. "You don''t take my calls, you never respond to my texts...I came back for thankgiving break.I just want to see you," "Well, I don¡¯t want to see you," I snapped quickly. "Come on, Em.Please, I just want to talk.Just give me five minutes,"he pleaded. "She said she doesn''t wanna see you, douche-face,"Tiff shot daggers at him, ready to attack the moment I gave her clearance. "It''s okay, Tiff.I got this," I said to her and I turned my face Pack to Zach, "You have five minutes," "Okay, but can we please talk alone?"he eyed my friends nervously as they were giving him death res. "Fine," I breathed and motioned for him toe follow me. We walked a few steps away from everyone and turned a corner, where there were less people. When we found a cozy enough spot, I stopped my tracks and shot my best ¡® now-what'' look at him. "Talk,"I said simply. "Emma, I miss you.I wanna get back together,"he started and I rolled my eyes immediately. "We''ve been together for a whole year.How can you forget about everything, just like that?" "It wasn''t just like that, Zach.You cheated on me with the first girl you met at college.You broke my heart.So it¡¯s only natural that I wanna forget about us, you can¡¯t me me for that," "You''re right, you''re right,"he said quickly, "It was all my fault, I know.I messed this up.I didn¡¯t realize what I got until I lost you, Emma," His voice cracked a little and his eyes were almost ssy. I wasn''t his biggest fan, but this sight of him made me soften up a little bit. "What¡¯s done is done, Zach.You just have to move on," I said, pausing for a moment before continuing, "Because I have," "You¡ªyou moved on?" he looked taken aback. "With who?" "It''s none of your business, Zach.Now are we done here? I need to go help my mom grocery shopping," I was about to leave but Zach stepped in front of my face, blocking my way. "Emma, please.I wanna make it right with you.I wanna fix this.Please, just give me one more chance," he said as he grabbed me by the hand. His grip was rather tight, I tried pulling my hand away but he wouldn''t let me. "I can''t,"I breathed as I kept trying to pull away. "Zach, you have to let me go!" I was half-yelling at this point because he refused to let my hand go. "I''m not letting you go, Emma¡ª" "Is there a problem here?" Suddenly, I heard the familiar husky voice that wasn and his tone was dead serious, I had goose bumps when I heard him. ¡ªMr.Hayes," I greeted him as he came right in between Zach and I. "Is this guy bothering you?" "No, I¡¯m fine," I muttered quickly. The tension in the air was so thick, you could cut through it with a knife. Zach let out a deep sigh finally as he stepped back. "This isn¡¯t over, Emma," Zach shot me a look before turning 9 his heels and left. I let out a relieved sigh as soon as he did. I was afraid there was going to be a fight or something and that wouldn''t be good. "Are you okay?"n¡¯s voice turned warm and tender as he spoke to me. "Yeah, I''m fine.Don¡¯t mind him, it¡¯s just Zach," I was about to exin more of the situation, but we noticed my friends had popped into our periphery. "Emma? Are you okay? We saw Zach left in a hurry,"Tiff asked. "Yeah, it¡¯s all right," "Oh, Mr.Hayes.Happy Thanksgiving," Carrie smiled politely to Mr.Hayes as she noticed him standing there, extremely close to me! We shuffled away awkwardly. "Yes, un! happy thanksgiving,"he nodded to my friends and I. He gave me a knowing look and a smile before turning to leave. "What did he want?" Tiff asked, referring to Zach. "Said he wants to get back together," I scoffed at the idea. "What did you say?" "No, obviously.Just the thought of him makes me sick," "What a weirdo," Tiff agreed with me, "What was he thinking showing up at school like this, asking for you to take him back?" "Just ignore him, Em.You''ve been doing so well without him,"Carrie added. "Yeah, don''t let that douche-face ruin your Zen," Tiff said as she linked her arms with mine, "Come on, let''s go home and enjoy Thanksgiving," He wanted to drop by my house and say goodbye before he leaves. The idea of not seeing him for the next four days would suck. I wished he would stay in Georgia and we could have our secret rendezvous together, but he hadn''t seen his mom in a while so he needed to be in New Jersey. At around 6 PM,n arrived at my house. I made an excuse to my mom that Tiff was dropping off something so I could go out to see him. I got into his car as quickly as I could, and I gave him a quick kiss since we didn¡¯t have much time. "Drive safely, okay?" I sighed, secretly wishing that he wouldn''t go. "I wish I can take you with me,"he said as he reached for my face, his thumb stroked my chin gently. "And tell my parents what? And tell you mom what?" "Maybe next year?" "Or after i graduated," "Deal,"he smirked.The idea of spending thanksgiving withn and his family, oh I could just melt at the thought. He stopped midway and asked, "By the way, who was that guy earlier in the parking lot?" "That was Zach, my ex-boyfriend.He was the guy that cheated on me on my birthday and then I met you...and well, you know the rest," "What is he doing here? What did he want with you?" "He wants to get back together, but I told him that I wasn''t interested," His gaze turned ck, he looked almost scary. His fists curled up into balls and his voice dropped an octave lower when he said, "I don''t feel good leaving you alone with him in this town," "It''s just Zach.He¡¯s harmless," I said as I ran my fingers along his jaw gently, calming him down. "I saw the way he looked at you earlier¡ª" "You''re being paranoid," I cut him off quickly, "I know Zach, we dated for a year.He wouldn''t darey a finger on me.Don¡¯t you worry, everything will be fine," I said reassuringly, butn wasn''t buying it.I tilted his face down so he was looking at me. When our eyes met, his dark angry gaze turned warm almost instantly. Finally, he took a deep breath and let out a sigh. "You''ll be okay for four days without me, right?"he asked. "Of course.I have my family, I have my friends.We''re gonna take it easy.Maybe hit the mall," I paused for a moment before saying, "It''s gonna be boring without you here," "Good, I don¡¯t want you to be having too much fun without me,"that smirk was back on his face again and I smiled right back. "I¡¯m so gonna miss you,n Hayes," "I''ll miss you too," He tilted my chin up as his lips went down. His kiss was so tender and warm, I couldn''t help but feel butterflies. All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. I needed to savor this kiss since I wouldn''t be having it for the next couple of days. So I kissed him back, with every bit of passionate fiber in my bone. He smelled so divine, I felt like getting high just by his scent alone. Letting out a soft moan, I let my tongue travel to his lips, grazing seductively on his bottom lip. "Emma, if you continue kissing me like this, I¡¯m gonna end up kidnapping you and taking you to New Jersey,"he said through the kiss and I couldn''t help butugh. "Alright," I said as I pulled away finally, "I need to get back.My mom would be looking for me," "It''s just four days,"he reminded me. "I''ll see you in four days,"I smiled and let out a sigh, knowing full well that my time was up. After giving him one final kiss, I got out of the car and raced back to my house. I could still feel the butterflies swimming in my stomach as I ran. I had just seen him ten seconds ago and I missed him already. Damn, I¡¯m so hopeless! "It¡¯s just four days," I reminded myself mentally. Four days. Just ny six hours. I can do this. I mean , what can possibly go wrong? And suddenly, my phone chimed. I nced at the screen to see the text, and my heart dropped to the floor. Zach: I saw what you did . Chapter 18: Revenge Fantasy Chapter 18: Revenge Fantasy EMMA''s POV : There was a lump in my throat that wouldn''t subside no matter how much I tried swallowing.My brain went running a hundred miles an hour and my body was rendered motor-less.What could Zach possibly mean? As if to answer my question, my phone chimed again. Zach had sent a photo attachment.With shaky hands, I tapped my phone to open the picture. It was a photo of a ck car parked in front of my house.The license te showedn¡¯s te. It wasn¡¯s car in front of my house, just minutes ago.And when I zoomed in, I could make outn and I kissing each other on the front seat. I almost dropped my phone.I almost dropped my entire body to the floor. It took every inch of strength in my body for me to remain standing. Zach has found aboutn and me...and he knows thatn is a teacher at school... I am so dead.We are so, so very dead... "Emma, it¡¯s dinner time.We''re waiting for you,"mom called out from the dining room. "I''ming,"my voice cracked as I responded. My feet were wobbly as I went to the dinner table and sat across my mom and dad. They were being their normal, happy saves and I wished I could do the same. But my mind was somewhere else entirely and mom noticed it. "Everything okay?"mom asked as she studied my face , "You look pale.Are you sick?" "I¡¯m okay,"I muttered quickly, "I just had some things on my mind," "Care to share?¡¯ Dad asked. Sure, dad. So I¡¯m secretly dating my teacher at school and my ex-boyfriend found out, so now I¡¯m screwed. "No, it''s nothing.Just...some stupid boy stuff,"I said instead. "Well, that topic¡¯s way out of my league,"dad chuckled lightly. "You can talk to us if you want,"mom said kindly, but I quickly shook my head. "No.It''s nothing to be worried about," "We noticed you¡¯ve been very active at schooltely.Swim practice, cheerleading, and art studio.We barely see you at home before dinner.But we think that¡¯s a very good thing.So maybe you should focus on that instead,"dad said as he munched on his steak. "Yeah,"I gulped, "I will,"I was about to bring some food to my mouth when suddenly, my phone chimed again and I felt my heart sunk to my feet.I was afraid it would be more texts from Zach, but a small part of me was thinking that it might ben. So I took a peek at my phone from below the table. Zach: You''ve been such a bad girl. Shit! "Honey, what''s wrong?"mom asked as she noticed the sudden change in my expression. "I...I just need to make a quick phone call,"I said as I got up quickly. "But you barely touched your food,"she protested. "I''ll be r quick, I promise," I pleaded, and without giving her a chance to protest some more, I made a dash out of the dining room. I thought the living room was too close, mom and dad could overhear my conversation, so I decided to head out of the house. My hands were shaking as I dialed Zach¡¯s number and waited nervously for him to pick up. He picked up after the second ring. "Hello?" "Zach, where are you? We need to talk," I said quickly, but still somewhat whispering. "Oh, so now you want to talk?¡¯ his tone was smug, somewhat mocking. "Please, Zach," "You''re lucky, I''m right in front of your house," That was when I noticed his sedan parked across my house.He blinked the lights several times to signal that he was there. I took a deep breath, turned off the call, and crossed the street over to his car.Zach was sitting comfortably in the driver seat. I took a deep breath and steadied myself as I opened the car door, awaiting my doom. "Why are you here, Zach?"I asked as soon as I got into his passenger seat. "Il came to see you.But before I can give you a call, I saw you went out and got into his car,"he was being very calm. Cool, calm, and collected. On the other hand, was a nervous wreck. "Listen, about what you saw¡ª"" "Damn,"he cut me off quickly, "I used to think you''re like this, pure, innocent girl.But all of sudden you''re seeing a teacher now? That¡¯s messed up, Emma," "It¡¯s not like that...we met before he was a teacher," "When was this? ¡®Cause you and I were dating up until this summer," "It was after we broke up,"I said quickly, hoping he wouldn''t ask for details. "When exactly?"he pressed on. "Right after," "Wow, you moved on fast,"he scoffed. "You can¡¯t me me for that, Zach.You know what you did," "Yeah, but I never loved her.I had actual feelings for you.It''s been months and all I did was think about you.I called and texted but you never responded.I even came all the way here, and here you are, you''ve forgotten all about me,"there was a pained expression in his eyes as he said all that. I didn''t know what to say, so I murmured slowly, "I''m sorry But, why did I have to be sorry? ¡° "You know what the worst part is? I saw you two kissed.You never even kissed me the way you kissed him. And you''ve known him for like, a few months? We dated for a year, Emma," Again, I didn¡¯t have a good answer. I guess I never liked Zach as much as I likedn, but I didn¡¯t think it was appropriate to say that. So I said nothing. "Do you love him?" I never asked myself that question before because I felt like it was too early to tell. But now that I was put on the spot, somehow I already knew the answer to that. "I do,"I said quietly. "So, that¡¯s why you don''t wanna get back together with me? It''s because of him?" "Zach, please," I begged, pausing for a moment before saying, "You can¡¯t tell anyone about this.You''re gonna get him in trouble and you''re gonna get me in trouble.If you care about me at all, please," He didn¡¯t answer me right away.I could tell that his mind was racing.He narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth.He was seething, like he was angry.And hurt. "Fine,"he breathed finally, "Let''s say that I will delete this photo.Let''s say I won''t tell anyone about it.Let''s say I''ll do that.But what am I getting out of it?" I narrowed my eyes at him this time, and he just looked at me with this cold expression on his face. "What do you want?"I asked him. He didn¡¯t say anything right away. Instead, he looked me up and down before cocking his head to the side, and a sly smile appeared on his face. I was getting impatient, so I pressed on, "Tell me what you want, Zach.I''ll do anything," "Anything?"he licked his lips and bit his bottom lip. I didn¡¯t have a good feeling about this, but I still said, "Yeah..." The biggest smile appeared on his face as he said, "Ok.Then I went you," "Excuse me?" "Just one night with you.Then I''ll delete this and I''ll never tell a soul,"he said as he lifted his phone up, the screen showed the picture he just sentme. "You mean you want me to...have sex with you?" I couldn''t even believe the words that wereing out of my mouth. "I think it¡¯s a fair trade,"he stated simply. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. How could that be fair? That was the most unfair thing in the world.He was the one that cheated on me. I was a good girlfriend, I never did anything wrong. Yes, I did fell in love with a random stranger at a bar, but that was after we broke up. And the moment I moved on from him, Zach just had to pull me back in. "Please, Zach.Anything but that,"my voice came out in breaths and I could feel the tears swelling up. "No, that¡¯s the deal.You spend one night with me and everything will go away.I''ll go away, we can pretend like it never Happened," "But...what aboutn..." "Your boyfriend doesn¡¯t have to know.No one has to know," "But * "I still have principal Finn¡¯s email address, or Mrs.Ash, the guidance counselor. They wrote me a _ ster rmendation letter for college. I can just send this picture to their emails with one click and your boyfriend will be out of a job, or maybe worse?"The idea of spending thanksgiving withn and his family, oh I could just melt at the thought. He stopped midway and asked, "By the way, who was that guy earlier in the parking lot?" "That was Zach, my ex-boyfriend.He was the guy that cheated on me on my birthday and then I met you...and well, you know the rest," "What is he doing here? What did he want with you?" "He wants to get back together, but I told him that I wasn''t interested," His gaze turned ck, he looked almost scary. His fists curled up into balls and his voice dropped an octave lower when he said, "I don''t feel good leaving you alone with him in this town," "It''s just Zach.He¡¯s harmless," I said as I ran my fingers along his jaw gently, calming him down. "I saw the way he looked at you earlier¡ª" "You''re being paranoid," I cut him off quickly, "I know Zach, we dated for a year.He wouldn''t darey a finger on me.Don¡¯t you worry, everything will be fine," I said reassuringly, butn wasn''t buying it.I tilted his face down so he was looking at me. When our eyes met, his dark angry gaze turned warm almost instantly. Finally, he took a deep breath and let out a sigh. "You''ll be okay for four days without me, right?"he asked. "Of course.I have my family, I have my friends.We''re gonna take it easy.Maybe hit the mall," I paused for a moment before saying, "It''s gonna be boring without you here," "Good, I don¡¯t want you to be having too much fun without me,"that smirk was back on his face again and I smiled right back. "I¡¯m so gonna miss you,n Hayes," "I''ll miss you too," He tilted my chin up as his lips went down. His kiss was so tender and warm, I couldn''t help but feel butterflies. I needed to savor this kiss since I wouldn''t be having it for the next couple of days. So I kissed him back, with every bit of passionate fiber in my bone. He smelled so divine, I felt like getting high just by his scent alone. Letting out a soft moan, I let my tongue travel to his lips, grazing seductively on his bottom lip. "Emma, if you continue kissing me like this, I¡¯m gonna end up kidnapping you and taking you to New Jersey,"he said through the kiss and I couldn''t help butugh. "Alright," I said as I pulled away finally, "I need to get back.My mom would be looking for me," "It''s just four days,"he reminded me. "I''ll see you in four days," I smiled and let out a sigh, knowing full well that my time was up.After giving him one final kiss, I got out of the car and raced back to my house.I could still feel the butterflies swimming in my stomach as I ran.I had just seen him ten seconds ago and I missed him already. Damn, I¡¯m so hopeless! "It¡¯s just four days," I reminded myself mentally. Four days.Just ny six hours.I can do this. Chapter 19: Forbidden Fruit Chapter 19: Forbidden Fruit EMMA''s POV : I had never dreaded a Saturday as much as this. Thanksgiving went by so fast, I wished I could hold on to those two days, but time waited for no one. Saturday had arrived and I had no choice but to fight my fight.n called a few times.He was happy to be back home so I let him talk more and I listened. I didn¡¯t say anything about Zach seeing us, I tried my best to sound as normal as I could, but I had a feeling he sensed something was wrong. My only hope was that I could fix everything tonight.I''d try and talk Zach out of this, once and for all. I wore a dress and I looked good in it, but I despised that.I wished I didn¡¯t look good.I wished I didn¡¯t have to go meet Zach and try to convince him not to do this. But this was the role I was given so I had to y my part.My strategy was to start with ttery and then go with pitiful begging. As awful as he was, he still had a heart deep down in there somewhere, and I was determined to find it tonight. He picked me up after dinner, 8 PM sharp. I told my parents I was going over to Tiff¡¯s, so they didn¡¯t ask many questions. "You look ravishing,"hemented as soon as I got into the car. He was wearing a normal V-neck shirt and some jogger pants. I felt a little overdressed. But still, I gave him my best smile and said, "You look good too," Not wasting too much time, Zach started the engine and the car roared away. I was all nervous and fidgety, but he was being cool and casual. "How was your thanksgiving?" I tried making small talk. "It was good,"he replied simply, not even bothered to ask me how was mine. "Mine too..." "So...how was Emory?" "Can we drop the small talk? We''ll be there soon enough," "Where are we going?" "You''ll see," He was being cold to me on purpose. He wanted to instill fear in me, and I must admit, it was working. I swallowed hard as I saw our cast sped past the city limits. He was taking me somewhere far, far away. "Zach, edn we talk about this first?" "What more is there to talk about?" "You don¡¯t have to do this.It doesn¡¯t have to be like this," "Emma, stop fighting it.Either you give me what I want or I''ll send the picture," The car sped further and further away, and now we were going off the main road, going to what I assume were the woods. I knew I had to stop this car from going any further. I had to distract Zach, so I started talking again. "Zach, I know it was awful what I did.But you have to know, I did love you.I loved you so much and you broke my heart that night.I was upset, so I had to find someone to fill the void..." "Stop talking,"he was uninterested. My tactics weren''t working, but I couldn''t stop. "For what it¡¯s worth, we really did love each other for a year.Please don¡¯t throw that away.Please don''t make me do something like this.You''re better than that¡ª" "I said, stop talking!"he growled over my voice. The car came to a sudden screeching halt and my body jerked on the impact. I looked around and saw that we were lodged somewhere in the middle of the woods. There was nothing else around except tall trees and the dead of night. "What is this ce?"I asked. "Get on the backseat," "What, no dinner and a show first?"I tried to make jokes. I wanted him to look at me as Emma, the girl he used to love. But instead, his stare was poisonous and dark. "I''m not here to negotiate.Get on the backseat,"he repeated himself in that cold, t tone. "No," I said firmly, "Zach, I''m not doing this with you," He was impatient and he wasn''t going to wait any longer. Within seconds, he got out of the car, walked over to my side, opened the door, and he grabbed my hand roughly.With such force, he pulled me out of my seat and forced me down on the backseat. "No, Zach, stop!" I tried to squirm and push him away, but he wasn¡¯t going anywhere.He climbed on top of me and pinned me down with all his weight.His body was pressed on top of mine so hard, I almost couldn''t breathe. "No, stop, no,"I kept repeating the words as if it would mean something to him. Original from N?velDrama.Org. But he never stopped.His eyes were clouded and dark and the most disgusting smile was stered on his face.He grabbed the seatbelt above me and used it to tie my hands together forcefully. I tried squirming away, but he pped my face harshly and said, "Be a good girl and I''ll let you off easy,"Tears were forming in my eyes. My cheek was stinging in pain and I was sure there was blood on my lips. He was not the Zach that I once loved. Next thing I knew, his mouth began invading mine ever so viciously.When I refused to open my lips, he used his hand to,force my cheeks open.It was awful. Tears trickled down my face involuntarily. His tongue was invading my mouth ferociously, causing me to almost gag. His free hands were now groping my breasts forcefully over my dress.He was so rough that I could hear my dress fabric tearing apart.He was absolutely enjoying it. I felt him getting hard in front of my stomach. My whole body was shaking in terror as he started to hump his hardening member on my lower down. "No...Stop..." I pleaded with every breath I could muster. But he justughed. And seeing me cry and powerless like this, it made him even rougher. I was squirming and shaking, but to no avail. I was all out of breaths and out of energy. There was no way I could get out of this. The only thing I could do was cry. "You''re gonna be mine, Emma, whether you want it or not,"he said through hot and heavy breaths. It was the worst sound I had ever heard in my life.His hands moved down my body and grabbed my butt cheeks roughly.Using both hands and his knee, he parted my legs apart.I couldn''t even move and kick, his body weight had pinned me downpletely. His one and grabbed my panties and yanked it down forcefully. It stopped before my knees, but that was enough.I was exposed to him. His other hand went under his joggers and he started stroking himself. Secondster, he pulled out his erect member and I didn''t want to see anything anymore. I didn¡¯t want to hear anything, and I didn¡¯t even want to take a single breath, so I rolled my head away and held my breath. This is it.This is the end.He¡¯s gonna rape me...and I can''t do anything. I waited for the worst toe. I had mentally prepared myself, scrunched my eyes shut, and turned off the switch. But suddenly, I heard the sound of the car door was open and I felt Zach¡¯s body weight lifted off of me. "Get your fucking hands off her!" n was standing there, in front of us. He grabbed Zach by his back cor and pulled him out of the car. Zach''s body was thrown on the ground andn bent down toy punches over punches on his face. The soul of his fist connecting with Zach''s skin filled the air. I was rendered shocked and immobile, I couldn''t believe what I was seeing. I realized this wasn''t the time to be paralyzed. When my brain finally registered everything that was happening, I spotted Zach''s phone lying unguarded on the floor of the car. Propping myself up slightly, I managed to break away from being tied with the seatbelt and I quickly tied with the seatbelt and I quickly grabbed that phone. I deleted the photo and made sure it wasn''t saved anywhere else before smashing the phone into pieces, so he had no way of ever retrieving it. I turned my attention back ton, who was beating the pulp out of Zach. Blood was gushing out of his swollen face andn wouldn''t stop. n...it¡¯s enough, stop,¡± I croaked. Don''t get me wrong, it was the most satisfying thing to that see that monstery there on the ground with blood pumping out of his face. But I didn¡¯t want anything bad to happen ton. I didn''t want him to get in trouble. n, please, help me,¡± I said again as I staggered out of the door, clutching on my torn up dress for dear life. I had never seen him this angry before and it was scaring me a bit. He stopped his punches, but he was still grabbing Zach by the cor. ¡°Get me out of here, please,¡± I said to him, wiping the tears away from my face. ¡°You will never touch her again.Or I''ll kill you,¡±n spat onest time at Zach before throwing him on the ground. Within seconds,n walked over to me, took off his jacket, and wrapped me in it. I sobbed into his chest as he pulled me into a hug. I was weak and a mess, but he was strong and warm, so I knew everything would be okay. ¡°Are you okay? Are you hurt?¡± he said to my ears.I couldn''t see his face but I knew he was worried.I couldn''t bring myself to speak, so I just shook my head quietly against his chest. He let out a relieved sigh and hisbored breathing slowed down. We stayed holding onto each other for a while. When I finally stopped crying and caught my breathing, he pulled away slightly so he could get a better look at my face. His hand reached for my torn up lip and he wiped the blood away gently. His eyes burned with anger and hurt as he swallowed hard and gritted his teeth. n...¡± my small voice croaked, ¡°You''re really here...¡± ¡°I came back a day early to surprise you.I got to your house and then I saw you came out and got into a car with him.So I followed you...¡± Before he could say anything else, I lunged myself forward and hugged him tight.I was so beyond relieved that he came back and that he was here to save me. If he hadn''te...only God knew what would happen. ¡°You still have a lot of exining to do,¡± he whispered to my ears. I could tell by his tone that all the anger in him hadn''tpletely subsided. ¡°I Know,¡± I murmured to his chest. ¡°Let''s get outta here,¡± With his strong arms, he led me out of there and into his car. I was still feeling weak and in shock, I couldn''t even walk properly. But he held onto me every step of the way. He made sure I got into my seat okay and put the seatbelt on for me. As the car pulled away from that godforsaken ce, he grabbed my hand and held it tight. I gripped his hand tighter in response, never wanting to let it go. I knew it wasn¡¯t over.I knew I had to tell him what happened with Zach and everything.I knew I could lose him.But at this point, I didn¡¯t care. He was holding onto me tight and I felt safe in his hands. And right now, that was all that mattered to me. Chapter 20: Emotional Intercept Chapter 20: Emotional Intercept IAN''s POV : She was still shaking.I could barely keep my focus on the road as I drove.Images from before kept shing into my head. How he was on top of her, how she was crying for dear life, how her dress was torn, how his mouth was on her neck, and how his pene were all over her body... Fuck. I should have killed that son of a bitch.I had to take a lot of deep breaths to calm myself.And every time I nced at her on the passenger seat, she just had her head down and her body was still shaking. There were so many things going through my head, so many questions I wanted to ask her, but now wasn''t a good time.She needed some peace of mind and I had to give it to her. "Are you cold?"I asked when I saw her shivered. "No,"she replied and pulled my jacket closer to her. "Is it ok if we go to your house? Or do you wanna be somece else?" "No, I wanna go home,"her voice was strained and tired. We didn''t say anything else throughout the whole car ride. I drove her back to her house since it was closer, and she probably needed the rest. When the car arrived across the street from her ce, I killed the engine and took a deep breath. Emma knew I wanted to say some things, so she just sat there and waited patiently. "Are you gonna be okay going back in there? I can take you somewhere else if you want?" "No, that¡¯s okay, my parents are asleep,"she replied, "I should go home and get some sleep," I nodded and she reached for the door, but before she could leave, I gripped her hand and held her back.I thought this could wait until tomorrow, but I couldn''t wait any longer.I had to ask her. "I need to ask you, Emma,"I sighed in frustration, "What the hell happened out there?" She swallowed hard and sat back down.She turned to me and her eyes glistened with tears. n, please don¡¯t be mad at me," "I won''t be mad at you," I said reassuringly, "Start from the beginning.What happened when I left?" She looked so scared that she wouldn''t speak. So I reached for her face and caressed her cheek gently as I said, "Papy girl, tell me what happened," She nodded her head slightly and started to speak, "After you left...Zach came to my house.He saw that I got into your car and he took a picture of us.He told me he wouldn''t tell anyone and that he''ll delete the photo if I agree to..." "If you agree to what?" She didn¡¯t answer me, so I had to fill in the nk on my own. "..To sleep with him?" She didn''t say a word, but that look in her eye gave it away. "What the f¡ª! Are you fuckin¡¯ serious right now?" I couldn''t help myself from yelling aloud, "And you said yes?!" "I didn¡¯t say anything.I met him because I thought I can still talk him out of it.But I never got a chance to..."tears fell off her face and she started sobbing, "But then you came...You saved me before he could do anything...And I managed to delete the photo and everything...He wouldn''t fers any proof now," She was scared and crying.She felt guilty and ashamed. I should do something like hold her hand or give her a hug, but I couldn''t even move an inch.I could only clench my jaw and fists while my mind was _ still processing everything¡ªall the could have, should have, and would have. "What would have happened if I never came?"I said to her after she finally calmed down. "I don''t know..."she bit her lip and held her head down, " ¡°But you came and that''s all that matters¡ª" ¡°Are you crazy? You could¡¯ve been seriously hurt!" My fists banged the steering wheel as ! couldn''t contain it anymore. All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. If I werete by a couple of minutes, what would have happened? Just the thought of it made me sick. "I''m sorry..."she croaked. I didn¡¯t want her to say ¡®I¡¯m sorry¡¯. She shouldn''t be saying that. It wasn¡¯t her fault her ex boyfriend was a psychotic ass. And, it wasn¡¯t all her fault that she was tangled up in this mess with me¡ªthe adult and the supposedly wiser party of the rtionship. "Emma, why didn¡¯t you say anything when he came to you? You should have told me,"I said through gritted teeth. I would have handled it.I didn¡¯t know what I''d do, but I''d handled it. I wouldn''t let her anywhere near him. n, I didn¡¯t wanna worry you, I thought I could handle it on my own, I didn¡¯t want you to be like..."she sighed in exasperation. "Like what?"I pressed on. "Like this.Angry at me," "I''m not angry at you, I''m angry at myself! I should¡¯ve never let things go this far," Maybe this was all my fault? If we weren''t being reckless in the first ce, she wouldn''t be in this kind of trouble. I was the adult here, I was the one who was supposed to be responsible and mature.Yet, I was foolish and careless. And she had to suffer because of my choices. "What do you mean?"she asked, her eyes searched for mine, but I looked away. "This thing between us shouldn''t have happened.We should''ve just stayed away," "You don¡¯t actually mean that, do you?"she shook her head in disbelief. "Yes, I do,"I should have done this a long time ago. If I really cared about her, I wouldn¡¯t have put her through this mess. I should have done better. I should have been better. "Emma, I think you know where I''m going with this," I said as I swallowed hard, dreading the words that I would have to say next. "Please don¡¯t say anything..."tears trickled down her tired face and I had to restrain myself from pulling her into my chest. I wished I could wipe those tears away, but I couldn''t. I was the one that caused all this pain in the first ce. The best thing I could do for her now was to let her go. She on live her life like other normal young girls her age, free ofplicated rtionships and ckmails. "This thing between us has to end, Emma.It''s stupid and it¡¯s not right,"I stated firmly. I hated the words that wereing out of my mouth, but I had to do it. She narrowed her eyes at me and she looked so hurt and disappointed. "I don''t agree with you," she said finally, "Maybe it¡¯s stupid, but I think what we have is right.This is the most right thing I¡¯ve ever felt in my life," I know.I feel exactly the same way. But after seeing you like this, all torn up and broken because of me. I can¡¯t ever forgive myself.I can¡¯t put you through that. "I''m sorry, baby girl, but it¡¯s for the best. We can¡¯t put ourselves in these situations anymore," n...please..."she gave me this look and it was the saddest look I had ever witnessed in my life as she said , l love you," It was just three simple words.I heard thrown around many times in my life.But I knew she meant it. She said those words to me and only me, and it made me want to wrap her in my arms this instant. But if I did that...I wouldn''t be able to let her go. So I did nothing and I just watched as her lips quivered and her eyes glistened. "Emma, listen to me," I had to control my breathing and my tone of voice so I wouldn''t give anything away as I said, "It was fun what we had, but it¡¯s not worth all this trouble," "Trouble...?" "You deserve so much better," Her breath was caught in her throat. She couldn''t say anything except stare at me with those pleading eyes. "Hey, you''ll be alright.You''ll find someone who''s better for you.Someone that''s right for you," I paused for a beat before continuing, "Because I¡¯m not that person," She was quiet for the longest time. The silence in the air was deafening. So after a few more seconds, I finally said to her, "Emma, I think you should go inside.It''s already l¨¦te," "So, you don¡¯t love me?"she asked suddenly and it caught me off guard. "Emma..." "Look me in the eye and tell me that you don¡¯t love me," If I tell you that, will you leave me and this stupid thing we have behind? The look on her face said it all. If I said I didn¡¯t love her, her heart would be broken, but she¡¯d be able to move on. "I don''t love you, Emma,"I paused for a beat and continued, "I¡¯m sorry," There was a pained expression in her eyes as she searched my face, and her small voice cracked when she searched my face, and her small voice cracked when she said, ¡°No, you don''t mean that,¡± ¡°Yes, I do.I don''t love you,¡± Liar. ¡°I told you from the beginning, I''m not much a rtionship guy. I don¡¯t do love and all that stuff.What we had was intense but I wouldn''t call it love,¡± Fuckingliar. ¡°You have to understand something, Emma, you''re still so young, whatever feeling it is that you think is love, it¡¯s not,¡± That was the nail on the coffin. She gaped at me,pletely offended my words. She looked away and scoffed, then she turned back to me and shook her head lightly. ¡°I know you''re my teacher but you don¡¯t need to lecture me on my own feelings.I know what I feel for you is real.And if you can¡¯t see that...then I guess there¡¯s no point in doing this anymore,¡± ¡°You''re right,¡± I swallowed, and this time I looked away.I Couldn''t bear seeing that look on her face. ¡°Fine, I get it,¡± she said bitterly and I heard the car door opened. She stood by the open door as she said, ¡°I just hope one day you''ll feel what I feel and you''ll know ..how shitty it feels to love someone who doesn''t love you back,¡± Oh, trust me baby girl, I know. ¡°Good night, Mr.Hayes,¡± And with that, she closed the door shut. That was the most horrible sentence I had ever heard. But just in case she might look back, I had to keep my cool as I . I watched her leave and disappear into the house. Her voice kept ringing in my ears inside this dead- silent car. And when she waspletely gone, it finally hit me..the undeniable, indescribable haunting pain in my chest. Fuck, this hurts. Chapter 21: Timely Manner Chapter 21: Timely Manner EMMA''s POV It was over.It was done. Thanksgiving break ended and it marked the end of my rtionship too. The only good thing about it was that Zach left town. He didn¡¯t say anything about what happened to him and I made sure that he did. I called him at his house the next day, I told him if he even tries to say something aboutn and me, I would tell the world that he was a psychotic rapist. I won that battle, sure, but I lost the warn wouldn''t speak to me again. When I saw him around at school, he wouldn''t even look at me. Why was he being so cold? I was the one who was supposed to be mad at him. I told him I love him and he basically said no thanks. Days and weeks passed by, before I know it, Christmas break was upon us. I overheardn talking to the teachers earlier today, he told them he was driving up to New Jersey for the holidays. "I wish I can take you with me,n said to me once in his car, right before he left for New Jersey on Thanksgiving. Remembering him and the days when we were together, although it was short, it always got me. Sometimes I wondered what does it all mean? Why would people get into a rtionship only to get their hearts broken? And then it dawned on me. Perhaps he was that one person whose only role was to teach me heartbreak for the first time. I didn¡¯t feel like moping around anymore.I did plenty of that before. I was determined to spend my days focusing myself on school, my family, and on my friends. I can¡¯t let this ruin Christmas! As per tradition, the girls would have a sleepover at my house the day after Christmas. We did our own little Christmas party and exchanged gifts. It was a tradition we held proudly ever since middle school. Tiff got me a pair of silver earrings and she got Carrie a cute sweater. Carrie got us both this curated gift basket with our favorite Bath and Body Works candles, lotions, and soaps. I gave Tiff and Carrie some books and vinyl records, it was a mix of everything I knew they''d enjoy. It was a great morning. I loved my presents and I loved my friends. We were just chilling at my room, listening to some music and talking about thetest gossips at school, when suddenly Tiff and Carrie exchanged a look and they turned to me with worried eyes. "So, what''s up with you, bitch?" Tiff asked with her no- nonsense attitude. "We''ve been dying to ask you all week long.But we figured you weren''t ready to talk,"Carrie added. "What you guys mean?"I asked, narrowing my eyes at them. "Oh,e on.We''re your best friends.Those fake smiles you give your parents and everyone at school won''t work on us,"Tiff replied. "We kinda sensed that something¡¯s off with you.Every time we asked you ¡®how are you¡¯, you''ll just mumble words out and look away.That''s your tell,"Carrie exined. Damn, they really are my best friends. "Guys..." I started, debating whether or not I should open this can of worms. I had been dying to tell them aboutn and about everything for months. Perhaps now would be the right time toe clean about it all. "If I tell you this, you have to swear you can''t tell anyone," "Duh,"Tiff gave me a bored stare. "Obviously,"Carrie added. "Okay...Remember...the bar guyfrom Emory?" I asked cautiously. "The hot stranger you lost your v-card to?"Tiff nodded. "What about him?" Carrie asked. "I...''m in love with him...but he doesn''t love me back," "What?l"They eximed altogether. "You got in contact with him? How?"Carrie asked. "He...um...actually lives around here..." "Wait, don¡¯t tell me he goes to our school?"Tiff narrowed her eyes. "Technically he does...just not as a student," "What do you mean-¡ªoh!" Tiff and Carrie gasped in unison and said, "No way..." "Yep.He¡¯s a teacher.The new art teacher to be exact," I shrugged and smiled sheepishly. "Mr.Hayes?! You lost your virginity to Mr.Hayes?!" "Guys, keep it down! My parents are right downstairs,"I quickly went to the door and made sure it was closed shut. "Wait a minute, the Bar Guy is actually Mr.Hayes...our art teacher, Mr.Hayes?" Carrie was almost hyperventting. "How is that even possible?" Tiff shook her head in bewilderment. "Beats me,"I sighed, "I thought I was never gonna see Bar Guy again, but there he was, inside the art ssroom on our first day back to school," "Holy shit,"Tiff gaped. "Why didn¡¯t you tell us sooner?"Carrie asked. "I didn¡¯t tell you guys because he told me not to tell anyone.It could be bad, you know? He could lose his job and everything.And I thought that was it.But..." "But?" "We...started talking after the homing dance.And we...kinda sorta got together..." "Whoa,"they responded in unison. "I really like him, you guys.I never felt this way about anyone before.But after thanksgiving, there was an incident with Zach and...he just had enough.He didn¡¯t want anything to do with me anymore," "So what, it¡¯s over?"Tiff asked. "Yeah...I told him I love him, but he said I was still so young, and I don¡¯t know what love is," "Oh, honey,"Carrie scooted to me and gave me a hug. "I love him.I really do.And now he wouldn''t even look at me," "You''re right, Carr, this was worse than we thought," Tiff said to Carrie as she sat next to me and hugged us both "I should''ve brought the wine," I ended up telling my friends everything, the whole nine yards. Original from N?velDrama.Org. I told them how we tried to stay away from each other, how I found his drawing of me, and how we got together after the dance. I told him about Ms.Diaz almost catching me in his apartment. Then I told them about Zach and how he saw us and ckmailed me into sleeping with him. Finally, I told them about our conversation in his car and how he broke my heart that night. "You guys must think I¡¯m stupid.Falling for my own teacher,"I sighed as I threw my head down on the bed. "Hey, I had a crush on Mr.Stevens throughout freshman year, no judgment here,"Tiff followed after me. "It sucks.Loving someone who doesn''t love you back.I actually thought we were soul mates. Like, ¡®whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same¡¯ bullshit," "Oh my god," Carrie''s body jerked up instantly. "What?" I looked at her quizzically. "Wuthering Heights!" Carrie stood up and started raiding my bookshelf frantically. "Yeah Sherlock, it¡¯s my favorite book.You guys know I quote that book a lot.What''s with your face?" I said as I sat up and watched her pull out the book from the shelves. "Em, I think Mr.Hayes loves you," Carrie was grinning from ear to ear as she flipped the book in her hand rigorously, looking for something. "What do you mean?" "A couple of days ago, I went to the art room to ask Mr.Hayes for some help with my art portfolio.I caught him working on a painting.It was a weird abstract painting, so I asked him what it was about.And you know what he told me?" "What? What??" I was getting so impatient all of a sudden. "He said the painting was about a girl he loves.How the entire world is a dreadful collection of memoranda that she did exist and that he had lost her!" "That''s from..."I couldn''t bring myself to finish the sentence. "Chapter thirty three of your favorite book,"Carrie finished my sentence for me. She held the book up to my face, right at the quote and said, "And I assume he knows that this is your favorite book?" I nodded my head in response. "After everything that happened with Zach, I think he just wants to protect you, Em.I mean, what would you have done if you were in his shoes?" Carrie raised a very good point.If I were in his shoes, I would be worried too.And I would try to be the mature adult and end things to protect the person I love... "So, he loves me?"I croaked. "All I know are the facts.As far as I know, Mr.Hayes never went after Ms.Diaz or any other girl in town.He said he never wanted a rtionship, but he tried it with you. He beat up a guy half to death for you.And he only broke things off when things got bad with Zach being here.I mean, do you think he Chapter 22: Surprise Appearance Chapter 22: Surprise Appearance IAN''s POV "Ma, I¡¯m going out.Don¡¯t wait up,"I was making my way down the stairs, heading straight for the front door. But mom was quick. She ran over and intercepted me, standing right in front of my way. "Now, when you said you''reing home for Christmas, I thought you wereing home for Christmas.But we barely see you," "I promised the guys I''ll have a drink with them.I''ll be home all day tomorrow, promise,"I put my hands up in defeat.I never win an argument with my mother. "All right then.You have a great night with your friends,"she paused for a second before continuing, "Don¡¯t get into any trouble!" "Rx mom, we''re not sixteen anymore,"Iughed. I said I wouldn¡¯t argue with her, didn¡¯t mean I didn¡¯t get into trouble in the good old days.I was a bit of a troublemaker back then.I had trouble following the rules, But then again, I guess I still do. "Who''d ever guess that at twenty four years old, my son would graduate grad school and be a teacher?" "Not me, that¡¯s for sure,"Oh, the irony. I used to give my teachers such a hard time at school.That was if I bothered showing up at all. And now here I was, your average good old fashioned high school teacher. " l am so proud of you,n.Your father would be so proud of you too,"she smiled tenderly. The atmosphere got a little somber as the mention of my dead father would always do that to her. "Thanks,"I said, giving her a quick peck on the cheek, " "I''m off," "Okay, I''ll see you in the morning,"she called out as I stepped out the door. "See ya," My friends wanted to hit this new club that just opened downtown. I couldn''t care less where we were going or what we were doing, I just wanted to get away. I thought leaving Georgia would do the trick, but it was like she was following everywhere. I couldn''t get her out of my mind no matter how far I went. "I love you," Her words were still ringing in my ears. I went to bed thinking about her, and I woke up with dreams of her. Ending things with her was the right thing to do, but why did it have to feel so fucking bad? Every time I saw her face around at school, I felt like I was being punched in the gut. It hurt so bad, I couldn''t keep my eyes straight for two seconds.Sometimes I¡¯d hear her voice. She would talk andugh with her friends. I felt like such a creep, listening to her or watching her from the far, but that was all I could do. And what I should have been doing from the very beginning anyway.It just sucked.Really sucked. Knowing that there was a girl out there that loves me, and that I love in return, but we could never be together. At least, not in this lifetime. "Bro, why you bein¡¯ so quiet, man?"my boy Tommy came over and sat down next to me. "Yeah, it''s depressing, dude," AJ followed after. Tommy and AJ were old time friends of mine. We went to high school together, we got into all sorts of trouble together. But now Tommy was married with three kids and AJ became one of the top real estate brokers in the state. And as for me, you know what happened. We got a table at this club and AJ invited a whole bunch of people. Everyone was having a good time, drinking, dancing, and talking about their new year¡¯s resolution. I tried to stay engaged, but my mind kept wandering back to her. She¡¯s in Georgia, and she¡¯s happy and safe. That''s all that matters. "Just leave me alone, man.I just need a drink," I said to the guys as they were waiting for an exnation. "No way.If you need a drink, we all drink with you.That''s the rule," Tommy said as he waved the waitress over, "A round of scotch for us please, and go easy on the ice," "Can''t believe that''s still a thing," Iughed at Tommy¡¯s stupid rule. "Yeah, that rule¡¯s got us in trouble plenty of times," AJ agreed. "Some things never change, huh?" Ally added. I didn''t even know where she came from, I thought she was somewhere on the dance floor. But she was here all of a sudden, taking a seat right next to me and her knee was touching my leg. Ally was an old friend, we all went to high school together. We fooled around once or twice, but we never dated. She was now working in PR and engaged, they nned for a March wedding. "Hey, all we had was warm beer when we were sixteen, but we can afford whiskey now.So I''ll say that¡¯s an improvement," Tommy argued as the waitress came back with our drinks. "To the good old days,"AJ cheered as he picked up a ss. "And the great new ones toe,"Ally added as she grabbed hers too. I picked up mine reluctantly and toasted everyone before downing the drink.I wasn''t as excited as everyone here was about the new years, but I agreed it was time to turn a new page. It had been a brutal couple of weeks and I couldn''t wait for this year to just be over. "So, how¡¯s life in Georgia, man? How¡¯s teaching?" AJ turned to me as he sipped his drink. "It¡¯s alright,"I shrugged. "That''s right.I hear you''re a teacher now.Crazy how the world turned out, huh?"Allyughed. "Yeah.Remember we used to prank Mr.Sheehan every day after school? Remember the time we wrapped his car in bubble wrap?"Tommy chimed and we allughed. "You guys were trouble, I remember.Crashing cars, vandalizing, oh and didn¡¯t you guys burn down a warehouse once?"Ally asked. "We burned stuff inside the warehouse.We didn''t actually burn the warehouse,"AJ defended. "Right,"she rolled her eyes, "You didn¡¯t burn it, you just set it on fire," "Ha, touch¨¦," Tommy relented and gave her a high five. "It''s funny when you look back.We were pretty stupid kids back then," AJ shook his head at the thought of all the stupid things we did. "Stupid and angry,"I muttered in agreement. "Why were you guys so angry?"she asked. Tommy and AJ gave me a look.I just sighed. "I was angry at the world.My dad died when I turned sixteen,"I admitted. My dad was my best friend. He died suddenly in a car crash, a drunk driver hit him.It was so out of the blue and senseless.As a kid, I just wanted some answers. "And at sixteen it just seemed right, you know? Burn down things and trash ces just because you''re mad at the world,"Tommy added. He and AJ knew exactly what I was feeling and they were with me every step of the way. "But it¡¯s whatever now.You grow and you learn,"I said as I raised my ss. "Hear, hear,"everyone followed after me. By this time, all our sses were almost empty. AJ got up quickly and said, "I''ll get us another round," "Anything but warm beer," Ally replied and he nodded along. "Shoot, it¡¯s the wife," Tommy flinched as he picked up his vibrating phone. A worried look sshed across his face as he said, "I gotta go take this.Be right back," "Still can¡¯t believe Tommy¡¯s married with three kids," I said as I watched him slipped through the crowd for the nearest exit. "I know right.I see him around town sometimes, ying football with his kids.Can you imagine?"Ally replied. "So weird.In freshman year, he sat down on a stapler and got his ass stapled three times.Now that guy''s a dad," I shook my head at the memory and Allyughed away. "Life''s unpredictable that way, I guess," "Yeah,"I nodded. "You ever thought of your life that way?" "What way?" "I don''t know, settling down, getting married, kids?" "I haven''t, I guess. What about you?" "Oh, I''ve been thinking about that ever since I was a kid.I want to be a mom.Drive my kids to ser practice and everything,"she paused for a second before continuing, " "It''s funny, but I used to have this massive crush on you back in high school.I used to write my name Allison Hayes and I''d call you baby daddy," "Shut up,"I couldn¡¯t help butugh. "I''m serious.Ask all my friends, they all know," "Yeah...we had a good time back then," A smile crept up my lips as I remembered our days together.We lived not too far away from each other.I used to sneak into her room after her parents were asleep and we¡¯d make out all night. "We did.Especially prom night,"she let out a nostalgic smile. "Prom night!"I remembered that. We got so drunk and went skinny dipping at theke. I woke up the next morning with a tattoo on my arm, I didn¡¯t remember getting it, but it was my first tattoo. And the beginning of many more. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. After high school, we all parted ways. Ally went to Boston for college and I went to Georgia. We hadn''t seen each other since then. But I was happy to know she grew up to be this sessful and beautiful woman I knew she''d be. "So, um, congrattions by the way.I heard you''re engaged,"I said to her after a while of silence. "Thanks,"she smiled brightly as she showed me the ring on her finger, "His name¡¯s Richard.He''s a neurosurgeon," "Must be a smart guy.He picked you," "He is super smart.And super kind to me," "So you''re happy?" "Lam," "Good,"I paused a second before continuing, "Maybe you''ll get to drive your kids to ser practice sooner than you think,"She smiled at the thought. She really was looking forward to it. "How about you? Are you seeing anyone right now?"she asked. "No," "Oh,e on.A guy like you.Must be a hotmodity down there in Georgia," "Yeah, I''m not doing...rtionships.So that kind of takes me out of the market," "Still?"she gaped at me. "You''re not in high school anymore, don''t you think it''s about time you drop that stupid rule of yours?" "Well...there was this girl in Georgia.I like her...I love her even," "What happened?" "Just...life.Things don¡¯t always work out, you know?" "Sorry about that," she sighed, "She must be someone special to get you to say the L-word,""I let out a dryugh. It was an inside joke. I remembered after prom, Ally finally told me that she loves me. I wasn¡¯t drunk yet, but I didn¡¯t know what to say back, so I just said, "Great, thanks," "Yeah, she is special,"I nodded bitterly at the thought of Emma. "But hey, I can introduce you to some of my girlfriends if you want?"she said in a cheerful tone. "Nah, I¡¯m good," "Fine,"she let out a sigh and stood up to her feet. Lending her hand out to me, she said, "How about a dance? For old times¡¯ sake," I thought about it for a while, but then I shook my head lightly and said, "I don¡¯t feel like dancing.But you go ahead," "Are you sure?"she eyed me onest time and I gave her a firm nod. "Suit yourself,"she gave me a pout before turning to her heels, making her way to the dance floor. She looked good, I must admit.Any other day I would have loved to dance with her.But not today. Guess this thing¡¯s hitting me harder than I thought. Slumping my body back on the couch, I let my eyes wander aimlessly around the club. It was dark except for the rays on neon lights shing in sync with the music. The energy in the room was pumping, but it made me feel even worse on the inside. Maybe I just need some fresh air. Getting up to my feet, I made my way out the door for a little peace of mind. I thought about bumming a cigarette or something. But as I took one step outside the club, I looked up and saw the craziest thing. Emma was standing in front of me.Her two friends were right behind her. She looked shocked to see me, but she quickly pulled herposure and smiled widely. "Emma?"I gaped. "Hi there, stranger," she spoke and I found myself unable to move. It really was her. "What are you doing here? How are you here?" Putting her finger to my lips, she shut me up and yfully said, "Aren''t you going to ask me to dance?" "Emma¡ª" "I just need to talk to you," her face turned serious as she said, "Can we get out of here?" "Where to?" "With you? Anywhere," Chapter 23: Nostalgic Night Chapter 23: Nostalgic Night EMMA''s POV I left Tiff and Carrie with the car as they were getting a motel room to stay for the night. They truly were the most wonderful friends in the world, I shall cherish them forever. Meanwhile, the boardwalk was almost empty as it was a cold December night. The air was chilly, but I was feeling all warm on the inside as we walked in silence for a while. "So..."He trailed. "So..."I replied. "Is everything okay with you? Did something happened with Zach again¡ª" "No, nothing happened.Everything¡¯s good,"I said reassuringly. He nodded in relief as we kept on walking. "So you wanna tell me why you showed up in New Jersey out of all ces?" "I have toe to see you and talk to you," "If this is about your AP Art portfolio, you could have asked me at school¡ª" "It''s not about that," "Then what is it? There¡¯s nothing else to talk about other than school, right?"he asked cautiously. "Wrong,"I stated. He stopped his tracks and I followed suit. He gave me a warning look and said, "Emma," n,"I replied yfully, but he wasn¡¯t amused. "Stop ying,"he hissed. "What are you doing here?" "I came because I know you love me.Even if you don¡¯t wanna admit it.I know you do,"I said firmly and confidently. He was taken aback, his eyes shot open and he couldn''t respond for a while. "Emma..."he started speaking, but he couldn''t finish it. It was like his breath was caught in his throat.I nced around the boardwalk and noticed the little drops of white snow that began to fall.I never knew that snowfall could be so beautiful.It was perfect.I wanted to freeze this moment in time. "It¡¯s snowing," Imented and reached my hand out to catch the snowkes. "Are you cold? We should get you inside," He said and he took off his coat, draping it over me in one fell swoop. His familiar masculine smell enveloped my body and it was heaven sent. "No, this is great.I''m okay," I smiled and pulled his coat tighter around me. "How did you get to New Jersey? Do your parents know about this?" "I drove here and they''re okay," "You drove all the way here?" "Tiff and Carrie and I took turns," "So your friends, they know about...?" "Yes, and you can trust them,"I said reassuringly. "Emma,"he sighed and shook his head lightly, "You''re not supposed to be doing things like these," "Doing what? My friends and I are on an impromptu road trip and we just happen to see you here,"I was being coy, but he wasn''t amused. "Emma, what do you want from me?"he said in a defeated manner. His head was tilted to the side and his hands were deep in his pockets. I had never seen him so powerless before. "I want you,n Hayes,"I stated firmly, "Forget the school.Forget the rules.Forget the world and everything in it.If you love me, please let me know," I caught his gaze and we stared at each other for a good minute. His eyes held volume even though he wasn''t speaking a word.For a split second there, I swear his eyes glimmered. "The truth.Tell me.I deserve to know," I said again, not breaking eye contact. Finally, he let out a deep sigh and said, "I do.I love you, like mad, Ido," My heart swelled up at his words.It was the best feeling in the world and I couldn''t stop the smile forming on my face. "You can''t possibly know how much I love you.And I want you to know that.But¡ª" "But nothing,"I cut him off simply. He was going to make more excuses, theundry list of reasons why couldn''t be together. I knew that list very well.I had it drafted in my mind too. But that list wasn¡¯t going to be enough to stop me anymore. I left that list and my sanity the moment I got on the car and drove 12 hours north.I took a step closer to him and he moved back in response, maintaining a safe distance between us. "Emma, stop,"he warned. "Or what?"I challenged. "If you take another step over.I¡¯m not gonna be able to control myself anymore," "So don''t," "Emma, think about what you''re doing,"I did, plenty of times already. I thought about this over and over again and I came to the conclusion that us being together was the only solution.He was my only solution. So without hesitating, I reached for his neck and stood on my tippy toes.My lips were an inch away from his left ear as I whispered "Be with me always ¡ª take any form ¡ª drive me mad.Only do not leave me in this abyss where I cannot find you. All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org. Oh, God. It is unutterable.I cannot live without my life.I cannot live without my soul,"I pulled away to see his reaction. He was biting his lower lip to stop himself from smiling. He knew exactly what I was doing. I was quoting a phrase from Wuthering Heights, and from that look in his eyes, I knew that he knew it too. It was such a fitting phrase and I hoped he got the sincerity I was trying to portray. Our faces were inches away from each other and we just stared at each other for a good minute. It was crazy how we managed to say so much without even saying a word. "If you really love me,n, please don¡¯t make me live without my soul,"I said finally. Those were the words I wanted to tell him ever since he walked out of my life that night. Because he was my soul.Something snapped inside him. Because suddenly, he reached for my face and pulled me up to him. Leaning his head down, he closed the distance between us with a long, tender kiss. The moment his lipsnded on mine, I felt like exploding into a million tiny pieces. Thankfully, his strong arms were holding onto me tight, keeping me in ce. White snow was falling all around us, and it looked like we were in a scene straight out of a movie. I was on cloud nine. I ran my hand through his hair as I pulled him closer to me. He sucked gently on my lower lip, taking his time with every movement. His tongue grazed my lips gently, instantly causing my mouth to part. Our tongues met and I tasted him like I was starving for him, because I was. The two of us together like this, it felt so right, it was undeniable. We finally pulled away when we were out of breath. I was panting and his chest was heaving up and down. I couldn''t help but smile as he leaned his forehead down on mine and our noses were snuggling each other. "I said it once, I''ll say it again," he whispered huskily to my ears, "Baby girl, you are going to be the death of me,"His words lit a fire inside me. I leaned forward and gave him a quick, soft kiss on his nose. He was smiling from ear to ear and so was I. "I''m so d you came,"He said as he ran his fingers on my cheek. "Me too,"I told him. "How long do you have before you have to go back?" "I have about...10 hours," I nced at my phone, and the time showed it was almost 12 AM. I promised Tiff and Carrie we would drive back at around 10 AM tomorrow morning, and so we would be back in Georgia at 10 PM. Right in time for our curfew. "Know anything fun to do in New Jersey at this hour?"I asked him yfully. "I can think of a few things," That sexy smirk yed on his lips and I could just melt at the sight. "Lead the way,"I said as I linked my arms around his. It felt so good to be able to hold him like this and not worry about what people might say. This was New Jersey after all. Far, far away from West Lake High School, Georgia. "But, first thing¡¯s first.We need to get some food," he said suddenly and I nodded in excitement at the mention of food. "You know me so well," Iughed. I was starving andn brought us to this food truck on the boardwalk, he said it was the best tacos in New Jersey. Maybe I was just hungry after driving for six hours without food. Or maybe it was the cold air outside. Or maybe I was just too happy to seen again, but man, those were the best carnitas tacos I had ever had. "Did I tell you, or did I tell you?"he said smugly as he watched me finish the third te of taco. "You are right.You changed my life.Carnitas tacos will never taste the same again,"I said and he laughed. After tacos, we went to a bar for some drinks.He got a bottle of beer and club soda for me.I red at him menacingly, but he wouldn''t give in. "We''re breaking the rules anyway, might as well,"I pleaded. "No,"He shook his head firmly, "Some rules need to be kept," "You''reme,"I rolled my eyes. "Am I now?"he looked slightly ticked off. Tilting my chin towards him, he nted a soft kiss on my lips and I could taste the sweet alcohol on his lips. I smiled through the kiss and he responded by deepening the kiss. When my tongue grazed his bottom lip, he parted his mouth and I roamed his mouth with my tongue.I could taste everything.It was hot and intoxicating. "Wow,"I breathed when I finally pulled away. He just smirked at me as he took another gulp of his drink. "Beers would never taste the same again," I said as I pulled him in for another kiss. He stifled augh as he let me taste his lips once again. We stayed outside until it was about 3 AM and everything but the bars were closed. We walked around for a little bit and he was showing me his favorite spots in the city. We took a walk through his favorite park, we passed by his favorite bookstore, and we even passed by his old high school. "What were you like in high school?" I said to him as I watched him stare longingly at the big red building with the sign ¡®Wildwood High School¡¯. "I was definitely not an active participant,"he scoffed, keeping his eyes straight ahead. "Do you think we would have been friends if we met in high school?" He didn¡¯t answer me, but he had a pained look on his face. He then turned to me and gave me a look I couldn''t decipher, prompting me to say, "What?" "Nothing,"he muttered quickly. His hand reached for my face and he tucked a wild strand of hair away. With a small smile, he then whispered, "Let¡¯s go back to my ce," Chapter 24: Humble Beginnings Chapter 24: Humble Beginnings EMMA''s POV We arrived atn''s family home, but we had to sneak ourselves in so we wouldn''t wake up his mom. I didn¡¯t know much aboutn and his family, he didn¡¯t talk about them often. All I knew was that his dad had passed away in a car ident and her mom never got remarried. He also had a younger sister who was still in college. The house was a lovely two story white brick building. The living room was filled with all sorts of pictures and memories ofn¡¯s childhood, and I couldn''t get enough of it. He yed little league when he was 10, and there were pictures of him and his family when he was young scattered everywhere. Weirdly enough, there weren''t any pictures of him as a teenager though. "Come here,n whispered, motioning for me to follow him up the stairs. We made it to the second floor and he went into the first room up the stairs.I couldn''t believe my eyes as I stepped inside the room.It wasn¡¯s childhood bedroom. There were posters of bands on the wall, his oldic books scattered on the desk, and a lot of art sketches everywhere. I felt like I was meeting sixteen-year-oldn. "I would have cleaned the room if I knew you wereing,"he joked as he watched my expression. "This is fine.It¡¯s great,"I said as I took note of all the books on his shelves. "I can sleep on the couch if you want,"he motioned for the bed. It was a queen-sized bed, big enough for two.So I quickly shook my head. "You can sleep here too, if you want,"He didn''t say anything but he nodded his head a little. "I''ll find you something to change,"he said as he turned for the dresser. He pulled out a ck t-shirt with The Ramones logo on it and handed it to me. "Will this do?"he asked. "Sure, thanks,"I said as I took the shirt. He then raided the bottom drawer for some boxer shorts and handed one to me. "Sorry, it¡¯s all I got," "No worries," I paused for a beat before asking, "Uh, bathroom?" He pointed to the en-suite door and I made my way inside. It was funny. I love seeing his oversized shirt draped on my body and I love that I could smell his scent with every breath I took. When I finished changing and I cleaned up a bit, I opened the door and foundn already on the bed. He was shirtless, he wore nothing but some joggers that hung low on his hips. His toned and muscr body was leaning against the headboard and my eyes scanned the tattoos covering his arm and chest. "You alright there?"he said suddenly, causing me to blush and look away. "You''re not gonna wear a shirt?"I asked "My shirt looks better on you,"he smirked in reply. Oh gosh, I¡¯m a goner, aren''t I? "Come here,"he patted the empty space next to him. I made my way over and as soon as I climbed onto the bed,n pulled me in his arms and held me tight. My back was to his chest and his arms circled mepletely. He nted a long, soft kiss on the top of my head, and I could only close my eyes as he felt absolutely divine. When I turned my head to the side and opened my eyes, I was facing his bare chest and I noted the Latin phrase that was tattooed on him. I had always wondered about it but I never got a chance to ask. "What does this mean? Cogito Ergo Sum?"I asked finally. "I think therefore I am.It''s a Latin quote by Descartes," "And what''s the meaning for you? I mean, it must mean something, you had it tattooed across your chest?" "It¡¯s a long story and it¡¯s alreadyte.I don¡¯t know if you wanna hear¡ª" "I want to.Plus, we have all the time in the world...or at least, six more hours,"I said and he let out a smallugh. "Okay..." He took a deep breath before continuing, "I never told anyone this before, but there was a time in my life where I felt so hopeless and that life was so pointless.I was around 18 or 19.I thought about ending it all.But then, the fact that I was thinking at all about my existence tells me that I exist.And as long as I keep having questions and thinking about my existence, I can have a reason to keep living.So I got this tattoo as a reminder to keep thinking and keep going," I didn¡¯t know what to say to all of that. My heart was breaking at the thought of eighteen year oldn, alone in this room, contemting on ending it all. "It''s stupid.It''s whatever,"he said and turned his face away. "No, I think that¡¯s really deep,"I said quickly, using my hand I reached for his face and turned it back to me, " "And I¡¯m so d you''re still around today to tell me about it," A smile curved up his face as he heard my response.And his smile made me smile. His hand reached for my chin and he rubbed his thumb gently on my skin. "Llove you, Emma," My mind went nk for a split second. I wasn''t expecting that at all and I never knew how four little words could hold so much meaning. My chest felt warm and big and butterflies were flying in my stomach. I couldn''t stop myself from smiling even when I bit my lip. The only thing I could do at this point was to look up at him and say, "I love you too,n Hayes," The next thing I knew, his lips found mine and he kissed me with such tenderness and passion. It was like our souls were finally freed after being in cages for so long. We made out for the longest time, just savoring each other through touches and kisses. I loved running my fingers on his chest and rock hard abs. He wouldn''t stop kissing the sweet spot on my neck and fondling my breasts. We only had hours left for each other and we wanted to make sure that we''re making it count. We made love that night. I could finally use the words ¡® made love¡¯ because now I finally knew what it meant. It was different from just having sex because we both knew it came from a ce of love and trust between the two of us. I finally fell asleep to the sight of the sun rising behindn¡¯s gorgeous face. I couldn''t keep my eyes open for another second. For a long time, wey facing each other but none of us wanted to sleep. We were tired but we didn¡¯t want to blink and miss anything. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. It was...the sweetest thing that I had ever experienced in my life. When I opened my eyes next, the sun was already high up and bright. I looked for signs ofn¡¯s body next to mine, but there was nothing but air. I jerked up and looked around the room¡ªI waspletely alone in there. Faintly, I could hear the sound of my phone buzzing from my purse. I staggered up the bed and grabbed the vibrating device, and I almost choked on air as I saw the time, it was 9.35 AM. I had dozens of missed calls and messages all from Tiff and Carrie. They wanted to know if we were still going to drive back today at 10 AM. I quickly called them up and told them everything was fine and that we were still going to go ording to n. I shared my location with them and they were on their way to pick me up. After our little regroup, I put my phone away and went to the en-suite to find my clothes. I thought about changing out ofn¡¯s shirt, but I didn¡¯t wanna take it off, ever. So I wore my jeans and kept his t-shirt on me. I tied the bottom part of the shirt together so it wouldn''t be too baggy over my body."Emma? You in here?" I walked out instinctively and found him standing there. He was already dressed, wearing a in white shirt and jeans. When did he take a shower and howe I didn¡¯t hear it? n, why didn¡¯t you wake me? I have to leave in...twenty minutes," I said as I scrambled to get my things together. "And I''m stealing your shirt, by the way," "Keep it,"he chuckled. "I didn¡¯t wanna wake you, you look so tired.And I was hoping you¡¯d miss the time and stay for another day.Shameless of me.I know,"I smiled at his words. Truth be told, I was hoping the same thing. "It''s okay.I understand the feeling," "I wish I can keep you around a little longer.My mom really wants to meet you," "Your mom?" "She''s downstairs making breakfast.Do you wannae and say hi?" But is that wise considering...? "Should I? Did she know about us...?" About me being a high school student and you''re my teacher! "No.I didn''t tell her who you are exactly,"he paused for a moment before continuing, "I told her we met at a bar in Emory and she just assumed you''re a student there.I went along with it.I don¡¯t think telling her the truth¡¯s gonna make things better," "I agree,"I nodded and took a deep breath. "Will twenty minutes be okay?" "We''ll take it,n said with a smile. I went to check myself on the mirror onest time before heading downstairs. I was meeting his mom and I wanted to look presentable. After doing everything I could to save my hair,n and I headed downstairs to the kitchen where his mom was busy making some eggs. "Mom, this is Emma.The girl I''ve been telling you about," He¡¯s been telling his mom about me? "Hi, Mrs.Hayes, you have a lovely home," "Please, call me Kirsten. And it¡¯s so good to finally meet you. Kirsten Hayes was a lovely woman in her fifties, but she could absolutely pass as thirty-five.She had a warm smile and she was a hugger.She left her eggs and went over to me, giving me a great big hug. "Sit down, please.Do you like eggs?"she motioned for the kitchen stool and I followed after her. "Sure,"I didn¡¯t know how to say no to such a nicedy. "She can¡¯t stay long, mom.She has to leave in twenty minutes,"n replied. "Not before having breakfast," Kirsten wasn''t taking no for an answer. She grabbed a te and ced it in front of me, "Here you go, dear," "Thank you," I said as I turned ton who gave me a defeated look. n, be a sweetheart and get her something to drink," Kirsten said ton and heplied. He went to get an empty ss and walked to the corner of the room where the fridge was. "So tell me, is he treating you ok?" Kirsten whispered to me asn was away. "Yes, he¡¯s absolutely great," I smiled reassuringly. "Good.I''m d," "You know, you''re the first girl he ever brought home and let her stay for breakfast,"suddenly we heard a voice called out and all of us turned around. A young girl, around my age or maybe older, with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes was standing behind me. She looked familiar, like the girl version ofn. "I''m sorry?"I said to her. "Hailey,n scolded the girl as he returned to the counter with a ss of water. "What? It''s true,"she stuck her tongue out at him. Hailey and I smiled at each other as I said, "Nice to meet you, Hailey," "Nice to meet you too, Emma.I have a feeling we''re gonna be great friends," n rolled his eyes and whispered to me, "Just ignore her," Oh, but I like her already. Chapter 25: Home Bound Chapter 25: Home Bound EMMA''s POV I ended up chatting and staying longer than I should. Hailey and Kirsten were such a joy to be around with. I learned so much aboutn and his childhood within ten minutes of talking to them, more than I ever did our entire rtionship. I learnedn was always gifted in the arts, at three years old he would color the entire living room wall with crayons, and at thirteen he would color the neighborhood''s wall in spray paint. Apparently, he used to get into a lot of trouble, like all boys would, ording to Kirsten. Kirsten mentioned that he was a talented kid all around, not just in the arts. He also yed ser and baseball and oh he rocked the cutest Justin Bieber hairstyle growing up. I made up my mind to steal some of his childhood photos. They''re a national treasure! I also heard some things aboutn¡¯s dad. From what I gathered, he was a very stand up guy, an all American dad. He used to y baseball withn as a kid, but when he died,n stopped ying sports altogether. His dad died at such a young age due to a car ident whenn was just sixteen. I changed the topic to Hailey instead, asking her about college. "So, I heard you''re in college?" "Yup, sophomore year.I go to Wellesley.Where do you go?" "I-uh," my breath was stuck in my throat. I couldn''t possibly say I go to West Lake high school where his brother teaches! I shot a look over at lan for some help. "She goes to" "Oh, that¡¯s right!" Hailey cut in, "You two met in Emory.I forgot. How silly of me," "Right..." I nodded my head, "We met in Emory..." Which was true. We did meet there. I just didn¡¯t go there. The rest of our conversation went by without a hitch. I found out that Hailey was four years younger thann, which meant she was four years older than me. She didn¡¯t know that, though. Somehow I managed to make her believe that we were somewhere around the same age. After a while of talking, we heard the loud honking outside the house, a signal that my friends were here to pick me up. I tried to hold off as long as I could because I wanted to keep talking to Kirsten and Hailey, but I knew my time was up when my phone wouldn''t stop buzzing. "Okay, I guess I really have to go now," I sighed and grabbed my things. "I''ll walk you out,"n followed after me. "Breakfast was amazing, thank you again. And it was very nice to meet you two," I smiled at Hailey and Kirsten. "Same here. I''ll give you a call if I''m ever in Georgia," Hailey smiled back and I nodded. "Are you sure we can¡¯t talk you into staying another night?" Kirsten pleaded. "Oh, I wish I could," "Emma has to go, mom," "Well okay, but next time please stay longer," she said again right before I left the kitchen. "I will," I replied. "That means there will be a next time," Kirsten said it to me, but her eyes were staring straight atn, and she winked. "Of course," he shrugged. She smiled victoriously and finally she let us go. My friends gaven a little wave and he nodded back at them. I noticed the air of awkwardness, so I quickly pulled him by his cor and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for letting me stay the night," "Anytime," he said as his body rxed. "Your mom and sister are amazing by the way," "Thanks. They think the same of you too," "How''d you know?" "They told me. When I was telling them about you," "What did you tell them about me?" "That you''re this amazing girl and I''m head over heels for you.But...life got in the way and we couldn''t be together," "What did they say then?" "They were nagging me to get you back.They were saying that I shouldn''t let life get in the way and do everything I can to make this work between us.Of course, they don''t actually know the whole reason why we had to end things in the first ce," "It''s a stupid reason,"I muttered quickly. "Yeah, I''m never doing that again,"he said with augh. He had the most gorgeous smile and I was sad that I had to leave this gorgeous smile behind. "I''ll miss you,"I said as I linked my arms around his neck. "I''ll miss you too.I''ll be back in Georgia after the New Years," "Okay,"I paused for a moment to count the days. "So I guess I''ll see you at school?" He nodded and said, "See you at school," With that, he leaned down and pulled me in for a kiss. A long, gentle, tender kiss. I kissed him back as my fingers ran through his hair. He responded by pulling me even closer and deepened the kiss. We knew we weren''t gonna see each other for a while, so we wanted to make it count. My stupid friends had to ruin the moment, of course. They were honking and cheering like crazy. I had to put my middle finger up in the middle of the kiss to shut them up. Finally, after we were all out of breaths, we pulled away and stared deeply into each other''s eyes. He let out a sigh as I stood on my tippy toes and kissed his cheek onest time, before turning to my heels. He waved goodbye as I sat in the backseat of the convertible. He was waving at me and I was waving back at him, but my friends joined in on the waving and yelled, "See you at school, Mr. Hayes!" "Guys, just shut up and drive," I rolled my eyes dramatically at them and the car speeded away the next second. Original from N?velDrama.Org. God, I hope his mom and sister wouldn''t think too much of it. "So..." Tiff said as soon as the car turned a corner. "So?" I pretended to y dumb. "Tell us everything!" she demanded. "Every little detail!" Carrie followed. "Okay, well, basically... I eximed. "Oh my god, yes!" "Woo! I knew it! I knew you''d pull this off," "Couldn''t have done it without you guys," I said as I linked my arms to both my friends who were in the front seat. "How did it happen? What did he say?"Carrie asked. "It''s a twelve hour drive.We want to know everything,"Tiffmanded. We managed to make it back to Georgia by 11 PM thatnight. My parents didn¡¯t suspect a thing and I was just d that they weren''t one of those weird parents that would check the mileage in their daughter''s car every night. Because in that case, I would be screwed. He¡¯d call on FaceTime and we''d talk until we fell asleep with our screens still on the entire night. I only had to wait a week for him to return, but a week could feel like ages when you''re in love. I spent most of my days in the house. I hung out with my parents, had my friends over for a sleepover, and I talked ton on FaceTime. People made fun of the guy or girl who stays home every night doing nothing, but that was only becausen Hayes wasn¡¯t their boyfriend. I had a st chatting withn. Even when it was New Year''s Eve and everyone was out an about celebrating, I couldn''t care less. I¡¯d much rather stay in my room, watch TV, and hear another one ofn¡¯s stories. "Are you sure you don¡¯t wannae with us?"mom knocked on my door for the tenth time that night. She was wearing her long ck dress and dad was wearing a suit. They were going to dad¡¯s New Year''s Eve office party. "I definitely don¡¯t want to spend the New Years with dad¡¯s colleagues, no offense,"I nodded to dad and he nodded back. "None taken.If it wasn¡¯t for your mom, I wouldn''t wanna go too," "Tiff and Carrie aren''ting over?"mom asked again. "No, they''re going to a party at Madison''s.I don''t feel like going, I¡¯m just gonna stay here and watch TV," Mom and dad shared a worried look. Maybe even a little pity. "Don''t look at me like that.I¡¯m totally fine.I just wanna kick back and chill," "Okay, you stay here and chill.If you need anything, call us,"mom said finally. "We''ll be back a little after midnight,"dad added. "Sure, sure.Off you go, you two," I said as I pushed them towards the door, "Enjoy your night.Happy new years," Mom and dad looked happy as they walked to their car. They hadn''t had a date night in so long and they deserved it. Of course I wished I had a date night too. But my date night tonight would have to consist of my phone, a tub of ice cream, and Dick rk''s New Year''s Rockin¡¯ Eve. It was 10 PM and I was lounging casually on the couch. I tried to calln, but for some reason he wasn''t picking up. He was probably busy. I figured he''d call me back soon, so I just put my phone down and focused on my Ben and Jerry¡¯s Chunky Monkey instead. I didn¡¯t know what happen, but I must have fallen asleep. I woke up to the doorbell ringing and my buzzing. I checked the time and it was 1159 PM. "Hello?"I said over the phone. "Hey, where have you been?" "I fell asleep.Hold on, someone''s at the door¡ª" I opened the door and the shock of a lifetime hit me. He turned off the call on his phone and I just gaped at him like an idiot. I looked down at my phone and back to him, still unable to process the fact that he was actually here. In front of my doorstep. n...?" "Hey," he smirked. It really was him. I lunged myself forward and pulled him in for a hug. When I felt his rock hard body around my arms, I could finally ept the fact that he was in fact, real. "I thought you won''t be back until after the New Year?" I said to his chest. "I just can''t wait that long.Especially knowing that my girls here on New Year¡¯s Eve alone, without anyone to kiss,"he said as he tilted my face up with his hand. "So you came back because you wanna kiss me on New Year''s Eve?" "That, among other things," "10... 9.. 8... 7... 6..." we could hear the countdowning from the TV in the living room. "Happy New Year, Emma.Here¡¯s to a new beginning," he said as he cupped my face and his eyes bored into mine. "5. 4. 3..." "Happy new beginnings,n," "2 1." And we kissed. My heart was beating so fast like they were made of firecrackers. Our bodies molded into one another like we were water. My insides were burning with passion and fire and the kiss tranted it. This felt like a dream, except this was better. It was real. When we finally pulled away, I fluttered my eyes open and saw that his dark piercing eyes were gazing onto mine. He leaned our foreheads together and we smiled from ear to ear. Nothing else could ever feel this right. And if this was hown and I rang in the New Year, I had a feeling it was going to be the start of a beautiful new journey. Chapter 26: Begin Again Chapter 26: Begin Again EMMA''s POV One Month Later - "Let''s go Lions, let¡¯s go!" I cheered with my heart out. It was Friday night and our school¡¯s basketball team had a game against our rival school, Walton High. After Christmas break and getting back together withn, I was in full spirit. School was exciting and fun again, and I dived right back into my after school activities and studies. "Look at you in your cheer spirit," Tiff called out from behind the bleachers. "Suits you well, Em," Carrie shed her thumbs up. "Thanks, you guys,"I winked right back at them. If it weren''t for my two best friends, I wouldn''t be able to pull off driving to New Jersey and patched things up withn. Speaking ofn, he was here too. It wasn¡¯t mandatory for teachers to be at the games, but after he saw me and my new cheer costume, lan became a steadfast fan of the basketball games. He smiled at me from the back bleachers and I smiled right back at him. It was a knowing, secret smile that only the two of us could share. Everyone else in this entire gymnasium wouldn''t have aclue. "Let¡¯s go, Lions!" Basketball games were not the only ce we see each other at school. He came to my swim meets too, in which case I would purposefully stretch my legs a little bit extra than usual. He would throw me a smirk as he eyed me up and down in my swimsuit. I rolled my eyes at him in response, but honestly, I was d he was here to see me. Havingn around fueled me and my desire to win. I wanted to show off my best self. That day, I set a new all -time high record for the 100 Yard Freestyle and I couldn''t be happier. A part of me believed it was because he was there, watching me. And the look on his face, that proud look he had for me, that felt even better than winning. All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org. During school hours,n and I couldn''t spend much time alone together. Yes, we were around each other, but we couldn''t really talk or touch each other in any way. This in turn made everything hotter for us when we were finally alone after school. I still came by his apartment every chance I got. Some days we''d work on my art portfolio or I''d work on my homework and he''d grade his papers. But on other days, we''d do an entirely different kind of work. "Ah!" I couldn''t help the moans from escaping my lips. "Feels good, huh?" "You''re a miracle worker!" I said as I tilted my head back. "You''re overworking your muscles. You need to take it easy," he said as continued massaging my feet. Oh, you thought it was something else? Cheerleading and swimming took its toll on me. My whole body was bruised and blue and my muscles were sore and tired. He had magic hands, I kid you not. Whatever he touched, he made everything better. "Tell me you''ll take it easy," he said again, pushing his thumb against the skin of my ankle. It was right there at the spot where I wanted it. I let out another moan in response. "Emma?"he asked. He could be so demanding. "Fine," I groaned as he finished giving me a massage. "I promise I''ll take it easy," "Good girl," he kissed my ankle before putting it down gently on hisp. I pulled myself up so that I was facing him. His gorgeous face beamed at me as cocked my head to the side and studied him. Some days I just couldn''t believe my luck. How did I get to call this amazing man my boyfriend? "What are you thinking about?"he asked. "I''m thinking..." I leaned my head closer until my lips gently grazed his ear, "You don¡¯t have to take it easy on me," The sexiest, naughtiest smirk appeared on his face in response. I couldn''t stop giggling as he leaned for my neck and his hands gripped my waist. He pinned me down on the couch and when his lips found that sweet spot on my neck, I knew I was a goner. Sore all over and yet I couldn''t get enough. "So, are you busy tomorrow night?" I said as I picked up my bra from the floor and slipped it back on. It was already 7 PM, which meant it was time for me to go back home and have dinner with my family. "Tomorrow night¡¯s a Tuesday.Don''t you have a game to go to?"he said as he adjusted himself in his pants. "Yeah, but I was thinking maybe we can get together after that?" I paused to put my shirt back on and continued, "It is Valentine¡¯s day after all," "Oh," "What?" "Nothing.I just didn¡¯t think it was important.Valentine¡¯s day is just a stupidmercial scam," he scoffed, but when he saw the look on my face, he quickly changed direction, "But clearly it''s important to you. And if it''s important to you, it¡¯s important to me too," "You are the best boyfriend ever," I said with a quick kiss on his cheek. "I must warn you though, I don¡¯t know the first thing about Valentine¡¯s Day," "It''s simple.Just get choctes and flowers.Maybe a teddy bear.And maybe one of those cards from Hallmark, that big scammer," I said as I gathered my bag from the floor, and turned for the door. He let out augh and said, "Alright, I''ll see what I can do," Valentine''s Day fell on a Tuesday, how anticlimactic. There was a basketball game too, a finals game. Our school was down by two points and there were only ten seconds left on the clock. We thought we weren''t gonna make it. But ast minute shot changed the score and we won by just one point. The whole gymnasium roared in cheers and whistles as our school was dered the winner of this year''s championship. I was screaming and cheering my hearts out too. The excitement in the room was so contagious, I just couldn''t hold it in. And a part of me was just excited to get on with my night. After our celebratory dance and congratting everyone on the team, I raced to the locker room to get changed. I changed as quickly as I could, and I was about to head out when Madison, our cheer captain, stopped my tracks. "Hey, Em.You''reing to my Valentine¡¯s day party, right?" she beamed, standing right between me and the exit door. "There are a lot of cute single guys I wanna introduce you to.How do you feel about older guys?" "Um, thanks, but no thanks.I have to get home and do...some homework," I said as I nced at the clock, it was 7.30 PM and I promisedn I would be there by now. "Are you serious? You''re blowing my party for a homework?" she scoffed in annoyance. "Sorry Maddie, I¡¯m just not into boysat the moment," I¡¯m into men. A man to exact. "What you''re a lesbian now?" she paused for a second to gauge my reaction. "Just kidding," she added quickly when I didn¡¯t look amused. "Fine, I''ll swing by for like a second," I said finally to get her off my back. "Great.See ya there," she said as she stepped away from the door, finally. I could just lie and head out ton¡¯s apartment, but I didn¡¯t feel good about lying. I knew Tiff, Carrie, and Mark would be there too since they told me they were going. Taking a deep breath, I walked to the parking lot and I textedn that I would be a bitte. Madison¡¯s parties were always fun. Hanging out with Tiff, Mark, and Carrie was always fun. But after twenty minutes of being there, I couldn''t wait to leave. Ryan was there in the crowd, and he kept giving me weird flirty looks. I feel way too old for this. "Guys,n¡¯s waiting for me in his apartment.Cover for me, will ya?" I whispered to Tiff and Carrie''s ears while Mark was away. "You got it," Tiff nodded. "Take the back exit, no one will know," Carrie motioned for the back door. "I owe you guys everything," I gave them a quick hug before running for the exit. I could see Ryan was about toe after me, but Tiff was quick on her toes. She stepped in front of him and with her best ¡®drunk¡¯ voice she said, "Oh my God, Ryan, I love your shirt!" The girl practically took a bullet for me. I owed her my life. Mental note to self send Tiff flowers and choctes every day for a month. I arrived atn¡¯s apartment a little over 8.30 PM. I raced to his door as fast as I could and I knocked furiously as soon as I was there. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself and waited as he opened the door. "Hey,"he beamed at me as the door opened. He was wearing a crisp white shirt and ck pants. His hair was slicked back and he looked so cool, as always. "I''m so sorry, I''mte.Madison wouldn''t take no for an answer and¡ªoh my god!" I couldn''t believe my eyes as I stepped inside the apartment. There must be at least ten different types of flowers in various vases around the apartment. There were choctes, all kinds and shapes under the sun, and they were everywhere. There was also this big fluffy teddy bear sitting on the couch with a ribbon on its head. Candles were burning and a slow jazz was ying. He even got a bottle of wine and homemade pizza in the shape of a heart on the table, which was probably cold since it''d been sitting there for a while. "What happened here? Did you just get a house makeover from Willy Wonka?" I said as I went to inspect the rows of chocte hearts on the coffee table. "I don''t know what choctes you like.So I got one of everything,"he shrugged simply. "And I don¡¯t know what flowers you like, so..." So he got me everything...! "And you got me a teddy bear," I said as I hugged the big fluffy guy. "Hope you like that one," "I love this one,"I smiled at him. "Yeah?" he smiled back. "And I love you," I said as I took a step towards him. "I love everything you did here," "I love you too," he said as he closed the distance between us. "I''m sorry I¡¯mte," I said after a long tender kiss. "It¡¯s okay, you''re worth the wait," he said as he rested his forehead on mine. We were staring deeply into each other''s eyes and we couldn''t stop smiling at each other. I linked my arms around his neck and he put his hands on my waist. We started swaying to the music, all the while we kept smiling and gazing into each other¡¯s eyes. "Damn.Now I know why people are so damn hooked on this holiday," he said and Iughed. And I am so damn hooked on you,n Hayes. You have no clue Chapter 27: Birthday Boy Chapter 27: Birthday Boy EMMA''s POV One Month Later - "Hey Em, what are you doing? What is that?" I didn''t sit at our usual spot today for lunch because I was avoiding my friends. Yet, Tiff and Carrie always seemed to know how to find me. I was sitting in the empty gym bleachers, writing away in my notebook. "Dearn¡ªoh my gosh, you''re writing a love letter?" Carrie peeked at my notebook and gasped. "Guys! Keep it down!" I hissed quickly and threw my gaze around, making sure no one was listening. "And no, for your information, that¡¯s not a love letter. That''s a birthday card," I said when I knew for sure we were the only people there. "Mr.Hayes¡¯ birthday ising up?" Tiff asked and I quickly put my hand over her mouth. "Ssh, we agreed we''re not using real names here," "Oh right, I meant is Bar Guy¡¯s birthdaying up?"she corrected herself. "Yup, March 14th,"I nodded. "Oh, that''s this Saturday. What are you guys n on doing?" Carrie asked. "Wenned nothing because hedidn''t like celebrating his birthdays. Butm nning something. After that amazing Valentine¡¯s day dinner he nned for me, I have to do something spectacr in return," "So what are you thinking?" "At first I wanted to throw him a surprise party, but seeing as the three of us are the only people allowed to know about the rtionship, a party with just us doesn¡¯t seem right. So, I thought about making dinner. But he already did that for Valentine¡¯s Day, so I wanna do something else," "Yeah, tell us what you''re actually thinking," theyughed teasingly but I just rolled my eyes. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. "So I¡¯m thinking I¡¯m gonna take him out for a little road trip," "Oh, fun! Where to?" With him? Anywhere. That was an inside joke that my friends wouldn''t get. So I just smiled at them and said, "There''s a ce," I "Uh-huh. And you''re not gonna tell us where," "Nope," "What, you think we''ll spy on you guys?" Tiff asked defensively. "We''re totally gonna spy on you guys," Carrie shrugged. "Knew it," I pursed my lips, "Which is why it''ll be a secret. But just in case my mom called you guys, tell her we''re going doing a movie marathon at the IMAX theater," "Covering for you is our full-time job now," Carrie joked. "Don''t worry, you two will be generously rewarded," "A road trip, huh? You and Bar Guy are gonna have so much fun," Tiff stopped for a moment and she rolled eyes as the realization hit her, "Man, I¡¯m single AF," Friday night rolled along and I couldn''t be more excited. I had nned and nned everything in detail forn¡¯s birthday surprise tomorrow. Everything would be perfect and we''d love each other more and more. I Eep! I textedn again to make sure that he would be ready for tomorrow. It was a simple text, I wrote "Sleep early tonight.Get ready for tomorrow. Love you." and I thought that was that, I was getting ready to go to sleep. But suddenly, he called me up. "Hello?" I answered the call. "What do you mean get ready for tomorrow?" "I mean get ready.We''re doing something fun," "What thing?" "It''s a surprise. If I tell you it won''t be a surprise," "I hate not knowing what''s gonna happen. Just give me like a hint," "The only hint I can give you is this clear your schedule tomorrow, that¡¯s all I¡¯m saying," "Emma, I told you, I¡¯m not into celebrating birthdays,"he sighed. "We''re not celebrating anything. We''re just gonna hang out. You know, do boyfriend and girlfriend things," I said reassuringly. "All right, all right," he said finally, pausing for a beat before saying, "When did you get so bossy?" "I''ll see you tomorrow morning," I rolled my eyes, though I knew he couldn''t see it. "Yes ma¡®am," Saturday morning couldn''te fast enough. As soon as my rm clock hit 5 AM, I jolted from the bed and ran for the bathroom. I took a quick shower, did my hair, and donned some light make up. This is the only time I would be excited to wake up at 5 AM. After leaving a note on the fridge for my parents, I grabbed my things and piled them into my car. Before anything else, I went to the gas station and made sure the tank was full. I also got two iced coffees and a red apple at the convenience store before driving off ton¡¯s apartment. I knocked and waited for a while beforen finally opened the door. It looked like he just woke up. He was shirtless and only wearing his sleep joggers. His dark brown hair was messy but he still looked drop-dead gorgeous. "Happy birthday," I beamed at him, and I held the red apple in front of his face. "That''s cute," he chuckled and took the apple, "But it¡¯s...seven in the morning," "I told you I''ming early in the morning," I said as I leaned against the doorframe. "Ok...Why are you standing there? You''re not gonnae in?" "No, you''reing with me," I stated firmly. "What?" "I told you I''m taking you out. Grab your things and whatever else you need and let''s skedaddle," "It''s Saturday morning. Can''t we just sit down and have breakfast or something? I¡¯m feeling kind of hungry..." He put one hand on the doorframe and he stood tall, hovering over me. He licked his lips and eyed me from head to toe, sending shivers up and down my spine. "You can eat the apple," I muttered quickly, pulling myposure, "And in the meantime, let¡¯s get us on the road. Trust me on this," "Seriously?" he sighed, "And we have to go right now?" "Serious is my middle name. Grab your things and let¡¯s go. I got tworge ice coffees waiting in the car," "You''re actually serious, wow," he chuckled lowly. "Come on, don''t just stand there, we don¡¯t have all day," I pushed him back into the apartment with both my hands. He held onto my hands and pushed himself forward, causing our lips to crash into each other. He kissed me hard and hungrily. I kissed him back passionately, but I pulled away abruptly, causing him to jerked his eyes open. "Happy birthday to me," he smirked. "Grab a shirt, or don¡¯t. Ande with me," I ordered firmly. He cocked his head to the side and studied my attitude. Finally, he let out a chuckle and said, "Yes ma¡®am," kak kaka KKK KKK KKK KR KKK KKK KK RK KRKKAKEK To my disappointment,n decided to wear a shirt. He sat coolly on the passenger seat with a pair of Ray-bans on. When he sipped his iced coffee, you could see his Adam¡¯s apple moving, and wow that was hot. "You''re gonna hit something if you don¡¯t keep your eyes on the road," hemented and I quickly looked away. "I was just checking the side mirror," I mumbled out. "So, where are we going?" "With you? Anywhere,""Right," he chuckled, remembering our famous catchphrase. "I know you''re fun, but I don¡¯t know you''re this spontaneous," he said again. "Remember the first time we met? Spontaneous is my other middle name," I replied. "Touch¨¦," he said, pausing for a moment as he studied the road and said, "We just passed the city limits. Are you really not gonna tell me where you''re taking me?" "Nope. You''ll just have to wait and see," "When I said you''ll be the death of me, you literally could be," Ignoring him, I linked my phone to my earphone and set the GPS course. I didn¡¯t want him to hear or see where we were going, so I purposefully put the phone on myp. "You can tie me up and put blindfolds on me if that''s easier," hemented. I guiped. The image ofn blindfolded and tied up... hmm .. I didn¡¯t have a goodeback for that. "Or maybe we can put you in one?" he smirked and put his one hand on my knee, causing me to squirm. "Don''t distract me,n!" I hissed quickly, pping his hand away. "I''m on a mission here," "Bossy Emma," he snickered, "I like this side of you too," "You can sleep if you want. I''ll wake you up when we get there," I said as I turned some chill music up. He leaned back against his seat. He crossed his arms and tilted his head to the side. It looked like he was sleeping, and I actually thought he did. But a part of me couldn''t shake the feeling that he wasn¡¯t actually asleep. He was watching me behind those ck sunsses. And he just watched me, the whole entire ride. KKK KKK KKK KKK KAR KKK KKK KK KKK KRRKEK "We''re here," I announced as we drove past the sign saying ¡®wee to Savannah¡¯, andn pulled his sunsses down. "And what are we doing now that we''re here?" He narrowed his eyebrows at me. "First thing on the itinerary, we¡¯re getting brunch at this caf¨¦ by the park and then we can take a stroll around," I said as I nabbed a good parking spot near the park. "You have an itinerary?" "Told you, I¡¯m both serious and spontaneous," - He looked at me in amusement and I just shrugged. After I parked the car, we got out and I led him to the cute caf¨¦ nearby. We got pancakes and a cherry pie and I made sure to tell everyone around us that it wasn¡¯s birthday and random strangers woulde up to him and wish him a happy birthday. The dayn Hayes came into this world should not be taken lightly. I just wanted to make him feel special, because that was what he made feel. After brunch, we needed to walk off the carbs, so we headed for the park. It was early spring and the park was huge, green, and beautiful. There was a gorgeous fountain in the middle and we made a wish together, throwing a penny into it. He thought it was silly and touristy, but I was happy I got my wish. I wished that we could spend more birthdays like this. When we got tired of walking around the park, we picked a cozy bench and sat there for a bit. I was rambling about Savannah being the birthce of Juliette Gordon Low, creator of the Girl Scouts, when suddenlyn leaned into me and kissed me mid sentence. It was a sweet and perfect kiss. I was nervous he wouldn''t like his surprise, but he seemed to be enjoying everything so far. After the park, we went and took a walk along the river. It was a gorgeous cobblestone street surrounded by historical buildings and the Savannah River on its side. "So, do your parents know you''re out here in Savannah for the day?" he said as we walked hand in hand along the riverside. "Not really, but they don¡¯t have to know everything. As long as I''m back tonight before 11, no harm no foul," "I see," he paused for a while, thinking hard as he said , "Must be hard having me as your boyfriend," "What are you talking about?" "I know what you''re doing. Thank you," n, seriously, what are you talking about?" "You drove for three and a half hours to Savannah because you know we can''t be seen together," there was a note of bitterness in his words. "I drove for three and a half hours to Savannah because I want to go see Forsyth Park and East River Street with my boyfriend," I said as I held his hand tighter in mine. "You''re the best girlfriend ever," "I try," I blushed crimson red. "Come here you," he said as he pulled me into a hug. "Best birthday ever or what?" I looked up at him. "It''s about to be," he said as he leaned down and coaxed me into another perfect kiss. "And now it is," he said as he pulled away. It was a perfect moment. The sun was setting and the warm yellow light hit his face at just the right angle and I couldn''t get over how beautiful he was. He was smiling at me, a warm genuine smile that got me weak in the heart and knees. "Can I ask you something?" I said. "Shoot," "Why don¡¯t you like celebrating birthdays?" He let out a small sigh before answering, "Because I never had a good enough reason to celebrate. Until now," I couldn''t help the smile forming on my face as his fingers went to brush my chin. "Why are you smiling like that?" he asked. "Because I''m so happy. Why are you smiling like that?" I replied. "Turns out, being kidnapped by my girl is the best birthday present I could ever ask for," he leaned his forehead on mine and said, "Thank you," His girl. He called me ¡®his girl¡¯. Those were the best two words ever created in the English dictionary. My heart was full and overflowing with joy and I couldn''t contain it anymore. I pulled him by his cor and stood on my tippy toes and I kissed him like I never kissed anyone before. Because I¡¯m his girl. Chapter 28: Study Sessions Chapter 28: Study Sessions EMMA''s POV Two Months Later - "What is the function of mitochondria?" "Mitochondria... is known as the powerhouses of the cell and they produce the energy necessary for the cell''s survival and functioning," I was correct, so he peeled the post-it and put it away. "What are ribosomes?" he showed me the next post-it. "They are protein factories of the cell," "Golgi apparatus," he read aloud, peeling the next one. "They are responsible for... transporting, modifying, and packaging proteins and lipids!" I eximed proudly because I knew I got it right. "Damn, my girl¡¯s got beauty and brains," he smirked and threw the entire post-it away. "Stop, you''re distracting me again," I was going to reach for the post-it he threw away, but he stopped me by putting his hand on my chin. "Well, I have another question in regards to biology," he said as he licked his lips seductively and leaned towards me. "Yeah?" I couldn''t help the smile that was forming. He answered me with a kiss, a long tender kiss that was enough to get send shivers all over my body. The next thing I knew, post-its and books went flying to the ground. He captured my body in his as I straddled him on the couch. I guess I could say we''re going over the human reproductive system...again. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. I couldn''t believe how fast time flew. All of a sudden it was already mid May and I had my finals in two weeks. On top of all that, I still had projects and homework and presentations, and a social life to uphold¡ª man, high school was made for us to fail. In the past months, I was busy keeping up appearances at my afterschool activities and having secret rendezvous with my boyfriend, studying has taken a backseat. This time, however, I had to prioritize my grades and get my life back on track. "Thanks for helping me study for my finals," I said as I gathered the scattered post-it notes on the floor. "Anytime," he smirked and pulled his shirt back on, "Hope I wasn¡¯t distracting you too much," "Nope. You used just the right amount of distraction. You''re the best boyfriend ever," "L try," he mimicked my words and I smiled cheekily. "Think you can stay for dinner?" "Yeah, I told my parents I¡¯m studying all night at Tiff¡¯s," I was getting so good at covering my tracks, the CIA should hire me. "Okay. Chinese or Thai?" he said as he raised our two favorite takeout brochures. "Thai please. I want that papaya sd," "You got it," Dinnertime atn¡¯s quickly became a favorite pastime of mine. We would just sit on the floor, put some music on, and talk about random things as I stole his dumplings. We didn¡¯t need to go out or have fancy food, even eating out of the white paper box and wooden chopstick were heavenly¡ªas long as we were together. "I can''t wait for finals week to be over," I sighed dramatically looking at the stack of textbooks in front of me. "Summer break can¡¯te fast enough," "What''s your n for the summer?" he asked, sipping away his iced tea. "Just hanging out, I guess," I shrugged. "It''s the summer before my senior year. I wanna make it count. I''ll probably visit some colleges. Try and figure my life out," "Right, you''re gonna be a senior and then you''ll be off to college," "Yup," "What kind of school are you looking into?" "Not sure, but I wanna go to a four year institution and live out the total college experience. Maybe rush into sororities and all that," "Sorority girl, huh?" "What was your college experience like?" "It was good. I took a gap year and traveled with some buddies. In high school I was kinda lost, but I think I really find my purpose in college. I actually found the things I was learning to be interesting," "Do you always want to be a teacher?" "No, not always," he scoffed. "The dream is to do art full time. Teaching allows me to do that, so," "I see," "Do you know what you wanna be?" he asked me. "To be honest, not really," I shook my head and sighed. "Don''t worry about it. You''re still in high school, you''re not supposed to have life all figured out by now. What''s meant for you wille to you," All the grown ups in my life wouldn''t stop pestering me about college and a career. I felt like I was under pressure to know everything right away. And when I still wasn''t sure of what to do, I felt like I wasn¡¯t doing life right. Hearing him say those words was liberating. He made me feel okay even though I didn''t have it all together. "That''s exactly what I needed to hear," I smiled and my hands went to cup his face, "Thank you," 2 "Of course," he smiled back. I was so lucky to have him. I felt like he knew me better than I knew myself. And every time I feel down, he knew exactly what to say to make it all better. "How about you, what do you n on doing this summer?" I asked him. "You," he said simply and I almost choked on air. Heughed away at my reaction and I scrambled for some water. Man, I made it too easy for him. "That''s your n? All summer long?" I said after a sip of water. "Maybe," he smirked yfully. Dear lord, I need me some holy water. "lL wish summer''s here already," I bit my lip and batted my eyes seductively at him. "Same here," he threw the smolderat me. That damned smolder. That piercing look in his eye could get a girl''s panties wet in Zero point two seconds. That thing shoulde with a warning! As if he knew what I was thinking, he let out a low chuckle and leaned his body forward to me. I stood still and motionless as his lips grazed my cheek, then my jaw, and now my ear. "I think I''m ready for dessert now," he whispered and all the hair in my body stood up. "We just had dessert," I reminded him. We did before dinner. "Guess I just can''t get enough of you," He led me down gently on the carpet and he climbed over me. With his lower body pressed against my stomach, I could feel the hard bulge on his pants, causing me to gulp and squirm. Holy moly me oh my! He nted soft, wet kisses from my jaw down to my neck. He didn¡¯t stop there. He trailed kisses down my body and he stopped when his lipsnded on my stomach. He looked up at me with that glint in his eyes and I was rendered motionless again. I Slowly, he unbuttoned my jeans and pulled the zipper down. He was moving so slow on purpose, tantalizing me with his touch. Pulling my jeans down, his nosended on my lower area and he sucked in a deep breath. I couldn''t watch this any longer, I tilted my head back and let the anticipation took its toll. He kept teasing me, he ran a finger up and down over my soaked panties, pushing on my clit over the fabric. n," I let out a desperate moan, wanting him to stop teasing me. He just smirked at me and continued the sweet torture. He slipped one finger under my panties and started rubbing my clit in slow circr motion. I was so close to having him and yet so far away. I needed more than this. Not wanting to let him have all the fun, I took a brave move and pulled myself up. I pushed him back with all my strength and I climbed on top of him. "Damn girl, just take a knife and stab me in the heart already," heughed at my antics. ? I wasn¡¯t backing down. Mimicking what he did to me before, I nted soft, wet kisses from his chiseled jaw down to his neck. Then I trailed kisses down his body and I stopped when my lipsnded on my stomach. He looked down at me in confusion as I started unbuttoning his pants. "Emma? What are you¡ª" Not giving him a chance to ask the question, I found his length with my hands and pulled it free. He sprang tall and hard in front of me, causing me to gulp. I looked up at him and he looked down at me, bewildered and waiting on my every move. I had never done this before, but I had been asking my best friends about it and yes, I did watch something on the inte to help me with it. I hope I''m doing it right. Leaning down, I stuck my tongue out slightly and rolled it gently on the tip of his length. His body stiffened instantly and his jaw was clenched shut. I took this as a good sign, so I kept going. After rolling my tongue around him and sucking on his tip, I let my mouth dove deeper and take him inside little by little. He let out inaudible muffled groans and it made me more confident. Before long, I took all of his length in my mouth until it hit the back of my throat, causing me to almost gag. This is a lot harder than I thought. He palmed his hand into my hair as a sign for me to keep going, so I did. Those girls on the Inte made it look so easy. And the fact thatn¡¯s got a huge dick wasn¡¯t much of help either. Tears trickled down my face as I tried my best to hold him in my mouth, pulling out and pushing him back in as I bobbed my head up and down his length. "Emma, stop" he said suddenly and he pulled away. "What? Did I do something wrong?" I probably sucked and he hated it. He put his hand on my face and his thumb gently brushed over my swollen lips. "You''re amazing. You''re gonna make me cum if I let you continue a second more," he said with those dark, piercing eyes. "Oh," I mouthed in relief. "I wanna feel you around me when I cum," he said again, pulling out a condom and pushing me back down. The next thing I knew, my panties were pulled all the way down and his finger was back on me. He put one hand on my cheek, holding me in ce as his lips attacked the sweet spot on my neck. I let my fingers roam his toned body as his name escaped my lips. "I love you, baby girl," he whispered through his kiss and I felt a sharp pang on my lower area as he thrust himself inside. His fingers were rubbing my clit, his mouth never left my neck, and his hard length mmed into me over and over again ¡ª sending me into sweet oblivion. I tilted my head back and watched the ceiling as my body exploded into a mess of euphoria. I clenched hard around him and he let himself go, pushing himself deep inside me as he came with my name on his lips. Waves and waves of pleasure hit the both of us, as wey there tangled on the carpet. When we finally caught our breaths, we still didn¡¯t move and we stayed like that, smiling from ear to ear. Who knew studying could feel this good? Chapter 29: Afterschool Activities Chapter 29:Afterschool Activities IAN''s POV "The PSAT is useless.It''s not even the real SATs.Remind me why do I have to take it again?" Emma sighed dramatically as she slumped down on the couch. "Because it''ll help you get a feel of the actual SATs," I said and I took the spot next to her. She immediately curled herself into my arm, a habit I now came to love. "It''s stupid though.And hard,"she looked up at me and asked, "Did you take your PSATs?" "No.They''re stupid,"I scoffed. "Exactly ¡ª" "But I was also stupid in high school.You''re not.So you''re gonna have to do better than me,"I added quickly and she piped down. "You got into Emory, you can''t be that bad," "I got into Emory as a transfer.I took two years ofmunity college before I figured out what I wanted and applied there," She let out another dramatic sigh and said, "So you''re saying I have toe to school on a Saturday and take this stupid test," "Yes,"I said firmly, "And I''ll be there too," "You''re going to take the PSAT?"she gaped at me. "No,"I chuckled, "I¡¯m gonna be at school tomorrow because I have a meeting with Principal Finn," "Oh,"she mouthed. "What about?" "Faculty stuff.Nothing important," "What time will you be done?" "Probably around 12," "Me too.Maybe I''ll see you tomorrow, then?" "Yeah. And you can tell me all about how you aced the stupid PSAT,"I said as I kissed her cute little nose, causing her to squirm and giggle. This thing with Emma, it was getting out of control. I didn''t think I could ever feel this way before, let alone with a high school girl who was my student. Every time I see her, I see my future in her eyes. But that future was always clouded by the looming doom that stood before us¡ªthe school. As long as I was her teacher, none of this would be eptable. As long as she was my student, we could never do this the right way. And I wanted to do it the right way. I wanted to be able to take her out on dates, meet her parents and her friends neot on school grounds or at parent teacher conferences. The school was doing its annual parent teacher conference next week, along with a college fair for the junior ss. There was a high chance that I might run into her parents there and that would be... terrible. Just imagine, I would introduce myself as her art teacher. And then Emma and I would continue dating in secret. And then yearster, when I wanted to be serious or marry her, her parents would find out that I was dating their daughter all this time while she was at school. Would they ever give this pervert their blessings? Fuck to the no. I didn''t tell Emma I was thinking about all these things. She was busy dealing with her exams and I didn¡¯t wanna make her worry. She shouldn''t be worried about stuff like this. She was only a high school student for god¡¯s sake. I brought this upon her. And I had to find a way to fix everything. So the only solution that I coulde up with was this meeting the principal on a Saturday, a week before the parent teacher¡¯s conference, and I would tell him that I was resigning from my post as a teacher. To be honest, I didn¡¯t wanna quit. I liked my job. But I liked my girlfriend more and I''d do anything to keep us together. Even if that meant this. "Mr.Hayes, you said there¡¯s an emergency and you must have this meeting with me today.So please, how can I help you?" Principal Finn stood up from his chair and motioned for me to take a seat in front of him. "Thank you for seeing me on a Saturday, Principal Finn," I said as I took a seat. "The reason I want to see you is because I''d like to see if I can terminate my contract," Principal Finn looked taken aback and asked, "You want to terminate your contract?" "Yes,"I nodded firmly. "Why so suddenly? I thought you were adjusting just fine into the school system?" "Yes I am, but¡ªl, um, there¡¯s just some personal reasons that I can''t really divulge with you. But I think that this is the right choice for me," I was stammering, turns out I was more nervous than I thought. "Well, I must say I am shocked," he paused for a second before continuing, "And you will be terribly missed. I¡¯ve heard great things about you, both from the student body and the staff," "That¡¯s very kind of you to say. Thank you," "If you really must do this, then I¡¯d suggest you send in your resignation letter to the HR department and as soon as the school year is over, we would review your case," "Principal Finn, sir, with all due respect, I don¡¯t think I can wait that long," "What do you mean?" "I would like to resign before this week is over," "That is too sudden, Mr. Hayes! You can''t just resign without giving us proper reasoning and time," "I know and I¡¯m sorry.But there¡¯s an emergency..." "Mr.Hayes, this is uneptable. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Parent teacher conferences are next week," "I know.But I¡¯ve graded and finished all my responsibilities for my ss.Thest ss is on Tuesday and¡ª" "Parent teacher conferences are a part of your responsibility too, Mr.Hayes.Not just the grades and the ss,"he cut in sharply. He definitely looked angry. Not good. "Principal Finn, I apologize for the inconvenience," I paused for a moment, searching for the right words to say, "But there''s a personal matter that I must attend to. I have to be away next weekend. I will not be able to make the parent teacher conferences," Principal Finn took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. He reclined back to his chair and thought for a moment before saying, "If you can¡¯t make the parent teacher conferences, we can work something out. You can have meetings with the parents via email," "Actually, that¡¯s not a bad idea,"I agreed immediately. "And as for your resignation, Mr.Hayes," he continued. "You already signed a contract is for two years with the department of education.If you don¡¯t give us a usible reason to terminate the contract, it''s not going to look good for you," "l understand, but ¡ª" "This is your teaching career we''re talking about,"I swallowed hard at his words. Nodding my head slowly, I let out a sigh and once again said, "I understand," Principal Finn didn¡¯t say anything for a while. He just sat there and studied my face, and I kept my gaze serious and affirmed. It was probably the most awkward minute of my life. Just sitting there, being studied by my boss. Finally, when he realized that he couldn''t get me to change my mind, Principal Finn let out another long sigh and said, "Alright. But, you''ll have to give us some time," "Hey? Where have you been?" Emma beamed at me as soon as I stepped inside the art studio. The studio looked emptier than usual. Normally it was littered with artworks or painting equipment, but all of that was gone now. All the kids had submitted their AP art portfolio and it left the studio clean and cold. Everything has an end, I guess. "Sorry, the meeting with Principal Finn ran long," I said as I took a step towards her. I made sure no one was around before I nted a quick kiss on her cheek. It won''t be long now. I don''t have to kiss you in secret no more. "Is everything okay?" she narrowed her eyes at me, perhaps she noticed the heavy things my mind was carrying. "It will be," I smiled reassuringly. "What?" "I asked Principal Finn to terminate my contract with the school. I won''t be teaching here anymore," She was so shocked. Her eyes shot open and her jaw fell as she said, "Why did you do that? Do you have another job offer?" "Not exactly," I sighed before continuing, "I did it because I''m tired of seeing you around school and not being able to talk to you. As long as I¡¯m your teacher, the world won''t let us be together. Your parents would freak out. You can''t enjoy life like normal teenagers do. And I don''t want that," "So you did it... for me?" she asked cautiously. "I did it for us," I stated firmly. - She looked at me with a look I couldn''t decipher. Maybe it was a look of relief, but also sadness. She then bit her lip and asked, "You never said anything about this. Are you sure? Have you thought this through? I don¡¯t want you to regret anything ¡ª" "I''m sure," I said reassuringly. "But the decision is still up to the school board. They''ll give me an answer by next week. But I don¡¯t see how they won''t let me go," "You never know. You''re pretty popr around here," she shrugged. "What are you talking about?" "Guess who was voted the school¡¯s teacher of the year by our yearly magazine?" she said as she pulled out a magazine from her bag. "What?" I gaped at the page she opened for me. It was a picture of me and a sign that read ¡®best teacher¡¯. "Carrie¡¯s in the school''s magazine. She got me an early copy," Emma was smiling from ear to ear. "I''m d one of us finds it amusing," I snickered. "You''re not happy? You''re the school¡¯s favorite teacher!" she eximed. "I couldn''t care less," I shrugged, "All I wanna know is who¡¯s your favorite teacher?" A yful smile curved up her lips as she said, "Mrs. Greenwald from AP US History," I shot her a disappointed re and sheughed. "I''m kidding! Of course it¡¯s you. You''re my favorite everything," Damn girl, why did you have to be so cute? Herugh was intoxicating. Her eyes glimmered when sheughed, and it was so beautiful. I wanted to cup her little face in my hands and kiss her so bad. But not here, obviously. "Let¡¯s get out of this ce," I said after taking onest look at this pitiful room. Nodding her head in agreement, she said, "Anywhere with you," Chapter 30: Bright Future Chapter 30: Bright Future EMMA''s POV "Don''t forget to check out Duke, Rice, and Vanderbilt," Mom said as we made our way through the booths at the school¡¯s college fair. "Oh yes, I heard Vanderbilt''s got a strong liberal arts program," Dad nodded in agreement. The school¡¯s holding a college fair this Saturday, along with parent teacher conferences. All the junior students are required, or as they say, encouraged to attend the college fair. I wasn¡¯tining though. I wanted to spend my precious Saturday looking through colleges all around the country. The only good thing about it was at least my best friends had to do it too. I spotted Tiff and Carrie over at the University of Florida¡¯s booth, and I knew what to do next. "Okay, I got it.You two go meet my teachers and hear about what a great student I am.I¡¯m gonna catch up with Tiff and Carrie," I said, waving my parents away. "I''m really looking forward to meeting your teachers.Especially your AP art teacher, Mr.Hayes,"mom said and I quickly turned back. "What? Why?" "You worked so hard on his ss. You spent almost every day after school working on your art portfolio. He must have nice things to say about you, I wanna hear about it all," she said as she turned to her heels towards the art room. "Oh, you don''t have to ¡ª" "The line at Duke is empty.Go, go check out the schools.We''ll regroup here in an hour," Dad shooed me as he walked off with mom. My parents are meeting...my boyfriend. At parent teacher conferences. Oh crap. Making my way over to Tiff and Carrie, I sighed dramatically as I pushed past the row of kids. Tiff and Carrie turned to see me and they immediately knew something was up. "What''s going on?"Carrie asked. "My parents are meeting Mr.Hayes.I totally forgot about that.I am so screwed," "Don''t worry about it.I¡¯m sure he can handle your parents just fine," Tiff replied. "Actually, you don¡¯t have to worry at all,"Carrie added, " My parents went by earlier. They wanted to see my art teacher too, but he wasn¡¯t there. Something about a personal emergency. He¡¯s doing his conferences with parents via email," "Oh...that¡¯s very smart of him," It was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. "See? He¡¯s a smart guy.He¡¯s handling it," Tiff said as she grabbed a few brochures from the University of Florida. "In the meantime, I think you should check this out," "The University of Florida¡¯s a total party school," Mark chimed in suddenly, appearing out of nowhere. "Hey, babe.Did you see Rice and Duke already?" Carrie greeted him. "Yeah, you guys should see it. Duke has the best engineering program¡ª" Mark was about to ramble on this topic for the next ten minutes, I could just tell. "I have to make a call, I''ll be right back," I said to Tiff and Carrie before slipping away from the crowd. I found an empty, cozy spot at the end of the hallway and I dialed Ian''s number. The line rang for a few times before he finally picked up. "Hey, you," he said over the phone. He sounded healthy and fine, I was d. "So, what''s this personal emergency that I heard about? You''re not attending parent teacher conferences?" "Nope,"he said simply. "Why?"I asked. "Because it''s an archaic concept. Why meet in person when you can basically do everything online?" He chuckled as if he was joking, but I could tell something was up. n.Tell me what¡¯s going on,"I pressed on.He sighed and paused for a beat before finally saying, " Fine. I didn¡¯t wanna do parent teacher conferences because I don¡¯t know what I''ll do if I have to see your parents," "You''re worried about meeting my parents?" "Yes.Look, I don''t wanna do this over the phone.Will youe over after you''re done over there?" "Okay.And you''ll tell me everything," "Every little detail," "Alright.I''ll see you in a few hours," After putting my phone away, I made my way back to Tiff and Carrie. Mark was still going on and on about something. Tiff had a bored look on her face but Carrie watched him as if he was a sight to marvel. "Oh and guys, have you heard? The art teacher, Mr.Hayes is resigning from the school," Mark¡¯s sudden change of topic piqued my interest. "He is?" Tiff pretended to gasp. "Yeah, I''ve overheard some teachers talking about it.Apparently, he signed a contract for two years but suddenly he just wants to quit.No one even knew why," "Is that such a bad thing?" I asked cautiously. "For his career? Yeah," Mark scoffed like it was the most obvious thing in the world, "My theory is that it''s probably because of a girl," "What do you mean?" I asked again, afraid that he might be on to something. "He used to date Ms.Diaz, right? She probably broke his heart or something," Tiff and Carrie let out a relieved sigh. But I wasn''t relieved, I was somewhat offended. "They went on one date! And she totally¡ª" Tiff nudged my elbow to stop me from talking. I quickly recovered and said, "Never mind," "Look! It''s NYU! Let¡¯s go check it out!" Tiff eximed a little bit too loud than usual. She pulled my arm quickly and led me out of there. "Thanks for that," I whispered to her. "So it''s really happening? Is Mr.Hayes really quitting?"she asked. "I think so," "And he did it because...?" "Of us.Yeah,"I sighed. "Wow.He¡¯s really going all out,"she paused for a moment before saying, "He must really like you," "And I really like him too," "It sucks that he has to sacrifice so much, but hey, at least this way you two could be together.You two deserve it," Tiff said with a smile. After our little talk, Tiff and I went around looking at the booths. I knew I should be thinking about colleges, but I couldn''t help but be reminded of Tiff''s words from before. "He has to sacrifice so much..."I hated the word ¡®sacrifice¡¯. I wished he didn''t have to sacrifice anything to be with me. I wanted him to have everything he ever wanted. But he had to give up teaching, his job, his career...all for a girl.A silly, silly girl. And would that even be worth it? After the college fair and parent teacher conferences, I told my parents I was hanging out with Tiff and Carrie. But of course, I was making way ton¡¯s apartment instead. When I got there,n was still in his normal sleeping clothes, no shirts and a pair of joggers. Hisptop was on and it looked like he had been sending a bunch of emails. "Hey, how was your day?"he greeted me with a quick kiss on my cheek. "Great.I looked at a bunch of schools.How about you?" "It''s alright,"he shrugged. "So..."I trailed and paced around the room aimlessly. "So?"he pretended to y dumb. n, what''s going on?" I sighed and asked point nkly , ¡®Why did you ditch parent teacher conferences? And why don¡¯t you wanna meet my parents?" "I wanna meet your parents.But not like this, Emma.Not as your teacher," I crossed my arms and raised my eyebrows. What does that even mean? "I''m serious about you. I¡¯m serious about us. I see my future with us together," he said, pausing for a moment before saying, "But if your parents meet me now as your teacher and someday we tell them that we''re dating, how do you think that¡¯s gonna look?" That would be confusing. He¡¯s got a good point. "So, you did it because you didn¡¯t wanna meet my parents as my teacher..but as my boyfriend..?" I asked cautiously. "Boyfriend, gentleman caller, whatever you wanna call it," he chuckled and I couldn''t help but smile. He took a step towards me and closed the distance between us. He tilted my chin up and his face leaned down. His lips found mine and he coaxed me into a long, tender kiss. When we pulled away, he noticed something was off and he narrowed his eyes at me. "What is it? What¡¯s with that look on your face?" I pulled away slightly and bit my lip. I had been thinking about this all day long. About that word ¡®sacrifice¡¯. n, I don¡¯t know how I feel about you quitting your job, throwing away your career because of me," I paused to gauge his reaction, "I know you said you did it for us, but I am half of that us. And I hate to be responsible for causing you all this trouble," "It''s no trouble at all.I want to do this," he said reassuringly, his hands reached for my arm and gripped it tight. "I wanna be with you, in every real, legal, moral way possible," he said again, "This is just a small price that I''ll have to pay to make it happen," ; He looked at me with those deep piercing eyes. He was serious and he talked as if he had made up his mind a long time ago. "But, what are you gonna do if you''re not teaching?" "I''ll look for other jobs. Oh, actually, I have a friend back in Jersey that wants to open a new art gallery. That might be an option for me too," "You''re gonna move to New Jersey?" "It''s not definite. And the gallery¡¯s still a work in progress," "But you''re thinking about it. I thought the whole reason you''re quitting your job was so we can be together? But if you''re gonna be in New Jersey..." "It¡¯s just an option. I''m looking at other jobs in Anta too," "Oh," I was quickly relieved. "We''ll make this work, I promise," This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. he smiled, full of confidence. I knew I was supposed to nod along and agree with him. He was doing so much, doing everything he could to make this work between us. But I just had to ask him again to be sure, so I said, "Are you sure about this?" "Yes," he stated firmly, but he was getting ¡ì slightly annoyed. He sighed, raking his hair with his hand and said, "Emma, what are you so afraid of?" "What if you wake up one day and you regret everything? And then you''ll hate me for ruining your career," "That''s impossible," he scoffed. Tilting my face up to his, he then asked, "You know why?" "Why?" "Someday I¡¯m gonna wake up and you''ll be there right next to me. I''m gonna call you my wife and I''m gonna love you until the end of my days," * Did he just say... my wife? My breath was stuck in my throat. My eyes shot open and my mouth fell to the floor. He just smiled at me as if I was an amusing sight. Licking his lips, he leaned down once again and his lips crashed onto mine. This time he kissed me hard and hungrily. After biting on my bottom lip, he slipped his tongue past my lips and roamed the corners of my mouth. I turned to jelly underneath his kiss. My hands went around his neck for support and he pulled me even closer, deepening the kiss. I let my tongue slip out and it danced with his, tangling into each other as I tasted his sweet, intoxicating taste. When we finally pulled away, we were out of breath. Our eyes were locked to each other and we were smiling from ear to ear. He leaned his forehead down and it rested gently on mine. His hand then went to cup my cheeks, his fingers caressing my skin gently. "Okay?" he asked finally. "Okay," I breathed. Maybe I didn¡¯t know where I wanted to go to college or what I wanted to study. Maybe I didn¡¯t have a clue what my future would be like. But I knew this much I was in love with an amazing guy who loved me back. And there would be a future with us together. A bright, wonderful future. Chapter 31: Next Destination Chapter 31: Next Destination IAN''s POV : "I need your help,"Emma said as soon as I opened my apartment door.She was standing there with a long roll of paper, post-it notes, markers, and this huge ass book in her hand. "Anything for you,"I replied and moved out of her way. She walked straight for the coffee table and mmed the big book down.She then rolled out the poster thing and it turned out to be a map of the country.I took a seat next to her on the floor and read the title of the big book, The Princeton Review Complete Book of Colleges. "My parents, my guidance counselor, my friends- everyone wouldn''t shut up about college," she groaned and scattered the markers out on the coffee table."So if I''m gonna have to figure this out, I¡¯m gonna need your help," "Okay," I said patiently. Original from N?velDrama.Org. This was not how I imagined my Thursday night to be like, but okay. "You can use this book as a guide.If you see a school that I might like, write it down on the post-it note,"she said to me. "Yes ma¡¯am," "We can narrow it down by state.I prefer the east coast.I like the snow, I like the vibe,"she said as she circled the east coast area with a blue marker "All these states here are no go," she circled the west coast and mid-west area with a red marker. "And Georgia is considered...?" "The south is neutral ground. But I''d prefer the north," This was the first time she ever mentioned wanting to go to school on the east coast. I eyed her suspiciously, but she chose to ignore me. "Oh, and this is a total no go," she picked up a post-it note and wrote the word ¡®Emory¡¯ with an X next to it and stuck the post-it note on the map of Georgia. "No Emory. Got it,"I agreed. I didn¡¯t want her anywhere near that SOB ex boyfriend of hers. "So tell me, what are some good schools in New Jersey?" she said suddenly, piquing my interest. "You wanna go to school in New Jersey?" "Maybe,"she shrugged. "It¡¯s on the east coast.Location- wise it''s still in the running," "Princeton is a great school," "And way out of my league," "Nothing is out of your league.But Rutgers is also good.And New York''s nearby," "New York, huh?" "And Philly too.There¡¯s U Penn, Carnegie Mellon, Vinova, Penn State," "Whoa, slow down, I have to write these down," "Why are you picking a school based on location? Aren''t you supposed to pick one based on its merit? Or if it has the major you wanted," I narrowed my eyes at her. "That''s the thing, I don¡¯t know what I want to major in," "So liberal arts?" "Liberal arts, definitely," she paused for a moment before continuing, "And the location thing¡­ it''s because I don¡¯t wanna be too far from where you are," "Emma," I scolded, "You''re never gonna be too far from where I am," "But you might move to New Jersey for the art gallery job.I don¡¯t wanna be thousands of miles away from you and we can only see each other in the holidays," she whined. "Hey, I told you, New Jersey is only one option.I can always find a job somewhere else," "Your family¡¯s also in New Jersey," "I know, but that¡¯s not supposed to be part of your concern.You just need to worry about you.Don''t settle for anything less.Pick whichever school you like, anywhere in the world.We''ll find a way to be together no matter what," For a long while, she couldn''t say anything. Her mouth was parted open and she just stared at me like I was something to marvel at. "What are you saying?" she said finally. "I''m saying we have options," I said as Iced my hand with hers. : "Anywhere in the world?" "With you, anywhere," Her eyes glimmered and a small smile escaped her lips. She had the cutest smile I''d ever seen. Leaning towards her, I locked her face with my hand as my lips delved to find hers. She was my girl and I''d give the world to be with her. Whenever. Wherever. Today was thest day of sses before summer break. It was a Friday and it had been a long week. The kids couldn''t wait for the clock to strike three, they kept watching the minute hand as it passed ever so slowly. I was watching it too. It would mark the end of the school year and the end of my teaching career at West Lake High. Though at first I cursed the fact that I have to meet Emma as a student here, looking back, I wouldn''t change a thing. We were only a few minutes away from 3 o¡¯clock. I was thinking about dismissing the ss early, when suddenly I heard a knock on the door. "Mr.Hayes," Principal Finn creaked the door open. "Principal Finn," I greeted. "Can I see you in my office for a moment? Now?" he sounded persistent. "Sure," I nodded at him before turning back to the ss and said, "Guys, you''re dismissed. Have a great summer," The kids roared in cheer andughter as they jumped from their seats and scrambled for the door. They were overjoyed to be out of school in the summertime. Meanwhile, I followed Principal Finn as we walked towards his office. Even the lounge room was empty since most teachers and staffs were already out and about. They were having an end of the school year gathering at some local bar. I figured I''d have to make an appearanceter, seeing as it would be a farewell thing for me as well. "Please, have a seat," Principal Finn motioned for the chair as he sat down in his. "So..." I trailed. "So, this is about your resignation," he said firmly. He was watching me like a hawk, gauging my reaction. I just nodded my head and said, "Yes, and?" "How serious are you with going through with this?" What kind of question is that? Of course I¡¯m serious.I¡¯ve put in the paperwork and everything. "Very, sir.Why, is there a problem?" I asked. He looked at me, took a deep breath, and sighed a long dramatic sigh. This doesn''t look good. "Here''s to the start of a beautiful summer!" Emma was standing in front of my apartment door with a bag of takeout food in her hands. "I got Kung Pao Chicken with extra sauce, just like you like it," Emma and I promised to have dinner together that night,celebrating the end of this crazy school year. She walked in with a spring in her step and chatted away as shey the food down on the coffee table. Seeing her this happy, I let out a deep breath, dreading the news that I had to give to her. "And FYI, I got my report cards today and I got all straight A¡¯s! I think that deserves another celebration.Hey, why aren''t you excited?" she said as she noticed something was off with me, "It¡¯s the summertime.We''re free from school and we have all the time in the world to "Emma, I need to talk to you," I cut her off and let out another sigh. "What is it?" her face turned serious as she took a step closer to me. "The school board denied my resignation," I stated, pausing for a moment before continuing, "They didn''t have a strong enough probable cause to terminate my contract.If I still want to go through with it, I¡¯m gonna have to hire awyer and petition the court to terminate the contract.I''ve called a friend who''s awyer and he says he might be able to help, but¡ª" "Whoa, whoa, slow down,"she said, cutting me off. She gaped at me and blinked for a few times, trying hard to process everything. "So, you''re saying the school¡¯s not letting you go?"she asked. "Basically, yeah.But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m gonna find a way to fight it,"I said reassuringly. She took a step back and crossed her arms. Then she looked up at me and cocked her head to the side, studying my face. n, to be honest, if it wasn''t for us, do you even want to quit?" I thought about her question for a while before answering, "Not really," "Then don''t.Don''t do it," she said firmly. "But what about us?" "We''ll figure this out together.I know you want what''s best for me, but I want what''s best for you too.You should teach for another year and when I graduate, we both can leave this town together.Just like we said we would," That sounded great.But it was easier said than done. "Emma, that means we have to keep doing...this.Sneaking around, lying to everyone..." "Hey, we did this for a year and no one found out," "Except your crazy ex-boyfriend did," I pointed out the obvious. "Except him, and he is no longer an issue," she dismissed itpletely, "I''m just saying, if we y our cards right, we might just make it," I narrowed my eyes at her. Was she seriously asking to continue this charade we had going on? Would she be okay with that? "We''ll do another school year together, how hard can it be?"she shrugged as if to answer my question, "Then I''ll be off to college, say I don¡¯t know, around New Jersey or New York.And you''ll get a job, say I don¡¯t know, around New Jersey or New York..." I couldn''t help but smile at the thought of that, the thought of Emma and me at some distant ce together, living a life we knew we deserve. As if she knew what I was thinking, she smiled right back and she moved closer, closing the distance between us. "We''re gonna make it," she said as if it was a promise. "Are you sure you''ll be okay with this? It¡¯s gonna be a hard year for us," I said as my hand went to cup her cheek. My fingers ran gently across her skin. "I don''t care what happens as long as we''re together," she said with that gorgeous smile of hers. How did I get a girl like her to be with me? I was so goddamn lucky. "Right. Anywhere with you?" I smirked and licked my lips. "Anywhere with you," her smile grew even wider. Leaning down slowly, I closed my eyes and felt her warm breath hitting my cheek. I purposefully let our lips graze each other, but pulled away before anything could happen. I wanted her to feel the anticipation. I wanted her to feel this longing that I was feeling. And just when she least expected it, I crashed my lips onto hers, hard and full of passion. She gasped in shock and I used the momentum to deepen the kiss, slipping my tongue past her mouth where I could taste every inch of her. I held her tight with both my hands and I had no intention of ever letting her go. I¡¯m gonna kiss this girl until my lungs give out. Chapter 32: Summer Sunshine Chapter 32: Summer Sunshine EMMA''s POV : I never knew spending the summer indoors could be so exhrating! Seeing thatn was still a teacher at West Lake High, we knew we couldn''t be seen together out in public.We found many ways to keep ourselves entertained, though. From Netflix and chill to cooking dinner dates and losing at strip poker, it was safe to say that spending time withn in his apartment was never second best. "Hey, I have to get home," I said when I noticed the clock on the wall said it was 7.15 PM. He pinned me down and his lips devoured my entire body. "Mm-hm," he was still kissing my neck, sucking and nibbling on that sweet spot he knew so well. "I have to have dinner with my parents.They wanna talk to me about something," I said again, pushing him away softly. But he was relentless. "Mm-hm," his lips came right back down like ma to my skin. "You can''t keep me here forever," Iughed and finally managed to squirm away out of his grip. "You wanna bet?" he cocked his gorgeous head to the side and smirked. "Ian," I hissed and heughed. "Alright, alright," he finally pulled away "But I''ll see you tomorrow?" "Tomorrow.And I want a rematch.I¡¯m pretty sure you cheated yourst hand," I said as I grabbed my clothes that were scattered on the floor. "Baby girl, you''re a lot of things but your poker face ain''t one," "Fine, I''ll go home and work on that,"I said and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "See you tomorrow," "See you tomorrow,"he whispered back. But as I was about to leave, he pulled my arms and I was drawn back down on the couch. Not giving me a chance to escape, his lips coaxed mine into a deep, passionate kiss. I am never gonna get out of here alive! n, stop," I pleaded, trying my best to contain my smile. "Fine,"he sighed. "I love you,"I said with my hand cupping his cheek. "I love you too,"he replied and leaned his face into my palm. I wasn''t nning on staying past 6 PM, but he always had a way of getting me to stay.I raced back home and managed to arrive in a record breaking fifteen-minute drive. Mom and dad were already seated in the dining room when I entered the house.I threw my things haphazardly on the couch and quickly grabbed a seat. "Sorry, I''mte.I was uh...watching a show with Tiff and Carrie," I shed them a sorry smile and grabbed a te. "Dinner looks great, mom,"Mom and dad looked so serious. She didn''t even bother responding to mypliment, which was weird. Were they mad because I was thirty minuteste? "So, Emma, your father and I have some things we need to discuss with you," mom finally spoke in a firm andmanding tone. Whenever she used the words ¡®your father and I¡¯, usually what followed wouldn''t be good. "What is it?"I gulped. "It''s about college,"she paused for a moment before continuing, "We know you said you want to go to the east coast for school, but we were just thinking maybe it¡¯s best if you go to a school in the state instead," "University of Georgia has a great liberal arts program.Georgia Southern and Georgia State too," dad chimed in. "Why? Why do you suddenly want me to go to school in the state?" I narrowed my eyes at them. This was the first time I was hearing this. When I told them I was applying to UPenn, Princeton, and some schools in New York, they were ecstatic. "Because...out of state tuition can be very expensive,"mom paused for a moment and shared a knowing look with dad, "Emma, your dad¡¯s firm is not doing so well.They''re cutting down hours and employees and your dad .he still has his job, but things are not the same anymore," "So you''re saying that we don¡¯t have the money for out of state colleges?" They didn''t answer me for a while, but the sorry look on their faces said it all. "We''re very sorry, Emma.We''re doing everything we can.We hope you understand," Suddenly I lost all appetite for food. I wanted to go to the east coast so badly. It was our dream,n and I. We were going to go out there and start a brand new life together.That was supposed to be our happy ending. "There are plenty of great schools in the state," mom said in that hopeful voice, but I wasn¡¯t feeling all that hopeful. "Yeah, but I really wanna go to school on the east coast.There are loans and schrships.Maybe I can try some of that?" I wasn''t going to give up on my dream so easily. "If you stay in the state, you can live here and not worry about dorm fees and other living expenses," mom argued. "I can get a job," I argued back. "Emma, please," she let out a long sigh, "Just try to least just give the state schools some thought.Try it for a year or two, if you hate it that much, you can always transfer," The three of us were quiet for a while. We didn¡¯t know what to say to each other. All the while, I was still thinking of ways to get myself out to the east coast, with or without my parents¡¯ help. "We still have a year to figure this out," dad spoke finally. "There''s still time.Maybe we can work something out?" he looked at me with hopeful eyes. I didn''t know what he meant by that, but I nodded my head anyway because it seemed like the right thing to do. The three of us continued to have dinner inplete silence afterward. They were probably thinking of ways to get me to stay, but my mind wasing up with solutions after solutions.I was still determined to go to a school on the east coast and that was my future.I had never been so sure of anything in my life before.I wouldn''t take no for an answer.I''ll figure out a way to get there. "Hey, I''m sorry I''mte,"I beamed as soon asn opened his door. "It''s all good.I got tacos and La Casa de Papel ready to go," he took a step back and I noticed the homemade tacos, guac, and chips on the coffee table. "Spanish night, me gusta," I turned to my gorgeous boyfriend and gave him a quick thank you kiss. "Yo tambi¨¦n,"he smiled and pulled me in for a deeper kiss. Iughed at his attempt on a Spanish ent.It was cute. "I see you''ve been working hard," I said when I noticed several canvases hanging around the room. "What can I say? I got a lot of inspiracion," he said as he tilted my chin with his hand. Does that mean me? I had to bit my lip to stop myself from smiling too much.He chuckled and pulled my bottom lip down with his thumb. Leaning down, he closed the distance between us with another kiss. A long and tender kiss. My eyes fluttered shut as I felt his warm, soft lips coaxing mine. How is this even possible? It¡¯s like our kisses get better every time. He pulled away finally, leaving me wanting for more. I looked up at him and watched as his lips twitched into a smirk. And he gets cuter and sexier every day. Like, how? "Shall we start?"he said, referring to the movie. I nodded along as I followed him to the couch. We sat next to each other and he linked an arm around me immediately, pulling me close to his chest. "Hey, before you start the movie, do you notice anything different about me?" I said as he grabbed the remote. "Hmm...it¡¯s not the hair...what is this a trick question?"he studied my face intently. "Look somewhere over...here," I motioned for the bright silver thing sped on my chest. "What''s this? A nametag?" he raised an eyebrow quizzically. "Yup. I just got myself a part time job," I smiled victoriously. "That''s the reason why I waste. I just came from an interview," "You got a part time job?" he gaped. "Uh-huh. You''re looking at the proud new waitress at Gloria¡¯s Dinner," I said as I bowed my head slightly, pretending to be a server, "Hi, my name¡¯s Emma, how can I help you?" "I''m sure you''ll look cute in the uniform,"he chuckled, " ¡°But why?" This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. "Because...it''s the summertime.I have a lot of free time to kill.You¡¯re working on your art, Carrie¡¯s out for summer camp, and Tiff''s...Tiff''s got her boys.I need to find my own thing too," "It''s not like I work on my art all day long," "Plus, having extra money for college couldn''t hurt," "That means I have to see you less though," he half pouted. "How are you not tired of me yet?" I said as I cocked my head to the side. "Never," he shook his head and gripped my face in his hand firmly. He stared at me for the longest time, looking down at my nametag and back to me. He was probably trying to figure out if I was serious about this part time job. I just gave him a reassuring smile and leaned my face into his palm. Finally, he drew a deep breath and let out a sigh. "So, when do you start working?" "Tomorrow morning," "So if I were toe to Gloria¡¯s Diner, say at around lunch time, you know any cute waitress that could serve me?"I rolled my eyes and replied yfully, "Why, I could serve all right," "I have no doubt about that,"he smirked and somehow I blushed bright red. "Should we start?" I tried to reach for the remote, but he quickly pulled away. "Oh, I¡¯ve already started,"he said and licked his lip yfully. "I meant the movie!"I blushed again and heughed. "Forget the movie.Suddenly I''m feeling hungry," he threw the remote away and his gaze suddenly turned dark. "We have tacos ¡ª" "Not that kind of hungry," "Lan," I scolded. "Emma,"he replied yfully. "You''re insane," "About you.Yeah," He was biting on his lower lip to suppress that smug smirk on his face.And god did he look good.And that was it. I couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore. Smiling from ear to ear, I leaped my body forward, grabbing him by his face and pulled him close. Finding his lips with mine, I kissed him with burning passion and hunger. He let out a muffled groan before kissing me back, hot and heavy. I guess we''re just a couple of two insane lovers taking over the world. Chapter 33: Birthday Girl Chapter 33: Birthday Girl EMMA¡¯s POV : TWO MONTHS LATER - Summertime went by so fast.It really was true what they say, time flies when you''re having fun. Suddenly it was August and my birthday was right around the corner. Thinking back, my birthdayst year was what started this whole adventure in the first ce. I guess it was only fitting that I decided to spend my birthday this year withn. "So, where is he taking you for your birthday?"Carrie asked. Tiff, Carrie, and I were hanging out in my room as I told them about my ns tomorrow. "I have no idea.He wouldn''t tell me.He just said to pack an overnight bag and tell my parents I''ll be back the next day," I said as I folded my clothes neatly and put them inside a duffel bag. "He''s getting totally you back for when you surprised him on his birthday," Tiff replied as she picked up a few more outfits from my closet for me to choose. "Notining though," I said as I picked the red sweater. "What did you tell your parents?"Carrie asked. "That I¡¯m sleeping over at your ce.Birthday sleepover thing.The usual," "Got it,"they both nodded. "Are you excited?" "I''m more than excited.I''m thrilled.Exhrated.Exuberant.Enraptured¡ª" "Okay, okay, enough with the SAT words,"Tiff rolled her eyes. "Someone¡¯s been doing a lot of studying over the summer,"Carrie teased. "If only I have a handsome young teacher at my beck and call,"Tiff smiled slyly. "Shut up you two, my parents are right downstairs,"I hissed, but of course I was smiling. "Promise that you''ll call us as soon as you get back,"Carrie said. "We want details.Which is a small price considering we''re covering your ass,"Tiff added. "Of course,"Iughed. "You guys will always be the first to know," "We''ve been driving for over six hours.You''re really not gonna tell me where we''re going?"I said as I kicked my feet up on the dashboard. "Nope,"he said coolly. "You''re cruel,"I pouted. He got some iced coffees and a red apple for good measure.It was cute. "Now you how I felt," heughed, "But hey, the payoff will be worth it," "How much longer though? I have to pee again," Thest time I peed was three hours ago when we stopped by a diner for some pancakes and more coffee. "I''ll find us a rest stop," he said simply. "So it¡¯s still a long while away, huh?"I sighed. "Six more hours to go," "Twelve hours drive in total...wait a minute, are you taking me to New Jersey?!" I jumped on my seat when I made the connection. He didn''t say a word but that smile on his face gave it away. "You are, aren''t you?!" "Would that be okay?"he turned to look at me through his Ray-Bans. "That would be..more than okay!" I was getting so excited at the thought of seeing Kirsten again, and to be back atn¡¯s childhood home.We had such great memories back there. "Great.Cause my mom''s making dinner and everything," "Oh, that¡¯s so sweet of her," "And tomorrow before we leave, we''re gonna stop by somece," "Where?" "Just wait and see, baby girl," he smirked, "You''ll love it for sure," When he said like that, how could I not? After dozens of carpool karaoke songs, a few more breaks at the rest stop, and another six hours of driving, we finally arrived in New Jersey. We got there just before 7 PM and as soon as we walked into the house, my nose was filled with this amazing smell that was Kirsten¡¯s cooking. "We''re here,n announced ourselves as we entered the kitchen. On the dining table, I saw everything from sd appetizers to meatloaves, at least two types of side dishes, a huge red velvet cake, and a freshly baked pie. "You guys are right on time.You must be so tired from all the driving,e on, have a seat," Kirsten beamed when she saw us. "Oh, and happy birthday, Emma dear," she turned to me and gave me a hug and a Kiss. "Thank you so much for preparing dinner for us.I hope it''s not too much trouble¡ª" "Of course not!" she said quickly. "I''m so d whenn called and told me he¡¯s bringing you home for your birthday," Home...that sounded nice. "I''m starving," "You want anything to drink?"he asked me. He must be so tired from twelve hours of driving, but he was still catering to me and my needs.He kept saying he was fine, but no one should be fine driving for that long.Not even truck drivers. "Thank you, I¡¯m good with water," I said as I sat down next to him and reached for his hand. He smiled at me as we held hands and Kirsten joined us on the table. She led a little prayer before dinner and I still couldn''t get over how sweet she was and how great of a boyfriendn was. "Where¡¯s Hailey?" I asked when I noticed the table was set for us three. "She''s in college, taking summer sses," "Emma, I don¡¯t know if you like cake or pie, so I made both," Kristen said. "I like both.Thank you so much," Dinner was fantastic. I loved hearing stories aboutn and his family. Kirsten was such a sweetheart. She was fun and loving, and she even told us the story of how she metn¡¯s dad. "James and I met in college,"she said. "We were both in Northwestern.I was a psychology major and he was in business administration.We met at a party, like all you college kids would," "Right," I shotn a worried smile, but he was unfazed. "I heard you two met at a party¡ªoh wait, no, a bar,"she said again. "You were celebrating your birthday andn was celebrating getting a teaching job," "That''s true..." I said and gulped my food down. "Was it love at first sight?"she asked with hopeful eyes. "Um..." "Mom," "It was like that for James and I.We saw each other from across the room and we just knew," "I guess it''s more of a...gradual thing for us,"I smiled nervously atn and back to Kirsten. "Well, I''m so d you two found each other," "Yeah,"I nodded at her. "Me too,"n and I shared a knowing look and he tightened his grip on my hand. After dinner with Kirsten,n insisted on taking me to a drive-thru cinema nearby. I told him that he should rest, but he wasn''t taking no for an answer. "I have a strict itinerary to follow," he joked, mocking the fact that I made one for his birthday. "Fine," I sighed. So we packed some snacks, got into his car, and went to the drive-thru cinema. They were ying old movies that night, and we caught the showing of the 1965 The Sound of Music. "You are sixteen going on seventeen, baby it¡¯s time to think," the actor on the screen sang. And how funny was it that they were singing this song as I was having my birthday today. "I swear, this I didn¡¯t n,"nughed as if he knew what I was thinking. "Better beware, be canny and careful, baby you''re on the brink," "You''re the best boyfriend ever," I was half sitting on hisp and he had his arm around my shoulders as Iy my head on his chest. His one hand was caressing the side of my face gently and the other hand wasced with mine.He smelled so good and his body was warm.I wouldn''t mind if we were to stay like this forever. "This is the best day ever," I said as I looked up at him, " ¡°Thank you,"He cocked his head to the side and said, "But the day''s not over yet,"I gave him a puzzled look as a naughty grin crept up his lips. Not wasting any more time, he leaned in and started trailing kisses from my lips, to my chin, and to my neck. I let out a soft moan as he sucked and nibbled on my sweet spot. My free hand went and gripped his hair, and I let my fingers ran through his hair. Using both hands, he pushed me back gently until my body hit the car¡¯s window. Then he untangled my legs, cing himself right in the middle. n, what are you doing?" I said as he hovered on top of me. "What do you think?" he licked his lips seductively and his eyes turned dark. "Lan¡­ we''re in a public ce!" "So?" he couldn''t any care less. He leaned down and continued kissing my neck again.His hands went to roam my body and when he sucked hard on that spot on my neck, I lost all my inhibitions. Another moan escaped my lips and I tilted my head back to give him more ess. "Ian..." I tried to protest, but he put a finger over my mouth to shut me up. "Baby, it¡¯s your day.Let me take care of you," His hands went to undo my jeans and he managed to slip them off effortlessly, along with my underwear.Smiling that wild smile, he nuzzled his nose to my opening and inhaled my scent. He let out a sharp groan and the next thing I knew, his mouth was on me.His thumb was stroking my clit and his tongue danced into my heat.He moved slow and gentle at first, but over time he moved faster and with precision.He was hitting my g-spot over and over again, sending me straight to paradise.I couldn''t for the love of me keep it together anymore.I let go, screaming his name as I found my release. He lifted his face and smiled victoriously as he said, " Happy birthday, baby girl," We got home after the movie and the house was quiet.Kirsten was already in bed so we had to tiptoe inton¡¯s bedroom.It reminded me of the first time I came here.We stayed out until 3 AM that day. Tonight, however, we were in bed by 12 AM. Onest surprise before we had to drive back to Georgia. That night, I slept like a baby, cuddled snugly in his arms. He held me into his chest and I linked my arms around his waist, holding him tightly right back. He rested his chin on my head as his fingers gently caressed my face. Neither of said anything as wey there, and we just rested infortable and wonderful silence. The next morning, I woke up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee andn¡¯s gorgeous face watching over me. "Good morning, birthday girl," he said in that deep, sexy voice. "My birthday was yesterday," I smiledzily and propped myself up. But of course, withn, every day is like my birthday. "Are you ready for your next surprise?" he said and gave the mug of coffee over to me. "You''re like a gift that keeps on giving," I said as I sipped the delicious brew. "Anything for my girl," he held the side of my face with his hand nted a long, soft kiss on my lips.He then licked my lips with his tongue and said, "Good coffee, huh?" I blushed bright red and squirmed away, "I''ll go get ready, give me twenty minutes," Heughed away and took a step back. "I''ll be in the kitchen,"he raised an eyebrow yfully and said, "Unless you need some help getting ready," "Go wait in the kitchen,"I rolled my eyes and turned for the en-suite as fast as I could. My heart was beating too fast for its own good. What a way to start a day. After a quick breakfast, we said goodbye to Kirsten and she made us promise toe back soon. My eyes were heavy so I dozed off for a bit. I didn¡¯t know how long I was asleep for, but the next thing I knew, the car was parked and Ian''s thumb was brushing my cheeks gently. "Wake up, baby girl,"he said sweetly. "Where are we?"I pried my eyes open and looked from side to side. We were parked on a street lined with trees and old buildings.This definitely did look like the New Jersey boardwalk.There were so many greeneries around and this big castle looking building that could pass as Hogwarts.There were also many young people walking all around, and there was a guy wearing a sweatshirt with the word ¡®Princeton¡¯ on it. "We''re in Princeton...?"I eyed him suspiciously. "The one and only,"he smiled, "They''re ranked as the best school in the country this year," "Why are we in Princeton?"I was gaping at all the sights. "Don¡¯t get me wrong, this is cool.But why?" "We''re here to join a campus tour,"he said simply. "For Princeton? But, I can¡¯t¡ª I¡¯m not even ¡ª"I was at loss for words. He didn''t answer me right away.Instead he got out of the car and walked over to my side of the door before pulling it open.He helped me out of the car and I immediately loved the smell of fresh air and tall green trees all around us. "I''m bringing you here to show you that there¡¯s nothing out of your league.Emma, you''re a smart girl and you''re driven.You can do whatever you put your heart to.Including this, if it''s what you want," he said as he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "I...I don¡¯t know what to say,"I really don¡¯t. No one ever believed in me this much.I was so touched. "But hey, if this isn¡¯t what you want, that¡¯s fine too,"he paused for a moment before continuing, "We can just walk around and make out under the tree,"I felt like I just won the lottery. The most amazing person in the world believed in me.The most amazing person in the world loved me.And he was standing right here, in front of me.I couldn''t help myself. I was hit with so much joy and happiness, but also fear. Remembering what my parents told me about our financial condition, I was afraid things might not work out. That all this was too good to be true. Tears started falling from my eyes and I had no control over it. "Emma? What''s wrong? Did I say something?"he quickly reached for my face and studied me intently. "No, it¡¯s not you..." I shook my head in between sobs, n, this is so...great," "But,"he continued. "But what if I don¡¯t end up here next year? What if you''re here on the east coast and I¡¯m not?"Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. "Hey, wherever you end up, that''s where I''ll be,"he smiled reassuringly. His hand gripped my face tightly, as if he was saying he won''t ever let me go. "This is just an option, remember?"he said again. I couldn''t say a word, so I just nodded meekly. "I''ll follow you until the ends of the earth, Emma.Because anywhere is heaven when I¡¯m with you," He pulled me into a hug.I felt safe and warm wrapped in his arms. He always knew just what to say to make everything better.Though my future was stillced with so many uncertainties, at least I knew one thing was for sure.It was this. "I love you,n," "I love you, Emma," Chapter 34: Persuasion Skill Chapter 34: Persuasion Skill EMMA''s POV : "I can''t believe school''s starting again tomorrow," I said through the kiss. Our tongues were mingling and dancing with one another. His taste was intoxicating. "Time sure flies when you''re having fun,"he murmured. He parked several houses down and we ended up making out as I was kissing him goodbye. I knew I had to get home, but I just couldn''t resist his delicious kisses. With school starting again soon, who knows when I''d get the chance to kiss him like this again? Come to think of it, this summer went by in just a blink of an eye. It was already ourst night before school starts again, so it was only natural that I wanted to spend all the time I had left withn. We weren''t doing much today.We just drove around town listening to music, drinkingrge sodas, and munching on French fries from the diner. He was holding my hand the entire time, caressing my skin with his thumb.I could live for small romantic acts like these.I still got butterflies every time he touched me or looked at me with that gaze. Spending time withn was the highlight of my summer. Even though there was an age gap between us, I didn¡¯t feel like it affect our chemistry. Whenever we hung out, things would just click and the chemistry would be flowing. Be it making out or talking about books and movies, I was always thoroughly entertained by his company.I could only hope he felt the same way. "I have to get back,"I tried to break off our kiss when I noticed the time, butn was persistent. He started kissing that sweet spot on my neck, and I was a goner.He knew he was leaving marks all over, but he didn''t care. "Mm-hm,"his soft lips coaxed me again into submission. I couldn''t let go and I ran my fingers around his hair instead. "I promised my mom I won''t be homete.You''re gonna get me in trouble," I said again while returning his kiss, shamelessly. "Baby girl, you are trouble,"he chuckled when he finally pulled away. I couldn''t help but smile. We were already parked out here for thest thirty minutes. Could you believe that? We were making out for thirty minutes! I didn¡¯t feel like going in and saying goodbye to him, so I was the one that started the kiss.And I had the audacity to me him for it. Oh, sue me. "Why can¡¯t summerst forever?"I sighed. "Hey,"he picked up my chin with his hand and said, "Just one more year," That''s right.Just one more year of stupid high school and we can finally be together. I would be off to college and he would be right there with me. We''ll leave this stupid town behind and start over.We''ll be together without restrictions and no one would judge us. "I can''t wait,"smiling brightly, I gave him onest kiss before pulling away abruptly, purposefully leaving him wanting for more. "What a tease,"he chuckled. "See you at school, Mr.Hayes," I bit my bottom lip seductively and gave him a naughty wink. "Damn girl, just kill me why don¡¯t you?"heughed to himself as I opened the car door and stepped out. Still Keeping up with my newfound confidence, I gave him onest smirk before turning for the door. He put his hand over his chest and pretended to have a heart attack, causing me to break character andugh as I walked to my door. It was almost 11 PM, my parents were usually in bed by 10. I sneaked inside quietly as to not make too much noise. I even took my shoes off as I climbed the stairs, making sure I was as stealth as possible. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. When I made it to my bedroom, I let out a relieved sigh, thinking that I made it safe and sound. "Where have you been?" Right as I turned a corner, I spotted mom sitting on the chair in the corner of my room. "Mom!"I squeaked. "You said you''d be home by 10.It''s a school night Emma,"she continued. "I know I''m sorry...Tiff and I were watching a movie..." "I saw the car parked a few houses down.That''s not Tiff''s car.Or Carrie''s,"she said quickly and my stomach fell to the floor. Oh shit.I am so busted! "Emma, is there something you want to tell me?"she stood up and stalked closer, watching my face intently like a hawk. Her eyesnded on the hickey marks on my neck and my hand quickly went up to cover them. "Mom..."I started to speak, but I couldn''t finish it. Think of an excuse, quick! "Are you seeing someone?"she said again. I gulped. She knew. It was no use trying to lie to my mom. She would figure me out in a heartbeat. I took a deep breath and let out a defeated sigh. She was still waiting for an answer, so I just nodded my head slowly. "Who?" "Just a guy...at school," Technically, that wasn''t a lie. "So you''repletely over Zach?" "Yeah,"I breathed. Mom and dad knew of my rtionship with Zach. We did date for a full year before he went to college. I never told them exactly what happened that caused the breakup. I said it was because of the long distance and they believed me. I didn¡¯t want to say too much because I was afraid I''d leave details that would point ton. So throughout the year, I never talked to my mom about my love life. I let her assume that I was happy being single. But of course, sooner orter, mom always finds out."That''s good.It¡¯s about time you get over him.You know, I never liked that boy,"she said again. Mom could be scary and serious when she wanted to, but honestly she was my best friend apart from Tiff and Carrie. Normally I would tell her everything. But ever since this whole thingn started, I had to step back on the honesty. "So, tell me about this new guy.No wonder you''ve been so busy all summer,"she sat down on the bed and motioned for me to follow suit. "He¡¯s just a guy...there¡¯s not much to tell," I grabbed a random scarf hanging on my dresser and quickly draped it over my neck before sitting down next to her. "Okay, you don¡¯t wanna talk boys with your mom, I got it,"she winked, "But if you ever need to talk, you know you can always talk to me," "I know.Thanks mom," She stood up and she was about to leave, but she stopped her tracks suddenly and said, "Oh, and Emma," "Yeah?" "I was wondering, is it maybe time that we should have...the talk?" A little toote for that, mom. "Mom, I don''t need the talk,"I dismissed it quickly. "I know, I know, it''s a touchy topic. But hey, you''re still a young girl and I just want you to be careful, okay?" "Lam..." "So you are...active?" "Please don''t say active,"I rolled my eyes immediately. "You''re using protection, right?" "Mom!" "Just answer me that and I can go to sleep peacefully. Otherwise I¡¯m gonna stay up all night and keep pestering you," I took a deep breath and sighed, "Yes, we used protection," "Condoms and pills?" "Just condoms, mom, can we please go to sleep now? Like you said, I have school tomorrow," I really didn¡¯t feel like having this conversation. Now and ever. Mom rummaged through her pocket and pulled out a pack of something that resembled birth control pills. "Emma, honey.I picked this up at the clinic earlier.Remember to take one every day and if you ran out, you can tell me or you can go to the clinic yourself," "Mom!"I squeaked. "Condoms are not a hundred percent effective.Sometimes they broke.It''s best if youbine both methods of birth control " "Mother, please!"I groaned in embarrassment, "I got this under control, so please don¡¯t worry about me.And if I need anything, I''lle to you.I promise," She just looked at me and let out a deep sigh. "Okay then,"she said finally, "Take this anyway, just in case," "Sure," I mumbled and took the pack from her. "Oh, and Emma, it¡¯s best not to mention any of this around your father.You know how he can get,"mom said as she stopped by the doorstep. "Yeah, mom, noted," My dad can be a little too overprotective of me sometimes. Especially when it came to boys. It was always best not to mention too many details of my love life to him. "Good night sweetheart,"mom smiled sweetly. "Good night, mom," After she left the room, I threw the birth control pack inside my bedside drawer and closed it shut. He always wore a condom. I didn¡¯t feel the need for extra precautions. What I do need is to find a killer outfit for the first day of school tomorrow. I made my way over to my closet and started raiding it furiously. Withn back as a teacher, there was something to look forward to at school. I picked up this cute high waist id short skirts and a ck fitted top to match. The top hugged my chest beautifully and the skirt was super short, borderline skimpy. Still, it hugged my curves in all the right ces so that was an A++. This outfit was the definition of dressed to kill. I was smiling to myself, thinking of whatn would do when he sees me in this tomorrow. I knew it was evil, but hey, I¡¯m just a girl. And a girl in love can do some very crazy things. Chapter 35: Senior Year Chapter 35: Senior Year EMMA¡¯s POV : "Can you believe it? We''re officially high school seniors," Carrie eximed as we walked down the long hallway and rows of lockers. "l suddenly feel so old," Mark said as he put his arm around Carrie. "I think I''m having senioritis already,"Tiff added, rolling her eyes. "Look alive, Tiff.College applications areing up,"Carrie said. "I¡¯m not gonna go to college.I''m taking a gap year to backpack across Europe,"Tiff announced proudly. "Are you really?" I narrowed my eyes at her. "My parents think it''s a good idea.This way I can figure out what I really want in life.I also have an aunt that lives in Barcelona.She¡¯s gonna let me stay with her," "Wow, your parents are the best,"I admitted. Tiff really had the coolest parents out of all of us. They were these vegan, hippie, and earth loving type of folks. They were always happy, positive, and Zen. They encouraged their kids to explore and live life boundlessly. I would say they did a great job because Tiff turned out to be an amazing girl. "God, I wish I could do that.My parents would never let me,"Carrie sighed. "Me too.They¡®re dead set on sending me to college ever since I was two.When I told them UC Berkeley is my first choice, they actuallyughed at me.They said UC Berkeley''s a safety school.They don¡¯t want anything less than Ivy Leagues or MIT and Stanford," Mark rambled about his home life.As student body president, his whole life was dedicated to college.This was his moment. "My parents met in Berkeley,"Tiff cut in, "What, your parents don''t think UC Berkeley is good enough for you?" "Clearly, you''ve never met my parents,"he replied. "Yeah, and trust me, it¡¯s better that way,"Carrie scoffed , "They actually think that I was the one that poisoned Mark into wanting to go to UC Berkeley," "But it¡¯s kinda true though? Mark¡¯s only applying to Berkeley because you wanna go to Berkeley," I pointed out the obvious and Carrie red at me. "Yeah, but that¡¯s not the point now is it?" Carrie pped my arm yfully and Iughed. "How about you, little miss perfect attendance? You thought about where you''re applying to?" "A bunch of schools in the east coast.And like, one school in the state," I sighed when I remembered I had to apply to one, "Safety," "The east coast? Like what?"Mark asked. "Some schools in New York like the CUNYs, Fordham, Barnard, and Columbia.Also Princeton and University of Pennsylvania, but I wouldn''t count on those," "Why not? You''re definitely Ivy League material,"Carrie stated. "Yeah.You scored a 1500 on your SATs, your grades are amazing, and you did a bunch of extracurricr activities,"Tiff added. "And teachers love you.I bet they''ll write you a kickass rmendation letter," Mark chimed in. "Yeah, I bet,"Carrieughed meaningfully. "Teachers totally do love you,"Tiff winked and nudged me to the direction of a teacher that was walking towards us. "Guys, stop it,"I shushed them quickly as Mr.Hayes walked over and nodded to us. Mark still had no clue and I intended to keep it that way. "Hi, Mr.Hayes,"Tiff and Carrie said in unison. "Carrie, Mark, Tiffany,"he greeted everyone, pausing for a second before giving me a look and said, "Emma," He was eyeing me from head to toe.He bit his lip as he noticed how short my skirt was.He narrowed his eyes at me, but I just gave him a confident smile. "Hi,"I said. "Have a great first day,"he meant to say it to everyone, but his eyes were fixed intently on mine. Tiff and Carrie were having a hard time suppressing theirughs. "You too," I muttered quickly. I had one hand shoving Tiff and Carrie to keep them quiet. My friends were making this situation awkward as hell, butn was unfazed by everything. Instead, he let out a small chuckle and leaned closer to me. "Good job on your art portfolio, by the way,"he said slowly. My breath hitched as soon as I caught his delicious masculine scent. "Five out of five," Damn. Even his smell is contagious. His lips twitched into a naughty smirk as he knew the effect he had on me. He nodded goodbye to my friends onest time before turning to his heels. I couldn''t stop watching him as he walked away, all cool and sexy AF. I thought senior year was gonna be a breeze. I had finished my AP Art ss so I had no other sses withn. How foolish of me to think that things wouldn''t be awkward with us in the same school. Because of course, he wasn''t gonna let me off so easily. And boy, do I like it. I had a free period today after lunch, so I decided to meet Mrs.Ash, our guidance counselor for some wisdom in regards to my college future. Mrs.Ash was a small red- haired woman in her sixties. Every year she said she was retiring, but she never did.Her office was this small square room with a desk in the middle. She had all these motivational posters on the wall with clich¨¦ quotes such as, ¡®The Only Way to Guarantee Failure is to Never Try" or "Discipline: When a man is sufficiently motivated, discipline will take care of itself". She was on the phone for a while, so I had ample time to read through the motivational posters and letters from her previous students on the wall. Judging from those letters, these students really loved and thanked her for helping them go to college. Mrs.Ash was known to be a realist. She would tell you straight up if you weren''t Harvard material. But if she saw something good in you, she would make sure you know about it and not let it go to waste. "Ms.Sinir,"she said when she finally finished her call , Sorry about the interruption.My husband forgot where he put his keys, again, All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org. "It''s okay.I hope he finds it," "It''s his jeans¡¯ pocket.Always is,"she rolled her eyes and grabbed a brown file from her desk. It had my name on it and she started flipping through the pages furiously. "So, I see you''re applying to several schools out of state.And one school in the state.The University of Georgia,"she read aloud. "Yeah, that¡¯s a back-up n.My parents think we might not have enough money for out-of-state tuition, "I paused for a moment before continuing, "But I''ve been working all summer.I''m working on the weekends too.I''ve been saving up.I think I can make it," "Right, there are financial aid and schrships avable.I can help you look into some of that," "That would be great,"I nodded appreciatively. "Okay.Now, financialponents aside, let''s take a look at your grades,"Her eyes busily scanned the papers in her hand. She nodded appreciatively a few times, so I took it as a good sign. "You scored very well on your SATs.You''ve got marvelous grades.And your teachers all have nothing but nice things to say about you.And your extracurricr activities are superb,"she said as she put the papers down. "So, are you saying that I have a good chance at Princeton, Columbia, or U Penn?" I asked with hopeful eyes. She didn''t answer right away. Instead, she took a deep breath and watched me intently."That''s possible,"she said finally, "With the right college essay, Ms.Sinir, I think you can go far," I let out a relieved sigh and said, "That¡¯s good to hear," "But tell me, why these schools in particr?"she paused for a moment before saying, "The University of Georgia is also a good school.But you don¡¯t seem to care as much for it," "The University of Georgia is a great school, but..." But that¡¯s not wheren and I will be. We¡¯re gonna be in the east coast next year. "But it¡¯s not an Ivy League school,"I said instead. "If you''re dead set on the Ivy League, then I must tell you, they''re not easy," she said in amanding tone. "Your college essay should be priority number one.And then you need to prepare yourself for an interview, either with a staff from the school or a_ selected alumni representative," Whoa, suddenly everything looked so daunting.That tone of voice hers wasn¡¯t helping either. "Think you can handle all that?"she said again. I swallowed hard at her question and my mind started racing. I was thinking hard about the future¡ªabout how it could be. He would get that job in the art gallery and I would be a student in Princeton¡ªor Columbia¡ªor the University of Pennsylvania.We could get an apartment together.We could live together and be happy forever. "Yes, I can handle it," the words escaped my mouth faster than I expected. Mrs.Ash studied my face and I remained confident. Finally, she nodded her head in approval and said, "Alright, then we better get to work," After leaving the guidance counselor''s office, I was feeling pretty great. Yes, I still had my work cut out for me, but at least I was on the right track. Mrs.Ash sent me off with some brochures on schrships and somemunity service opportunities that I could do to enhance my resume. As I walking down the corridor, I noticed the door to the art room was slightly open. I stopped my tracks and I sawn, he was alone in the studio. I thought that this might be a good time to say hi, so I hiked my skirt up a bit more and straightened my shirt before entering the ssroom. "Mr.Hayes," I knocked on the door and stepped inside. I thought about making a sexy entrance, purposefully showing off my legs as I walked in. "Ms.Sinir," And that was when I noticed that he wasn''t alone in the room. There were about ten junior kids in there, huddled around a painting. "I didn''t realize you have a ss right now," I smiled awkwardly and haphazardly pulled my skirt down to its normal length. "You''re not in this ss anymore, Emma.What are you doing here?"he took a step closer to me and spoke lowly. "Oh, I think I left a book in here somewhere,"I said loudly, so the other kids wouldn''t notice anything weird. Smiling confidently, I said, "Do you mind if I take a look around?" "Go ahead,"he nodded in agreement. "In the meantime, ss please continue your observation on the painting.I''ll give you two minutes before we discuss," The students¡¯ attention left me as they went back to the task at hand. I let out a relieved sigh as I paced aimlessly to the bookcase at the corner of the room. I knew my n didn''t work right away, but I was feeling that I could still save it. Smiling naughtily to myself, I stood straight and bent down seductively, pretending to look for something on the lower shelf. "It should be around here somewhere..." "Do you need a hand?"he coughed and tried to avert his gaze from me. "Nope, I found it,"I chirped and picked up a random book. Thankfully, the other students were not paying attention to us.It would be bad if they did, because they''d notice the bulge that was forming on Mr. Hayes¡¯ pants. "Thank you, Mr.Hayes," I said and licked my lips when I was only an arm''s length away from him. "You''re wee,"he swallowed hard. I was about to run for the exit, but since no one was paying attention, I thought it would be okay if I stay and y a little bit more. "Have a great ss," I purposefully brushed past him on my way out and whispered, "See you tonight," "You are so gonna pay for this,"he hissed under his breath. "Looking forward to it," Chapter 36: Community Service Chapter 36: Community Service EMMA¡¯s POV : "Mrs.Ash basically told me that I''m an amazing student.She thinks I can go far," I bragged as I kicked my feet up onn¡¯s couch. He followed suit and took a seat next to me. My body curled up into his instinctively as he put an arm around me. "That''s not new to me," he chuckled, "I''ve been telling you from day one, you can go wherever you want,"I smiled into his chest, inhaling his intoxicating scent. We just made it through our first day back to school and we were celebrating by having Chinese takeout and watching The Office on Netflix. "But you''re my boyfriend, you''re supposed to say things like that,"I murmured. "So, you''re saying my words don¡¯t mean shit unless it¡¯s said by a 60-year-olddy?" I ughed and said, "Well it sounds bad if you put it that way," "Speaking of bad..." he tilted my face up to meet his and said, "Someone was being very bad today," His eyes turned dark and I remembered that moment when I stumbled into his ssroom. He was in the middle of teaching a ss and I came barging in, wearing a cute yet skimpy skirt, pretending to be dumb, looking for a book I didn¡¯t even own. "Oh, whatever do you mean?"I said yfully. "You know what I mean,"he scolded. His voice was gruff, and oh so sexy. "Maybe I''lle by tomorrow and return that book,"I smiled seductively. "Okay.But I¡¯m gonna ban you from wearing this skirt ever again,"his hand traveled from my knee upwards and gripped the hem of the skirt, "Unless it¡¯s in my apartment," "You can''t do that,"I said challengingly. "You wanna find out?"he asked, sounding very threatening. I gulped in response. That look in his eyes said it all.I was in absolute trouble. Not waiting for me to answer him, he delved down and his lips crashed into mine in one swift move. He kissed me hard and deep, like he had been waiting for this all day long. I was caught off guard at first, but I quickly pulled myposure and I kissed him back. I was in the middle of enjoying our little make out session, when suddenly he pulled away abruptly and turned my body around on the couch. The side of my face was flushed against the cushion asn positioned himself behind me. His strong arms wrapped me tightly from behind, keeping me in ce. "You''ve been a very bad girl today,"he huffed into my ears. "This is what you get from trying to tease a beast,"my brain told me. He pulled me by my stomach so my face was still facing down but my butt was hiked up into the air. My skirt was so short that my underwear waspletely exposed by this point. He grabbed my ass cheeks firmly, and he let out a deep breath before gripping them tighter. Suddenly, my heart was beating so fast. I didn¡¯t know what wasing but I had a feeling it might be torturous.I started to get nervous. "Hey, I actually came here tonight because I need to be working on my college essay.I need you to help me proofread some stuff¡ª"I started babbling. "Nice try, but you''re not getting away with this,"he let out a low chuckle. Of course, he wouldn''t be tricked that easily. But I was shameless, so I kept trying. "I really do need to work on those.Colleges won''t ept me without one, you know?" "Guess you should''ve thought of that before you start ying with fire," and as soon as he said it, his one hand flew to the air and pped me hard on my butt. "Ouch!"I whimpered. "The essay can wait.But I can''t,"he said again and another pnded on my butt, at the same exact spot. My left ass cheek was tingling in pain.It was painful, but also, it was turning me the hell on.I found myself backing up to him involuntarily, like my body was asking for more. "Such a bad, bad girl,"heughed in response. His handnded on my left ass cheek once again and I let out a muffled scream, though it sounded a lot like a moan. Then, his other hand snaked around my waist to my lower area. He pulled my panties to the side and his finger delved into my core. "Fuck, you''re soaking wet,"I really was. I started squirming in agony, my hips bucking into his finger, desperate for more. He let out a devilish chuckle and his finger pulled out of me, leaving me empty. n...please," "Not until you learned your lesson,"And with that, another p hit my ass cheek and I let out a scream. It was stinging like hell, a single tear trickled down my face.The next thing I knew, I heard the tearing sound of a condom wrapper.Another p followed soon after and my body jerked in pain. Another tear fell from my eye. Then I heard the sound of his belt unbuckling and my body was shaking in anticipation. Suddenly, I felt his hard length pressed against my behind. I was still wearing my panties and he rubbed himself against me. He let out a low growl when I started grinding back.His hand went around my waist again and his fingers slipped back under my panties.He was still grinding on me from behind as his finger entered my core. I let out a moan as my head tilted back, giving in to the sweet sensation.He started kissing the nape of my neck as his finger continued going in and out of me.His thumb rubbed my clit in circles and before I knew it, another finger slipped inside.I felt my orgasm building up in my stomach. My hips were moving wantonly, grinding into his fingers as I felt my core clenching up. And just as I was about to find my release, he pulled his fingers out of me abruptly. "No!"I cried. "That¡¯s what you get from being a tease," he said as he licked my juices on his fingers. n, please..."my body was shaking and whimpering like never before. I had never needed a release this bad before in my life. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. I couldn¡¯t see his face but I was sure he was smirking that crazy smirk. He had me wrapped around his finger and he was enjoying every second of it. He started caressing my ass with his hands, moving so sensually and tantalizingly. The stinging on my left ass cheek was dwindling down, but suddenly he picked up his hand and smacked my sore ass cheek one more time. "Ah!"I was screaming and tears rolled down my face. "Fuck!"I heard him groan and his hands were gripping my panties so hard, it started to break. As soon as I heard the sound of fabric ripping, I felt cold air hit my ass cheeks and I knew I was completely exposed to him."Well, at this rate, I¡¯m gonna run out of underwear," I made a joke, but he didn¡¯t even crack a smile. "Baby girl, you''re dripping,"he said and I felt his nose nuzzling my lower area. Then I felt his tongue on my core, sucking gently on my juices. "I¡¯m gonna slip in you so easily," He was moving ever so slowly, purposefully teasing me.I grinded my hips against him, but he pulled away in an instant. n, please, I need you..." "I know you do,"he said simply and his face moved to my side. I felt his warm breaths fanning my bruised ass cheek. My skin was raw and sore from all the pping, and his warm breaths on me just intensified the feeling. "I promise I''ll burn the damned skirt,"I pleaded. He stifled augh and said, "On second thought, I think you should wear it more often," I swallowed hard as I couldn''t say anything else. He leaned back down and his lips found the back of my neck again. His hands were cupping my ass, he was massaging them gently and that stinging pain turned into this marvelous sensation. He parted my ass cheeks slightly with his thumb and in one hard thrust, his full length entered into me mercilessly. My body convulsed in shock as my core took in the fullness of him. As my walls contracted around him, he pulled out slightly and mmed back inside me, hard and deep. My eyes knitted shut and my head fell on the couch as the sensation was too intense for me to handle. He pulled out on more and time and mmed roughly into me, hitting my g-spot and it sent me straight to oblivion. My body clenched and pulsed around him as I rode the wave of this strong orgasm. "Yes, baby girl, that¡¯s it,"Just when I thought that this was done, I was proven wrong. He started grinding in and out of me, fast and hard, like he was only getting started. Boy, do I learn my lesson. I felt another build up coursing through my veins, as his thrusts grew stronger and faster. My hips rocked back, moving in syne with him and he grabbed a fistful of my hair. Loud moans escaped my lips and a string of curses escaped his, until finally, we both found our release. His length pulsated in me and my core clenched hard, releasing a copious amount of sweet juices. It was safe to say, I got what I came here for. As for the essay...I would have to get started on that, tomorrow. The next day after school, I couldn''t meetn at his apartment because I signed up for this Community Garden thing. I had umted enoughmunity service hours to graduate, but Mrs. Ash said it would be a good idea if I could do more, to prove that I was a hardworking student, willing to go the extra mile. No pun intended there. I had just seenn yesterday, but I missed him already. Thankfully, the red marks on my but cheek was enough of a reminder of our time togetherst night. Every time I sat down on a chair, I was reminded of it. I could just imagine the victorious smile on his face when I tell him all about it. "Alright, volunteers, pleasee over here and follow me.You can start by picking up the trash around this area.And don¡¯t forget to use the recycle bins," Mr.Parker''s booming voice pulled me from my daydream. Mr.Parker was the leader of the Community Garden. They did cleanups around neighborhood parks, built vegetable and fruit gardens, and hosted a potluck at the end of the year. It sounded pretty great, so I was actually excited to volunteer with them. The only downside was that I had to wear this hideous- looking green vest and a ridiculous green hat to match. "Hey, you go to West Lake, right?" Suddenly, this tall guy came up to me as I was picking up empty soda cans under a bench. "Yeah," I nodded. "Hi, I''m Tyler," he lent out his hand and I took it politely. He was tall and he had a sweet, friendly smile. His short blonde hair was covered under the hideous green hat, but his beautiful blue eyes shone right through. "Nice to meet you, I''m¡ª" "Emma," he cut me off and smiled, "We''ve met around school. We got, like two sses together this year," "We do?" "Three if you count the lunch period," I cocked my head to the side and studied his face. I really had never seen him before, so I said, "Why don''t I ever see you?" "Guess I¡¯m easy to miss,"he shrugged. "I doubt that.I mean, you''re really tall,"I paused for a beat before continuing, "I¡¯m surprised you even noticed me, I¡¯m only 5¡¯ 4¡¯ in my best day," "Of course I noticed you.You''re like the smartest girl in our ss," "No, I''m not,"I scoffed. "You totally are,"he said reassuringly, "I first noticed it in AP English.You were telling the ss your interpretation of the transcendentalist movement.I forgot what you said exactly and I¡¯m not gonna bother paraphrasing ¡®cause I¡¯m totally gonna butcher it.But I remembered it was so profound that I started thinking to myself, goddamn, that girl has a beautiful mind," My breath as stuck in my throat as I heard him speak. He sounded so genuine and that was probably the bestpliment I had ever received.Wow.Who is this guy again? Chapter 37: Suspicious Activity Chapter 37: Suspicious Activity IAN''s POV : "Hayes!" I heard a voice called out as I stepped out of the art room with my things.School was over for the day and I was about to head home. "Hey, you joining us tonight?"Sean Hawthorn, the school¡¯s music teacher, jogged over to me. "Uh¡­?"I gave him a puzzled. "First week of school.Some of us are doing guys¡¯ night out.The new guy, Coach Pullman is getting everyone''s first round," Right.Whenever the teachers at school did social gatherings, I never paid much attention to it. But, I did read something about this in my email. "I don¡¯t know,"I shrugged, "To be honest, I don¡¯t really know him," I was just saying whatever to get Sean off my case. I wasn''t feeling like hanging out with the other teachers at school, because every time I hung out with them, I felt this guilt inside. I felt like I was betraying my job because I was dating this girl that everyone else called their student. "He doesn''t know that many people.He just started working here.He¡¯s inviting all the guys toe, he wants to make friends," Sean was being persistent, he paused for a beat before saying, "And hey, you''re single, right? You shoulde.It''s at this bar that just opened downtown.A lot of pretty girls there, I heard," Single...all the teachers thought so, of course.That''s a good thing I guess. "Right..."I muttered and sighed, "Guess I can stop by for a bit,"So here I was, sitting around a table with five other guy teachers from school. They were around my age and slightly older,te twenties and early thirties. Still, I couldn''t feel so removed.Three of them were already married with kids and one was engaged. Only the new guy, John Pullman and I were single. "I need everyone to take a shot.No one¡¯s getting out of this!" John shouted over the music as he raised a ss. "Cheers to that!" the other guys chimed in and I yed along. We all downed the shot of whiskey at once. It was a decent whiskey. I had my reservations abouting out tonight, but this was changing my mind.I must admit, it felt kind of nice to have some guy friends around.I loved spending time with Emma, let''s get that straight. And though I enjoyed being cooped up with her inside my apartment, but sometimes going out to a bar like this, chilling with some whiskey and friends weren''t bad too. "So, you just moved here, huh?"I said to John. "Yeah.I used to teach in Anta for two years,"he replied. "Hey, I used to study at Emory.Lived in Anta for a couple of years too," "Oh, cool, man.Anta''s awesome!" he beamed and gave me a high five, "But yeah, I needed a fresh start," "We could all use some of that," I said and raised another ss. "Amen to that,"he nodded and drank his drink. "So, how you like the town?"Sean joined in. "It''s kinda small, but looks alright.The girls are fine though," John nudged me to the direction of a group of girls passing by. "Yeah," I said tly. "What, you got a girlfriend?" "Uh ¡ª" "Nah, this guy''s single," Sean was quick to answer for me. "I heard you went out with Erica Diazst year?" another teacher, James Watson, joined in. Suddenly I was being grilled for no reason. But all the guy teachers had a thing for Erica, that was certain. I was getting dirty looks from a bunch of them when they found out Erica and I went out for a datest year. "The Spanish teacher?" John gaped and shoved me yfully, "Dude, she¡¯s hot," "Yeah, it just didn¡¯t work out," I shrugged. "Hey, you''ll find someone, don''t worry," James said and patted my shoulders before heading to the men¡¯s room. Like I needed to beforted for that, thanks for nothing, bro. "How about that girl? She¡¯s been checking you out ever since we got here," Sean nodded to the bar where this blonde chick was standing with a drink in her hand. She was eyeing me from head to toe. When I caught her eyes, she let out a seductive smile. "Nah man,"I shook it off. "Yeah, man.You should totally go for it.What¡¯s stopping you?" John was getting hyped up. "Don''t be a pussy.Come on," Sean added. "And her friend is hot.Dude, we have to get over there.You have to be my wingman," John stood up suddenly, getting all excited. "I don¡¯t know " I sighed and raked my hair, looking for an excuse to get out of this. "Come on man, help a guy out," John insisted. He was new in town and he really wanted somepany.He bought us all drinks, and now I felt bad. "Fine,"I sighed finally. Guess it wouldn''t hurt just to help him out. I''ll get out of there as soon as he¡¯s in.I downed my drink before standing up, and John and I made our way to the bar. The blonde girl and her friend noticed that we were walking towards them. She locked her eyes with mine and bit her lip, sending me this signal that she was into me. "Hidies, can we get you a drink?" I said when we stood an arm''s length away from them. "Sure," they both said in unison. John dly stepped up to the bar and ordered some drinks from the bartender. As we were waiting for our drinks to be made, John was looking a bit awkward around the girls.I knew I had to step in. "So, what are your names?" I said to both girls. "I''m Macy," the blonde said. "I''m Anna," her friend said "Nice to meet you both.This is my friend, John.He¡¯s new to town," I gestured to my boy and he was smiling brightly at Anna. "Hi,"he said. "Hi,"she replied. "Here you go,"I got their drinks from the bartender and handed it to them. "Hey, maybe you can help him out, tell him about some cool ces around?" "Sure,"Anna was quick to answer. Before long, Anna and John were deep into a conversation. My job as the wingman was done, so I was about to go back to my table when the blonde girl stopped me. "You never told me your name,"she said. n,"I gave her a quick, uninterested smile. She wasn''t getting the hint though. She put a hand on my chest and leaned in, whispering, "You''re not a man of many words, are you?" "No,"I breathed, pulling away slightly. "That¡¯s alright.You don¡¯t have to talk,"she closed the distance between us again. Her body was pressed up against mine and I wasn''t enjoying it, not in the slightest. Letting out a sigh, I held her by her shoulders and pushed her off of me. "Excuse me, but I have to go,"was all I said to her before quickly walking away. I really didn¡¯t wanna be there.I looked at our table and the guys were chatting away happily. They were probably gonna grill me about this girl and I wasn¡¯t having it. My eyes scanned around the room and I spotted the exit.Guess I could use some fresh air. I made my way out of there and let out a relieved sigh when I breathed in the fresh air.I looked up to the open sky and I saw the full moon shining bright. It was a great night, but I just wished I had a betterpany. I took out my phone and my fingers had dialed her number before I could stop myself. Emma was probably busy.She had amunity service thing going on tonight.I wasn''t expecting her to pick up the call, but she did after the third ring. "Hello?"her sweet voice spoke. It was smooth like honey.My favorite voice in the world as of right now. "Hey, you,"I felt my body calmed instinctively as soon as I heard her voice. "I hear loud music.Where are you?"she asked. "In this bar downtown.Some of the guy teachers dragged me out," "Oh, okay,"she paused for a moment before saying, "Well, you must be having fun," "Why do you think I¡¯m calling you then?"I stifled a dryugh. "So, you''re not having fun? Well, I should be sad, but actually I¡¯m d,"she giggled. I pictured her smile and I wished I could see it in person. "I wish you''re here with me, baby girl.I miss you," "I miss you too," It would still be a while before the two of us can be seen out in public.I didn¡¯t wanna think about that, though.It was depressing to me. Letting out a sigh, I then asked, "How was yourmunity thing?" "It was good.I picked up some trash and I made a friend," "Oh yeah?" "His name''s Tyler.He goes to West Lake too.We have some sses together," "And this Tyler is a guy?"I wasn''t trying to be a controlling boyfriend, trust me. But I saw her around school and the way the other guys looked at her, they could not be trusted. "Obviously.What, are you jealous that I made a friend while picking up trash?"sheughed. "No,"I lied. "Tyler''s a sweetheart.You''ll like him,"Doubt it. "So, what are you up to now?"I asked. "I''m trying to work on my essay since you know, I didn¡¯t get anything done yesterday," "My bad,"I chuckled. "Yeah," "Or should I say, your bad?" Last night was a lot of fun. I was getting hard all over again just at the thought of it.Her soft ass was raw pink and she was walking funny all day. That was mean of me, but hey, she loved it.She came hard like never before. Four times that night. n, stop,"I couldn''t see her, but I imagined she must be blushing red. She always did at times like these. "Alright, I¡¯m gonna let you get back on your essay," "Okay, I love youn," she said sweetly. "Love you too, Emma," I was smiling to myself as I turned off the call. Turning my face around, I stopped my tracks when I saw that John was standing right next to me. Damm it.How long has he been standing there for? "Hey, we were looking for you,"he said. "Sorry, I had to make a call," I said cautiously. "So, Emma, huh?" his lips twitched to a grin, "Is that your girlfriend?" "Uh, yeah..." I paused, looking for the right words to say , ¡®She lives in another state," "Ah, long distance? Man, that sucks," he was slurring a little. I hoped to god he was drunk enough to forget about all of this by tomorrow. "Yeah," I nodded along. "Why didn¡¯t you say anything before? I wouldn''t have you pushed you to ask that girl out if I knew," "Meh, it''s just a little..plicated,"I shrugged. "Long distance,plicated girl trouble, I don¡¯t know man...from what you''re telling me, it''s not looking good," "Hey, what are you guys doing out here?"Sean joined us. He had a cigarette in his hand, probably out for a smoke break. "We''re talking about this guy''s girl trouble,"John was quick to answer. "You got a girl?"Sean turned to me. "You never said nothing?" "Yeah, some chick called Emma," John replied again. Shit, he needs to stop talking. "That''s a good name for a chick," Sean answered. "Guys, enough, let¡¯s go back inside,"I said quickly, but they weren''t done with me. "It''s long distance too, so it¡¯splicated,"John said to Sean. "Fu-ck long distance, man!" Sean said to me. "That thing''s a death trap," Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. "Guys, whatever, let¡¯s drop it," "You must really like her, huh?"Sean pressed on. "More than like.He loves her.Oh, Emma, I love you,"John said mockingly, mimicking my words from the call. "Y''all are acting worse than the fourteen year olds we teach at school,"I shoved them away jokingly. "We spend all day every day with those kids, some of it rubs off,"Sean answered. "Come on lover boy, it''s cold out here.Let''s get you back inside," John grabbed my shoulder and shoved me back.I could only sigh at my fate as I walked back in there. Chapter 38: Social Distancing Chapter 38: Social Distancing EMMA¡¯s POV: Normally, I hate Mondays.But, not this year. This year, Mondays meant that I could see my boyfriend around the school, so how could I not look forward to it? I had a spring in my step as I made my way to school. Content rights by N?velDr//ama.Org. Walking down the hallways, I noticed that people¡¯s eyes were on me.It was a weird feeling to be noticed like this, but I couldn¡¯t me them. I may have gone a little bit too overboard with my new wardrobe.I was wearing this off-shoulder sweater dress that was kind of short. Usually, I''d wear a pair of leggings with them, but not anymore.I paired it with some tall knee- length boots instead. "Whoa, who are you and what have you done to my sweet, innocent Emma?"Carrie said, stopping my tracks. "Well, I don¡¯t know who she is but I love her!"Tiff followed suit. "I''m pretty sure this isn¡¯t up to snuff to our school¡¯s dress code,"Mark added. "We have a dress code?"I asked. "Morally, I guess?"Mark shrugged. "Guys, chill, it¡¯s just an outfit," Iughed at their overly dramatic reactions. "Oh, we are chill.I''m just not sure he is," Tiff whispered to my ears and motioned to the direction of some teachers walking byn was walking with Coach Pullman and Mr.Hawthorn. But today, they looked really friendly with each other.Must be because of their outingst night.When he saw me standing there in my outfit,n almost spat the coffee in his hand.He shot me an ¡®are you crazy¡¯ look and I just smiled innocently. "Good morning, Mr.Hayes,"I said when he was an arm''s length away. He stopped his tracks and said, "Good morning...Ms.Sinir," That''s funny. Normally he¡¯d call me by my first name. He was about to walk away, but I quickly said, "I was just about to return that book I borrowed yesterday," "Just leave them on my desk,"he said coolly and rejoined the other two teachers. "Oh, okay,"I muttered under my breath. He didn¡¯t even bother looking back, and he just kept going. What the hell was that? Throughout the rest of the day, I had a feeling thatn was avoiding me. I couldn''t find him anywhere, and when I finally did, he wouldn''t even look at me. Byst period, I couldn''t take it anymore. I took a hallway pass and marched to the art studio.I made sure that he waspletely alone in that ssroom before entering the room. "Hey, I''ve been looking for you everywhere," I couldn''t hide the excitement on my face when I could finally be alone with him. "What are you doing here? You''re supposed to be in ss,"he was sitting on his desk and he looked up at me in shock. "Yeah? And what are you gonna do about it?"I bit my lip seductively and made my way over to him. I put my hands on his desk and leaned down, purposefully showing off my cleavage. He swallowed hard and sucked in a deep breath before saying, "Emma, you can''t be doing things like these around school," "Why? Because if you¡¯re mad, you can always punish meter,"I said shamelessly, egging him on. "Oh, I will punish you,"he said through gritted teeth. "But it''s not safe here.People might start asking questions.We have to be careful, alright?" I was about to lean closer to him, but he quickly moved away.His eyes darted to the door, as if he was afraid someone could just barge right in. "What people?"I asked. "The other teachers are ¡ª never mind,"he sighed and raked his hair in frustration. "Just, stop this, whatever you''re doing.You understand me?"he sounded like was annoyed. I thought he was joking at first, but the more I studied his face, the more I realized that he was serious. "Emma, I need you to tell me that you understand,"he said again in that cold, t tone. "Understand what exactly?"I sighed. "That you''re being very juvenile right now,"Juvenile? Last time I checked, he enjoyed my little show just as much as I did. What gives? I backed away and scoffed, "You were fine with it yesterday, but now I¡¯m acting like a kid?" "I don''t think you realize the gravity of the situation here,"He didn¡¯t say no, so he agreed. He thought I was acting like a child.He was talking down on me, and I didn''t like that. He didn¡¯t think I was taking this seriously, did he? "Everything is fine,n.Stop overreacting,"I tried to reason with him. "Emma, don''t call me that in school,"he hissed. This was weird. I didn¡¯t know what was going on with him, but this was not the normaln that I knew. His eyes darted to the door again, looking out nervously. "Whatever, I gotta get back to ss,"I shook my head and turned to my heels. If we were gonna be able to have an honest talk, it wouldn''t be in here. He was being too paranoid for no reason at all. "Hey, wait a second ¡ª"he was trying to stop me, but I was quicker. I had made it out the door and I was walking down the empty hallway when I heard someone called my name. "Hey, Emma,"I turned around, expecting it to ben. But turns out, it was Tyler. "Tyler, hey," "Nice...I would say outfit, but then I can also say ck thereof," he joked when he noticed what I was wearing. "Not you too," I rolled my eyes and sighed dramatically, "Fine.Okay, I''ll wear a jacket," I made my way to my locker, which luckily was only a couple of steps away. I fished out a cheerleading jacket I always store inside and quickly put it on. "I''m not saying it''s bad," Tyler followed me to my lockers, "You can wear a potato sack and you''ll still look great," "Ha-ha," Iughed drily, "Thanks," "So, yesterday was kinda fun, huh?"he said as I closed my locker shut. "Sure, if fun meant picking up trash for three hours straight.My back was hurting me," "No, I meant talking to you was fun," "Oh," Then on the corner of my eye, I noticedn was standing a couple of feet away from us. He must have followed me outside. "So, um, can I ask you something?"Tyler was speaking to me, but my attention was focused somewhere else. "Yeah, what''s up?" I tried my best to stay engaged in our conversation, but I could telln was waiting."You know, the homing dance ising up," "Yeah," "Are you going with anyone?" "Just with my friends," Of course I was. Carrie and Tiff wouldn''t stop going on and on about ourst homing dance as seniors. Carrie was going with Mark and Tiff wanted to ask out this hot new guy she met at Target. "I know it¡¯s a long shot, but uh, do you think you''d go to the dance with me?" Tyler said and this time, he had my full attention. "I transferred herest year and I don¡¯t have that many friends.I just thought it''d be fun if you''d go with me," "Oh...Tyler...you''re so sweet, but um...I...I don¡¯t know..."my eyes darted between him and the wall behind him, wheren was standing. "Yeah, I know we just met.Before yesterday you don''t even know I exist,"heughed nervously, putting his hands in his pocket, he said, "I get it.It''s okay if you don¡¯t have an answer right now.You can think about it," "Sure..." "Take your time.You can tell me your answer whenever.Just, preferably before the actual dance," "Right," "Okay, I''ll see you at themunity garden then?" "Okay...See you," As soon as Tyler walked away, I let out a sigh of relief. Tyler was very sweet, and if the circumstances were different, I wouldn''t mind going to the dance with him. My eyes went back ton who was watching me like a hawk. I walked over to him as he didn''t seem to be moving. "So, that¡¯s Tyler," I said cautiously, gauging his reaction. He remained quiet and stoic, I didn¡¯t know what to make of that. "You don''t have to worry about the dance.I¡¯m gonna tell him I¡¯m going with my friends,"I said again. Finally, his gaze went down and he said lowly, "I think you should go with him," "What?" "He seems like a good kid.And it¡¯s a high school dance.You should be able to enjoy it with your friends," "What are you saying?" "Just don¡¯t kiss him.Don''t flirt with him,"he paused for a second before continuing, "But go ahead," Before I could say anything else, thest period bell rang aloud and we heard the sound of doors opening and students racing out. We both took a step away awkwardly as students started filling in the hallway. I still wanted to talk to him, butn turned away and walked off without another word. I had anothermunity garden session that day after school.I tried callingn before I went for my hours, but he wasn''t picking up.Frustrated, I started thinking again about what he said. Maybe something happenedst night when he was out with the other teachers? Maybe he was feeling the pressure of this rtionship and it was too much for him to handle? Maybe he was second guessing his decision to be with me? These were all terrible thoughts. I decided I had to go see him tonight after going to themunity garden.I at least deserved an exnation for his sudden change in behavior. I was dreading the hours that I had to spend in that garden. Time couldn''t pass slower. Tyler was around, helping me with sorting out the trash we picked up yesterday. He liked to talk and tell jokes, and if this was yesterday, I would have been enjoying it. But today, I couldn''t do much except sighing and letting out dryughs. "Hey, are you okay?" Tyler said when he noticed I was staring nkly into space. "Yeah, it''s nothing.I''m fine,"I muttered quickly. He looked down, raking his hair with his hand, he then said, "Emma, I hope me asking you to the dance is not gonna make things awkward between us. You can just say no if you don¡¯t wanna go," "Oh, no.It''s not that I don¡¯t wanna go.You''re really sweet to ask but..." "But you''re already going with someone else?" "Not exactly.I don¡¯t have a date or anything, I was just nning to go with friends..." "So, what is it? You don¡¯t wanna go with me?"He was such a sweet person and I felt like we could be good friends. So, I gave him a small smile and I decided to be honest with him. "Look, Tyler, you¡¯re a great guy and you''re fun to talk to.But I kinda like someone else," "Oh..."he mouthed. He looked disappointed, but he managed to remain smiling, "And you want to go with him?" "Well...he¡¯s...away, so I can''t,"I sighed. Why do things have to be soplicated? "So, Tyler, listen," I paused for a second before saying, "I will go with you to the dance, just as friends, if you want to.I''ll introduce you to my other friends too.We can all have a good time.But I just don''t want to think that I¡¯m leading you on," "Oh, no, I understand,"he nodded quickly. "So, yeah.You still wanna go to the dance with me?" "Absolutely!"he replied without waiting for another second. "Are you sure?"I halfughed at his enthusiasm. "Totally.It''ll be fun,"he nodded furiously before picking up a sack of trash. "A lot more fun than this, that¡¯s for sure," "Yeah," Iughed in agreement. Chapter 39: Game Start Chapter 39: Game Start EMMA¡¯s POV : "You want me to go to the dance with Tyler.Fine.I said yes to him," I announced as soon asn opened his apartment door. "Okay,e in?"he gave me a puzzled look but I just shove past him. "What''s going on,n? Why did you tell me to go to the dance with Tyler? Are you having second thoughts about us?" I just spilled all my thoughts out as soon as I walked into the living room. "Whoa, slow down," he said as he closed the door. "Tell me.Honestly," I pressed again. He looked at me like I was an amusing sight. He smiled a soft smile and reached for my arms, but I backed away quickly. "Baby girl,"he said softly, his hand reached for my face and he said, "I am not having second thoughts about us," "So, what is it then?" He let out a deep sigh before pulling me close to his chest. I relented and let him wrap me in his arms. He rested his chin on the top of my head and I snuggled into his neck. "Emma, I don¡¯t want you to miss out on the experiences that a high school senior should be experiencing, just because you''re with me," he paused for a second before saying, "And also, if the school sees that you''re involved with boys your age, that wouldn''t be so bad too, "I pulled away slightly and narrowed my eyebrows at him , You''re afraid people might notice something¡¯s going on between us?" "We can never be too careful, love," "And this has nothing to do with you regretting your decision to be with me?" "None whatsoever,"he stated with full certainty. "You sure?"I wanted more reassurance.I was feeling horrible all day long because of all these doubts.I wanted it to go away. "Emma,"he said softly, "You are still the best decision I''ve ever made in my life and I stand by it one hundred and two thousand percent," I couldn''t stop the smile forming on my face. He caressed my cheek with his fingers and let out a small smile. "We just need toy low around the school.Okay?"he asked. "Okay,"I breathed. "Go and have fun at the dance,"he leaned down and nted a soft kiss on my lips. Pulling away slightly, he then said, "But not too much fun," "Yes, sir,"I smiled as I kissed him back. A week passed since that day andn and I were doing great. We kept our interactions at school a minimal, and I still spent whatever time I had left hanging out with him in his apartment after hours. Before I knew it, the homing dance was upon us. This year¡¯s theme was the Roaring Twenties. Tiff, Carrie, and I got all dressed up Great Gatsby style and we were excited about this dance. Thinking back, the homing dance was a big turning point in our rtionship. That was when I foundn¡¯s sketchbook and his drawing of me. That was the moment I knew he felt something for me too. "Oh Em, I love your headpiece," Carrie said as she joined me in the mirror. She was dressed to the nines in her red pper dress and long pearls. "I love your pearls, Car,"I said as I noted the details. "Guys, don''t forget about me,"Tiff chimed in, shoving her way into the mirror.She looked amazing. She had this gorgeous ck dress and long ck gloves, and her hair was up in curls. The three of us met up at my house to get ready. I was an only child and I had the biggest roompared to all my friends, so my house was always the spot to get things done. My friends were looking drop dead gorgeous, and I liked my outfit too. I was wearing a simple golden dress and this cute headpiece I found at the Salvation Army. "How can we forget you? You stole the whole damn show with that dress, girl," I said to Tiff and Carrie nodded in agreement. "Do you think Nick¡¯s gonna like it?"she asked nervously. "Oh, he''ll like it alright,"Carrie replied. Nick was the hot new guy Tiff had met while grocery shopping at Target. It was love at first sight. They were reaching for the same box of Lucky Charms cereal and the rest was history. I had never seen Tiff head over heels over a guy this bad before, and that was saying something. This was Tiff, normally the girl would fall for a new guy every month. But something tells me Nick was different. He went to another school and he was also a senior. All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org. He yed football and baseball, but he wasn''t just a jock. He was kind and he liked animals, traveling, and vegan food all things that screamed Tiff. "Who''s that? Your phone won''t stop buzzing,"Tiff said when she noticed my phone vibrating on the dresser. "It''s Tyler.He¡¯s on his way," I said as soon as I read the notifications. "Tyler, hm?"Tiff and Carrie exchanged a look. "What? I told you guys, we''re all going as friends," "And you''re sure your boyfriend is okay with that?"Tiff asked. "He¡¯s actually the one that told me to go with Tyler,"I shrugged. "Really?" "Yeah.He wants to me have fun with my friends.It¡¯s called trust, you guys," "Okay, if you say so," "Tyler''s great.You guys will like him ¡ª" "Knock-knock,"Mom said suddenly. I didn¡¯t even realize she was standing at my doorframe. "Hi Mrs.Sinir,"Tiff and Carrie said in unison. "Oh, you girls look so pretty,"mom said as she admired all our clothes. She was holding onto her camera as she said, "It''s thest homing dance, I think this deserves to go into the photo album," "Sure,"I said and the three of us got into position. "Okay, 1... 2... 3... say homing!" "Homing!"the three of usughed and smiled for the camera. "Great.Remember, don''t be home toote.And have fun you guys,"mom gave me a quick hug and I nodded at her. "Alright, let''s go guys, we have a dance to go to!"Tiff eximed enthusiastically. The school¡¯s gymnasium had been transformed into this Roaring Twenties dance party. Everyone was all dressed up, dancing under the glittering disco ball and stic chandeliers. The vibe in the air was full of excitement and nostalgia.This was ourst homing dance, ever. I wanted to make this count. As soon as we stepped inside the hall, we spotted our dates as they were already waiting for us. Mark walked straight for Carrie and Nick strode over to Tiff.I locked eyes with Tyler and we smiled at each other. Tyler was wearing a ck suit with a ck tie and a white fedora hat. He reminded me of the guys in the Godfather movie, and it was cute. "Hey, you look great,"he beamed at me as he walked over. "Thanks, you too.I like your hat,"I replied. We were just standing there, somewhat awkwardly. I looked over to my friends for help, but they were busy with their dates. "Guys, this is Tyler.Tyler,e meet my friends,"I yelled over the music to get everyone''s attention. "Hi," Tyler smiled and greeted everyone. "This is Mark and Carrie.That''s Tiff and Nick," "Nice to meet you guys," "Nice to meet you too, Tyler.I think we were in the same chemistry ssst year,"Carrie said. "Right, Mrs.Martinez,"Tyler nodded. "Guys, Nick and I are gonna hit the dance floor okay?"Tiff was just too excited to get moving with Nick. "Sure, we''ll see you out there,"I replied, but she was already on her way even without listening to me. Tiff and a hot guy, go figure. "I''ll get us some drinks,"Mark said. "I''ll go with you,"Carrie followed after him. Next thing I knew, I was left alone with Tyler again. Some great friends I have, I know. Somehow things felt awkward with him, he wasn¡¯t his usual friendly, fun self. "So..."I trailed. "So...you wanna dance?"he asked nervously. "Sure,"I shrugged. Dancing would be an activity that doesn¡¯t require much talking. Perhaps things would be less awkward that way. We made our way to the dance floor and the DJ was ying something by J Balvin. We moved to the beat, awkwardly at first, but soon we found our rhythm. I was in the middle of dancing and enjoying the music, when I noticed a certain someone on the corner of my eye. He was chaperoning the dance, again. He might have volunteered this time because he knew I wasing.He was just wearing a simple suit, but damn, he looked sexy with his hair slicked back like that.I gave him a small smile and he smiled back.Then he started mouthing something that looked like ¡®you look beautiful¡¯.I blushed a little and mouthed back, ¡®thank you.You too.¡¯ The dance turned out to be a lot more fun than I had anticipated.After finding his rhythm on the dance floor, Tyler was on fire.He was a pretty good dancer and he was dancing without a care in the world. That made me brave and excited to join in. Tiff, Nick, Carrie, and Mark joined us soon after. Next thing we knew, all six of us were jumping and screaming at the top of our lungs, celebrating the night while we were young. I didn¡¯t know how long we were dancing for. Songs after songs yed, lights were shing, and bodies were moving against each other. I was lost in the excitement and rhythm when I felt a hand behind me. I turned my face to the side and noticed that it was Tyler. His body moved in sync to the music, and I had to admit, that was low-key kinda sexy. "You can dance, huh?"I said to him. "You''ve seen nothing yet,"he replied with a smile. He put his hands on my hips and guided me to move with him. Our bodies moved in sync with the music and it felt amazing. For a while there, I forgot about everything else in that room except for the two of us dancing to the beat. Until suddenly, my eyes caught sight ofn and my body stopped moving instinctively. He was still standing in that same spot. His gaze was stuck on me and his jaw was clenched shut. He didn¡¯t look angry, he looked more hurt, though he was trying his best to cover it up. "Emma? What''s wrong?"Tyler asked and my eyes darted back to him. We had stopped dancing and we were facing each other. I looked up at him and I noticed our faces were only inches away from one another. "I..." I was about to speak, but suddenly Tyler leaned down and closed his eyes, and he kissed me. I was frozen in shock.For a few seconds there, I couldn''t even register what was happening.And when I finally did, I pushed him away in an instant.He staggered back in shock and his eyes shot open. "Emma, I¡¯m s¡ª "he was about to say something but my hand had beaten him to the punch. I had pped him across the face. This time, he was the one frozen in shock. People around us gasped and stared. "Is everything alright here?" He sounded stern, angry even. He shot daggers at Tyler, like he was about to beat him up. That wouldn''t be good. I had seen what he did to Zach when he was angry. This was so not the definition ofying low! "I''m fine.I just need some air," I said ton quickly. His eyes softened when he caught my eyes and I gave him a reassuring look. "Emma, I''m sorry ¡ª" Tyler started to speak, but I cut him off. "Don''t follow me," I warned him. I turned to my heels in an instant. Tiff and Carrie were about to follow suit, but I saw thatn gave them a look and they nodded at him. I got away from the crowd and out the door as fast as I could. Chapter 40: Resume Game Chapter 40: Resume Game EMMA¡¯s POV: When I inhaled the fresh cold air outside, I let out a sigh of relief. What the hell happened back there? One minute I was dancing and having fun, the next minute I got kissed by a guy who was not my boyfriend! I didn''t think Tyler would do something like that. I clearly told him we were just going as friends and he agreed. "But the way you danced with him, it didn¡¯t look like you were just friends," my brain sneered at me and I felt a pang of guilt in my chest. "Emma, are you okay?" I heardn¡¯s voice and I whipped my head around. He was alone.He came to follow me.Behind those angry eyes was a glint of worry. "I''m okay,"I said reassuringly. "That son of a bitch.Did he hurt you?"he said through gritted teeth. "No, it was just a kiss,"I paused for a moment before continuing, "It was a mistake.I''m sorry.I didn¡¯t know what happened back there," "It''s not your fault,"he shook his head and clenched his fists. He looked around and we were at the parking lot. There weren''t a lot of people outside but there were people outside. He looked as if he wanted to wrap his arms around me, but he had to restrain himself. "Maybe it was.We were dancing and ¡ª" "Still not your fault.You didn¡¯t want him to kiss you and he did," I let out another deep sigh and said, "Are you mad?" "Seething," "Please don''t be mad," I said softly, "It was nothing.Let''s not make a big deal out of this," We were supposed to beying low, to avoid suspicion. What would have happened ifn got all worked up and actually did something he¡¯d regret back there? What kind of exnation would we have to give? "Hey, Em," "Are you okay?" Tiff and Carrie appeared on my periphery. They were my bestest friends in the whole wide world. Of course, they woulde out to check on me. "I''m fine you guys," My friends exchanged a worried look withn, but I stepped in and gave them all a reassuring smile. "We handled Tyler.I saw him leave before we came out," Carrie exined. "Do you wanna get outta here?"Tiff asked cautiously. It was ourst homing dance together, my friends were looking forward to this. I didn¡¯t wanna ruin the night for them. Plus, if Tyler had already left, there was no reason why we couldn''t stay. "No, let¡¯s stay," I paused for a beat before continuing, "It¡¯s our homing night," "Yes! That''s what I¡¯m talking about," Tiff pulled me into a hug and we started walking back. I shot a look over atn and gave him a wry smile. His gaze softened as he let out a sigh. And finally, with his hands in his pockets, he gave me a smile back. The rest of the night went by like a breeze. My friends and I had the time of our lives. Even though I went with two couples, they never forgot about me and made me a fifth-wheel. It was really nice of them. After the dance, my friends wanted to go for a drive thru at McDonald¡¯s and then to Madison''s after- party party. It all sounded appealing, especially the McDonald¡¯s part, but I didn¡¯t know how I could possibly enjoy myself when I still felt liken and I had some unfinished discussions to do. "Guys, I think I''m just gonna get an Uber and go..." I pulled Tiff and Carrie to the side as Mark and Nick walked in the front towards the car. "You''re going? Where?"Carrie asked. "Ton¡¯s.I think we still need to talk," "Can''t you just talk tomorrow? It¡¯s our night..."Tiff pleaded. "I can¡¯t have fun with this thought clouding over my head,"I sighed and shed them a sad smile, "I¡¯m sorry.But you guys go have fun," "Are you sure you''ll be okay? We can drop you off¡ª" "And risk Mark and Nick knowing I have a_ secret boyfriend? No thanks, an Uber will be fine," Tiff and Carrie exchanged a knowing look before turning to me and said, "Alright, then we''ll talk to you tomorrow?" "It''s Saturday.I have work and thenmunity service," "Sunday brunch?" "Sunday brunch it is," Tiff and Carrie made someme excuse for me to Mark and Nick, something about period cramps. They asked zero questions after that. Meanwhile, I got myself an Uber and arrived atn¡¯s ce in no time at all. Man, I love technology. "Hey," I said as soon asn opened the door. "Hey? What are you doing here?"he looked taken aback. He was still wearing the same shirt and pants from the dance, but his tie and suit jacket were on the couch. "I came because I didn¡¯t like how we left things at the dance.We couldn''t really talk," I said and stepped inside the living room. He closed the door behind me and said, "I know.me too.I wanted to call you, but I figured you''d be out with your friends ¡ª" Before he could even finish, I lunged myself to him, closing the distance between us with a kiss. My arms were locked around his neck as I breathed in his delicious scent. "I love you,n.You and only you," I said through the kiss. "I know.I love you too," he replied my kiss with the same amount of passion and urgency. I had been waiting to do this ever since I saw him tonight at the dance. I couldn''t hide it anymore. I was hopelessly in love with this man. When we finally pulled away, I held his face in my hand and locked my eyes with him. Letting out a soft sigh, I told him, "I know you want us toy low around the school, but I can¡¯t pretend not to like you," "Me too,"he paused for a moment before saying, "This turned out to be way harder than I thought," "Yeah, right? How did we ever do this for a year?"I Jaughed. "It''s so stupid.I got jealous of a high school kid,"he said, cringing at himself. "Please don¡¯t.Whatever happened out there was a clear mistake.It won''t happen again," "You bet your ass it won''t,"he let out a mockingugh. I let out a soft smile and said, "Hey,n," "What?" "Don''t ever tell me to go to the dance with someone else again, alright? I''d rather be alone than not be with you," He looked at me as if I was a sight to marvel at. His hand went to caress my cheek and he leaned down to nt a sweet, soft kiss on my forehead. I had to close my eyes as his lips made contact with my skin because my heart was beating so fast and these butterflies were fluttering in my stomach. He put a vinyl disk on and a beautiful, smooth slow jazz began to y. ¡° Well, in that case, can I have this dance?"he said with his hand reached out tome. I took his hand in a heartbeat and said, "Of course," We ended up dancing the night away. My head was on his shoulder and his hand was on the small of my back. We didn¡¯t say much, but our bodies did all the talking. I felt pure bliss andfort as I breathed him in, again and again. I swear this was the best homing dance I''d ever been to. The next day, I had the lunch shift at the diner and two hours ofmunity service after that. I was still reeling in from the euphoria ofst night, that Ipletely forgot I''d have to face Tyler at the community garden. I was in the middle of picking up the trash in my section when I heard his voice calling after me. "Emma? Hey, can I talk to you? Please, I need to exin myself," Tyler was in hismunity garden vest and hat. His left cheek had bruised marks and I believed they were from me. "There¡¯s nothing to exin.Now, if you''ll excuse me, I have some trash to attend to," I said coolly before picking up another sticky gum on the ground. "Emma, I¡¯m so sorry.We were just dancing and I got carried away.It was an honest mistake.I thought you were into me, but clearly you''re not...I¡¯m sorry I misread the signs,"he wouldn''t go away no matter how hard I was ignoring him. Finally, I let out a long sigh and said, "I told you I like someone else.I just went with you as friends," "I know.It was a mistake on my part.I''m the one to me.I¡¯m so sorry," He had this really sad look on his eyes and I couldn''t help but feel sorry for the guy. To be very honest, he wasn¡¯tpletely to me. I should have been clearer with my boundaries. ¡°Please, Emma, I just want us to be friends again?"he asked cautiously. "I don''t know..."I said and put my gaze down. "I''ll pick up all the trash in your area for a week,"he said quickly, and that got my attention. I raised my eyebrows at him and he said, "A month?" "You''re gonna clean my section for a month?"I couldn''t believe what I was hearing. "Yeah, absolutely,"he said with full confidence. "Deal,"I agreed quickly. This boy was willingly doing mymunity work for me, for a month. Who was I to turn that down? That meant I would get an extra two hours a week to spend withn or working on my college essay. "So you''ll forgive me?"he asked again. "Sure,"I shrugged. "And I¡¯m sorry too for the bruises," "I totally deserved it,"he smiled brightly. That made me felt really bad. He was being very sorry and very sweet. It was a simple mistake.It could happen to anyone.Tyler''s still a nice guy. "Okay, so clean te?"I said and lent out my hand. "Thanks, Emma.You''re a cool girl,"he said as he shook my hand. "So, does this mean you''ll start now?"I asked cautiously, gauging his expression. "Uh...sure," "Great.Then no more apologizing.Just pick up the trash," "Oh, I promise your section will be the cleanest section ever," Tyler eagerly went to work. Within seconds, he was also scrubbing and cleaning the area around me. He was smiling real bright as he did it too. "See you around, Tyler,"I said to him. "See you, Emma,"he replied. I took off the ugly hat and vest before making my way to my car. Mr.Parker was very lenient, he only took attendance and he''d be in his office the entire day. All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org. He wouldn''t notice I was gone and my section would be clean if he checks. This might sound bad, but hey, when life gives you lemons, you make lemonades, right? I was given a free two hours for the day. A lot of things could be done in two hours. I could watch a movie, cook dinner with my mom, see my friends, or do my homework. Or better yet, I could payn a visit. I was certain he would think of some very fun things we could do for the next two hours. A girl could only hope. Chapter 41: Quality Time Chapter 41: Quality Time EMMA''s POV : I must admit, life was pretty darn goodtely.After homing,n and I were inseparable.I spent all my time juggling school work, college applications, hanging out with Tiff and Carrie, and chilling withn every chance I got.I was on a roll. Sleep became a secondary need.Sure, it was exhausting, but I also felt so alive.So when Thanksgiving break rolled around, I was honestly relieved. This way I could take a rest from school and work, and focus my time on my family and on lan.Especially onn. We were nning something big for Thanksgiving this year. He wanted toe through with his promise fromst year, he was bringing me to his home in New Jersey to spend the holidays with him and his family. Of course, it wasn''t easy convincing my parents that their only daughter wanted to spend herst thanksgiving before college somewhere else.Mom and dad had so many questions. I told them I was spending thanksgiving at themunity garden, as they were hosting an event of thanksgiving dinner at a nearby county. Themunity garden was actually hosting this event, so it was the perfect cover. I told my parents I needed the extramunity service hours and that it was for a good cause. Finally, after a lot of begging and bargaining, my parents decided it was okay that I went on this thanksgiving dinner trip. I felt bad for lying to them, but spending thanksgiving withn and his family was an offer I couldn''t refuse. And hey, maybe next thanksgiving it would ben¡¯s turn to spend it with my family. Our n was to leave on Thursday morning and we would be back in Georgia by Sunday night. Mom, dad, and I had dinner on Wednesday night to make up for me missing the actual turkey day on Thursday. It was a nice and lovely dinner. Mom and dad discussed dad¡¯s job and that things were getting better. Then we talked about my college ns and discussed financial aids or possibly getting a loan. So overall, it was a very hopeful talk. After dinner, mom came into my room and she saw that I was struggling with packing my overnight bag. It was my first thanksgiving ever withn¡¯s family and I wanted to make sure I would dress right for the asion. "Need some help?" she asked. "Sure. You can help me decide which one is better?" I said as I brought up two simr sweaters but in different colors. One is red and the other is blue. "The blue one, definitely. It''ll bring out your eyes," "Blue it is. Thanks, mom," I said and folded the blue sweater into my overnight bag. "So, thismunity garden thanksgiving festival thing..." she trailed as she helped fold the scattered rejected clothes. "Yeah?" "This guy friend that you''ve been seeing the whole summer, is he gonna be there?" she asked teasingly. "Mom!" "It''s just a question, Emma. I''m a mother, that¡¯s what I do," "He¡­ might be," I answered cautiously. "Okay.You still remember our little talk, right?" "Yes, mom, I do.Please don''t repeat yourself," Mom had given the talk right before we started school this year.It was about a year toote, but it didn¡¯t matter. I pretty much knew everything I needed to know from the inte and my friends.Tiff especially, she could be very graphic with details. Plus,n was always careful. He always used a condom, always without exception. "You''re a big girl, you can handle yourself, I know that.I trust you.Especially with how hard you''ve been working for college and to save up money, I¡¯m really proud of you Emma,"mom said as she continued folding my clothes. "Thanks mom," "You deserve to have some fun.But please, just remember to always be safe," "I will, mom, I got this.You don¡¯t have to worry," I said with a reassuring smile. "So, since you''re not gonna be home tomorrow, your dad and I decided to go on a little date night.We''re gonna watch a movie.It¡¯s been a while since we did that," mom chatted away. "That sounds fun.You and dad deserve to have some fun.Just be safe, okay?" I said, mimicking her words jokingly. "Ha-ha, nice one," sheughed and finished folding all the scattered clothes. She put them all in a pile and brought it neatly back to my closet. "You sure you don¡¯t want me to drive you to the meeting point tomorrow?"she called out from inside the closet. "No, my friend¡¯s picking me up," I said as I zipped up my overnight bag. Finally, I got everything together. "Okay. Well, I''ll be calling you every night to check up on you," mom said and she grabbed my travel charger on the desk and handed it to me. Right, almost forgot the charger. The most important thing ever. "And I''ll be answering your call every night, mother," I smiled and took the charger from her, and I put it inside the front pocket of the bag. "That''s all I wanna hear," she pulled me for a quick hug and kissed m_ forehead "Good night, sweetheart," "Good night, mom," We left the house very early the next morning.We wanted to get to New Jersey before 7 PM, where dinner would start. It was kinda sweet. Finally, after twelve hours of driving filled with carpool karaoke sessions, sipping on Slurpee and coffee, and a lot of stupid I spy gamester, we made it to New Jersey. "Yay! You guys are here!" Hailey beamed at us as she opened the front door. "Come in,e in!" she gave us each a hug before pulling us inside. The air was cold outside but the house was warm and bright. There was a fire in the firece, jazz music was ying, and the smell of Kristen¡¯s amazing cooking filled the air. "I''ll bring these upstairs,"n said, referring to our bags. "Emma,e here," Hailey pulled me to the kitchen before I could say anything else. "Hey, everyone, look who''s here!" she announced to the whole room as we stepped inside the kitchen. "Emma! You made it!" Kristen was busy pouring gravy into a bowl, but she dropped everything to give me a hug. "Thanks for having me. I''m so excited for dinner," I said as I hugged her back. "So, this is Emma," a guy with dirty blonde hair and brown eyes greeted me. He looked like he was aroundn¡¯s age. "Hi, I''m AJ. I''ve heard so much about you," "Hi, nice to meet you," I shook his hand politely. "AJ is one ofn¡¯s oldest friends.He¡¯s lonely on his own, so he likes to spend thanksgiving with us,"Hailey added and they shared augh. "Is there anything I can help you with?" I said to Kirsten as I noticed how busy she was. "No, no.You''re our guest.Just sit still, dear,"she shook her head firmly. "This is mom''s turf.She¡¯s not gonna let you touch anything,"Hailey said. "Hey, ma, how are you?"n entered the room and went straight to hug his mom. It was sweet to see how good he was with his mom. So sweet, it was almost sexy. "I¡¯m doing good.Turkey''s almost ready," Kirsten replied and turned to Hailey, "Don¡¯t just stand there sweetie, go set the table for our guests will you?" n¡¯s a guest and I¡¯m not?" Hailey rolled her eyes at her big brother before turning to her heels. "AJ! Bro, d you can make it,"n ignored Hailey and went straight for AJ. "Yeah, man.My parents are spending thanksgiving on a cruise, somewhere in Barbados.Your mom and Hailey invited me, hope that¡¯s cool," "Absolutely.Hey, you''ve met my girl?"n asked as he put an arm around me. I loved that we could be ourselves here. He could introduce me to people as his girl and it wouldn''t be weird. "Emma, yeah.We met," AJ nodded at me and said, "You got a good one right here, Emma.Hold on to him," "Shut up," "Hey AJ, I can use a hand here," Hailey called out from the dining room. "Be right there," AJ replied and made his way over to Hailey. He also helped Kristen took out the big, heavy turkey from the oven. It looked amazing and smelled divine.It was pretty much the poster child for thanksgiving turkeys. I was smiling to myself as I saw how goodn was with his mom.They were such a lovely family.My eyes then darted to the dining room where Hailey and AJ were. They were busy setting the table for everyone, so I thought I could give them a hand. I walked towards the dining room as Hailey and AJ had their backs on me. They didn¡¯t notice I wasing in, as they wereughing and smiling at each other. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. And suddenly, AJ took Hailey¡¯s hand and he brought it to his lips. He kissed her hand gently before softly letting it down. Hailey was blushing and her eyes fluttered as she stared at AJ. Wait a minute...are they a thing? "Emma!" Hailey gasped as she noticed I was a few feet away from them. Hailey and AJ immediately pulled away like mas hitting each other. "I''ll, uh, go see if Kristen needs help with the turkey," AJ coughed and shuffled away awkwardly. "Uh...hey...didn¡¯t mean to bother you...I was just wondering if you guys needed help with anything," I said to Hailey. "Oh, we got it. All done," sheughed nervously and motioned for the chair, "Just sit here and chill.Talk to me.How was Georgia?" Hailey was always chatty, but this was different.She was being nervously chatty. "Georgia was good.You know, just busy with school.Senior year," "Right," she nodded in agreement "Hey, you never told me, what was major again?" "Uh..." I stammered, "I¡¯m still undecided," "Still? I thought you''d have to dere a major by now? You''re a senior right?" Oh shit. Ipletely messed that up! I shouldn''t have said that, it just slipped up. "I mean...I was undecided, but I''ve dered a major and it¡¯s..." Oh shit. I don¡¯t have an answer to this. If I have, I wouldn''t have applied to all these colleges undered. "Um...I mean..." I was racking my brain for an answer, but somehow I couldn''t think of anything. Just say something, anything! Any major, just lie! "What is it?" Hailey narrowed her eyes at me and I got worse. I was blinking rapidly and no words wereing out of my mouth. Normally I wouldn''t be this dumb, but I was so caught off guard. "I''m...um..." I looked from side to side for some help. I was wishing thatn would walk in here right now to save me. But there was no one or nothing between Hailey and me. She was waiting for an exnation. "Emma? What is it?" she said again. "I don''t have a major..." I breathed finally. "What do you mean you don¡¯t have a major?" "I don''t have one because I¡¯m not in college yet," "But you''re a senior...oh!" her eyes shot wide and her hands went to cover her gaping mouth as she said, "You''re in high school?" "Please, sshh," I put my hand to her mouth to keep her voice down. "Butn¡¯s...a high school teacher..." she was blinking like crazy as she spoke in a whisper. "Yeah..." "Please tell me at least you guys are not in the same school," "Define...same," "Holy shit!" she gaped again, covering her mouth with both hands. "Please, Hailey, don¡¯t tell anyone or say anything.Please, I¡¯m begging you," "Holy freaking shit!" Chapter 42: Secret Keeper Chapter 42: Secret Keeper EMMA¡¯s POV : Hailey was basically hyperventting. I put my hands on her arms and kept shushing her, hoping she would calm down. AJ,n, and his mom were still in the kitchen. n and I are just waiting for the right time to tell everyone.So, please, can you not say anything, especially to Kristen?" I whispered to her with pleading eyes. "Wow...like...wow," "Hailey, please, promise me.This stays between us," Hailey was quiet for a while. Her eyes darted to the direction of the kitchen, and when she saw that no one wasing out, she finally nodded her head and said, "I promise I won''t tell anyone. Only if you''ll do one thing for me," "What is it?" "Don''t say anything ton about what you saw earlier," "What do you mean?" "I know you saw us.AJ and I," she stated simply. She was referring to that moment when I entered the dining room and saw him kissing her hand. "So you and AJ are..." "AJ and I started hanging out at the end of summer break and we''re just trying to see how things go," she paused and let out a sigh "We haven''t toldn or anyone else yetn can be a bit overprotective at times, I don¡¯t know how he''ll handle his little sister dating his friend.So, we''re just waiting for the right time.Kinda like what you guys are doing," "Wow..." was all that I could say in response. "Yeah, so please don''t telln anything, and I promise I''m not gonna tell a soul about you two being...you know," "Right...yeah..." I was about to say something else, but then we heard footsteps. "Turkey''s ready!" AJ announced as he brought over the big tray of turkey and ced it in the middle of the long table. "What are you girls chatting here about?"n followed with tes of side dishes. "Oh, I was just telling Emma all your dirty little secret.Did you know he used to be in the school¡¯s Christmas production back in the sixth grade?" Hailey was quick to answer. n was in a school y?" I gaped at him and he just shrugged. "Don''t listen to anything she says," he warned me and Hailey stuck her tongue out at him. "Grab a seat everyone. I know you all must be starving," Kristen came in with the bow of mash and gravy. We all took a seat around the table and AJ started pouring drinks for everyone. People had wine in their sses, but not me. "She''s not drinking,"n said simply and that was that. "Before we start, why don¡¯t we go around the room and say what we''re grateful for this Thanksgiving?" Kristen said to everyone, "I''ll start. I''m grateful that we''re all healthy and happy, and all my children are here.Plus Emma and AJ.You two are always wee," "Hear, hear," Hailey raised her wine ss and cheered. "I''m grateful for the Giants, they''re doing really well in the yoffs," AJ followed as he sat next to Kristen. "That''s right,"n nodded at him. "Also grateful that business was good this year. And that I can spend Thanksgiving with all you guys," AJ continued. AJ was smiling to everyone on the table as he spoke, but his smile for Haileysted a second longer than everyone else. "Ok, my turn," Hailey chirped. "I¡¯m grateful for my family.I''m grateful for all this delicious food, shout out to my _ beautiful momma _ for preparing everything.And also...I''m grateful for AJ and Emma that are joining us tonight," Everyone smiled and nodded along. But I noticed the way Hailey said AJ¡¯s name, it was as if there was some weight in that. "I''m definitely grateful for the food and for my mom and for all you guys, but I¡¯m especially grateful for this girl right here," "Aw, of course," I said as I took his hand. "I''m grateful for Kristen and the delicious food.Grateful to be a part of this wonderful night with these wonderful people.And of course, I¡¯m absolutely head over heels grateful for you," I kept my gaze onn and I gripped his hand tighter. "Uh, get a room you two," AJ joked. We might have forgotten that there were other people in that room. "Let''s eat!" Hailey eximed before things could escte further. Dinner was amazing. After stuffing our faces with turkey and stuffing, Kristen brought out pies for dessert and they were fabulous. By 11 PM, Kristen decided to head to bed, while the four of us were still chilling in the living room. We decided to watch a horror movie, The Shining by Stanley Kubrick, because why not? The four of us sat on the long couch, Hailey and I were in the middle and next to me wasn and next to her was AJ. Everyone had a beer bottle in their hands, everyone except me. AJ offered to get me one earlier andn insisted no. Gosh, I feel like such a child. Hailey noticed it too, but she remained quiet. She was kind of helpful, actually. Whenever the topic of my age or college came up, she would distract AJ with another topic entirely. She and I would exchange a knowing look and smiled meaningfully. So, we were on the couch watching this movie.The movie was a lot terrifying than I thought it¡¯d be. There was this one scene where the kid was riding his tricycle around the hotel and he came across two very creepy twin girls in Victorian dresses talking in unison. Hailey and I jumped in our seats and yelped, I buried my face inton¡¯s chest and she turned for AJ. Hailey quickly corrected herself though, not wantingn to notice she was being so cozy with AJ. I decided to help Hailey and return the favor. I snuggled closer ton that I was basically half sitting on hisp. This causedn¡¯s attention to be focused on me. "Are you okay there?" he chuckled "This is not even the worst scene," "Why are we watching this on thanksgiving, it¡¯s not even Halloween," "I never knew you were such a scaredy-cat," "Whatever," I sighed into his chest and turn my face towards the TV again. For a while there, I was enjoying myself. My head was lying on his chest and his arm was around my shoulder. I was mindlessly watching the movie when suddenlyn jerked my body with his two hands and yelled, "Boo!" "Aaahh!" I screamed like a baby and it caused Hailey to scream as well. "What the hell?" Hailey and I snapped atn who wasughing uncontrobly. AJ joined in on theughter as they high fived each other. "You suck!" I shoved him away and sat straighten my own. "Hey,e on," he cooed and tried to get me toy my head on his chest again, but I refused. "Go away," I shoved him again and I kept my gaze on the TV in front of me. He held me tight in his arms and ced a sweet kiss on my cheek. "I''m sorry, you were just too cute," he whispered to my ears. I blushed and flushed my head deeper into his neck. On the corner of my eye, I noticed AJ was holding onto Hailey¡¯s hand under the nket. The nket was slightly pushed away, so their hands were somewhat visible. It wouldn''t be good ifn sees this. I thought quickly on my feet and I decided to do the only thing I knew how to do.Lifting my face up to his, I found his lips with mine and I kissed him slow and gentle.He tasted like cherry pie and alcohol, and somehow they worked together. "Baby girl, you''re missing the best part," he murmured lowly, referring to the movie. "No," I smirked yfully and said, "You''re the best part," Damn, I was smooth. "What''s gotten into you?" a smile escaped his lips. I don''t know, I just want to cover for your sister.But also, you look delicious.I couldn''t say those words out loud, obviously.So I stayed quiet and bit my lip. His hand reached up and he pulled my bottom lip down with his thumb.Then he leaned in and he kissed me, deep and hard. "Seriously, get a room," My eyes were closed but I could hear AJ''s remark. "Maybe we will,"n let out an annoyed growl. "What about the movie?" I looked up at his darkening eyes. "It''s on Netflix. Watch it whenever," he said simply and quickly stood up. He lent his hand out to me and I took it almost immediately. As I was making my way up the stairs, Hailey and I locked eyes for a moment.She gave me a wink and I smiled at hern was too focused on getting up the stairs that he didn¡¯t see AJ putting his arm around Hailey as we went. K On Saturday, we decided to go on a little outing withn and his friends. His friend, Tommy, had a cabin by theke and the guys wanted to go fishing. Tommy''s wife, Lisa, Hailey, and I would just chill and hang out in the cabin. Lisa had three kids, two twin boys and a girl. They were all under the age of six and they could be a handful, but they were also very adorable. At around 2 PM, the guys were out fishing by theke and the toddlers were asleep. Lisa, Hailey, and I were just chatting by the firece when we heard the front door open. There was this beautiful brte girl that looked like Nina Dobrev and a guy walking behind her. "Hey, sorry we''rete!" the girl eximed. "Ally!" Hailey jumped from the couch and went to hug her. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. "Richard had ast minute surgery to attend to. Please forgive us," Ally said as she touched the guy''s arm. "It''s definitely okay. We''re d you two cane," Lisa followed and hugged the two people. Ally¡¯s eyes scanned the room and theynded on me. I just smiled and stood awkwardly on my spot, not knowing what to do. "Who''s this?" Ally asked. "This is Emma. My brother''s girlfriend," Hailey said as she gestured for me toe closer. "Hi, I''m Emma," I said and I lent my hand out to her. "Nice to finally meet you. I''ve heard so much about you," She didn''t bother taking my hand, she pulled me in for a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Oh?" "I''m Ally, this is my fianc¨¦e, Richard," "Hey, nice to meet you," Richard lent out his hand and I shook it politely. "So this is Emma," Ally turned to Hailey and Lisa, before turning back to study me from head to toe , "Honestly, I didn¡¯t think you''d ben¡¯s type," What was that supposed to mean? "Does he even have one?" Hailey rolled her eyes. "But she¡¯s pretty, right?" Lisa added. "Definitely," Ally nodded, n likes pretty girls," Ally spoke as if he knewn best and maybe it was my jealousy talking, but I didn¡¯t like it. The way she stared me up and down, it was like she was sizing me up. "So, where¡¯s everyone?" Richard asked as he looked around the empty house. "The guys are out fishing and the kids are taking a nap," Lisa answered him. " I''ll go out and join them then," Richard gave Ally a quick kiss on the cheek before turning for the door. Ally didn¡¯t even bother looking back at him, she had her eyes stuck on me, which was sort of intimidating. "So, Emma, tell me about yourself," she said as she linked her arm around mine and pulled us towards the couch, "The girl that finally gotn Hayes to buckle down.Tell me how you two met.I wanna know everything," Chapter 43: Growth Experience Chapter 43: Growth Experience EMMA¡¯s POV : We didn''t stay the night at the cabin. We just listened to music and he held my hand.We got back prettyte, around 11 PM.We only had a couple of hours to sleep before we had to leave early in the morning. So I jumped in the shower and dried my hair.When I was done, I was ready for sleep, so I climbed on the bedn was still reading something on his phone.I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and said, "Good night," I turned to my side and closed my eyes, waiting for the darkness to let me sleep, but then I feltn moved. He scooted closer to me, wrapping me in his arms from behind. "Hey, you''re being especially quiet tonight.Is everything ok?" he said as his fingers ran soothingly down my arm. I opened my eyes and turned to the side. He cocked his head and narrowed his eyes at me, waiting for an exnation. I guess I was being quiet on purpose. This morning started off great, but things kinda went sour in the afternoon. As soon as Ally came into the cabin, she wouldn''t stop grilling me about my rtionship withn. How we met, how long we''ve been together, what our future ns look like, and so and so forth. Thankfully, Hailey would chime in once in a while with a different topic to discuss. The worst part though, was when Ally spilled stories after stories aboutn and his friends in the good old days.They all knew each other since they were kids.They had inside jokes and everything. I felt sort of left out and I didn¡¯t know if Ally was doing this on purpose. By dinnertime, I feltpletely forgotten. Sure,n was always around me, he would hold my hand or kiss my cheek, but his attention was somewhere else. Ally was the center of everyone¡¯s attention. And I swear, sometimes she andn would share this secretive lookas if they were the only two people in that room. "Baby girl, what¡¯s on your mind?"n said again. "You''ve told your friends all about me. But I never knew anything about them," I spoke up finally. "That''s because you''re an interesting topic to me. I wanna talk about you to anyone that''ll listen," "But then I don¡¯t know anything your friends, or the good old days when you used to live here," "You wanna know about my friends?" heughed , "Sure, I''ll tell you everything.What do you wanna know?" "I don''t know..." I trailed, "What were they like, I guess?" "Well, you''ve met them all.Tommy and AJ are my best friends in the entire world.We used to get into a lot of trouble when we were kids.Sometimes I still can¡¯t believe that Tommy''s married with three kids" "How about Ally? She seems to know you well," I shot point nkly. That was what I wanted to ask all night long. "Are you two super close?" "Yeah, kinda," he shrugged. "Like, how close?" "Emma," he said my name as if he was scolding me "Are you being jealous right now?" "No," I scoffed and flushed my face against the pillow. "Hey," heughed softly and tilted my face back to him, "We''re just old friends.We used to fool around a little bit when we were young, but that was years ago," "So, you and her...you guys dated?" the word made a lump in my throat. "No, we never dated," he was quick to answer, "We hooked up like once at the prom, but I was really drunk," I knew this happened ages ago and it shouldn''t even matter right now. But I still couldn''t help myself. I turned my head back and scooted away from him. "Emma," he cooed, "I¡¯m not attracted to her like that.We really are just friends," "It was just a one time thing?" I breathed as his nose nuzzled my neck. "Yeah, I was just a kid.I was in high school.It didn''t mean anything,"he snaked his arms around my body and held me tight. My back was pressed tightly against his chest. "I''m in high school right now, but I don''t see us as kids just having fun," "That''s different,"he hissed, "We''re different," And then it dawned on me,n was my first, and I was definitely not his first. He probably had many other firsts before me already. "How many girls have you been with?"I said and he looked taken aback. "Why''s this question suddenlying up?" "I just...wanna know.I know I¡¯m not your first..." I paused for a second before continuing, "Just give me a number.How many girls have you been with before me?" "Emma," heughed, trying to ease the tension, but I pressed on. "I''m serious. Tell me," "You really wanna know?" he asked as if I would regret hearing the answer. "Yeah," I nodded firmly. "Uh, well," he sighed and raked his hair, "I don''t know the exact number..." "What? Like ten?" "Maybe more," "Twenty? Thirty?" "Could be a little more," "Forty?" I gaped. "Yeah maybe, or maybe more," he shrugged. "Seriously? You''ve had sex with more than fifty girls, maybe?" I fully turned my face around and stared at him with wide crazy eyes. "I don''t do rtionships so I did a lot of hook ups.It didn¡¯t mean shit though, okay?" he gripped the side of my face with his hand as his eyes pleaded with me. I turned my gaze down and my lips quivered as I said, "I¡¯m not just some number to you, am I?" "Fuck no!" he said quickly. "Ever since I met you, everything''s different.You changed the game for me, Emma.You''re the only one I want," Not waiting for my response, he leaned closer and found my lips with his. He kissed me hard and hungrily, as if to prove a point. Whatever doubt I was feeling before, it all went away as soon as he kissed me.I kissed him back and he tightened his grip around my body. "You have no reason to be jealous.You''re the only girl that ever matters to me,"he murmured to my skin, "Okay?" I felt really nice to be wrapped inside his arMs.My body was envelopedpletely in his and I felt safe and warm. I could feel his heart beating against my skin and his scent was intoxicating. Yeah, he had been with many girls before, but he only wants me now. "Okay," I breathed finally and drifted into a peaceful sleep under his touch. "So, how was thanksgiving in New Jersey?" Carrie said as she jumped on the bed next to me. "Spill the tea, sis," Tiff closed the door to my room and followed suit. Thanksgiving break was over and we were back at school again. Tiff and Carrie hadn''t seen me in a while, so they decided toe and sleepover tonight. Tiff brought doughnuts from Krispy Kreme and Carrie brought Korean face masks. "It was great.I met his mom and his sister, they were so sweet.And then I met his friends..." I trailed, and I stopped when I remembered a particr friend of his I wasn¡¯t so fond of."Uh-oh, I see a look," Tiff noticed something wrong with my expression. "Me too.I sense a buting," Carrie added. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. n has this friend¡­ her name¡¯s Ally," "Ugh, such horrible name," Tiff rolled her eyes as Carrie and Iughed. "Yeah.They''ve been friends since high school.They¡¯re super close.And then I found out that they hooked up once during the prom," "Oh, snap!" my two friends exchanged a look. "He says it didn¡¯t mean anything.Anyway she¡¯s engaged now, she¡¯s gonna marry this brain doctor.They''re only friends and that¡¯s it.Andn says that I''m the only girl that ever matters to him," "Aw, that¡¯s so sweet," Tiff said as she munched on the zed doughnut. "I wish Mark would say sweet things like that," Carrie sighed. "He doesn''t say things like that to you?" I asked her. They had been together for years, I would have expected more. "Mark can write an essay like Ernest Hemingway, but when ites to sweet talk or dirty talk? Man, he¡¯s hopeless," Carrie pouted. "That''s okay.Not all guys are good with words.Sometimes they just have to be good with their mouths," Tiffughed sneakily. "Oh, Tiff," Carrie shot her a look. "Sounds like you have tea to spill," I added. "Guys," Tiff grabbed both my hand and Carrie¡¯s hand as she said, "Nick and I did.I finally lost my virginity," "Dude, you lost your virginity already in freshman year," I rolled my eyes at her. "Not that virginity.The other one," "We have two virginities?" I asked stupidly. "She''s talking about anal," Carrie answered me. "What?!" "Yup, we did it!" Tiff was doing her little victory dance. "Holy cow.Dude! How was it?" I gaped at her "Okay, so it all started like any other day: I was super horny," she started talking and we allughed. We sat up straighter and huddled closer together so we could hear everything better. "So, Nick and I were just chilling at his ce and making out.Things were getting hot and heavy and we were about ready when I realized, I had forgotten to take my pill the past couple of days! So I asked him if he has a condom.And just our luck, he ran out.If he were to go out and buy when you had anal?" Carrie scoffed and Iughed. "Okay, you two make fun of me now.But once you''ve tried it, let''s see if you''re still making fun of me," "I don¡¯t think I could ever do anal," Carrie said. "How about you, Em?" Tiff asked. "Oh, I don¡¯t know..." n¡¯s an older guy.He¡¯s definitely way more experienced.He¡¯s probably done it already," Tiff said. "Most likely," I rolled my eyes and sighed, "He¡¯s had sex with like, over fifty girls," "Fifty? What the f !?" Carrie and Tiff gaped at me this time. "I know. I was shocked too," "Damn...Mr.Hayes¡¯ been around," "Honestly, sometimes I don¡¯t know why he stays with me.It¡¯s troublesome and inconvenient and I¡¯m ..inexperienced," I sighed. I wasn¡¯t nearly as pretty or as sexy as Ms.Diaz or his friend Ally. "It''s that thing called love, Emma," Carrie nudged my elbow. "Yeah.And you''re not that inexperienced," Tiff added. "I was a virgin when I met him.Everything we''ve done together, they were all firsts for me.Zach and I never got too far," "Well, hey, it¡¯s never toote to try,"Tiff said meaningfully. "What are you saying? You want me to do anal?" "No!" Carrie and Tiff said in unison. "Emma, I think you''re not ready for that yet.Start with something more...simple," "Like what?" "Like...toys.Do you have any?" Tiff suggested. "What do you mean, toys?" Tiff and Carrie exchanged a worried look.Tiff then got up and started raiding my bedside drawer. "Oh, how about this?"Tiff pulled out a shiny aluminum pack from the drawer. "What''s that?" Carrie asked. "Those are birth control pills my mom got me," I told them. "And you don''t use them?" Tiff asked. "No,n always uses a condom," "Girl," Tiff and Carrie exchanged another look. "What?" "You need to get on the pill and let your man ditch the rubber," "Why?" "It''s gonna feel...different," Carrie exined. "Better," Tiff added. "Really?" "Emma, we''re your best friends. We wouldn''t lie to you," "Trust us on this one.n¡¯s gonna love it, that¡¯s for sure," I must admit, I was getting insecure after our thanksgiving trip. I knew I had to step up my game if I wanted to keepn happy. What my friends suggested to me sounded like the perfect thing to try. Plus, I''ve always wondered what it would feel like to feel him inside me, flesh to flesh. I guess it wouldn''t hurt to try. After all, people say experience is the best teacher... Chapter 44: Gift Giving Chapter 44: Gift Giving IAN¡¯s POV : A MONTH LATER "Alright everyone, have a great winter break.Merry Christmas," I said as soon as the clock struck three and the sound of the bell pierced through the air. The kids roared in cheers as they busily grabbed their things and scattered out of the room. "Merry Christmas, Mr.Hayes," they said to me as they walked out the door. I nodded and smiled at everyone. I was never big into holiday spirits, but this year, things were different. Emma and I went to New Jersey for Thanksgiving, so I decided to spend Christmas and the New Year with her in Georgia. We didn''t get a chance to spend Christmas togetherst year so this was gonna be our first. Walking out of the empty ssroom, I went past several other students and teachers that greeted me with ¡®Merry Christmas¡¯. That was great and all, but actually I was looking for someone else. I didn¡¯t see Emma anywhere though. She must be out already. After thanksgiving, things got pretty busy for her. On top of exams and homework, she also had to take her SATs and did her college applications. I was so damn proud of her. I proofread her essay and I wasn''t saying this just because I¡¯m in love with her, but seriously, those college admission people would be dumb if they don''t take her. Making my way into the teachers¡¯ lounge, I noticed the Christmas decorations hanging around the wall. They also put up a stic tree and a desk with what I believe to be fruit punch and cookies. "Hayes! Merry Christmas," Pullman yelled at me from across the room. He was holding onto a red cup and he was wearing that stupid Santa us hat. "Hey, Merry Christmas, John," I nodded back at him. He strode over to me and that was when I noticed he was talking to Erica Diaz just a moment ago. She acknowledged my presence and let out a small smile. I smiled politely back. "So, uh, any ns for the holidays?" John said when he was an arm¡¯s length away. "Not much.Just gonna kick it with my girl," "The long distance girl? You still on that?" "Yeah,"I nodded. "Still on that," "Well, hey, that¡¯s good for you,"he patted my shoulders and suddenly he leaned into my ears and whispered, ¡°So, bro, I heard you had a thing with Erica Diaz a year ago.I was just wondering if it¡¯d be cool if I make a move on her? Anyways you got a girl and everything," I stifled augh and said, "Dude, go for it, man," "Yeah? ¡®Cause I just wanna make sure...bros before hos right?" he whispered back. "John, I''m telling you, go for it," I looked him square in the eyes and smiled full of reassurance. "Well, alright then," he nodded in excitement. That stupid grin was back on his face as he made his way back to Erica. I thought it was amusing that people actually believed Erica and I had something going on. Anyway, I was done with school drama for the day. I grabbed my things and made my way out of there faster than you can say spiked eggnog. "Enjoy your holidays, Hayes!" John called out as I left the room. "Oh, I will," I said to myself. I had fun ns for the holidays. Mainly it revolved aroundzing around the apartment, working on my art pieces, and cuddling with my girl next to the firece. She had been working hardtely and she deserved some rest.I wanted to take care of her.But before all that, I needed to make a quick stop at the mall.Yes, you heard that right.The effing mall. I was only supposed to spend like thirty minutes in the mall.I just had to pick up something and leave.But then I ran into a couple of other teachers from school, they were having drinks at Chili''s. Yes, you heard that right again. They were being nice and they invited me over for a drink. Normally, I would say no, but this was Christmas.And honestly, I didn¡¯t have anything else better to do. Emma was out with her friends. Some girl called Madison was throwing this party at her house and I told Emma she should go. We''d have plenty of time to spend together during the break, she deserved to enjoy herself with her friends. I ended up staying for a couple of hours. After her third ss of beer, Mrs.Duvall started singing karaoke and it was like a train wreck that you couldn''t turn away from. She was emting her inner Freddy Mercury and even I had to admit, it was pretty damn fun to watch. I got back to my apartment at around 10 PM or so. I was fumbling with my keys a little, probably because I drank a bit too many shots of tequ. When I managed to open the door finally, I swung it open and my eyes widened in shock. My living room was covered wall to wall in glittery things, candles, and little fairy lights. ¡®Baby It¡¯s Cold Outside¡¯ was ying from my record yer and I didn¡¯t know I had that song. "Emma?" She was standing in the middle of my living room with this big smile on her face. She was wearing a short red dress with a Santa us hat on. While it was probably the same hat that John was wearing, but on her it looked amazing. "Happy early Christmas.I hope you don¡¯t mind, I used the spare key out front," she grinned and bit her lip. "No, of course not," I shook my head quickly and closed the door behind me, "But, what are you doing here? I thought you were gonna be at your friend¡¯s Christmas party," "I was.Ergo the outfit.Tiff and Carrie wanted to be Mean Girls.But anyway, I left early because I want to give you your present," she rambled and stumbled a little as she walked closer to me. "Are you drunk?" Iughed as I caught her little body in my arms I drank a little, but I ampletely sober,"she stated firmly, as firm as a drunk person would, ¡°Now, don¡¯t you wanna know what I got you for Christmas?" "It''s not even Christmas eve yet," I said as I cupped her little face with my hands. "I know, I¡¯m just too excited.I can''t wait," she squealed and took a couple of steps back. She went behind the couch and pulled out this t square red box tied with a gold ribbon on top. "Well, in that case," I chuckled and lifted the brown paper bag I was holding in my hand. "I have a present for you too," "Really?" her eyes widened ecstatically. I nodded in response and she took the brown paper bag from me. Inside, she found a big blue box with a white ribbon around it. She looked like a little girl in a candy store as she sat down and started pulling the ribbon away excitedly. "A box of panties?" she red at me when she saw what was inside the box. "You were afraid you''re gonna run out, so," I gave her a yful smirk and she rolled her eyes at me. "Ha-ha, very clever," she pouted and put the box away. "That one¡¯s more of a joke.This is your real gift,"I said as I took off my coat. From the coat¡¯s pocket, I fished out a small blue box with a white ribbon on it. She looked at it cautiously, perhaps afraid that it would be another practical joke. Slowly, she took the box from my hand and opened it. The ribbon and lid went away, and insideid a small heart- shaped pendant ne. "It¡¯s a locket?" she gasped. "Open it," I instructed. "Our souls are the same..." she read the engravings on the inside. "Your favorite quote from your favorite book," I smiled as she stared at me with wide glimmering eyes.Her breath was caught in her throat.For a moment, she just stared at me, not saying anything. "Do you like it?"I asked her. "l...I love it!"she jumped to her feet as she said it. "I love you.Thank you.This is the best gift ever," she said as she stood on her tippy toes and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "Really? I thought the box of panties was pretty good too," Iughed and she shoved me away yfully. I took the ne from her hand and turned her little body around. cing it around her neck, I sped the lock on the back of her neck. She turned around and admired the little gold thing resting on her chest, just below her corbone. "It¡¯s so beautiful," she said as her hand went to touch the little thing. "Now, you said you have a present for me?" I asked. "Actually, I also got you two things," "Oh?" "This is your first present," she handed me the red box on the couch. I pulled the ribbon away excitedly. I had never been so excited for a Christmas present in a long, long time. "A sketchbook?" I said when I saw what was inside. It looked simr to the one I had, but the leather bound was new and crisp. On the corner was my initials engraved in gold. "I noticed you almost ran out of pages in your old one.An artist can never have enough nk pages to draw on," she answered me. This girl had inspired me beyond my wildest dreaMs.Ever since she came into my life, I had so much more passion oozing out of my body. It was only fitting that she got this for me. She was my muse and I would fill these pages with her. "This is great.I love it.Thank you," I said to her. "I''m d you like it.And I hope you''ll like your second present just as much,"she said and her lips twitched into a smile. "What is it?" "It''s not something that you can see...but it¡¯s something you can feel," "Huh?" I looked at her quizzically, but she just smiled at me. "Come with me,"she said as she pulled my hand. I followed her as she led me to the bedroom. She stopped her tracks when we reached the bed and she turned around to face me. Looking up at me, her hands went to my shirt and she started undoing the buttons. "Emma? What are you doing?" She didn''t answer me. Instead, she took off my clothes and pushed me down on the bed. I wasn¡¯tining, but I was curious. Standing in front of me, her hands went under her short dress and she pulled her underwear down to her feet. I licked my lips instinctively at this. I could feel myself getting rock hard just by looking at her like this. My eyes darted to the nightstand where my box of condoms was on disy. As if she knew what I was thinking, she reached for the box and put them inside my bedside drawer. "Emma...?" Biting on her lip, she stepped closer and climbed on top of me, straddling me. The short dress hiked up her hips as she was pressed uppletely against me. She found the dress limiting and ufortable, so she pulled it up swiftly over her head. My girl was now naked, sitting on top of me, and for the first time, I was rendered immobile. I swallowed hard as I watched her little hand unbuckled my belt and unzipped my pants. She found my hardening length with her hand and she started stroking it. Muffled groans escaped my lips as she leaned her face to my neck and started kissing me there. "What are you doing, baby girl?" I said again, but my voice came out in breaths. She had pulled out my rock-hard length and it stood against the skin of her stomach. "I started taking the pill a week ago.So, um, we don¡¯t have to use that anymore," she spoke finally. Her eyes darted to the bedside drawer and a naughty smile escaped her lips. "For real?" I gawked. "For real," she nodded. I heard what she said, but for a while there I just sat and stared at her. I couldn''t remember thest time I had sex without condoMs.I got HPV freshman year of college for not being careful enough and that was one time too many. Ever since then, my motto was to wrap it before you tap it. Emma and I were dating, but I still wanted to be careful, so I kept using condoMs.She wasn''t sexually active before me and I didn¡¯t wanna force her into getting birth control.I thought about not using it with her many, many times though.Pulling out would work, but I never wanna risk it. But this, what she did for me...It had me nking and grinning like a stupid idiot. When I finally managed to pull my shit together, I got a firm hold on her and turned our bodies around. Shey t on the bed and I was hovering over her. Pushing her apart with my knee, I let my shaft graze her opening and she let out a soft moan. She was so wet already, so ready for me. My heart was racing so fast as I put more of her wetness around my shaft with my hand. I couldn''t breathe when my tip finally entered her. That flesh on flesh contact, it was so divine. I pushed myself into her deeper, taking in her warmth and her tightness. She felt so damn amazing. When I was buried deep inside her, I stayed there for a while because the feeling was just too much. That feeling of her warm wetness wrapping my length tightly, that was pure heaven. "Oh,n," she moaned and squirmed. "Yeah, baby girl, I got you," I said through gritted teeth. Holding onto her tight, I started moving in and out of her, slow and gentle. I wanted to savor this moment as long as I could. Emma started moving her hips to meet my thrusts and it was making it hard for me to keep it together. Shit, she felt so good I could just cum right now. My lipsnded on her neck and I started sucking on her sweet spot. My hands roamed her body and stopped at her breasts. My fingers yed with her nipples until they were erect and hard. My thrusts grew faster and deeper and she moved her hips with me in sync. Our bodies were molded into one and I never felt anything like this before. n ah!" This is from N?velDrama.Org. Emma dug her nails into my shoulder des as she clenched around me. Her body convulsed as she screamed my name out loud. She trashed her head back, riding the wave of release throughout her body. I couldn''t hold it anymore. The feeling of her wet core clenching around my skin set the fire aze inside me. I let go, screaming a string of curses as I came hard inside of her. I came so damn hard, so damn much. Not wanting to let this go, I pushed myself deeper and stayed inside her as I rode my orgasm. As I let out a breath of relief, I opened my eyes to find her beautiful glimmering eyes staring back at me. It was truly a sight to see. She made my heart stopped a beat. Needless to say, it was the best, present, ever. Chapter 45: Holiday Cheer Chapter 45: Holiday Cheer EMMA¡¯s POV : "There you are. I''ve been waiting all my life for you," This is from N?velDrama.Org. "What? You just saw me two nights ago," I giggled as he strode over to me and pulled me into a hug.We just had our little gift exchange a few days ago and it was incredible. Ever since then, my body was craving like never before.I felt so connected and sex felt even more intimate than before.I didn¡¯t think it was possible, but it was. "I missed you," he murmured to my ears and held me tight. "It¡¯s been 48 hours.You''re being dramatic," I pretended to be cool about it, but deep down, I was missing him too, like crazy. "What am I gonna do without you?" "I wish I could, but I have to get back.It¡¯s Christmas Eve.My mom thinks I''m picking upst minute gifts," I sighed and gripped his arm tighter. "So you''re picking me up? I¡¯m yourst minute gift?" he cocked his head to the side and smirked, causing me to blush and babbled nonsense words. I threw my gaze away because I was embarrassed for no reason. Not giving me a chance to answer, he leaned down and kissed me slowly and sensually. His tongue was magic. The moment it touched my lips, I turned to jelly and my body melted into his. Using both hands, he picked me up by my ass and linked my legs around his waist. He didn¡¯t break the kiss as he carried me to the kitchen counter. He sat me up on the edge of the counter and deepened the kiss. Low moans and muffled groans escaped our lips as I felt his hardened length pressed against my stomach. My hand instinctively reached down to his bulge, caressing him. "Hm, someone''s eager, huh?" he teased and pulled away. next, he unbuttoned and zipped me down quickly. I propped myself up a bit so he could slide the skinny jeans down my feet. When he came back up, I was only wearing my underwear and bra, sitting on his kitchen counter. Looking right at me, he bit his lip and said, "Damn, you''re gorgeous," I looked away, blushing, and mumbled incoherent words again. "Seriously, Emma.I don¡¯t think you realize how gorgeous you are to me," he said as he closed the distance between us. Our faces were inches away and my nose was filled with his delicious masculine scent. "See this?" he grabbed my hand and ced it over his bulge, "This is what you do to me," I gulped involuntarily. His eyes darkened and his lips twitched into a smirk. Leaning down, he found my lips with his again and I linked my arms around his neck, pulling him even closer. He didn¡¯t bother unsping my bra, he simply pulled the front part down so it was resting under my breasts. Using both hands, he rubbed and flicked my nipples, causing me to moan incoherently. His lips traveled down my neck and corbone, beforending on one of my nipples. He kissed, sucked, and bit on the hardening bud, causing me to squirm and writhe in agony and pleasure. "Lay back, baby," he ordered through ragged breaths. Iplied andy my back t against the cold stone counter. My wet pussy was now exposed to the air, hungry with anticipation. "You feel so amazing. Damn," he said as he put two fingers inside me. I trashed my head back and moaned as his fingers rode in and out of me. But as I felt the tension was building inside my stomach, he pulled his fingers out abruptly. "No..." I begged. "I want to feel you cum on me, baby girl," he said, and with that, he thrust himself into my wetness. My eyes shot open and my hips bucked up immediately. It felt amazing to feel him inside me. He pulled my waist down closer to him as he started grinding into me. "Fuck, you''re so beautiful, baby girl," He leaned his face down to kiss me as he kept pounding into me. I ran my fingers through his hair as our tongues danced. Our bodies grinded and molded into each other and before I knew it, I exploded and found my release. "Yes, baby girl, that¡¯s it," I was still reeling from the high, son slowed his movement for a bit, before picking up his pace again. This time, he grinded even harder and faster than before. I felt the buildup in my stomach again and I couldn''t help myself from screaming his name out loud. He caught my screams with his mouth as he kissed me again. "F u c k, Emma, you feel so fucking good,"n breathed through our kiss. His movement sent me over the edge again. My hips bucked up and I tightened around him. I came even harder than before, and I couldn''t even scream anymore. My body convulsed in shock and my mouth fell open, soundless. He spilled so much load into me and my pussy ate it up, dly. My walls clenched around him as he came. I didn''t want to let him go. "Shit, Emma! What was that?" heughed as he rode his orgasm down. I loved it when he came inside me. I could walk around all day with traces of him on my body and that felt amazing. I didn''t say anything though, I just smiled sheepishly at him. He smiled back at me and kissed my forehead before pulling away. Propping myself back up, I went to grab my clothes from the floor. "Hungry?"n asked as he walked around the kitchen counter. "You know it," Heughed as he opened the fridge and started raiding it. I was fully clothed now, and I was just sitting on the kitchen counter, admiring the view that wasn¡¯s backside. He only wore his boxers and nothing else. When he was bending down, I caught a glimpse of his gorgeous ass and I couldn''t help but smile. "You''re not out there eye-raping me, are you?" he said suddenly and my cheeks red red in embarrassment. "What?" I choked. "Stop being so cute or I¡¯m gonna handcuff you in this apartment," heughed and brought a te of sandwich out of the fridge. "You''re crazy," was all that I could say. "For you, absolutely," he smiled shamelessly. He strode over to me and stood right between my knees. Smiling at me, his hand went to cup my cheek and he said, "I can¡¯t help it. I love having you here," "Me too," I said, pausing for a second before saying , "We only have six months to go," "What?" "Six more months and we can be free. We can go on dates and kiss in public," He narrowed his eyebrow suddenly and said: "You wanna kiss me, in front of everybody?" I rolled my eyes and said: "It''s a kiss, not a " Before I could say anything else,n pulled my face to his and he kissed me, fast and hard.I was caught off guard for a moment, but his soft lips coaxed me into submission.And so I let go, savoring the sweet taste that was my boyfriend. We still had to sneak around and meet in secret, but that didn¡¯t stop us from having fun. I Like, for example, after Christmas there was an art exhibition in town that we wanted to see.So we went separately and met up in the gallery by ident.We walked around the gallery together and talked about art. We had to keep at least two feet of distance between each other, in case there were people from school or parents that might notice us.That was awkward and sad, but at least we got a chance to be outside for once. For New Years,n and I took a drive down to Savannah and we watched the fireworks on the beach. We reminisced about our first new year¡¯s kiss togetherst year and how amazing it was. I never thought I could feel this much love for someone, but that was what I felt for him. As per our tradition, when the clock struck twelve and the year was officially over,n and I shared a kiss. It felt poetic, kissing at midnight, and symbolic too. It was as if we promised that we would start and end the year together. We were standing on the beach and the fireworks roared behind us. The waves brushed our bare feet as we stood on the lower part of the beach. Horns were ring, people all around cheered and _ughed, wishing each other a happy new year ahead. When we pulled away, I opened my eyes to seen¡¯s brilliant dark brown eyes staring deeply into mine. Behind him were the shing lights of the fireworks. It was probably the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. My breath was caught in my throat and I couldn¡¯t believe how lucky I was to have met someone like him. "I love you," he said as if he could read my mind. "I love you too. So, so much," After the New Year, I was back in busy-bee mode.I was still picking up shifts at the diner and I was still working on my college applications. Most of them were due at the end of January, so this was myst chance to make everything perfect. On top of everything, I still had to squeeze in some family time with mom and dad. They wereining that I was MIA a lot throughout the holiday.They weren''t wrong. I was spending a lot of time withn, and I kind of forgot about them.That was was bad, I know. Which was why, I was spending today with my mom and dad.I was helping her make dinner when we heard the doorbell rang. Mom decided to get the door as I kept chopping onions and mincing garlic.After I was done with my task, I didn¡¯t know what else to do.Mom hadn¡¯te back, so I went to the front door to check. "Mom? Who''s at the door?" "It''s your friend from school," mom whipped her head around to reveal the tall, blonde guy standing at the door. "Emma, hey,"Tyler beamed. "Tyler?" "I was in the neighborhood and I just came by to drop this off for you.It¡¯s yourmunity hours letter from Mr.Parker,"he said as he handed me a white envelope. "Oh,"Ipletely forgot about that. Since Tyler had been picking up my hours for me, themunity garden hadn''t even crossed my mind. "Your address was on it and I was nearby, so I just came.I hope that¡¯s okay," he paused for a moment before continuing, "And you probably need this for college applications. So I thought the sooner you get it the better," "I do, actually, thank you," I said to him. Tyler was being kind and I now I felt bad. He really was trying to make it up to me and be a good friend. "No worries.Happy holidays," he said to me and turned to mom, "It¡¯s nice to meet you, Mrs.Sinir," "Wait, Tyler, right?" mom stopped him from leaving and said, "Would you like to stay for dinner? There¡¯s plenty for everyone," "Um...?" he looked taken aback. His jaw fell open as he turned to me and asked, "Emma?" "Yeah, you can stay if you want," I shrugged. It wouldn''t be such a bad thing if he stayed. Tyler was a big help with mymunity hours and he admitted that the kiss at the dance was a total mistake. He was just trying to be my friend and I should at least do the same. "Are you sure?" he asked again. "Yeah, totally.Are you good at chopping onions?" "I''m decent at it," "Good enough.Come on in," He looked at me for a moment again, as if to make sure I wasn¡¯t kidding. I nodded at him and he finally took the hint. He smiled real wide and stepped inside. "We''re makingsagna, hopefully," I said again and heughed. Chapter 46: Sticky Finger Chapter 46: Sticky Finger EMMA¡¯s POV: It was the first week back to school. Thest semester of myst year in high school. I was walking down the hallway and I couldn''t help but feel a little nostalgic. I still remembered the first day of freshman year, I was a shy kid going through my sses with Tiff and Carrie. Tiff pushed me to be more social and Carrie pushed me in the academics. Then I met Zach and we dated. Even though he turned out to be a total douchebag, we did have some great memories around these halls. To be very honest, I might actually miss this ce. I had a free period right before lunch today, meanwhile Tiff and Carrie had sses.I decided to hit the library and checked my emails on myptop.I had just finished all my college applicationsst night. It was sent, it was out there, there was nothing else I could do but wait. I sat down on an empty table and pulled myptop out.I opened my emails and of course there were no new emails sincest night. It was silly of me, obviously these colleges would take months before replying back to me. With nothing else to do, I thought about catching up on homework. But as I pulled my Calculus notebook out, I was reminded that this wouldn''t even matter that much. College applications were already out there. What does it matter if I did this homework or not? Sighing to myself, I put the notebook away.I wasn¡¯t in the mood to read about parabs and the x and y tangents. "Getting the case of the senioritis are we?" Tyler appeared in front of me. He smiled brightly and took the empty seat in front of me. "You have a free period too?" "Yup.And lunch is next," "Me too.I don¡¯t know what to do, I have so much time all of a sudden," "I know right?" he said and he pulled out a pack of candy from his backpack "Gummy worms?" "Don''t mind if I do," I smiled brightly at the sight of gummy worms.My second favorite gummy snack next to the bears, of course. "So, thanks again for having me at dinner.Your parents are really cool," Tyler said as he watched me devour his snack. "Yeah, they''re alright," I munched away, "I''m just d you could eat it.My mom and I are never great at cooking, but she insisted that I should learn.She wants to make sure I can at least make pasta for when I''m in college," "College.Ugh,"he shuddered at the word, "Sometimes I just feel like I¡¯m tired of learning, you know? Two years of middle school, four years of high school, and another four years for college.When does it all end?" "You''re not excited about college?"I narrowed my eyebrows at him. "I don''t know.I''m not buying into the hype.College degrees no longer guarantee jobs like it used to in the old days.Sometimes I wonder if I even need one,"he sighed. "So, what are your ns if not college?" "I''m still gonna go to college.Just for the heck of it.And to make my parents happy," "But if you can do anything in the world, anything at all.What would you have done?" "Honestly, I wanna join the peace corps.I''m gonna do it after I''m done with college," "That''s so good,"I nodded approvingly. "Yeah, I wanna travel the world and see what else is out there.I feel like there¡¯s so much more out there, you know? Things other than just school and work," "Yeah, I totally agree!"I nodded again. "Sssh! No talking in the library!" Mrs.Davis, the librarian suddenly stood up from her seat and red at us. "And no eating!" "Sorry..." I said to her and Tyler gave her a sorry look. "Ugh, this ce sucks," I whispered to him. "You wanna just get outta here?" "From the library, yes please," "No, I mean from school," he paused for a moment before continuing, "We can go to Chick-fil-A and get some lunch.We''ll be back before sixth period," "Are you sure? Aren''t we gonna get in trouble?" "Don''t worry, I do it all the time.Trust me,"he said reassuringly. I had never ditched school before.I never felt the need to do it. But it was my senior year now and I had a free period. I had no responsibilities and I was hungry. Tyler''s offer seemed like a good idea. Plus, Chick-fil-A sounded so damn good right about now. "Okay, let''s go,"I said quickly before I could change my mind. "Hey, sorry I''mte.I had to pick up my paycheck from the diner," I said as I opened the door ton¡¯s apartment. Yes, I opened the door by myself now.He let me have the spare key ever since that Christmas night. I came right over after I got my weekly check from the diner.I didn''t have a lot of homework to do yet since it was only the first week back to school.I was hopingn and I could spend some time together.Maybe watch a movie, or cuddle. He heard mee in, but he didn¡¯t respond or say anything. Walking over to him, I linked my arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "I''ve missed you,"I said, but he just turned away coldly. "Where did you go today?"he said in a t, demanding tone. "What?" "I saw you left the school fourth period.You were with that kid from the dance,"he closed the sketchbook and threw it carelessly on the coffee table. "Oh, Tyler?"I went and sat on the couch next to him before continuing, "Yeah.We had a free period before lunch and we got bored.We just went to Chick-fil-A and got some food and we came back.He knew this secret door where teachers won''t notice using in and out whoops, I shouldn''t be telling you this," "Why did you do it?"his face was serious and he narrowed his eyes at me, "You''re not the kind of student that ditches school," "I was bored, okay? I have senioritis," I was reaching for his face, I had been dying to kiss him, but he just pulled my hand away. "You coulde and talk to me,"he said. "You had ss to teach," "You could''ve waited," "What is this? Why are you suddenly acting like my teacher?" I scoffed. "That''s because I am,"he said bitterly. n...what''s going on?" I paused to search his reaction "Why do I feel like you¡¯re angry at me for something?" He let out a sigh and raked his hair before saying "I just don''t like you hanging out with him.He tried to kiss you!" "And he''s apologized profusely.We were just talking about college.He was trying to be nice,"I said defensively. "That''s bullshit,"he hissed. "It¡¯s true.We''re just friends,"I said reassuringly and gripped his face with both my hands. He put his gaze down, not wanting to look at me, but I was relentless.I tilted his face to mine and asked, "Hey, are you jealous?" ¡°Whatever," he muttered. n,e on," "I said whatever," He tried to push away again, but I linked my arms around his neck and held my ground. "Hey, I''m with you, alright?" I said as I leaned my forehead against his. He didn¡¯t say a word, but he finally looked at me for the first time tonight. I leaned my face slowly up to his and brushed his lips with mine. I didn''t kiss him fully yet, I just wanted our lips to graze and touch. "You''re my first," I said with a kiss, "myst," I said again, "my everything," I kissed him deep and hard this time. He wasn¡¯t returning my kiss for a while, but that only prompted me to kiss him harder. I bit on his lower lip and pulled them towards me. He let out a muffled groan and finally he kissed me back. "I love you,n.You and only you," Original from N?velDrama.Org. He let out another groan as I said those words. His hands went to grip my body as he pulled me close to him. He didn¡¯t have to say the words back, he said it all with his actions. Soon enough, my entire body was on top of him, straddling him. We stopped kissing for a hot second and we locked eyes with each other. Those dark serious eyes of him told me one thing. He was hungry for me, and I was hungry for him. As if on cue, our lips crashed back together like ma to steel. Our tongues tangled into one another and our hands roamed each other''s bodies. My hands were itching for more of him, so I slipped them under his shirt and trailed his rock hard chest and abs. He shuddered against my touch as my fingers made its way down. We didn¡¯t break the kiss as my hand found his hardening bulge and I started stroking him, all the while my hips were grinding against him. For a while, his hands were resting on my hips, on top of the oversized sweater and leggings I was wearing. He let out a groan as my hand stroked him stiff, and suddenly his hands found the hem of my leggings and he pulled it down in one swift move. The leggings stopped just above my knees. "Fuck, Emma, if you don¡¯t stop that now I¡¯m gonna cum in my pants,"he let out a low chuckle and it made me gulp. I pulled his length out of his joggers and gasped at the sight. He was so hard, pulsating with veins popping out. "You''re mine, baby girl,"he said as he continued kissing my swollen lips. I was still wearing my underwear and I grinded myself shamelessly against his length. I could feel that hard rod sliding against my core over the fabric and I just got so wet. My stomach was clenching and I started squirming and writhing in need. "Tell me you''re mine,"he growled. His hand gripped my neck tightly and pulled me away from the kiss. "I''m yours," I said breathlessly as I locked my eyes on his, "All yours and only yours," A smile curved up his lips instantly. Not breaking eye contact with me, his one hand pushed my panties to the side and he let his tip enter my core. That initial contact was always so intense. I couldn¡®t help the moans that escaped my lips as I felt him going inside me deeper and deeper. We were both still fully clothed but it didn¡¯t diminish the intimacy. He stared deeply into my eyes our bodies started moving in sync. That feeling of neediness and pleasure began to build inside me, and I was trying my hardest not to close my eyes. His hand snaked snaked under my sweater and slipped skillfully under my bra. He started massaging my breast, pulling and tugging on my hardening nipple and I let out a breathless scream. Meanwhile, his breathing got more ragged as he started moving in and out of me faster and faster and this time. n..."I breathed. His other hand held onto my face tightly and leaned his forehead against mine as he continued pounding himself into my throbbing core. My nails dug and scrunched into his shirt as I could feel that my orgasm wasing. "Cum for me, baby girl,"he said, and just like that, I came unraveling all around him. A string of curses left his mouth as my _ body convulsed under his touch. He slowed his movement down but he held my face tighter, refusing to let me look away. He wasn¡¯t done with me just yet. After a few slow thrusts, he picked up the pace and he continued owning me. "You''re mine,"he said through ragged breaths. "I''m yours,"I said and I sealed it with a kiss. Nothing in this world could make me feel what he made me feel. I was utterly and hopelessly owned by this man. And I couldn''t be happier. Chapter 47: Waiting Game Chapter 47: Waiting Game EMMA¡¯s POV : "So, what¡¯s the verdict?" mom asked cautiously as I walked out of my guidance counselor''s office.It was a Saturday and we were at school.Mom didn''t have toe with me, but she insisted that she wanted to support me. I got a call from a U Penn representativest week and he wanted to schedule an interview with me.He said I could pick the time and ce, so we set up the interview for Saturday morning at school.Mrs.Ash was kind enough to lend me her office. "He was so nice.We both like Emily Bronte and Ernest Hemingway.So, naturally we talked a lot.I was being opinionated and humble, just like Mrs.Ash told me to.And at the end of it, he said that I''d be a great candidate for U Penn,"I was rambling in excitement and joy ¡°Can you believe it, mom? He said I''d be a great candidate!" "Wow.That''s great news!" mom pulled me into a tight hug as she couldn''t be happier for me. "And we talked about options for loans and schrships too," I was about to ramble again. "Wait, does that mean...?" "With all the money I¡¯ve saved up and the money from dad, I think I''m gonna have enough for college," I announced proudly. "Oh, honey.I¡¯m so proud of how hard you''ve been working.I''m so proud of everything you''ve aplished," she hugged me again and showered my cheek and forehead with kisses. "Thanks, mom.I couldn''t have done it without you and dad," A week had passed since my college interview. I hadn''t heard anything yet, but Mrs.Ash said that it was normal. Columbia asked for an interview as well, but remotely. We had our interview a few days after the U Penn interview, and we did it through Zoom. I would say it went equally as good as the U Penn interview. When I toldn that I was acing my college interviews, he couldn¡¯t be more proud. He promised that we would celebrate and that he had a special night prepared for me. He wouldn''t tell what it was, but he told me to be ready and get all dressed up this Friday night. Yes, this Friday night would be Valentine¡¯s Day. We had such an amazing timest year on this day, I could only imagine what he¡¯d be up to next. In order to prepare for tomorrow¡¯s Valentine¡¯s Day special withn, I made Tiff and Carrie go with me to the mall after school. I felt liken had seen all my clothes already, so I was in desperate need to find the perfect outfit for our little date. This morning started out great, like any other day, except it wasn¡¯t. I woke up with the worst headache, like my brain had been hammered and drilled into. So, I took a bunch of Advil and decided to trudge on. I was determined not to let this day go to waste. I had an important mission for an important date tomorrow. School was dreadful, but I managed to get by. I felt tired and drowsy the entire day, but it was probably because I took too much Advil. By lunchtime, I couldn''t eat anything because if I did, it''d go straight to the toilet. Still, I made it through an afternoon of school and we made it to the mall. "Are you sure we should be at the mall and not the hospital?" Tiff asked as she watched me lean against the faux palm tree at the food court. I was feeling lightheaded again, I felt the need to lean my head against a stic tree for assistance. "Yeah, are you okay? You look super pale," Carrie said as she checked my forehead for a fever. "I think I might have the stomach flu or something," I sighed. This was not good. All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org. Tomorrow was my big Valentine''s Day date withn, and I was a sad disgusting puking mess. It wouldn''t even matter if I found the perfect outfit, because I would just look ridiculous. As if on cue, my body jerked forward as if I was about to puke again. Thankfully, it was a false rm.I managed to calm myself down and pulled it together. "Let''s go to the bathroom," I said anyway. We turned for the nearest bathroom and I was d it was empty. I felt my stomach churning again and before I could say ¡®Forever 21¡¯, I was kneeling in front of the toilet bowl, puking my guts out for the fifth time that day. "Dude, you''ve been puking the entire day," Tiff pointed out the obvious as she held my hair up. "You don''t look good, at all," Carrie added as she pulled some toilet paper and handed it to me. "I''m okay.I''m just tired,"I groaned as I wiped my mouth clean. I didn¡¯t feel like moving.I felt so weak. So I just stayed there in that tiny toilet stall for a few more seconds. My best friends stood up behind me and I could tell they were exchanging worried looks and sighs. "What?"I asked them. "Dude, you''re not pregnant, right?"Tiff asked cautiously. "No way!"I scoffed. "Emma...When was thest time you had your period?"Carrie asked. "You guys don¡¯t seriously think I¡¯m pregnant," I whipped my head around and pulled myself up with all my strength. "It¡¯s just a question," she shrugged. I put the lid down and sat on the toilet. I started counting the days to myst period, thinking hard about her question, and I finally said "Myst period was like, a while ago.But I heard that might happen when you start taking the pill.You''ll miss your period," "Right.And you''re sure you''ve been taking your pills regrly?" Tiff spoke this time. "Totally!" I said defensively. Did they think I was stupid enough to miss taking my pills wait a minute... "Uh oh, what''s with that look?"Tiff asked. "The pill...I think there might be a time where I forgot to take it..." "Emma!"they yelled in unison. "I was so new to the pills.Sometimes I forgot to take it in the morning, so I took it at night.But then there were days where I forgot if I had taken it in the morning or at night altogether..."I started rambling. "When was this?" "I don¡¯t know, like a couple of weeks ago, maybe? I was so busy with college interviews and " "Emma!"they yelled again. "Oh god, what am I gonna do?"my hands went to cover my face. I couldn''t believe what was happening. How could I be so damn stupid? Did I seriously just do this to myself? What the hell is happening? Am I really pregnant?n and did have a lot of sex, like almost every day. And he always came inside too, sometimes several times a day. Oh, shit, what if I''m pregnant? Oh shit, shit, shit. "Emma, rx, stop hyperventting,"Carrie said, fanning my face with her hands, "We don''t have to freak out yet.It might be anything.It might be a stomach flu, just like you said," "Yeah? You think so?"I looked up at her breathlessly. "Sure..."she said, but she didn''t sound assured. "But girl, I think you should take the test, just to be sure," Tiff said slowly. "Oh god...oh my god!"I was hyperventting all over again. "This can¡¯t be happening, oh my god," This seriously can¡¯t be happening. How did I get from being a potential Ivy League student to the girl who might be pregnant in high school? "Okay, okay, Emma, stay here," Carrie said as she bent down to my face, "I¡¯m gonna go get you a test pack and you just wait here, okay?" I wanted to cry. I didn''t want this to be real. I was so scared. Tiff and Carrie pulled me into a hug and I couldn''t hold it anymore. I was crying buckets into their shoulders. "You''ll be okay, Em.We''re here for you," Tiff cooed me. "Listen, it might not be it," "Yeah.We just need to get the test done and go from there, okay?" Carrie said again.They were right.Everything was still up in the air right now.I might not be pregnant. This might be just a huge mistake. Screw the Valentine¡¯s Day date, suddenly I was hoping I had the stupid stomach flu. Carrie ended up going outside to get the test pack for me. Tiff stayed with me, cramped inside the small 3- stalls bathroom. We didn¡¯t say a word to each other as I washed my mouth on the sink. I was nervous to speak, and she probably was too. She just held my hand and I stood there listening to my own heart beating. After a while, we heard the door open and Carrie stepped inside. She was holding a brown paper bag in her hand. "How does this work again?"I asked weakly. I took the bag from Carrie and fished out this pink box from the inside. "Two lines means you''re pregnant.One line means you''re not,"Tiff answered. "Just open the cap and pee on the little white thing.Then just wait for a couple of minutes, it''ll beep and we''ll know," Carrie added. "You guys are not gonna go anywhere right?" I said before entering the small stall in the middle. "Of course, we''re staying with you.We''ll be right here,"they both nodded. "Okay..." My hands were shaking as I went into the narrow stall and closed the door. I sat down and opened the box. I pulled out one of the sticks and opened its wrapper. Following what Carrie said, I pulled the cap off and revealed the little white thing. I pulled my underwear down and stuck the stick under me. I was sending prayers to heaven as I heard the trickle of water out of me. I made sure the white thing absorbed enough pee before I pulled it away and wrapped it with toilet paper. Please, God, I can¡¯t have a baby. I can''t be pregnant. My heart was racing so fast as I stared at the rolled up toilet paper in my hand. My mind went racing again. What would happen if I really got pregnant? Wouldn be happy? Of course, he won''t, what was I thinking? He would be so mad. We were supposed to be careful. This was the total opposite of that. This was breaking thew. Oh shit, please don¡¯t be pregnant. Please don''t. If I turned up to be pregnant, I wouldn''t be able to tell anyone who the father of my baby was because that would be hical.n would get in so much trouble. Unless I have the baby in secret...? I could have the baby in secret, but that would make things he difficult.And don¡¯t get me started on my parents.They would be so _ devastated and heartbroken. Mom was always pestering me to be careful and they were so happy about me going to college. And what would happen to college? My dream of going to Princeton, U Penn, or Columbia. I could barely afford college, I couldn''t possibly go to one if I was pregnant. I''d have to stay home and take care of the baby. This would be the end of everything. This would be the end of me. Or maybe I could get rid of it...? And suddenly, this low beeping sound came from under the wraps of toilet paper. It was the sound that signaled my future. It was a sound that caused a lump in my throat and my whole body was shaking. My heart was beating so fast, it might as well jump out of my chest. I whispered another quick prayer before taking a deep breath and exhaled. "Two lines means you''re pregnant.One line means you''re not," Slowly and with shaky hands, I unwrapped the stick from the toilet paper, revealing its result.... Chapter 48: Cold Blood Chapter 48: Cold Blood EMMA¡¯s POV : I pushed the stall door open and my friends were waiting on the other side. They stared at me in nervous anticipation. "Well, what is it?"Tiff asked cautiously. "What does it say?" Carrie followed. "I''m..."I couldn''t bring myself to say the words out loud. But one look at my face and my friends knew the answer. "Shit,"Carrie muttered under her breath. "Let me see,"Tiff said and she took the stick from my hand. She saw the result and muttered, "Shit," "Are you sure you did it right? Maybe you need to take it again,"Carrie said. "That''s the second one,"I shook my head weakly, "The first one¡¯s inside the box," Tiff shook the box violently and the other stick fell out. She went to the floor to grab it and she let out a defeated sigh when she read the result. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. "Guys...what am I gonna do?"I croaked and tears trickled down my face. "Oh, Em..."Carrie was at loss for words. She just stepped towards me and pulled me into a hug. I had no more energy left in me. All I could do wasy my head on her shoulder and cried some more. "Hey, these things can be wrong, right?" Tiff argued, looking around the box for more exnation. "99 percent uracy.It can be wrong!" "What are you trying to say, Tiff?" Carrie asked as she caressed my hair. "We should go to the clinic and get another test done.Nick''s older sister works at the clinic downtown, maybe we can go there?" "Emma, do you wanna go?" Carrie asked as she tilted my face up. "We''ll go with you?" At this point, I didn¡¯t know what else to do.I didn¡¯t have the energy to disagree with anything they say.And since Tiff and Carrie were convinced that I should do it, I conceded.Meekly, I nodded my head. The next thing I knew, we were at the waiting room in this small clinic downtown, filling up papers on why I was there. Tiff and Carrie were my rock. Carrie helped me with the paperwork and Tiff held my hand the entire time. Tiff would give deadly res at anyone who would look at me and try to figure out what was wrong with me. After filling out paperwork and waiting for about an hour, I was finally allowed to see Dr. ra Webster, Nick¡¯s older sister. ording to Tiff, Nick had three older sisters and ra was the oldest and smartest.She graduated from med school at the age of 24. At 25 years of age, Dr.Ca was now doing her residency at this clinic. She was wearing these thick sses and her hair was neatly tied in a ponytail. She was kind and all, but she was always serious. She didn''t let Tiff and Carrie inside the examination room, but she assured them that I would be fine.Dr.Ca took one look at my chart and she immediately knew what was up. She checked my pulse and my breathing and everything, and throughout it all she was just stoic and quiet. The only time she spoke to me was to tell me that she needed to collect a urine sample, and so I did as I was told. I peed into a little cup and handed it back to her. Then I was back in the waiting room again, waiting for the result. Tiff and Carrie were still there and they had raided the snack machine. They got all kinds of chips, sugary drinks, candy bars, and a tub of yogurt. It might take a while for the result toe, so I sat with my friends and munched on food. At least my stomach was able to take them now. As sad as that might sound, the snacks were probably the highlight of my day so far. After another hour or so of waiting, I was called again into the exam room. My body got all stiff as I was nervous. Tiff and Carrie smiled reassuringly and nodded at me. Taking a deep breath, I got up and I walked back into the room, repeating the same prayer again and again. "Emma, have a seat,"Dr.ra instructed and Iplied. "So...?" I asked cautiously as she went through the papers in her hand. "The results are in, you are pregnant,"she stated firmly. "A...are you sure?" was all that I could say. Tears were pooling around my eyes again. The past few hours had been brutal. I had been trying my best to deny the fact that I might be pregnant. I kept telling myself that there was still a chance I might not be. But this, hearing the doctor said the words out loud, it was as clear as day. There was no way out of this. "Yes, I''m sure.I''m sorry, Emma.I realize this is not the answer you were looking for," "Doctor, I...I can¡¯t have a baby," I stammered bitterly. "I have to get rid of it," "You''re not even going to think about keeping it? There are other options, like adoption" "No!" I shook my head quickly. She looked at me for a while and let out a deep sigh , ¡®Well, unfortunately, we don''t do that here," She handed me a box of tissue and I grabbed it. Tears were falling to my cheeks and I wiped them off briskly. "The good news is that you''re still in the early stages of the pregnancy, perhaps around four weeks.You''re also over sixteen years of age, so you can deal with this on your own without your parents present, if you want to.Though there¡¯s nothing else I can do for you here, I can rmend some clinics that do the procedure.Would you like that?" "Yes, please,"I nodded. Tiff, Carrie, and I sat in my car in the clinic¡¯s parking lot for the longest time. I told them about the result and they went dead silent. I just stared nkly into space as Carrie held her head down and Tiff looked away. "What are you gonna do?"Tiff spoke finally. "What else can I do? I have to get rid of it,"my eyes darted to my t stomach. I''m sorry, you, whoever you are that¡¯s inside me.Bringing you into this world will bring too much pain and suffering to many other people.Maybe it¡¯s selfish, but I can¡¯t let my parents down, I can¡¯t letn down, and I can''t let myself down.I have my future all mapped out and you''re not a part of it.I¡¯m really sorry. At that moment, I knew that I had made my decision.I grabbed my phone and the brochure that Dr. ra gave me and punched in the numbers. "What are you doing?"Carrie asked. "I''m calling nned Parenthood to set an appointment,"my fingers were typing furiously and my other hand was holding onto the brochure so tight, I was basically scrunching the paper into a ball. "Emma, slow down,"Carrie said as she gripped my arm. "Emma, stop,"Tiff followed and took the phone and paper away from me. "I can''t do this, guys.I can¡¯t have a baby.There¡¯s no way!"I trashed my head back to the leather seat and more tears trickled down my face.I thought I was done crying, but turns out there was more. "I know, we know," Carrie said, pausing for a moment before continuing, "But, this is a big decision, it''s not something you can just decide on when you''re this emotional.Think about it," "I''ve thought about it, Car, this is the only way!" I groaned in frustration and I tried to reach for my phone again, but Tiff wouldn''t give itto me. "Well, okay then.But, before you do anything, I think there¡¯s someone you need to talk to first...He deserved to know," She was right. Even if I had made up my mind about it,n deserved to know. I slumped back on my seat and let out a deep sigh. Tiff slowly offered my phone back to me and I took it with a heavy heart. "Hey? What is it? You said there¡¯s an emergency?" He held me in his arms and I looked up at him, and suddenly I couldn''t speak. I had a speech all nned out while I was in the car on the way over here, but now I couldn''t remember anything. He narrowed his eyes and studied my face. With worried eyes, he asked again, "What is it, Emma? Tell me.You''re scaring me," n," I croaked, I didn¡¯t know where and how to begin, so I just said, "I''m sorry," "What?"he looked at me, perplexed. "I''m sorry, I¡¯m..."I couldn¡¯t say that word. I just couldn¡¯t Say it. "What, Emma?"he pressed on "You''re what?" "I''m...pregnant,"I said finally. The word came out like a whisper, but he heard it. He heard it loud and clear.His eyes darkened and his mouth fell open. He tightened his grip on my arms and said, "Are you being serious right now?" "I..." I wanted to speak but the tears pooling in my eyes were getting in the way. "Emma?!" He was practically yelling at me at this point. Tears ran down my face as I nodded my head. His eyes widened instantly and for a moment he just stood there in shock. "Fuck!" he growled, "How did this happen?!" "I messed up...I forgot to take the pill..."I said in between sobs. "Fuck!"he backed away from me and raked his hair in frustration. His breaths becamebored and he had one hand rubbing his temple. "How far along are you?"he said lowly. "Maybe four weeks give or take, the doctor won''t know for sure unless I take more tests," "The doctor?" "I took a pregnancy test earlier and it came back positive.So, I went to the clinic just to make sure.I was there just now and I came right over,"I exined. I was trying to search his eyes to get a reaction, but he kept his gaze down, avoiding eye contact with me. "Shit, Emma!"he muttered, and suddenly his fist curled into a ball and he punched the wall next to him, yelling "Fuck!" He was yelling curses and punching the wall in anger and frustration. I just stared at him, unable to do anything.I didn''t get why he was this upset. Honestly, would it be so bad if we had a baby? n, stop," I said as I stood behind him, wrapping his body with my arMs.His body rxed as soon as I held onto him. Hisbored breaths were slowing down as I buried my face on his back. He stopped punching the wall but his fist was still up there, all bloody and battered. Maybe if we keep the baby a secret...we could do it like we did our rtionship. No one at school has to know who the baby¡¯s father is. I could defer college for a year to take care of the baby. After a year, we could all move to the east coast and start over. I could still go to college. It would be nice to start a family with him, and to have his baby... Now that I¡¯ve thought of it, that doesn''t half bad. I pulled away slightly and I gripped him by his shirt, tugging him. He let out a deep breath before turning around to face me. My hands reached for his face and I asked, n...what are we gonna do?" "We''re not gonna have a fucking baby, that¡¯s for sure,"he scoffed. "Why not...?" "Because you''re fucking high school student and you''re going to college in the fall.And I''m still your fucking teacher!" He cursed and pushed my hand away, leaving me again. "If people found out about us, I can go to jail, Emma! Do you know that? Don¡¯t be fucking delusional!" "Yeah, but "I was about to exin my point of view, butn cut me off quickly. "I can drive you to the clinic if you want, to get rid of that thing,"he said coldly. He couldn¡¯t even look at me in the eye as he said it. That thing...why did that sound so horribleing from him? He didn¡¯t want anything to do with this baby, that was for sure, and it was rightfully so. But still, I couldn''t help but feel a little hurt. With all the strength I had left in me, I shook my head and said, "No, it''s okay.I''ll have Tiff and Carrie come with me," "Are you sure?"he looked up at me this time. "Yes," "When are you gonna go?" "As soon as possible.Tomorrow after school," "And you''lle here after?" "Sure," I said bitterly. n caught the bitterness in my tone and he fell silent. I walked to the door as I thought there was nothing else that we could say to each other at this point. "I''m so sorry, Emma," he said before I left the room. "Me too," Chapter 49: Cancel Culture Chapter 49: Cancel Culture EMMA¡¯s POV : I never thought in a million years that I would be spending Valentine¡¯s Day in a nned Parenthood clinic as a high school senior. It was a lousy Saturday morning and I was sitting in that waiting room with my two best friends.We came in as soon as the doors opened at 9 AM. After filling out an extensive form, I was brought into an examination room where they did a physical exam and an ultrasound on me. The ultrasound determined that I was in fact, four and a half weeks pregnant. It was living inside me for 32 days...That thing is 32 days old... I was being administered by a female nurse, her name was Jackie, and she was very helpful. She told me there are several ways I could do the procedure. One of the ways was through a medical procedure, which meant taking an abortion pill or a shot. Then she went on and told me about all the side effects. "A medical abortion is a process, not an instant fix.It may take up to 48 hours after your visit for the medication to work.It can also entail heavy bleeding, intense cramping, and the passage ofrge clots,"she said. "I''m exining everything to you not to dissuade you from your decision.I¡¯m just stating the facts.Are you with me?" "Yes," I nodded. "The other option is to get a surgical abortion.In which case, you will be put under anesthetic and the doctor would insert a small tube into the uterus, applying gentle suction, and remove the contents and lining of the uterus,"she paused for a moment to make sure I was still following her. "The procedure itself takes around 10 minutes, but you need to get prepped for surgery so it will take about 4 to 5 hours in total.After the anesthetic has worn off and you have received your aftercare, you will need to be driven home," She told me to think over my options. I could take a minute, or an hour, or even a couple of days. But the thought of taking more time to let this thing inside me grow didn¡¯t sit well with me. I knew I couldn''t keep it. There was no point in prolonging the charade. I told her I would just need a couple of minutes to talk to my girlfriends about it. She was very supportive and she told me to take as much time as I need. Going back out into the waiting room, I spotted Tiff and Carrie sitting carelessly on the sofa while watching the bad TV programs they put on. "So?" they looked up at me as soon as they saw me. "The nurse was really nice.She told me all my options .."I said as they scooted for me and I sat in between them. "Okay, and?" "I think I''ll do the surgical procedure.It''ll take about 4 or 5 hours in total but everything will be done at once.And I''ll need someone to drive me hometer," "Absolutely, we''ll be here for you," Carrie squeezed my hand supportively. "What''s the other option?"Tiff asked. "A medical abortion by taking pills.She can give me one to take one right now and after 48 hours, I''ll have to take another one at home and wait for it to work," "You don¡¯t wanna do that? That sounds less painful,"Carrie said. "No, I''m afraid I might mess it up.Taking pills was never my forte,"I stifled a dryugh, but no one else wasughing. "That was a solid joke.I wouldugh if the circumstances were different,"Tiff gave me a small, sorry smile. "Anyway, the side effects of the pills sounded really bad.A lot of bleeding and blood clots and stuff," "Ouch..." they winced. Blood clots...maybe that is what my little blip would turn into after I do the procedure. 32 day year old blood clot. I wonder if it''ll feel pain. I wonder if it''ll feel sad knowing that their mom and dad had decided to get rid of them like trash... "So, you''re sure about this?" Carrie asked cautiously. "Of course,"I shrugged. "What other choice do I have?"It was ironic that I was here today to hear my options, the different ways I could deal with terminating the pregnancy. But to be honest, I didn''t have a choice in this. At first, I agreed with him, I couldn''t wait to get it out of me. Butst night, as I was lying in bed trying to sleep, I couldn¡¯t help but think... What did this blip inside me ever do wrong and why did we hate it so much? "Hey, Em, it''s okay to not be sure.It is a big decision, you can still think about it," Carrie squeezed my hand again and caressed my arm. "I can''t," I sighed bitterly, "There¡¯s nothing else to think aboutn doesn¡¯t want this baby.It¡¯s a nuisance and it''s just gonna cause trouble for everyone," "Well, do you?"Tiff asked suddenly. "What?" "Do you want this baby?" "The logical side in me says no, but..." "But?" "My heart...my heart is hurting for it.It¡¯s just a little baby.It''s a product of our love.Why is something that beautiful has to be so bad?" My friends didn¡¯t have an answer for me. Tiff just sighed while Carrie bit her lip and looked away. "I couldn''t sleepst night.I tossed and turned thinking about this little thing inside me.When they did the ultrasound earlier, I saw the little blip in my stomach.They told me it was 32 days old.32 days.In just a couple of days when the blip turns 5 weeks old, they said I can start hearing the heartbeat.The heartbeat, guys...it''s gonna have a heartbeat..." my voice cracked as tears began to pool around my eyes. Tiff and Carrie looked at each other before turning to look at me. Tears were pooling in their eyes too, and they didn¡¯t know what else to say. So, they just pulled me close into a hug. Their faces snuggled my shoulder and chest, keeping me warm. "A part of me was thinking that maybe I can keep the baby.I can keep the paternity a secretn wouldn''t get in trouble and I can always go to collegeter, take a gap year like you, Tiff.A part of me was thinking that it wouldn''t be so bad.That would be inconvenient, sure, but wouldn''t that be better than killing an innocent life?" Taking a deep breath, Carrie pulled away slightly and said, "Emma, have you toldn that you¡¯ve been feeling this way?" "You should have seen his facest night,"I scoffed , "He looked disgusted.He didn¡¯t want to hear or have anything to do with this baby.All he cared about was how soon I can get rid of it," Remembering our conversation fromst night, my heart was breaking into pieces all over again. I had never seen him so upset before. And the words he said out loud, although true, they were hurtful. "Because you''re a high school student and you''re going to college. And I''m still your fucking teacher! If people found out about us, I can go to jail, Emma! Do you know that? Don¡¯t be fucking delusional!" Maybe I was being delusional. Keeping this baby would ruin our lives. I had to do what was best for everyone, for me, forn, for my family and for the blip. It wouldn''t be happy being born into a world where no one wanted it. I''m sorry sweet little blip, but you have to go. "Guys, can you call the nurse?"I said as firmly as I could. "I''m ready for the procedure.I wanna do it now," "But, Emma " "Now.Please," I went back into the examination room and told Nurse Jackie what my decision was. She didn''t ask me if I was sure, and I was d she didn''t. Because every time someone asked me that question, I would have to question my own decision again and I was tired of She went on and told me about the steps for the procedure. She went through all the possible problems and after care. I nodded at everything she said and restrained myself from changing my mind again. After she was done exining, she told me to wait outside for a couple more minutes, as she needed to prepare the room for the surgery.I went back out in the waiting room and I noticed the clinic was getting busy. I saw a doctor walking about and some nurses passing by as they were getting ready. I sat back down with Tiff and Carrie and they immediately held my hand. "You''re good?"Carrie asked. "Yeah,"I nodded. "Hey, your phone''s been buzzing.I don¡¯t know if you wanna take it?" Tiff said as she handed my phone to me. I couldn''t bring it to the exam room so she was holding onto it all morning. I saw the screen and it said n calling¡¯. "He¡¯s been calling like, twenty times," All text ? N?velD(r)a''ma.Org. Tiff said again. I didn¡¯t know what he would say. He was probably calling to check up on me and to make sure I was holding up my end of the deal. I didn¡¯t feel like talking to him, but at the same time I was desperate for somefort. So I took a deep breath and grabbed the buzzing phone from her hand. I stood up and walked a few steps away from my friends and answered, "Hey," "Hey, I''ve been calling all day.Where are you?"he sounded worried. "In the clinic.I''m getting ready to...you know," "Oh, okay,"he paused for a beat before continuing, "Is anyone there with you?" "Tiff and Carrie," "Do you want me toe get you after you¡¯re done? Do you need anything?" "No, I¡¯m fine..." I breathed, but if he could see me right now, he¡¯d know that it was a lie. "How are you feeling?"he asked. "Nervous and scared...But I''ll be okay," I was trying my best to be strong, but really I was crumbling into pieces. My breath was stuck in my throat and my eyes were blurry all over again. "I love you so much, baby girl, please know that," "I know,"my voice came out in a whimper. I could hear him taking a deep breath and letting out a long sigh. I could imagine he would be raking his hair right now. He was probably just as confused and upset. "Listen, I know this is tough..."he said softly, "but someday you''ll look back and realize that it¡¯s for the best.You still have your whole life ahead of you.This is only gonna hold you back," What he said was one hundred percent correct, but somehow I couldn¡¯t bring myself to agree with him. Was this really for the best? What if I wanted to be held back? What if I wanted to wait and see the little blip grow up to have a heartbeat? What if getting rid of it would be a mistake? And suddenly, I saw an image in my head. An image of a beautiful baby wrapped in my arMs.It was so cute and so little. And when it opened its eyes, they were these deep, dark brown eyes that looked exactly liken¡¯s. It was the most beautiful thing I never see... n..."I croaked. "Yeah?" "I can''t do it,"I whimpered. My lips were shaking and my voice came out in breaths. "I can¡¯t get rid of the baby.It¡¯s part me and part you, and I love it," "Emma what are you talking about?" "I know you don¡¯t want it and I¡¯m sorry, but this is a choice that I have to make on my own," "Emma _ Before he could say anything else, my thumb had pushed the red button to end the call.At the same time, Nurse Jackie came out of the examination room and her eyes darted to find me, standing in the corner. "Emma Sinir? We''re ready for you," she stated, gesturing for me toe follow her. "No," I breathed slowly, pausing to gain myposure and said "No, I changed my mind," "Emma?" Tiff and Carrie shot me a look. "I''m sorry, I can''t," was all that I could say to them in response. I didn''t know what was happening to me, but I just knew I had to get out of there. So, I ran. "Emma, wait!" My heart was racing like crazy as I ran out of there as fast as I could. I heard Tiff and Carrie¡¯s voices calling out after me, but I couldn¡¯t look back. I got in my car frantically and turned the engine on immediately. Next thing I knew, I was speeding down the road, running free with the choice I was making. Maybe it was selfish what I was doing. But I was in a¡® damned if I do, damned if don¡¯t¡¯ situation. I was losing no matter what. But if the choice was between my well -crafted nned future versus this little baby inside me, I''d chose this baby over anything, any day. I love this 32-day-old blip with all my heart andn was just gonna have to deal with it. . Chapter 50: Exit Strategy Chapter 50: Exit Strategy IAN¡¯s POV : "Emma! Emma!" I yelled her name a few more times but she wasn¡¯t responding and the line went dead. "Shit!" I cursed as my fingers frantically called her again. She had turned off the phone. It didn¡¯t even ring. "I know you don¡¯t want it and I¡¯m sorry, but this is a choice that I have to make on my own," Her words were ringing in my head. What the hell was that supposed to mean? Was she seriously not gonna do the procedure? Not waiting for a second more, I grabbed my keys and headed out the door. She didn''t tell me which clinic she was in, but I figured there weren''t that many abortion clinics around. I''d go to every one of them to find her if that¡¯s what it takes. I have to see her. She was upset and scared, I got it. I also didn¡¯t like the way we ended thingsst night. But literally, she came over and just dropped a bomb at me. What was I supposed to do? "I''m...pregnant,"she said in an almost whisper. For a split second, I thought she was kidding. But god no, she wasn''t. That look in her face said it all. And her eyes too. They were swollen as if she had been crying alot. When it finally hit me that she wasn''t joking, I was hit a wave of emotions. Everything from denial to anger, happiness, and confusion. I never thought much about having a kid. And why should I? I was only twenty-four years old for crying out loud. And Emma was only a high school kid. And the fact that I was still her teacher was another damn thing. This material belongs to N?velDrama.Org. If word got out that I was the father of her baby, I would not only lose my job but I would also go to jail. We were definitely not ready and far too young for this kind of ordeal. We weren''t settled enough in life to take on this role and this would change everything. All her dreams and our ns for the future, it would all go down the drain. And for what? For a little, living, breathing thing. Okay, honestly, if the circumstances were different, I might have been the happiest man alive. Emma was the girl of my dreams, the one person I ever truly loved and cared for. If I were to end up with anyone in this world, it would be her. She was my other half, and I would want her to be the mother of my child. My mind was still racing with thoughts of Emma as my car raced through town. I kept trying to call her again, but it was useless. "Fuck!" I cursed and hit the steering wheel. I should have handled the situation better. I should have gone with her to the clinic. If I was there, maybe she wouldn''t this scared. Where are you, baby girl? I need to see you right now! My tired eyes scanned the road for any sign of her, but there was nothing so far. I was tired, angry, and confused all at once. I couldn¡¯t get a wink of sleepst night. When I closed my eyes, all I saw was this image of Emma. I didn¡¯t know if it was imagination or if I was lucid dreaming, but I saw her standing in front of me. She was beautiful, of course, but her stomach had grown into a full belly. "It¡¯s okay,n, we''ll be okay," Emma said in my ears. "We can''t have a baby.We''re not ready,"I replied back. "But it¡¯s ours.We can¡¯t not have it,"she insisted. "It''s a baby, Emma.It''s not a puppy," "I know," she looked at me as if I was stupid. "If people found out about us" "No one has to know.Graduation is only five months away and we''re gonna get out of this stinky town anyway," "But what about college? It¡¯s gonna change everything, all our ns, all our dreams" "This is my dream now," she said simply, ending all my arguments. Then she reached for my hand and ced it on her grown belly. I was reluctant at first, but when I touched her there, I felt a kick under her skin. My breath was caught in my throat as soon as I felt it. "You feel that?"she smiled brightly. "That''s ours," "Ours..." I repeated after her. It was a dream that would haunt me for life. I was covered in cold sweats when I awoke from that dreamst night, and I couldn''t close my eyes again after. It sounded sweet, sure, but dreams were dreams for a reason. They weren''t logical and real. I''d be damned if I let Emma gave away here future to raise a baby. Damn, how can I be so stupid? How did I let this happen? I had no clue, honestly. She said she was on the pill and I never asked questions.She made a mistake, we slipped up, and now we had to deal with the consequences. Shit, what if she¡¯s really not gonna go through with the abortion? I couldn''t let that happen. I had to talk her down. If I could just find her and talk some sense into her, she would know that I was right. I tried calling her again and I even sent a few text messages, but there was nothing. I finally arrived at the first clinic on my list. I burst through the door and frantically scanned the room. There were no signs of Emma or her friends there. Ignoring the stares and res the people inside were giving me, I turned around quickly and headed back into the car. The engine was still running so I could dash to the next location in a hurry. About fifteen minutester, I arrived in the second location. It was a smaller clinic and it was empty. I asked the front deskdy if there was a girl called Emma in here earlier and she said no one had been in here all morning. I banged my fists on her counter in anger and that scared her a bit. Damn my manners at this point. I had been driving around town for almost two hours now. I had been to three clinics in total and there were no signs of her. Thest clinic refused to give me any information if a girl called Emma was there earlier. Something about patient privacy privileges. Fuck that shit. The next clinic was a town over and I wondered if she would go that far away. I didn''t have any other choice but to go over there and check it out myself. I spent the next hour driving again, but when I reached the clinic, I saw the sign that it was closed today. I was fucking mad at this point. My fists went mming against the dashboard in anger, and I felt the sting on my knuckles. They were still sore and raw from yesterday. I was so confused and angryst night, I was punching the wall in front of Emma. Violent outburst was an issue that I had to deal with all my life. But I also did it because I wanted to prove a point to her. The point was that I was just a broken guy who had no abilities or the right to raise another human being. In frustration, I tried calling Emma''s phone again and it was still off. I let my phone fall out of my hand and itnded on the seat next to me. I didn¡¯t understand what was happening here. Why won''t she take my call? Why was she avoiding me? Was she mad at me? Was she mad because I got her into this mess? Or was it because I was trying to be the logical adult in the rtionship? I hoped she knows that I meant no harm. I only wanted what was best for her. I could imagine she must be so distraught right now. If only I could see her, I would wrap her in my arms and tell her everything''s gonna be okay. Whatever happens, whatever she wants, I''ll do anything for her. Maybe that was what I should have said. I should have told her that whatever happens, I would support her decision no matter what. I would stand by her and give her whatever she needs. Now on top of all the anger and confusion, I was feeling regret and guilt. I wanted so much to talk to her and make things right. Whatever her choice was gonna be, we would figure it out together. Talk to me, please.I¡¯m here for you. Where the hell are you, Emma? I started the car again and thought about going to the nearest clinic around. There was another one in this town, maybe I''d have more luck there. Just as I pulled out of the parking lot of that clinic, I heard my phone ringing and my eyes shot to look at it immediately. I was hoping it would be Emma, but all I saw was an unknown number. I decided not to answer the call and focus on driving. The call stopped and it went to a missed call. The next second, however, it was calling me again. It was as if the caller was urgently looking for me. Suddenly, I had a bad feeling about this, like something wasn¡¯t right. Reaching for my phone, I answered the call and put the phone next to my ear. "Hello?" "Mr.Hayes?" a girl spoke. "Who''s this?" "This is Tiff and Carrie..."another girl spoke. "Where¡¯s Emma?"I hit the brakes and the car came to a screeching halt. "Mr.Hayes, there¡¯s something that you should know,"one of them said. "Emma¡¯s been in a car ident,"the other one followed. "She ran out of the clinic alone, panicking.She was driving the car it swerved and hit a tree" "We called 911.The paramedics brought her to Mount Sinai.They think she¡¯s gonna be okay, but we thought you should know " I think I stopped listening after they said the words ¡® Emma¡¯s been in a car ident¡¯. Everything else after that became a blur. I could just picture it in my head... Emma was crying and distraught, running out of the clinic because she couldn''t go through with it. Her friends tried to stop her, but she was already out the door. She got into her car and haphazardly started driving. "Emma''s been in a car ident," "The car it swerved and hit a tree " That was the worst thing I have ever heard in my life. Suddenly, I couldn''t breathe and I felt like I was punched in the gut. My hands and knees went weak, I couldn''t even hold the phone up for another second. And for the longest time, all I could do was stare into space with my jaw wide open. This can¡¯t be happening. Not to my girl. Not my Emma. When I finally pulled my shit together, there was only one thing on my mind. Her friends said she was in Mount Sinai and since I was a town over, it was about two hours drive away. Not wasting any more time, I kicked the car into high gear and speeded as fast as I could.I was never one to pray to God, but damn I was praying the entire fucking way. Please God, please watch over my Emma...please take care of my baby girl...please let her be okay...I''ll do anything, please Chapter 51: Watchful Eyes Chapter 51: Watchful Eyes EMMA¡¯s POV : My head felt so heavy.It took almost everything in me just to pry my eyes open.The first thing I saw was this white fluorescent light.The ceiling and the light didn''t look like my room. I must be somece else.I was trying to remember if I had seen this ce before. My eyes then traveled to the white walls and window, and I noticed it was daylight outside. Then I felt my ears started ringing. I closed my eyes to drown out the noise until finally, I was left with only this beeping sound. I looked to the source of the beeping and it came from a machine right next to me. Finally I realized where I was, I was in a hospital. I was lying on the bed and I had a tube stuck on my arm. My body was too weak to even move or speak, so I justy there and did nothing but breathe. I felt like I was in a daze. A part of me was thinking that I was just dreaming. "Bill! She¡¯s awake!" mom''s voice pierced through the air. I looked down and I saw her standing in front of the door with my dad. They looked tired and worried as they came racing towards me. "Emma? Emma, honey?" she said as held my cheek. "Emma, can you hear us?" dad followed. "..Mom.... Dad..." my voice croaked. It took so much energy just to say those two words out loud. "Oh, honey.We were so worried," mom was showering my face with kisses and tears trickled down her face. "Oh, thank God," dad kissed the top of my head. "What happened?" I breathed. Mom and dad exchanged a look before turning back to me.Mom took a deep breath and said: "Honey, you were in a car ident," A car ident...That''s right.I remembered it now. After I turned off my phone, my foot was hitting the gas pedal to the floor and my car was speeding down the road. I wasn''t sure where I was going, but I just needed to get away from that clinic.My chest was beating so fast and my head was a mess. Tears were blurring my vision, and in the midst of all that, suddenly I saw a little dog or a roon or whatever jumped in front of the road. I was so shocked, the car swerved uncontrobly until it hit something hard and everything went dark. I couldn''t fully remember everything but there were shes. I saw an ambnce car and I heard the voices of Tiff and Carrie crying out in the background. I saw images of the paramedics lifting me into the car. I saw some lights and faces of doctors in masks. And the next thing I knew, I woke up here.Mom¡¯s hair was disheveled and her eyes were swollen and dark.Dad was normally clean and happy, but now he looked so old and tired. "I''m so sorry..."was all that I could say to them. "Oh, it''s okay.It¡¯s alright.We''re just d you''re safe,"mom shook her head and squeezed my hand. "Are you cold? Do you need anything?"dad asked. "No..."I answered weakly. "Bill, get the doctor.They should check her up,"mom instructed and dad nodded. "Okay.Be right back," Dad left the room in a sh. Mom was still holding onto my hand, caressing my skin.Everything felt like a haze.I still couldn''t believe that this wasn¡¯t a dream. "Mom, is this real?"I said as I looked at the ceiling. "Yes, honey, unfortunately it is,"she sighed. "What day is it?" "It''s Monday, dear.You''ve been resting for the past two days," Monday? I was in the clinic on Saturday...Did I sleep for two nights and two days straight? Wait...what aboutn...? I was supposed to meet him that day... "Mom, what happened to my phone?" I said as I scanned my surroundings and I couldn''t find it anywhere. "It got smashed to pieces in the ident.We''ll get you a new one once you''re feeling better.If you want to call your friends, you can use mine?"she offered her phone out. I thought about it for a split second, but calling my teacher sh boyfriend on my mom¡¯s phone did not sound like a wise idea. So I just shook my head and said, "No, it¡¯s okay..." "Tiff and Carrie are at school, but they said they''lle byter," "Okay," I said, pausing for a moment before continuing , "Mom, how bad was the ident?" "Well, you totaled the car, but it''s insured so you don''t have to worry about that.The doctors said you might have a concussion, so they''re still running more tests...oh and there¡¯s something else..." "What?" "Honey..."her eyebrows were furrowed and the crease on her forehead appeared. "What, mom, tell me?" "They told me...you had a miscarriage," "..No..." I couldn''t believe what I was hearing. Was I really hearing this? "Emma, you were pregnant?" she asked, and she sounded hurt and upset. "I...I.." I couldn''t speak or even breathe at this point. Was this really happening? I got into an ident and I lost my baby...? And on top of all that, my mother was the person to give me the news... "Did you know about that? Why didn''t you say anything, Emma?" mom pressed on. This was really happening.Everything was happening all at once.My heart rate picked up again as the machine beeped faster and faster. "Emma? You''re awake," Suddenly I saw a woman in a doctor''s uniform on my periphery.She stepped to the side of my bed and said, "Hi, I¡¯m Dr.Burke.Let me take a look at you, dear," "Is she gonna be okay?"Dad asked the doctor as she checked my eyes and pulse. "She''ll be fine.She just needs to rest," the doctor smiled warmly. I was rendered immobile and in shock.I was so confused.I couldn''t do anything but stare at the three faces that were staring back at me. The doctor smiled, but dad looked worried, and mom had this pained look on her face. "Emma, we''re giving you a sedative, okay? You need to rx and you need to rest," the doctor spoke again and a nurse came in soon after. The nurse injected something into the tube on my arm, and I was trying my best to ask a question, but I couldn''t.Everything faded to ck as I said, "But...the...bab...y..." The next few days went by like a blur.I was barely awake as they put me under so much heavy medication.They were doing a bunch of tests on me and mom was always around.Tiff and Carrie would stop by every day after school. They¡¯d catch me up on homework and thetest gossips.Flowers and cards filled my room as the days went by, but none of them were fromn.I didn¡¯t have my phone and I had no way of contacting him. Did he know what happened to me? I was in the hospital for the sixth day, that day. It was a Thursday.Tiff and Carrie stopped by like usual. Usually they''d be here at 4 PM sharp, but today they were a littlete.I was relieved when I saw them entering my room.I was bored all day and they were all the entertainment I had. Carrie looked around carefully as if to make sure no one was around.She then closed the door shut and followed Tiff, sitting on the bed. "Sorry, we''rete.We ran into your mom at the lobby as she was getting coffee, and she wouldn''t stop grilling us about your pregnancy,"Tiff sighed. "You didn''t tell her anything, right?" "Of course.We''ve promised we wouldn''t say a word,"Carrie said reassuringly. "We told her we didn¡¯t even know,"Tiff added. "Good,"I let out a sigh of relief. On top of everything, thest thing I need was to have my mom find out my biggest secret of all.She was disappointed and hurt enough already.One night, when we were alone, she asked me point nkly who the father was. I told her it was no one important.I told her it was just a slip up at a party. She didn¡¯t look like she believed me, but that was my story and I was sticking with it. "Are you feeling okay?"Carrie asked. "Physically, yes.But mentally...I don''t know," "We''re really sorry about...it," Carrie said, her eyes darted tomy stomach. "Me too," My eyes darted down too. "But, hey, look at the bright side, at least now you don''t have to worry about keeping the thing ¡ª" "Tiff!" Carrie snapped before Tiff could finish her sentence. "Oh god, that was so insensitive of me.I¡¯m so sorry.I just wanna cheer you up," Tiff said with a hand over her mouth. "Not like that!"Carrie scolded her. "I''m such an idiot, I¡¯m sorry, Emma," "It''s okay.I know what you mean," I smiled weakly at her.She was right.At least there was one less thing I had to worry about. Still, my heart felt like it was scrunched up into pieces every time I thought about it. "Is there anything we can do for you?" Carrie asked. "Do you wanna use my phone to call him?" Tiff lent out her phone. "Doesn know about me being here?"I asked as I yed with Tiff''s phone. "Yes.Actually, the whole school does.We live in a small town, remember?" she replied. "You probably don¡¯t know this because you were asleep at the time, but a bunch of teachers came by to see you.They didn''t stay long and your parents were theren was among them," Carrie exined. "He trieding here alone.He came as soon as he heard about the ident.But since he wasn¡¯t family and you were in the ICU, the doctors wouldn''t let him in.He also couldn''t talk to your parents because they had no idea who he is," Tiff continued. "He stayed in the hospital for days, Em.He just sat around the waiting area, just in case he might hear something about you," Carrie said again. "We came out once in a while and update him on your condition," "He was a mess," "But he wouldn''t leave," "Is he still here?" my eyes shot up instantly. The thought of seeing him and talking to him face to face got me all energized. That was exactly what I needed. "Your mom is pretty upset with the whole pregnancy thing .. Not only that she keeps grilling us for information, she¡¯s also keeping a close watch on whoever''s visiting you," "We told Mr.Hayes that he should probablyy low for a while.And we told him that you''ve woken up and that you''re okay, so he wouldn''t be worried," "I see," I sighed, pausing for a moment, I looked at my two friends and said, "Guys, I need you to do something for me," "Anything," "I need you two to sneakn in.I have to talk to him," "How? Your mom won''t stop hovering over the room," "The only time she left the hospital was to take a quick shower.She sleeps right there on that sofa," Tiff pointed to the nket on the sofa. "Please, guys, I need to speak to him," I begged again. "You can call him?"Tiff raised her phone. "No, I have to speak to him face to face," I said rather sternly, "Help me, please," Tiff and Carrie exchanged a look and let out a deep breath. Finally, they turned to me and said, "We''ll see what we can do," "Are you sure you''re gonna be okay?" Mom asked for the millionth time. She was holding on her overnight bag and purse, standing there on the doorway. Tiff and Carrie managed to get mom to leave the hospital for a night. They told her they wanted to have a sleepover with me and keep mepany. "Tiff and Carrie are here, mom, don¡¯t worry.You should go home and get some actual rest.If I need anything, !''ll call the nurse or Dr.Burke," I smiled reassuringly at her. "And me.Call me,"mom said quickly. "For sure,"I nodded. "Girls, I''m counting on you two,"mom turned to Tiff and Carrie. "Don¡¯t worry about anything, Mrs.Sinir.Emma¡¯s in good hands," Carrie smiled back. "Okay, have a good night, girls,"she had said that already, she was so reluctant to leave. Original from N?velDrama.Org. "Good night, mom.Say hi to dad for me," I replied. "Good night, Mrs.Sinir," Tiff and Carrie said in unison. Mom took onest look at the three of us and sighed.She was about to say something else, but I just red at her.Finally, she let out a sigh and walked out the door. "Finally,"I groaned lowly. "Okay, watch, make sure she gets in the car,"Tiff instructed as Carrie ran to the window. "She''s gone," Carrie said after a while of watching. "Alright.We''ll be downstairs keeping watch, just in case shees back,"Tiff said as she pulled Carrie towards the door. "Wait, where¡¯s ¡ª"I didn¡¯t get a chance to finish my sentence as my eyes caught a glimpse of a man standing at the door. "Emma,"he spoke. Chapter 52: Good Riddance Chapter 52: Good Riddance EMMA¡¯s POV : I was so relieved to see him in front of me.The moment I saw him standing there, my heart was doing backflips and I wished I could jump out of this bed and hug him.But I was still too weak, so all I could do was smile at him. "Hey, "I said softly. "Hi,"he moved closer and closed the door behind him. "How are you feeling¡ª" "I''ve missed you," I cut him off quickly. I missed him so much, I couldn''t hold it in anymore.I was so happy to see him, but then I also felt super self- conscious.I had been sitting in this hospital bed for a week. Sure, I took a shower and all, but I probably looked terrible.I still had scars and bruises all over my face and body from the ident.As if he knew what I was thinking about, that sadness in his eyes was showing again.He put his gaze down as if he was in pain and stalked closer to the bed. When he reached the side of my bed, he stopped and looked up at me.His eyes were glistening. "I missed you too,"he paused for a moment and his hand reached for my face. I leaned my face to the palm of his hand and he squeezed my cheek gently.He then took a deep breath and said, "I¡¯m so sorry.I¡¯m so sorry for everything," "No, I¡¯m the one who should apologize..." I shook my head slowly. My voice cracked when I spoke because I saw how broken he was. All this time I was thinking about myself and my own feelings, I had forgotten thatn was hurting too. "Why are you apologizing?"he said softly. "Because...Because I was selfish and immature.I didn¡¯t handle the situation right.I was confused and I just shut you out...and then I did something very reckless and stupid and I..."I could stop the tears from streaming down my face as I said, "I lost our baby...I''m really sorry," Original from N?velDrama.Org. I was full on sobbing at this point andn grabbed me and pulled me into his chest.He held onto me tightly as I cried into his shirt. "It''s not your fault, Emma.It''s okay," he cooed me and stroked the back of my head. "It is my fault.It¡¯s all my fault.I messed everything up..." my voice was muffled because I buried face into his chest. "No, you don''t," "Yes, I did," "No, look, you¡¯re here and you''re okay.That''s all that matters,"he said as he tilted my face up. He stared at me with this look of deep longing, and I thought he was going to kiss me.But instead, he leaned his forehead down and rested it against mine.He breathed me in and I breathed him in, and we just stayed like that for a while. "I was so scared I was gonna lose you,"he whispered. "You''re never gonna lose me," I said as I gripped the back of his head. I was leaning my face forward and pulling him in for a kiss, our lips almost touched, but then he pulled away quickly. n?" "You look really tired.I think I should let you rest for a while,"he said nervously. "No, I¡¯m fine," I said reassuringly. "Are you sure?" "Yeah...I mean, I still feel really weak, but I''m feeling much better now that you''re here," A small smile curved up his lips. He took my hand in his and squeezed it gently, saying, "That''s good," There was something in the air, something different about him that I couldn¡¯t put my finger around it. He could barely keep eye contact with me and he threw his gaze down again, staring at my hand instead. His thumb ran circles on the back of my hand and it was a soothing gesture, but somehow it felt...off. n," I said slowly. "Yeah?" "What''s gonna happen to us now?" He took a deep breath and let out a smile, saying, "Well, your body''s gonna recover.Things might be hard at first but you''re the strongest girl I know.You''ll make it through.You''ll be back at school in no time, cheerleading or swimming, and hanging out with your friends.You''ll hear from colleges soon and then you''ll go to college in the fall," I said ¡®us¡¯, but he only replied with ¡®you¡¯.He said all those nice things about me, but he didn¡¯t say anything about us together. "Then I''ll go to college in the fall with you, right?"I asked cautiously. "Just like we nned,"The smile on his face turned to a t line. He swallowed hard and turned his face away again, avoiding my eyes. "Emma..."he started. "What?" "I don¡¯t think we should do this anymore," Those words caught me by surprise. For a second I thought I wasn¡¯t hearing him right, but that look on his face was clear as day.He was serious about what he was saying. ¡°What do you mean?" "I think we have to stop.This has gotten way, way too far," he paused for a moment and let out a sigh, "We don¡¯t know what we''re doing.We''re way in over our heads,What was he saying? Why was he saying all this? Where did thise from? "Are you breaking up with me?" I croaked, "What, after everything that we¡¯ve been through?" "Emma, I¡¯m not good for you," he looked up to me as he said it, and he was pulling his hand away, but I held onto it tightly. "What are you talking about? I love you.And okay, what happened was terrible, but like you said, I¡¯m still here.We can work through this,"I pleaded. Whatever it was that was making him act this way, I was determined to snap him out of it.We belong together, we were perfect for each other.It was no use trying to deny it. "Emma, I don¡¯t think you realize the gravity of the situation here," he pulled his hand away forcefully and raked his hair with his hands in frustration. "What situation?" I snapped back. "Look at you! You almost died!" he stood up and yelled, pointing out the fact that we were sitting on a hospital bed with my arm all hooked up to an IV bag. "You almost gave up your entire life and future for me.I can''t let that happen!" his breaths were ragged, but he was trying his best to pull hisposure. When he finally did, his voice turned back to normal and he said, "I love you, Emma.I do.I always have and I always will.But my being with you is far too destructive, for you and for me.I can''t do that anymore," "So what? You''re just gonna give up on us?"I asked in disbelief. "I think it''s best if we take some time apart to figure everything out,"he said firmly. "Figure what out? We''ve gone through this.We''ve got our future all nned up.I¡¯m gonna go to college on the east coast and you''ll be there ¡ª" "What if I won''t be there?"he cut me off sharply. "What if I don¡¯t get that job and I have to stay here?" "Fine, I can stay here too.I''ll go to college in the state ¡ª" "No!"He cut me off again. "Don¡¯t you see? That''s the problem!" "What''s the problem?" "We can''t base our life decisions off of each other.That''s not right.You have to do what¡¯s best for you and I have to do what''s best for me.I can¡¯t hold you back and I can¡¯t let you..." "You can¡¯t let me what? Hold you back?" I spat when he couldn''t finish his sentence. "I can¡¯t let you throw your life away from me,"he replied sternly. "But, I¡¯m not throwing my life away..." I paused and let out a deep sigh, n, you''re my whole life," "And that¡¯s the problem right there,"he stated again. "What are you talking about?" "Emma, all of this...it was too much too fast.Just a week ago, you told me you were pregnant.Then I thought we decided to get rid of the baby.But the next day you called me and said you can¡¯t do it.And then I looked for you all over town and I couldn''t find you, and then your friends called me and told me you were in an ident.Like, what the actual fuck?"he took a deep breath and looked up to the ceiling, he was holding back tears as he said, "That''s too fuckin¡¯ much," "But okay..I lost the baby, okay? I¡¯m not pregnant anymore.You got your wish.Why can¡¯t we just go back to the way things were?" I was trying my best to hold on to whatever that was left here, but I guess I was holding on too much. "You think I wished for this happen? Is that what you think of me?"he spat bitterly. "No, I didn¡¯t mean it that way,"I shook my head quickly, but it didn¡¯t matter. His gaze turned cold as he said, "But you did," n..."I tried to reach for his hand but he moved away abruptly. "What if something like this happens again? Things just can''t go back to the way they were anymore, Emma.We''ve been through too damn much," He wouldn''t let me touch him.He wouldn''t even look at me.I was losing him, or maybe I already did.He had decided on this the moment he stepped into the room.It felt like my heart was being ripped apart and torn to pieces.I was so happy minutes ago and now I just wanted to die. "So that¡¯s it? This the end...?"I said, choking back the tears. He didn¡¯t say anything for the longest time. He turned his whole body around so all I could see was his back. His body moved up and down as he tried to calm his ragged breaths. Then I heard what sounded like sniffling and his hand reached for his eyes and was wiping his tears away. I had never seen a man cry in front of me before. My heart was not only broken, it was crushed totally. If it was smashed into pieces before, it was pulverized into nothing but fine dust now. "Please don''t leave me," I said through my tears. I wanted to reach for him again, but I was so afraid he¡¯d push me away. I didn¡¯t think my poor heart couldn''t handle any more rejection. "I have to,"he said slowly. "No, you don''t," I shook my head even though he couldn''t see it. "One day you''ll wake up and you''ll realize that this was the best decision for us," "No, I don¡¯t think I will," I insisted. "In time you''ll see.I know you don''t like this and it¡¯s gonna hurt at first, but trust me..." "No..." And finally, he turned back to see me.His eyes were red and ssy.His lips were shaking as he said, "I''m sorry, Emma.You made your choice, and this is the choice I¡¯m making," I was not prepared to hear or see that.It was the saddest, most horrible moment of my life. Through my blurry eyes, I sawning towards me and he pulled me into a hug. I held onto him so tight, like I was holding on for dear life. "No matter what you think of me, I will always love you, baby girl," n, please don¡¯t go..."I gripped onto his shirt so tight, I might have ripped it. He held my hands together and pulled it gently away from him. Then he leaned his forehead down again and said , "Whatever our souls are made of, yours and mine are the same," I was all out of energy.I could barely stand on my own two feet.I wished I had held onto him tighter, because the next thing I knew, he let go of my hands and pulled awaypletely. Before I could say anything else, he turned his back and disappeared out the door. My knees fell on the floor almost instantly.I had never felt more empty and hopeless in my life.Seconds later, my friends came barging in through the door. They gasped in terror as they saw me on the floor. "Emma?" "Emma, what happened?" I looked up at them and all I could do was shake and cry uncontrobly. Everything went dark after that. I remembered feeling like I just wanted to die. The car crash or even losing the baby, all of that didn¡¯t hurt as much as this. Oh God, I just wanted to die. Chapter 53: Prodigal Son Chapter 53: Prodigal Son EMMA¡¯s POV : "Honey, you should eat something,"mom said as she watched me y with this spoon full of oatmeal. I woke up this morning with swollen eyes and a heavy heart.I wished I didn¡¯t have to wake up. Tiff and Carrie had to go to school, so mom was back watching over me. "I''m not hungry,"I sighed and pushed the bowl away. "What''s going on with you? You were fine yesterday,"she said. She was as sharp as always.I stayed quiet and reached for my book instead. Tiff and Carrie had brought over my homework and books so I could stay up to date with the lessons at school. "Did something happenst night?"mom said again. She was studying my face and I was trying my best to avoid eye contact. "No, mom.I¡¯m just not hungry," I replied simply. "Emma, I¡¯m your mother.I know when something¡¯s not right with you,"she stated sternly. "I''m fine mom, just leave me alone," I groaned, my tone of voice was a little higher than I had anticipated. "Hey, don''t talk to your mother like that,"she scolded. "I''m sorry.I¡¯m just...tired," I really hoped that she would drop this and move on, but she was persistent. She had been mostly quiet around me the past few days, she didn¡¯t want to upset me. But she was grilling my friends for information and sometimes she would sneak around the room and read the message cards that friends had sent me, hoping to get a clue. Maybe she was at her wits¡¯ end.She couldn''t take not knowing any more.Taking a deep breath, she sat at the foot of the bed and took my hand. Looking right at me, she then said, "We gave you a lot of freedom this past year because we trusted you, Emma.You never gave us a reason not to, until now.So please, excuse me if I¡¯m trying to be your mom," "No, mom.I¡¯m just not hungry," I replied simply. "Emma, I¡¯m your mother.I know when something¡¯s not right with you," she stated sternly. "I''m fine mom, just leave me alone,"I groaned, my tone of voice was a little higher than I had anticipated. "Hey, don''t talk to your mother like that,"she scolded. "I''m sorry.I¡¯m just...tired," I really hoped that she would drop this and move on, but she was persistent. She had been mostly quiet around me the past few days, she didn¡¯t want to upset me. But she was grilling my friends for information and sometimes she would sneak around the room and read the message cards that friends had sent me, hoping to get a clue. Maybe she was at her wits¡¯ end.She couldn''t take not knowing any more. Taking a deep breath, she sat at the foot of the bed and took my hand. Looking right at me, she then said, "We gave you a lot of freedom this past year because we trusted you, Emma.You never gave us a reason not to, until now.So please, excuse me if I¡¯m trying to be your mom," "I''m sorry,"I bit my lip and looked away. "I don''t want you to apologize, Emma.I just want you to be honest with me, for once," "About what?" "Well, about the pregnancy for starters.Can you tell me who the father was?" "Does it even matter?" I scoffed. "I told you he was a nobody and there¡¯s no more baby now, so case closed," "It''s not that simple, Emma," "It is, believe it or not," I stifled a bitterugh. It was that simple forn to end things with me. No more babies, no more rtionship, and no more future. "I don''t know what''s making you so upset today, but I¡¯m gonna bet it isn''t because Tiff and Carrie had a sleepover herest night.I¡¯m old and I''m your mother, remember? I can pick up on these things.My money says it has something to do with him, the guy you''re seeing all summer," "Mom, please, just drop it.I don¡¯t wanna talk about it,"I pleaded. Talking aboutn with my mother was thest thing I wanted to do. Every time I closed my eyes, all I see was his face when he told me that things had to end. My breath was caught in my throat every time I remembered the moment he turned his back on me and left the room. Tears pooled around my eyes as I heard his voice ringing in my ears, telling me that he will always love me. Mom took one look at me and as if she knew what I was thinking, she then asked, "Why? What did he do? Did he came byst night?" "He did nothing! Alright? He did absolutely nothing..."my voice cracked and tears trickled down my tired face. It was involuntary.I didn¡¯t mean to cry and say all those things to my mom, it just happened, and I couldn''t take it back.I was sobbing incoherently and mom pulled me into a hug.I cried into her chest and said, "He left, mom.He left me..." "Oh, honey," she cooed gripped me tight. "I love him.I love him so much...And he just left me,"I said in between sobs, "He said everything was too much for him.Finding out that I was pregnant...getting into an ident...I was too much for him..." "Oh Emma," she stroked my hair and let out a sigh, "He¡¯s just a boy.He doesn''t know what he¡¯s doing," Obviously mom didn¡¯t know who I was talking about, but her words were enough to help me calm down. "And you''re still so young.You''ll get through this, I promise," Mom was being so kind and understanding, and I felt bad. I had been lying to her all year long and here I was, still lying to her.I wrapped my arms around her and held her close.I knew I couldn''t tell her aboutn, but I wanted to tell her everything else that I could. "Mom, I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t you tell you before...I thought I was being careful with the pills but I messed up.I went to the clinic with Tiff and Carrie to get an abortion, but then I couldn''t and then I got into an ident and..." I couldn''t continue the rest of the story without crying again, so I stopped. "I''m so sorry mom, I¡¯m the worst person on the,"I murmured to her chest. "It''s okay, honey, it¡¯s okay.You''re not the worst person on the.Don''t beat yourself up,"she said sweetly. I wished that was true, but we all know I was a pretty shitty human being.I was a liar to my own mother.I was careless and I lost a beautiful life that I was carrying. And apparently, I was toxic because I loved a guy with all my heart and soul. "Why won''t he stay with me, mom?" the words came out before I could stop myself. I mean, was I really that bad? "Because he¡¯s a gosh darn fool.Any guy who chooses to leave a girl like you is a fool.He doesn¡¯t deserve you, honey," Was he really a fool? Or was it me, the girl that lost everything in the span of a week? - Mom stayed with me for a few more hours until I got tired of crying and I fell asleep. In my sleep, I had this weird dream where I was walking through a cemetery. I didn¡¯t know what I was looking for, but I was looking for something. I went through all the names on_ the tombstones, looking for one that I would recognize. I was barefoot and my feet were covered in mud. Rain started to pour and I began to run faster. I went through a long row of tombstones until I finally stopped at one that looked different from the others. The stone was covered in leaves, so I reached out to wipe them away. The stone read. "No!" I said to myself. My eyes then darted to the next tombstone and it was a smaller tombstone, like the ones they used for children. There was no name and no writings on that one. And then my eyes darted to the next tombstone, and there it was, the one that I was looking for. The writing was clear as day. Here lies Emma Sinir. "Mom!" I screamed and my body jolted in shock. I opened my eyes and realized I was still lying on the hospital bed. I looked from side to side and noticed that the room was empty. The clock on the wall showed that it was 2 PM, and the daylight outside the windows confirmed it. "Mom?" I croaked again, still panting from my weird dream. There were no signs of her anywhere, which was weird. Normally ,she''d always be around. I wonder where mom went.I was walking sluggishly down the halls. It was 2 PM and school was almost over. I wished it were over already. I had no more energy in me to go on. Yesterday was brutal. After leaving Emma''s room, I saw her friends at the lobby and I told them toe up and check on her. Then I went out and I never looked back. I drank probably an entire bottle of whiskey on my own that night. I drank until I passed out and woke up the next morning. I had a throbbing headache all day long and I didn¡¯t mind it. The headache actually helped distract me from the pain in my heart. It was a terrible thing that I did, but I had to do it. What Emma and I had was never right from the beginning. I was ruining her life by being a part of it. So for once in my life, I wanted to do the right thing. She¡¯s gonna be so much better off without me. She''ll get a chance at a normal life. She can live her dreams and go to college without having to worry about me weighing her down. I was walking down a quiet hallway, there weren''t that many people around. Any sudden move or noise would be terrible for my head, so when I suddenly heard this woman''s booming voice, I had to scrunch my eyes shut and rubbed my temple in pain. "It''s you, isn¡¯t it?"the woman yelled. I turned my head around and squinted my eyes at the figure in front of me. There was thisdy, standing a couple of feet away. She was talking to a male student and she was raising a finger at him. "Mrs.Sinir?"the boy spoke in confusion. Wait, that''s Emma¡¯s mom...and that''s that kid...Tyler. "You''re Tyler, right? You came by the house and we invited you in for dinner,"thedy asked rather sternly. "Yes.is everything okay? Is Emma okay?" Tyler looked confused. This is from N?velDrama.Org. "Is Emma okay?" she scoffed as she mimicked him, "Do you think she¡¯s gonna be okay after you came overst night?" "What?" "Do you know what Emma¡¯s been through? She deserves better than to be treated like this!" "Mrs.Sinir, I don¡¯t understand, what are you talking about?" "Don¡¯t y dumb with me.I know everything.I know that you and her were dating.Even though she didn¡¯t tell me who it was, I knew it was you.I saw it in the way you look at her," "Mrs.Sinir, I think you must be mistaken ¡ª" "She loved you and you broke her heart," she cut him off, she was fuming. "She¡¯s been through so much.Do you have any idea what she¡¯s been through?" Tyler was totally caught off guard. He didn¡¯t know what was happening and why thisdy was yelling at him in the hallway. Meanwhile, I just stood there like a goddamn statue. My stupid brain was processing everything in slow motion. "You''re a coward for walking out on her like that, you know that? You don¡¯t deserve her,"she spat again. "Now, what do you have to say for yourself?" "I...I really have no idea what you''re talking about..."he croaked. She shook her head at him in disbelief and let out an irritated sigh. She pointed her finger higher up to his face and threatened, "Stay the hell away from her or I swear to god...you don¡¯t wanna hear the rest of that sentence," Not waiting for Tyler to respond, Mrs.Sinir turned to her heels and walked away, disappearing out the door. Several kids that were around us watched and whispered as they stared at the perplexed Tyler. Tyler could only stand there and gape as Emma¡¯s mom disappeared from his sight. And I...the dumb motherfucker that I was...I was standing there, hearing all this, and I finally put everything together. She thought Tyler was the boy that got Emma pregnant and left him. She came here to tell him off. She got the wrong guy, but I heard her message loud and clear, like it was being said to me. And then I felt it again my chest, the breaking of my heart for the millionth time inaday. Fuck, I can¡¯t breathe. Chapter 54: Beyond Repair Chapter 54: Beyond Repair EMMA¡¯s POV : --- TWO WEEKS LATER - - - "No! She did not do that!" I shook my head at Tiff and Carrie as I couldn''t believe what they were telling me. "Oh yeah, she did,"they nodded aggressively back. "No way.My mother did not do that.She¡¯s the most non- confrontational person ever.She can''t possibly do that.No! There¡¯s no way!"my voice got increasingly higher and higher and my friends shook their heads in disagreement. "But she did,"Carrie stated. "Yup.She marched right in here, grabbed Tyler by his cor, and cursed at him like there was no tomorrow,"Tiff added. Original from N?velDrama.Org. It was my first day back at school after taking two weeks off after the ident. Thankfully, I managed to keep up with sses with the help of Tiff and Carrie who brought their notes and my homework to me every day. The hospital discharged me a couple of days aftern¡¯s little visit. They said I was fine, but they told me I had to stay in bed rest. So for the past week, I stayed at home, watched a lot of Netflix, and did my homework. My teachers were kind enough to let me take my examster so I wouldn''t miss my grades. Meanwhile, mom never told me that she had gone to school a couple of weeks ago. After we had a little heart to heart, she went out of the hospital for a few hours, but I assumed she went home or something. Turns out, she went to school and gave Tyler a little talk. "I can¡¯t believe I''m just hearing about this now.Why am I only hearing about this now?" I red at my two best friends as we made our way down the hall. "We weren''t gonna tell you at all, honestly,"Tiff answered. "You''re so stressed out with everything that¡¯s happened, we don''t wanna add to that,"Carrie followed. I guess I might have never found out about it too, except for the fact that people kept whispering and staring at me as I walked into school this morning. I heard their murmurs and whispers and I picked up on the fact that my mom was here, screaming her head off at some poor kid. When I asked Tiff and Carrie about it, finally they spoke up. They didn¡¯t see it firsthand, but they heard from a friend of a friend of Mark¡¯s, who was in the hallway at that time. Apparently, my mom came to school searching for Tyler, pulled Tyler out of hisst period ss, and yelled at him for breaking my heart.My mom''s my hero, but also...no. "That is so embarrassing, oh my god.I can''t believe she did that,"I groaned as I opened my locker and put my books away, "And poor Tyler.He must so he confused," "Oh yeah.He came looking for us the next day and asked us if we knew anything about that,"Carrie replied. "And? What did you guys tell him?" "We told him it was a misunderstanding.Your mom thought that he was the guy you were dating," "And? What did he say?" "He just said okay and he left,"Tiff shrugged. "He doesn''t look mad or weirded out by the whole thing?"I asked again, because if the situation were reversed, I would be. "No, he seems to be very understanding,"Carrie replied. "I thought he was a skeeze for kissing you at the dance, but now I think he¡¯s kinda alright,"Tiff added. Poor guy.He got yelled at by my mom in front of the kids at school for no apparent reason.I felt bad for him.He was taking the punches thatn should have been taking. But I also couldn''t deny the fact that I was thankful mom thought it was Tyler and not somebody else. "I better go talk to him," I said, closing my lockers shut, and I scanned the halls for signs of Tyler. I didn''t see Tyler around during the first few periods, so I decided to wait until fifth.I knew he has a free period and if he wasn''t cutting school to go to chick-fill-A, I knew he¡¯d be at the library.I was making my way down the halls without anything in particr in mind, when suddenly I spottedn walking on the other side of the hall. He had some papers on hand and he was reading through them as he walked.I gulped instinctively and thought about turning away to avoid him.But before I could do anything else,n looked up from his papers and he caught my eyes. Guess it¡¯s toote to try and avoid him. He looked taken aback to see me, but he didn¡¯t stop his tracks.He pulled hisposure and kept walking. "Hi," I said when he was an arm¡¯s length away. "You''re back?"he asked lowly. My heart suddenly picked up its pace and I got all nervous because he was standing so close tome. "Yeah,"I breathed. "You feeling better?" "Yeah," "Good," He looked stoic, almost expressionless. Then, he let out a small smile before looking away and he kept on walking. He past right by me without saying another word. I wanted to say something else, but there was nothing I could say. I turned my head around and watched his back as he kept walking. He never turned back, not even once. Is this what life¡¯s gonna be like from now on? I''d have to see him in the hallways and he''ll be ignoring me? After a year of an epic whirlwind romance, now we were reduced to nothing but polite strangers. And the worst part was that he made it look so easy to go on about his life without me. I couldn''t spend an hour without thinking about him, what he was doing, or what he was thinking. But by the looks of it, it didn¡¯t even seem like my existence mattered that much to him How did he change so much and so fast? - It had only been a couple of weeks. I still spent my days and nights crying over him, wondering what I could have said or done to get him to change his mind. But that¡¯s the thing aboutn, once he¡¯s decided on something, he¡¯s decided. No turning back. With heavy steps, I made my way towards the library. I didn¡¯t remember what I was doing here and why I was heading to the library in the first ce. My eyes scanned the room aimlessly and itnded on this tall blonde guy wearing a hoodie, and he was munching on a bag of gummy worms. My lips twitched into a smile as I remembered what I was here for. My steps were increasingly lighter as I reached the desk. "Tyler, hey,"I said and grabbed the empty seat in front of him. He looked shocked to see me. He pulled his ear pods out quickly and said, "Emma? You''re back at school?" "Yeah," I beamed. "That''s great,"he smiled back, "How are you feeling?" "Much better, thanks," "I wanted toe and visit you at the hospital, but then your mom came here and she made it pretty clear that she hates my guts.So I thought it''d be best if I don¡¯te..."he said cautiously. "Yeah about that.I''ve been looking everywhere for you.I owe you an exnation for that,"I said with a sorry smile. "Yes, that would be great,"he nodded. "So, listen, first of all, I''m so sorry about my mom.She thought you and I were dating.I didn¡¯t know where she got that idea from, but that¡¯s what she thought.She never asked me about it so I never confirm or deny it.Instead, she came and yelled at you, and it wasn¡¯t cool.I just found out about this today and I¡¯m gonna tell her offter at dinner," "No, you don¡¯t have to tell her anything.Don''t worry about it,"he waved his hand carelessly and shrugged. "What, you''re not mad?"I narrowed my eyes at him, but he just smiled like it was nothing. "No.Your mom''s just trying to protect you.It¡¯s okay," "Wow,"I breathed, pausing for a moment before saying "You''re like the nicest person I''ve ever met," "Plus, if you tell your mom you and I weren''t dating, she¡¯s gonna pester you for information on who the actual guy is.And I assume you don¡¯t wanna tell her?" "Right,"I said quickly, "And it''s who the actual guy was.He and I are no longer in the present tense," "Sorry to hear that,"he said, but he didn¡¯t look that sorry though. Still, Tyler was right. If I told my mom that it wasn¡¯t Tyler, she would ask me who the guy was and I didn''t think I could keep up with lying to her much longer. "Well, hey, anyway, it''s okay.She can still think it''s me.I don''t mind," Tyler said again as if he could read my mind. "Are you sure?"I asked. "Yeah, no sweat, I got your back,"I let out a huge sigh of relief I didn¡¯t know I was holding. This was probably the best thing that had happened to me all day. Tyler was a real good friend and I was lucky to have met you. "Tyler, you''re such a great friend.I don¡¯t know what I did to deserve you.I owe you one, big time," "Well, if you wanna make it up to me.I know just the way,"he said and a smile curved up his lips. "What is it?" His smile grew wider and wider as he leaned closer to me and whispered, "Chick-fill-A¡¯s chicken burger and nuggets?" I had to bit my lip to stop myself fromughing out loud. He was referring to the time we cut school and got Chick- fill-A for lunch. I remembered I had such a great time ditching fifth period with him. If it weren''t for my jealous boyfriend sh teacher at the time, I would have kept doing it. But aftern got angry about it, I stopped ditching lunch for Chick-fill-A with Tyler altogether. But nothing was gonna stop us now. I gave him a firm nod and a smile as I said, "And fries.You got it," In no time at all, Tyler gathered his things and we raced out of the library in a sh. We were smiling and giggling like little kids as we sneaked through the back door, the one that teachers never cared to look. But as I was about to head out the door, I noticed that the area was visible from the art studio¡¯s window. He had a stern look on his face as he noticed what I was about to do. "Emma? Youing?"Tyler asked, he was already out the door. "Of course,"I said simply. Turning my gaze away fromn, I left the door and never looked back. Chapter 55: Acceptance Rate Chapter 55: eptance Rate EMMA¡¯s POV : It was mid April and spring was in the air. It had been two months sincen and I broke up and...there was nothing much I could say about that.We still tan into each other every now and then around the school.We''d give polite smiles or nods, but that was about it.My heart still ached every time I walked past him or heard his voice.My friends said things will get better in time, and I realized that two months weren''t enough time. I still wondered about him daily.I wondered if he thought of me just as much.If he did, he wasn¡¯t showing it.I buried all my energy and time by hanging out with friends, family, working, and doing extracurricr activities.If I wasn''t in cheer practice or swim meets, I would spend my time hanging out with Tiff and Carrie at the mall or working on themunity garden with Tyler.I had dinner with my family almost every day of the week.After the ident, mom and I couldn''t be closer.Dad never said one word to me about the pregnancy, he was never a man of many words. Plus, mom had probably filled him in on everything.They kept a close watch on me, though.I was never officially grounded, but if it wasn¡¯t school rted or best friends¡¯ rted activities, I would allow was never officially grounded, but if it wasn''t school rted or best friends¡¯ rted activities, I would allow myself out. On weekends, I still picked up same shifts at the diner. Iwas saving up good money and I was still excited about college. Only two more months left for school and I couldn''t wait for it to be over. Sure, leaving this town and all my friends behind would suck, but there was so much pain that I had endured this past few months that leaving town sounded like the best way out. It was Saturday morning, and I still had a few hours before my shift at the diner.I was lounging on the couch casually with the TV on.Mom and dad were in the kitchen.I was checking through my phone when I noticed an email from the admissions office of U Penn.The subject read: Admission Decision from the University of Pennsylvania. "Mom! Dad!"I yelled after them. With shaky hands, I clicked the email and the letter unfolded on the screen.I couldn¡¯! believe what I was seeing and my breath was stuck in my throat. "Honey? What is it?"mom and dad entered the living "Hey! ¡°I yelled. "He jokes about this now, we''ve reached that point,"mom waved her hand andughed, "So, what did it say?" "Mom, dad, you are looking at a full ride schrship recipient to the University of Pennsylvania!" I eximed with my hands in the air. Mom and dad were shocked. They couldn''t speak of move for a second, it was like they were trying to take it all in. "Me, I¡¯m talking about me!"I said again. "Oh my god, you got in?* mom said finally, her voice came out breathlessly. "Yes! Full ride schrship!" I repeated it again. "Oh my god! Bill! Oh my god!"mom finally understood what was going on. She pulled me into a hug and we Started jumping up and down in excitement. Meanwhile, dad was just staring at us with his jaw on the "i''m gonna go to an Ivy League school! With a full schrship!" I squealed into my mom''s chest "Oh, honey, I''m so proud of you,"mom was holding back her tears as she cupped my face with both her hands. "I knew you could do it.We''re so, so proud," I smiled and nodded into her hands. On the corner of my eye, I noticed dad standing behind her and he was wiping tears away from his face. Dad was never the emotional type and to see him cry tears of joy for me, that just made my whole year. With the ident and pregnancy scare, I had put my parents through the wringer. Receiving this amazing news was the best thing that has happened to us since the ident. These past few months I was living life somewhat apathetically. Yes, Iughed and I cried, but mostly I felt numb. This piece of news today brought the excitement of my life back, I: For the first time in months, I was excited about life and what the future holds. Still holding onto my mother¡¯s arm, I pulled away slightly and pulled dad inte the hug. The three of us were hugging each other in that living room and I felt so warm and so loved. I had so much hope in my heart now and it somewhat made up for all the shitty things that had happened. "Our baby''s going to college,"mom said to dad, and he just nodded and stifled back his tears. "I couldn''t have done it without you guys.Thank you for always supporting me, even through those terrible things that I''ve done," I said as I cried into their shoulders. Mom and dad didn¡¯t say another word, but they held me tight and stroked my hair, as if to say everything would be okay from here on out. And for the first time in a long time, I believed that it would. The first thing I wanted to do after hugging my mom and dad and screaming at the top of my lungs that I was gonna go to U Penn, was to call my friends and gushed to them. I did that and Cartie and Tiff were so happy for me.We decided to meet upter after my shift to celebrate.Carrie was inviting Mark and Tiff invited Nick, so I thought to invite Tyler as well.Tyler and I got along great as friends.After Tiff, Carrie and my stuffed animal Mr.Snuggles, he would be my fourth best friend. After texting Tyler, I was left with this thought that I Missed telling one more person. "Mrs.Ash..."I said to myself. I wrote Mrs.Ash an email, telling her af the good news and thanking her for all her help. After I sent that email, I was still left with the feeling that I missed telling someone else. And then it hit me..n.I got a new phone and a new phone number, but I had memorizedn¡¯s number.I could easily give him a call or text him if I wanted to. But I didn¡¯t know if I should. So in the end, I spent the next hour writing texts and deleting them.I ended up with nothing.I thought about all the scenarios.I could say hey and how are you and he¡¯d reply with some type of small talk. Then I would tell him that I got into U Penn, and he''d congratte me. And then what? That was probably it. Telling him about U Penn felt like bringing up painful memories of what our future could have been.So after an hour of staring at my phone, I decided that it was best to be left alone. I finished my shift at the diner at around 8.30 PM that night. I told my friends to grab dinner before meeting me, and I would join them for dessert. By 9 PM, I arrived at our favorite ice cream store and my friends were already waiting for me. The moment I came in through the doors, my favorite chocte and vani banana split was already waiting for me on the table. Tiff, Carrie, Mark, Nick, and Tyler were sitting around the booth, pping their hands and cheering at me. "There is she is, University of Pennsylvania!" Mark hollered and whistled, causing everyone in that shop to turn their heads. "Guys, stop, you''re embarrassing me!" I hissed, but secretly I was enjoying all the attention. At least for once, they were positive. "U Penn and a full schrship.Dang, girl, you''re amazing," Tiff hugged me and pulled me into the booth. "Sucks that you¡¯re gonna be on the east coast and the two of us will be in the west,"Carrie said, referring to herself and Mark. "But, hey, we''ll meet back here every holiday, promise?" "Promise,"I nodded to the both of them. "So, you two are going to Berkeley?"Tiff asked. "I''m going to Berkeley.Mark¡¯s going to Stanford,"Carrie announced proudly. "Stanford, damn!"Tyler said and gave Mark a high five , That''s dope, man, "Thanks, it is a great school," Mark said and he turned to Carrie, "Also only a short car ride away to Berkeley," "Damn right it is," Carrie nodded in agreement. "What about you, Ty? Where are you gonna go?" Tiff turned to Tyler. "I''m staying in the state, University of Georgia," This is from N?velDrama.Org. "Okay, so it¡¯s settled. No matter where we end up, every Thanksgiving or Christmas break when we''re here, we''d meet up in this ce," Carrie shot us all a look. "Hear, hear," we agreed and raised our sses of water. It was such a sweet night. I had the most amazing group of friends around me and my favorite ice cream concoction. Still, a part of me felt like something was missing. And I knew exactly who that was. My friends and I were talking about college and senior week. We were just enjoying ourselves when suddenly, Tiff nudged my elbow and her eyes darted to the ss window. On the corner of my eye, I sawn walking past the store. He wasn¡¯t alone, he was walking with a girl. She looked familiar, and I was sure I had seen her somewhere before He was with Ally. His old friend from high school. The super gorgeous girl who also used to have a thing for him. They were walking and chatting, and he wasughing at something she said. Both of them didn¡¯t realize that I was inside the store, looking right at them. Everything happened so fast, they were just walking by. The timing couldn''t be any more perfect. And just like that, the chocte in my mouth tasted sour. But what was she doing here? And why did he look so happy with her? And why do I even care? I had no more right to. "Em? You okay?" Tiff whispered lowly so that no one else would hear. Everyone else was still debating the pros and cons of joining a frat or a sorority, so they weren''t paying attention to the lightning that just happened in front of my eyes. For a few seconds, I didn¡¯t respond to Tiff. I couldn''t do anything. I was trying my best to hold it together and not crumble into my banana split. Tiff held my hand under the table and squeezed it tight. I gave her a small smile and squeezed her hand gently back. Just when I thought that life was gonna get better for me, it went around and threw me this! Two months were definitely not enough time to get over a heartbreak of this caliber. Tonight was proof. I had toe to terms with that the hard way. Although it was difficult to see him out and happy, he deserved it. And I deserved that too. Seeing him walk past the ice cream store for three seconds of my life tonight had taught me this: My friends, family, and college were my future. . I wasn''t paying attention because I was in such a rush to send that email, I let autplete finished my typing for me. After sending the email, I put myptop away and decided to make some tea. I was having trouble sleepingtely, and chamomile tea seemed to be helping.I was in the middle of brewing some hot water in a pot when I heard my phone rang. Running towards the couch, I grabbed the little thing and saw the screenn Calling.Weird. We didn''t n on talking on the phone tonight. In fact, he was telling me that he was going to sleep, so we had texted each other good night moments ago. "Hey, what''s up?" I said as I put the phone to my ear and went back to the kitchen. "What''s this email you sent me?" his tone was serious and demanding. "What email?" "The one you just sent me.The pros and cons list," "What? I didn¡¯t send you that ¡ª oh shoot!" My eyes shot up instantly and I raced back to the living room. I pushed myptop open and checked thest email I sent.My heart sank to my feet as I read the screen.I had made the stupidest mistake ever. I sent that email to [email protected] instead of [email protected]. Oh, shit on a stick. "Emma, exin this to me.Now,n demanded. n...I..." I was stammering.I took a deep breath and calmed myself before continuing, "So, there¡¯s this internship program in Paris for a year, and I¡¯m just trying to figure out if I should apply for it or not..." "Why didn¡¯t you talk to me about it? You talked to all your friends.You asked for Tristan¡¯s opinion. What about my opinion? When are you nning to tell me? When you''re already on a ne three thousand miles away?n didn¡¯t stop to let me say anything. His tone of voice only dropped lower and more demanding as he went. "I thought you were done with pros and cons when ites to us? What is this, are you having second thoughts about us?!" n, I''m just trying to figure things out.Why are you yelling at me?"I pleaded, somewhat yelling at him back. "I¡¯m your fianc¨¦e goddamnit,"he snarled. "You need to talk to me about these things," "I know and I will," "When?" "When I''m ready!" He was pushing me so hard, I ended up shouting back. Quickly, I calmed myself down and spoke softer this time, "I didn¡¯t wanna tell you until I''m ready because I know you''re gonna make my decisions for me," "What''s that supposed to mean?"he scoffed. I couldn''t answer him, so I stayed quiet. He was also older and super protective. Once he dered something, I wouldn''t have the willpower to disagree. "Are you at home right now? Wait for me, I¡¯ming over,"he was impatient because I wasn''t speaking. n, it¡¯ste at night and I¡¯m tired,"I tried to reason with him. "I''ming over,"he said anyway. "Don''t!"I said quickly. n, I need some space to think, okay?" "What are you talking about?" "I''m saying I want some time to think,"I said again. "I know you wanna help figure things out for me, but I want to figure things out for myself for a change!" "Emma..." "Please don''te.And please...give me some space," This was the first time I ever stood up to him like this. It shocked me, but it shocked him even more. "Baby girl..."he started to speak, but he couldn''t finish it. "Good night,n," I turned off the call before he could say another word. That was hard to do, but it needed to be done. Tristan was right. I had to stop worrying about whatn would think and start thinking about myself and what I want. No regrets. Chapter 85: Open Heart Chapter 85: Open Heart IAN¡¯s POV : Fucking bullshit! I got in a car as fast as I could and drove until the bridge when I stopped myself. She didn¡¯t want me toe. She wanted some space. Punching the steering wheel in anger, I turned the car around and drove back. We are ny miles apart. How much more space does she want? I didn¡¯t understand this at all. She chose to talk about big life decisions with that Tristan guy over me, her own fianc¨¦e. This is from N?velDrama.Org. What the hell? "I didn¡¯t wanna tell you until I''m ready because I know you''re gonna make my decisions for me," Her words were stinging in my ear. What did that even mean? Was she saying that I was controlling? I tried to call her again, but her phone was off. And even if she picked up the phone, I didn¡¯t know what I would say to her. She asked for space to think, goddamnit, why can''t I be a mature person and give it to her? Suddenly, my phone started buzzing and I picked it up immediately. My heart was racing at the thought that Emma was calling me back, maybe she was changing her mind? "Emma?!" I said to the phone without even checking it. "Hey, no it¡¯s me, Ally,"the voice on the other line said. "Oh,"I sighed as my shoulders slumped down in disappointment, "What''s up, Al?" "Where are you right now?" "In the car," "Where are you going?" "Nowhere," I said simply. "Oh...okay...well, I have some things I wanna discuss regarding the grand opening day.I was gonna see if I cane over to your ce to talk about it, but it sounds like you''re busy, so..." "No, I can talk.I''lle to your ce.I''m not far," "Really? Okay then.I''ll see you in a bit," Turning off the call, I made a quick U-turn and drove towards Ally¡¯s. If I went home right now, I would just keep kicking myself in the head and reying all the words Emma said to me. That wasn''t gonna do me any good. I decided to give Emma her space and I would try her again tomorrow. As of right now, I wanted to think about something else other than the looming space between Emma and I. Going over to Ally¡¯s and talking about work seemed like a better idea I reached Ally¡¯s apartment within minutes. Beaming with excitement, she opened the door for me and led us to the living room. As much as I wanted to act like everything was okay, all I could muster was a half smile. "So, listen, I wanna go through the guest list with you," Ally said as soon as we sat on the couch. On the coffee table was a stack of papers and invitations to our gallery''s grand opening. "Our capacity is at 140 people.I know you said you don¡¯t want more than 20 reporters, but I think we should have more. There are at least 30 important media people from all the five boroughs," Ally was going on and on about the guest list and invites. I nodded along like I was listening, but only half of me was there in that room. The other half was still thinking about Emma and if I should have done something or said something else. "What¡¯s going on,n? What¡¯s on your mind?" Ally said suddenly, pulling me out of my train of thought. "Huh?" "You can barely focus.Tell me, what¡¯s wrong?" "It''s nothing," I muttered and grabbed the guest list on the table, "So we''re pretty full, huh?" "It¡¯s about Emma, isn¡¯t it?" Ally pressed on. "You sounded worried when you thought I was her calling you," "Yeah, well...things are just shit right now," I sighed and threw the guest list back on the table. Ally didn¡¯t say a word. She looked at me knowingly and stood up to her feet. She walked towards a cab and pulled out a bottle of whiskey and two sses. It was a Macan 25 year old single malt scotch.My go to drink. "Looks like you could use some of this,"she said. "I thought you don''t drink anymore?" "It''s not for me,"she poured a generous amount into one ss and gave it to me. I took it from her dly. After drinking too much and cking out for days, Ally made a deal with me not to drink anymore. She spent weeks in the hospital trying to get better. She was three months sober now, I was so proud of her. "Thanks," I took a big gulp and let the fiery warm liquid enter my system.It was exactly what I needed right now. "Whoa, slow down," Allyughed drily as she watched me downed the entire thing all at once. I put the empty ss down on the table and let out a long, exasperated sigh. Ally poured some water into her ss and she took a sip of her own drink before pouring another generous amount of scotch into mine. "Trouble in paradise?"she said as she yed with the drink in her hand "I thought you two were going strong?" "It''s just hard with long distance.We don''t talk as much anymore.I feel like I¡¯m losing her.And the harder I try to grasp, the more she¡¯s slipping away from me," the alcohol in my system was making my tongue loose. "She''s still so young,n.Maybe she¡¯s not ready for such a mature rtionship," "She¡¯s not the problem,"I sighed and stared at the bottom of my ss. It was empty again. "She¡¯s young, but she¡¯s way mature.I¡¯m the problem here," "What do you mean?" Ally topped off my drink again. "She¡¯s always growing and bing more and I''m afraid I''ve passed my prime.I think I¡¯m not enough for her," "That can''t be true, can it?" "I don''t know," "How long have you been feeling this way?" "For a while," "And you never told her?" I shook my head and took another big sip. n,munication is the key to a rtionship.I wasn''tpletely honest with Richard and that¡¯s the thing that ended our engagement.Don¡¯t make the same mistake as me," "But what am I supposed to tell her, Al? Sorry for not being man enough, but please be with me anyway?" I scoffed. How pathetic would that sound? I don¡¯t wanna be that guy.Hell no. "You know what she told me earlier? She said I was controlling," "Well, to be honest, you can be sometimes..." "I only did it because I was afraid I''d lose her. I never deserve a girl like her, not in a million years," I admitted. "That''s not true,"Ally said. "But it is.That''s my worst fear, Al.I''m afraid she¡¯s gonna out into the world and see there¡¯s plenty of other guys that are better than me...why would a girl like her pick someone like me anyway?" "What are you talking about,n.You''re a great guy.She¡¯s lucky to have you too," Ally put a hand on my knee in aforting manner, but I shook my head and moved it away. "No, you don¡¯t know the whole story..." "That''s because you never told me the whole story," She asked me plenty of times about Emma, but I couldn''t tell her much.I could never tell anyone. Not unless I wanted trouble.But basically, I was a horrible guy. She was only in high school when she first met me, innocent and pure. I didn''t realize she was that young, but the moment Iid eyes on her at that bar, I knew I had to have her. She didn''t look like the type that would be into guys like me, but I was persuasive. She was young and inexperienced. I was selfish and impatient. So, I took her to the back alley and fiicked her next to a dumpster. When I found out she was a student of mine, instead of running for the hills, I wanted her even more. I was a sick son of a bitch. She was young and impressionable.I was supposed to be the mature adult, but I couldn''t control myself. Breaking all the rules, I took her again and again. I never stopped.I had my grip so tight around her, she was willing to do anything for me. She was almost raped by a dude because of me. She almost gave up on her future for me too. And when I finally had the balls to end things and let her move on with her life, I had toe back in and forced myself into her life once again. All because I couldn''t control myself. All because I was convinced that I love her. I used to go to church when I was young. I remembered the priests would recite ¡®love is patient and love is kind¡¯. But why was my love this unkind? My love for her was nowhere near pure and gentle. It was proud and self- seeking. No wonder she asked for space. I was suffocating her. "Some deep thoughts you''re having there.Care to share?"Ally said again. I looked down at the ss in my hand and realized it was empty again. "Just give me another ss, will you?" I was slurring a little, holding my empty ss out to her. "I have something stronger if you want?" "Al, you''re not still taking those prescription drugs are you?"I eyed her suspiciously. "I don''t take them anymore,"she said reassuringly. "I just have a couple left, just in case.And it looks like you could some right now," "No, I don¡¯t want it,"I shook my head quickly."You sure? Alcohol is slow, but they work fast.It¡¯s gonna take your mind off of things," "I¡¯m sure, Al.No drugs," "Okay, suit yourself,"she said as she poured another ss forme. That was thest drink I remembered before I cked out that night. I remembered ranting about my stupid insecurities and Ally listened to everything patiently. I didn¡¯t know when or what, but everything after that was just ck. I had a nightmare that night. I dreamt that I was walking through a field with tall grass, and I saw Emma on the other side of the field. She was walking away from me. I called out after her, but she didn''t hear me. I started chasing her, but no matter how close I was to her, I couldn''t reach her. When I opened my eyes next, my head felt like it was being hammered and the bright sunlight from the window was blinding my eyes. Groaningzily, I rolled over to my side and I felt something warm next to me. I opened my eyes again and slowly my brain was registering it, it was Ally. I was sleeping on her bed. She was sleeping next to me "Wha..?" I croaked and pulled away.That woke her up. Her eyes fluttered opened and she gave me a weak smile. "Morning sunshine," "What happened?"my body felt heavy, but I pushed myself to get up. "Nothing happened.You drank the entire bottle and you fell asleep,"she stifled augh. I staggered to my feet and saw my shirt crumpled on the floor. Why was it the floor? Not thinking too much of it, I pulled the shirt up and put it back on me. Looking at the clock on Ally¡¯s bedside table, I saw that it was already 12.30 PM.I was gonna call Emma this morning, but now she was in her ss already. "Dammit,"I muttered and strode to the living room. I saw my phone and keys on the coffee table and I collected them quickly. "Hey, what''s your rush?" Ally said, following after me. "I have to go," "Where to?" "Her," I stated and went for my boots. Ally watched my trembling hands as I put my boots on and tied theces together. I shouldn''t have been drinking that much. But I figured the two hour drive to Philly would sober me up. "Ian, I don¡¯t think you should be driving right now," Ally was standing in between me and her front door, blocking my way. "I can''t lose her, Al.I have to see her," my heart was stinging in pain as I remembered the dream I had last night. "But¡± "Move!" I was practically shouting at Ally. She looked taken aback, she wasn''t expecting that at all. I didn''t mean to shout like that, but I needed her to move. When she wasn¡¯t moving away, my hands shoved her swiftly, and I pushed past her. I was out the door the next second. I only had one thought in my mind as I made that drive. I wasn''t gonna lose my girl over this. Not now, not ever. Chapter 86: Pure Imagination Chapter 86: Pure Imagination EMMA¡¯s POV : I had a really weird dreamst night. I was walking through a field with tall grass and I was looking for someone. I could hear my name being called, but when I looked around, I didn¡¯t see anybody there. So I kept walking and walking until the sun was setting. It was getting dark and if I didn¡¯t get out of the field soon, I would get lost in there. So I ran faster and faster, looking for a way out. I tried to follow the voice, but it let me nowhere. Until finally, I woke up the sound of the rm clock ringing. Sighing to myself, I checked the time and it was 7.30 in the morning. I had an early ss today, so as much as I wished I could stay in bed, I had to get up. I grabbed my phone on the bedside table and I stared at the ck screen for a while. I turned it offst night in a fit of impulse and confusion. I was caught off guard by what had happened. I never intended forn to read that email. So, I panicked. After my shower and a cup of coffee, I was feeling a lot calmer. I decided to turn on my phone and checked the messages. There was nothing fromn. I was the one that told him to give me some space. Why was I now looking for him? Shaking my head at my own silliness, I left the phone on and got ready for ss. I had my Feature Writing ss with Tristan today, and we had to do a presentation. Normally I would just wear a hoodie and sweatpants for school, but since it was presentation day, I decided to dress up a bit. I curled my hair, put on some make up, and wore a simple ck dress and a zer. By 8.30 AM, I walked out of my room and found Tristan already waiting for me in the living room. He was looking sharp in a suit. "Wow, you look ready for presentation day,"he beamed when he saw me. "So do you.And nice tie,"Iughed when I saw his tie. It was a ducky tie like the one Barney wore in How I Met Your Mother. "Laugh all you want, but it¡¯s my lucky tie.We''re acing that presentation,"he said as he got up to his feet and sauntered to the door. I couldn''t stopughing all the way to campus. Public speaking was always nerve wrecking. But when I was confident about the topic at hand, I could talk for hours. Tristan did a good job on his research, so our presentation was rock solid. Tristan himself wasn¡¯t much of a public speaker, but we made a great team because I could do the talking for the both of us. At the end of our presentation, Professor Thomasplimented us. It was a loting from him. He was known as a killer professor, very stingy with grades too. The fact that heplimented us meant we did something right. "I think Professor Thomas really liked our presentation.Your research was spot on," I said to Tristan as we walked out of the ssroom that afternoon. Feature Writing ss was done for the day and I had some time to kill before my next ss at 3 PM. "I told you, it¡¯s the tie.This thing¡¯s never failed me," Tristan kissed the tip of his ducky tie proudly. "I''d say we got an A for sure at the very the least," "You think so?" "Yeah, you totally killed it.Especially on the Q & A section.Man, your back must be hurting from carrying all the weight,"he said and he started rubbing my back, giving me a massage. "Nah, you did great too,"Iughed. "Anyway, I¡¯m just d it''s over.That''s one less thing I have to worry about this semester," "Speaking of, have you decided on the Paris program yet?" "Oh my gosh, I have to tell you about it!" I grabbed Tristan by the hand and pulled him to an empty bench on the quad. T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org. We sat down and I immediately gave him the rundown on everything that happenedst night. The whole nine yards. I told him about the pros and cons list and how I meant to send it to him, but stupidly I sent it ton instead. I told him about our awful talk on the phone and how I asked for some space. "Oh damn,"Tristan winced. "Yeah, so now we''re not speaking at all.I mean, it''s only been a day but it feels like ages,"I sighed as I pulled my phone out. No new notifications.No calls or texts fromn.Not even a good morning or anything. "Let me see that list," Tristan said as he rubbed his chin. I pulled up the email I sentst night and opened the attached document. Tristan took the phone from me and he studied the list intently. He didn¡¯t say anything for a while. Once he was done reading it, he gave me my phone back and let out a long sigh. "What do you think?"I asked. "I think you should go for it,"he said firmly. "Apply for the program.You know it¡¯s what you wanna do," "Yeah, but..." adding, "Alone?" Ugh? Excuse me? I, the girlfriend, am literally standing right here. "I''ll be right back," Tristan said to me before getting up to his feet. "I''ll be here," I reminded him. Tristan and Monique stepped away and she started talking. She was giggling and smiling, and she put her hand on Tristan¡¯s chest several times, yfully shoving him. Tristan stood there with a polite smile, he was so oblivious to what was happening. Meanwhile, Monique¡¯s group of minions were sneering at me and giving the stink eye. Ugh.This is worse than high school. "What did she want?" I asked as soon as Tristan sat back down on the bench next to me. Monique had gone back to her minions, but they didn¡¯t leave.They were standing around, chit chatting. "She just invited me to her birthday party at the sorority house.I said no, of course," Tristan replied. His eyes darted to Monique before returning back to me. "Are you kidding me?"I red at him. "What?" "I know we''re just pretending here, but do you have to check out her ass in front of me?"I scoffed, smacking his elbow. "I did no such thing,"he said defensively. "You totally did.You suck T, you need to do a lot better than that if you wanna convince her that you''re over her," "I didn''t do it, I swear!"he said reassuringly, "I was just looking at the gum stuck under her shoe," "You were?" "Yeah.Why would I look at any other girl¡¯s ass when I have you?"he smirked yfully, pulling me into a hug. "Aw, you''re so full of it," I rolled my eyes and shoved him away. "I''m serious, I mean, look at you,"he was grinning as his hand motioned around my body. That got me blushing a little. "Whatever, let''s go get some food," I was about to get up, but Tristan pulled me back down.I ended up falling into hisp. "Oh,e on, don¡¯t go.Monique''s still watching us,"he whispered to my ears. My eyes darted to Monique and her minions and they were watching us. Monique''s eyes were filled with raging jealousy as Tristan snaked his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to his chest. I gave Monique a sassy smile as I returned Tristan¡¯s hug. "Tristan, what are you doing?" I said when I felt his nose snuggling the crook of my neck. "You''re the one that said I need to be more convincing," his breath was fanning my skin and I let out a gasp when I felt his lips on my neck. "Tristan, you''re tickling me!" I tried squirming away, but his grip around me was too strong. "So you are ticklish, huh?" he chuckled and he started blowing raspberries onto my skin, causing me to laugh harder. "Stop,"I pleaded in betweenughs. I tried pushing him away again, but it was a futile effort. "Stop it, Tristan, you''re gonna make me pee my pants," "That would be fun to see," "Tristan, seriously, stop!" I was moving around so much, I didn¡¯t realize how close our lips were to each other. We stopped moving immediately as soon as we saw how my lips stood directly in front of his. They almost touched each other, barely. For a second there, we were frozen in an awkward shock. On the corner of my eyes, I noticed that Monique and her minions had left the premises. I pulled away abruptly and moved back to my original seat. "Okay, I think she¡¯s gone now," I breathed. "Yeah..." Tristan coughed awkwardly, pulling hisposure. "You should¡¯ve seen her face. It was hrious," I said as my eyes darted around the quad, looking for signs of her. I didn''t see her, but I noticed a familiar figure standing by a tree on the other side of the quad. I had to do a double look because I thought he looked a lot liken. But when I looked back, the person was gone. No way, that can¡¯t be him. He¡¯s miles and miles away in New York City. I must be imagining things. "Emma? What is it?" Tristan asked as he followed my gaze "I thought I saw..." "What?" "Ah, nothing.Never mind," I shook my head quickly. My stupid head must be ying tricks on me. This whole taking space away fromn thing was a lot harder than I thought. "So, you still wanna get lunch? I totally owe you one," Tristan asked. "Sure," I said. My eyes were still scanning around the quad, just to make sure one more time. "Let''s go then," Tristan got up and lent his hand out to me. I did a double look on all the corners of the quad and I didn''t see anything else. Letting out a small sigh, I took Tristan¡¯s hand and we headed out of the quad. I felt weirdly uneasy as I walked out of the quad, but quickly I shook it off and ignored it. I was probably too hungry. It must be my imagination. Ha -ha. Silly me. Chapter 87: Bitter Taste Chapter 87: Bitter Taste IAN¡¯s POV : "We''re just friends,"she said of him once. Friends my fucking ass! What I saw back there wasn¡¯t what just friends would do. She was sitting on hisp.He was hugging her and touching her.She was letting him.And they fucking kissed.I had to look away instantly, but the image was already burned into the back of my eyes. I wanted to gag.I was angry, confused, disgusted, and hurt.Everything all at once. Suddenly, I couldn''t breathe. My mouth fell open, but no air wasing in or out.I had to get out of there. Shoving past anyone who was in my way, I made it back to my car and mmed the door shut.Every time I closed my eyes, that image was all I saw. No matter how loud I screamed or how hard I punched the steering wheel in front of me, nothing could release me from the stinging pain in my chest. How could she do this to me? Emma, my baby girl, my sweet girl. The girl who¡¯s got my heart and soul in the palm of her hand. How could she hurt me like this? And how long has this been going on? Those thoughts were my only company as I sped away out of that town. For the next two hours, I was left alone with these thoughts and the aching pain in my heart. Does she love him too? Is this why she wants space from me? This is what she wants to figure out? The more my brain reyed the image in my head, the angrier I got. I was in the middle of the I-95 N when I swerved my car to the side of the road and stopped. I couldn''t take it anymore. I let out another angry scream and punched the steering wheel like a maniac. My bruised up hand picked up my phone instinctively because I wanted to call her and ask her for an exnation. But when I opened the screen, all I saw was Emma¡¯s face, smiling right at me. That got me even angrier for some reason. My fist curled into the phone, wishing somehow I could break it. When it didn''t work, I opened the car door and threw the metal thing straight to the ground. It cracked and broke into pieces. That was satisfying to watch. I stepped on the stupid thing a couple more times, making sure it was pulverized into millions of tiny pieces. Looking back, I didn¡¯t know why I did that. The stupid phone never did anything wrong. I was just so angry, I wanted to break anything. I''d crash this stupid car if I could. But that wouldn''t get us anywhere. Literally. Letting out an exhausted sigh, I got back inside the car and continued driving. All I wanted was an escape from this pain. I had to get away as fast and as far away from her as I could. But even as I got back to New York City and in thefort of my own apartment, the pain was still there. It was as strong and stubborn as ever. And even when I punched my own head with my fists, I couldn''t get the image of her and that guy out of my head. It was getting pathetic. My eyes went blurry and tears were falling out. Was I fiicking crying right now? Like a fiicking bitch? Staggering to the kitchen, I grabbed whatever alcoholic beverage I had in my arsenal and chugged it down in a sh. When I had finished the bottle and it didn¡¯t seem to work on me, I threw the stupid bottle away and the ss broke into tiny pieces. I grabbed another bottle and repeated the process again. Rinse and repeat. Until everything faded away and all I saw was ckness.I woke up to a loud pounding at the door. My body was too weak to move, so I didn¡¯t wanna get up. But the pounding never stopped and it was annoying me. The sound was piercing through my ears, causing my brain to the brink of explosion. n! Are you in there? Open this freaking door right now!" Ally was screaming her lungs out. "I''ming..." I croaked as I staggered to the door. As soon as I creaked the door open, Ally barged right in and shouted to my ears, "Hey! I¡¯ve been calling and calling! Don''t tell me you forgot about today?" "What day is it?" I squinted my eyes, trying to remember, but I couldn''t. "Oh my god,n, are you okay?" Ally gasped when she was my bloody and bruised knuckles. She then looked around the room and saw the gigantic mess that it was. Broken bottles and broken furniture were everywhere. Everything I could break with my hands, I did. "What the fiick happened here?"she sounded worried. "Stop yelling Ally, my head hurts.What do you want?" "What do I want?n, it''s Saturday! It¡¯s the gallery''s softunch," "Ah shit,"I muttered. "I forgot about that," It was Saturday already? I didn''t realize that. I was drinking so much, I didn¡¯t keep track of time. The only time I left my apartment was to get food and more liquors. I hadn¡¯t talked to Emma, or talked to anyone for that matter. I fell into this ck hole, drinking myself into oblivion every chance I got. "What''s going on here?n?" Ally sighed, reaching for my battered up hand. "I''m okay, I¡¯m good.Give me ten minutes, I''ll get dressed and we''ll go," I said and I pulled my hand away. n...Maybe we should go to a hospital?"she asked cautiously. "Nah.Just give me ten...actually give me twenty minutes," I waved my hand carelessly and sauntered towards the bathroom. I was good with my promise. I got ready within twenty minutes. I cleaned up all the blood, put some bandage on, washed my face, and I put on a shirt. Ally was watching my every move. She didn¡¯t say a word, but she didn''t have to. That look on her face said it all, she was worried sick.We got to the gallery just in time for the soft launch. It was a preview to a limited audience prior to the grand opening. We did this so we could get some feedback before officially showcasing the gallery to the world. Things were going great. Ally was working the room like a rock star, and I made contacts with some of the greatest art connoisseurs in the city. They also had champagne on free flow, and though it wasn''t my favorite alcohol of choice, it was better than nothing. After talking to a bunch of people, I was feeling tired again. I picked up a bottle of champagne from the open bar and sauntered towards the back office where there were no people. I thought I was gonna chill for a second, drink some champagne in the peace and quiet, when suddenly I saw Ally standing in front of the door. "What are you doing here?"Ally asked. "Me? What are you doing here?"I retorted yfully and she just sighed. "You wanna tell me what''s going on with you?"she asked point nkly. "After you left my apartment, I couldn''t reach you for days.Your phone was off ¡ª" "Actually, it''s broken.I broke it,"I cut her off. "What?" "Threw it out the highway," "Why did you do that for?" "Meh,"I shrugged. "And what''s going on with this?" she gestured to my bandaged hand and the cuts around my face, "All the broken bottles? The broken furniture? I thought thatn was gone a long time ago," "I guess he¡¯s back now,"I chuckled. Me and my damned anger issues. I was diagnosed with an intermittent explosive disorder when I was young. I became that guy when I couldn''t control myself, I had episodes where I reacted in violent, angry outbursts. It happened the first time when I found out about my dad¡¯s ident. That was the trigger that started everything. Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. But it had been a while since then, I was not the same stupid kid I was in high school. I got treated and I was better.I hadn''t had an episode in years.But now, it wasing back to me all over again. "Did something happen with Emma?"Ally asked after a while of silence. "Don''t say her name,"I hissed. Even hearing her name out loud was painful. "I don¡¯t wanna talk about her right now," "Okay..." she paused for a moment before continuing, "You''re right, let¡¯s not talk about her.It¡¯s our gallery''s softunch.Can you believe it? After years of hard work, blood, sweat and tears, we''re finally here," "Cheers to that," I lifted my bottle and chugged it down.I never cared about the taste of champagne. It was too sweet for my liking.After taking a big gulp, I put the half empty bottle away, not wanting to finish it.Ally watched me intently and suddenly a smile curved up her face. "I have something better than that if you want,"she said meaningfully. I narrowed my eyes at her as she sauntered casually behind the desk. She pulled a drawer open and picked up a bottle of The Macan M along with two sses. "Whoa? Al, this shit is expensive as fick!" Iughed merrily as I picked up the bottle, examining it. This thing could cost up to a thousand bucks a bottle. "Special asion,"she smirked. Pulling the bottle from me, she opened it and poured some into the two sses. "I''m just gonna have a sip.And I know you''re not in a celebratory mood, but ¡° "Celebration is not the only reason why we drink good whiskey," I cut her off, picking up a ss in my hand. "Hear, hear,"she smiled widely and lifted her ss to me. Our sses clinked and I downed that wonderful whiskey taste as soon as the ss hit my mouth. "To our blood, sweat, and tears,"Ally giggled. "All the wait is finally paid off," We kept talking and drinking, but I wasn¡¯t paying much attention to what she was saying. I was too busy pouring drinks and finishing them. I didn¡¯t remember how much I drank, but it was a lot. Because the next thing I knew, I was cking out again. Notpletely, I was still aware of things, but I could feel myself cking out. n? Hey? Are you okay?" Ally patted my face several times, pulling me out of the darkness. "Wha¡­. "I opened my eyes and saw that I was standing on hard pavement. We were standing outside the gallery. I was too weak to stand on my own, so my arm was around Ally and she was holding some of my body weight. The air outside was cold and wet, maybe it was raining a little. "Why are we here?"I asked. "We need to get you home,"she replied. "I don¡¯t wanna go.I want another drink," n, you¡¯ve had too much already," I wanted to go back inside, but Ally was blocking my way. I tried pushing her to the side, but she wasn''t bulging. I was too weak at this point to use my strength, so I groaned instead. Like a flicking kid that didn¡¯t get his toy. n, stop.I can¡¯t let you do this to yourself," she said as she put her hands around my face, holding me in ce , "You pulled me out of my hole, and now I¡¯m gonna do the same for you," "What are you talking¡¯ about?"I slurred. "I love you,n.So, just this once, will you look at me like you want me too?" "All ¡° She didn¡¯t give me a chance to speak. She closed the distance between us and her lipsnded on mine. My eyes were closed instinctively as I felt her deepening the kiss.My mind was nk at this point.My heart or my soul, none of it existed.All I had was this weak ass body.And all it could do was nothing...? Chapter 88: Acid Rain Chapter 88: Acid Rain EMMA¡¯s POV : Almost a week since that email and phone call debacle.I knew I asked for space, but I didn¡¯t know it was gonna be like this.I tried texting him once, but it wasn¡¯t even delivered.I tried calling, but it never went through. It was like he turned his phone off purposefully.Or maybe he blocked me? That couldn''t be true.We were in a fight, sure, but he wouldn''t do that to me.Something was definitely not right. Today wasn¡¯s gallery''s softunch and even though I wasn¡¯ting to it, I thought at least he¡¯d call and tell me about it. This was the longest Ian and I had gone withoutmunication. And though I was the one who asked for it, I hated every second of it. I did, however, end up applying for the Paris program and I would hear the result within a week. There was a small interview that I did for it yesterday, and my interviewer was positive that I would be a good fit for the program.That was a good sign. I was happy, but I wasn¡¯t too happy due to the circumstances. I wanted to telln about it, but I couldn''t. This whole taking time apart thing was a stupid idea. With every day that passed, I felt my heart sink lower and lower. I wanted to talk to him, even just to hear him yell at me, I would take it. But now I couldn''t even reach him. What was he doing? Was he still mad at me? Or was this his way of teaching me a lesson? Enough was enough. After a week of this torture, I couldn''t take it anymore. It was a Saturday night and although I should be studying for my finals, I ended up pulling my coat and boots out of my closet, ready to go. "Hey, you going somewhere?" Tristan asked when he saw me running across the living room haphazardly. "Yeah.New York City," I said simply and I didn¡¯t stop moving. I was putting my boots on and my coat on at the same. "Right now?" "Enough is enough, I can¡¯t study and I can''t concentrate.I can¡¯t live like this, I have to talk to him," I stated. Tristan was about to say something, but I didn¡¯t wait. I grabbed my purse from the kitchen counter and headed straight out the door. I was running as fast as I could. As soon as I stepped out of the apartment, I saw a taxicab and waved at it energetically. Taking the cab to the station, I told the driver to step on it. I wanted to make the next train out, which was in fifteen minutes. The sooner I could see him, the sooner we could make up and put this stupid thing behind us.I felt so dumb for what I did.I should have been more open andmunicative.I shouldn''t have kept him in the dark. "No matter what happens, we''ll work it out," I remembered he promised me once. "No matter what happens, we''ll work it out," I said to myself as if it was a mantra. The taxi driver probably thought I was crazy, but I didn''t care. I wanted to make sure I remember those words. That would be the first thing I tell him when I see him tonight. After getting off the Grand Central station, I took another cab towardsn¡¯s gallery. It was 9.30 PM and his softunch started an hour ago. He was probably still there. When the cab pulled up in front of the gallery, my heart was racing so fast, I felt like it was gonna burst right out of my chest. I paid the driver and stepped outside quickly. Light rain was drizzling outside, but I didn''t care. With a hand above my head as if it could cover me from the rain, I walked closer to the gallery. The ce looked amazing. There were these big windows all around and you could see everything inside, all the people and the many beautiful paintings hanging on the wall. My eyes darted around like a hawk, scanning the area for signs ofn. And then I saw him...or rather, I saw them. Ally andn were standing a few feet away from the entrance. Their faces were flushed against each other. They were kissing. She was kissing him hungrily and passionately, and he seemed perfectly okay with it. My eyes widened at the sight, and I wanted to look away, but I couldn''t. It was like a car wreck that you couldn''t turn away from. I was seeing everything in slow motion, every little detail. His hand was on her waist. Her hands were on his chest and they went up slowly to run across his hair.Their lips never broke apart...and their tongues... "No...!" I breathed. The sound of my voice seemed to have caughtn¡¯s attention. He pulled away abruptly and turned his head straight towards me. Our gaze met and his eyes jolted open in response. Mine was flooded with tears. This can''t be happening to me. Not again. Not him. Notn... Ian was frozen in his spot, looking at Ally with a confused look on his face. Meanwhile, Ally stared at me and a small smirk yed on her face. This was too painful to watch. With every bit of strength I had left in me, I turned to my heels and ran out of there as fast as I could. "Emma!" I heard him calling out after me, but I didn¡¯t turn around. "Emma!!!" he yelled even louder this time. I stopped my tracks and turned around. The rain was pouring harder andn was staggering towards me. It looked as if he could barely stand on his own, let alone walk. When he finally stood in front of me, I looked up at him, waiting for him to speak. My tears had blended with the rain falling on my face, it was hard to tell which was which. "What was that?"I spoke when he didn¡¯t say a word. "It''s not...what you think,"he looked lost, he couldn''t even look at me in the eye. "It''s not what I think? So I didn¡¯t see you two kiss?"I scoffed and pushed him by his shoulder. "What the hell,n?" "What? It¡¯s nothing you haven''t done!"he spat back. "What does that even mean?"I narrowed my eyes at him. I was waiting for an exnation, maybe even an apology. But here he was, yelling at me? "Don¡¯t y dumb, Emma.I know what you did," he snickered. "What?" "I never saw iting.I thought you were this pure, innocent angel,"he slurred, pausing for a moment before saying, "But turns out, you''re just like everybody else.You''re a fiicking whore," I was frozen in shock.He called me a what...? "You got nothing to say?"he taunted. "You probably did them all; Zach, Ryan, Tyler, and the kid living in your apartment.Well, I, for one, am not gonna stand here and be a hypocrite.I''ll admit it, yeah I kissed her.I fiicking did.But so what? What are you gonna do about it?" His eyes were clouded with anger and pride. I didn¡¯t know what came over me, but the next thing I knew, my hand flew across his face and connected with his cheek. *SMACK * I had pped him across the face. He looked away for a second, rubbing his chin a little, and then he looked back at me. His dark eyes pierced heavily into mine like he was about to kill me. He had never looked at me like this before. I suddenly got scared and I took a few steps back, but he moved in on me and boxed me in between a wall. I was trapped between his body and the tall wall behind me. We were in a smaller street, almost like an alley. It was raining hard and there was no one else around. Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. I looked up at him with pleading eyes, hoping he would stop moving, but he never did. My body was pinned hard against the cold concrete andn¡¯s hand flew up. I scrunched my eyes shut in anticipation, knowing I would feel the pain next. But his hand nevernded on me, it stood still in midair. I opened my eyes to see him stepping back. My body slumped down a little and I let out a sigh of relief. "Go.Get the fiick out of here," he said through gritted teeth. "What? You''re not gonna hit me?" I taunted. I probably shouldn''t do that, but I was angry too. I didn¡¯t know why he was mad, he didn''t have a reason to bet his mad. My anger was justified. I saw him kissing another girl, he admitted to kissing another girl. What did I do to deserve this? "Who are you?" I said, choking back the tears. "This is not you," "This is me!" he growled. "Now you''ve seen me for what I am and I''ve seen you for what you truly are," He looked at me with such disdain.It was like he hated me. "Do you not wanna be with me anymore? Is that what you''re trying to say?" I asked cautiously. He didn¡¯t answer me, but he didn¡¯t have to.That look on his face was loud and clear. His eyes were cold and t. He wouldn''t even care if I walk away right now and nevere back. He didn¡¯t love me anymore. "I...I don¡¯t know what''s going on.I...I can''t...I can¡¯t do this anymore," I was breaking in between sobs. "Leave then," "Is that really what you want?" "I told you to go a million times already, how many more times do I have to repeat myself?" That hurt so bad. He really wanted me gone. All my doubts and fears were truen was cheating on me with Ally.And now he chose her over me. "I really can''t do this anymore, I just can''t," I choked. "Me too," "This is it.We''re done," "Boo fucking hoo!" I felt like I was crushed into a million pieces. But he wasn''t fazed by it one bit. I looked at him and I couldn''t recognize the person standing in front of me. For a while, I refused to believe that this was him. But he said it himself, this is who he is. This was the real him. "Don''t ever talk to me again," I spat finally, ring daggers at him using all the strength I had left in me. ¡°Goodbyen," And with that, I turned around and I never looked backn never said another word to me either.He simply let me go.Like I didn''t mean anything at all.I walked all the way to Grand Central Station on foot and under the rain. It was a twenty minute walk and I was crying the entire time.I was racking my brain, trying to make sense of it all, but none of this made sense.After almost four years together, one night changed everything... How could that make sense? He was calling me names.He was yelling at me.He broke my heart right in front of my face.He wasn¡¯t even sorry about it.He really couldn''t care less about me. Was it all because I wanted to go to Paris? No, maybe it was before that. We¡¯d been drifting apart here and there. Maybe he realized he never wanted me all along. He wanted Ally and not me. Images ofn and Ally kissing, and maybe doing more than that, filled my already heavy head. I had to stop and held onto a light pole because it was getting hard to stand on my own feet. Air was escaping my lungs and no matter how hard I try, I couldn''t breathe. It all made sense to me now. The distance between us made him realize that he didn''t love me anymore. At the end of the day, I wasn''t enough for him. Our love wasn''t enough. How could he do this to me? I broke down in the middle of the street in that dead of night. The rain continued to pour mercilessly as I continued sobbing into the cold air. Get it through your thick head, girl! This is the cold, hard truth. He doesn¡¯t love you any more. He wants her and you''re only in the way. I didn¡¯t have the strength to stand anymore. I curled under the rain, on the hard concrete, wishing the earth would swallow me whole. Everything has an expiration date, and our love was no exception. As powerful as it may be, like all things in the world, love ends. And ours ended tonight. Chapter 89: Darkest Days Chapter 89: Darkest Days IAN¡¯s POV : Reality sank in when I woke up in the morning. My memories came in shes. I was in the gallery.I was drinking a bit.I met Ally in the back office.We drank some more. I got out of the gallery, Ally was sending me home.She kissed me. I kissed her back. And then I saw Emma. She saw us too. She ran away and I instinctively ran after her. I was still mad at her. My mouth had no filter. I said some things I shouldn''t have said. I didn¡¯t even apologize for what happened outside the gallery. I was hit with another episode, I almost struck my hand at her. But thank God, I didn''t. That was probably the only good thing that happenedst night. And then she left me. I wanted to go after her, but I didn¡¯t. I slumped against the wall and sat under the rain for what felt like hours. My mind and my body had betrayed me. I might as welly there like the trash that I was. Ally came looking for me. She lifted me up and hailed a cab. She brought me to the hospital. I was out for about three days. When I woke up this morning, I asked the nurse what day it was and she said it was Tuesday. As the nurse checked on my vitals, Iy on the hospital bed and reyed all the events that transpired on Saturday night. I cringed at all the words I never meant to say to Emma, but I said it anyway. She must really hate me right now. "How are you feeling, Mr.Hayes?" the nurse asked. She was an olderdy, probably in her forties. "Meh,"I shrugged. "I''ve been better," "You''ll feel better after some rest," she paused for a moment before continuing, "Your girlfriend is waiting outside to see you, would you like to see her?" "My girlfriend?" my eyes shot up instantly. "Yeah, she¡¯s been waiting for you to wake up," Emma¡¯s here? She''s waiting for me? "I wanna see her, please,"I said to the nurse. "Alright, I''ll go get her,"she nodded to me. I watched the nurse exited the room and my eyes were glued to the door. I knew I had a lot of exining and apologizing to do. I said the worst things to her, she had every right to be mad at me. But instead, here she was, waiting in the hospital for me. I waited in heavy anticipation and a familiar looking girl stepped into the room. I squinted my eyes to get a better look.It wasn''t Emma. "Hey, you''re up?" Ally smiled. "Ally?" She strode over to the bed and took my hand in hers, saying, "I was so worried.The doctor said you were severely dehydrated," "How? I was drinking the entire time,"I stifled augh. n,"she scolded. "Kidding," "Are you feeling better now?" "I don¡¯t know,"I sighed. My eyes darted to the doorway again, but there was no one in sight. "Hey, have you seen Emma around?" "No, not since that night," she shook her head. Her fingers ran circles around my hand. It was soothing and nice, but I felt awkward. Pulling my hand away slightly, I said, "Hey, Al.About that night...and the kiss..." "Yeah?"she looked up at me. "It didn''t mean anything.I was so drunk and angry,"I exined. "Oh.Right..."her shoulders fell as if she was disappointed. "I''m sorry," "No, yeah, no.I¡¯m sorry too,"she said quickly. "I didn¡¯t know why I did that.Probably just a heat of the moment thing," "I love you too, Ally.As a friend.You''re one of my best and oldest friends," I said meaningfully. She had been a rock for me throughout these years. That night was a total mistake. I never wanted to ruin our friendship. "Yeah, I know.That''s what I meant too," she forced out a smile. The room got quiet for a while.Ally shuffled awkwardly, not sure of what to do. "Do you know when they''ll let me outta here?" I said finally. "I can ask the doctor," she replied. "Would you mind?" She shook her head and said, "I''ll be right back,"Ally exited the room and I let out a deep sigh I didn''t know I was holding. My body felt weak and my brain was only half working, but I had to get out of here and fix the shit I¡¯ve caused. I didn¡¯t know how, but I had to try. I have to go find her. I had to wait another three days before the hospital finally discharged me. What a load of crap that was. And even after I was discharged, I was too weak to even drive a car on my own. Ally had to drive me back and helped me around the house. With her help, I managed to get ahold of a new phone, though. I tried calling Emma, but the call never went through. I was wondering how that could be, because even if she was blocking me, she couldn''t possibly know this number. Finally, after another three days of bed rest, I felt strong enough to walk and do things on my own. I got in a car and made the drive to her apartment in Philly. Throughout the two hour drive, I was rehearsing the speech that I would give her. I¡¯d hold her in my arms and tell her about how sorry I am and how much of a jackass I¡¯ve been. I''d tell her that I''d forgive her for cheating on me if she was done with it. And I''d do whatever it takes for her to give me a second chance. She might ask me to let her go, but I won''t. Not this time.Not ever. I arrived in front of her apartment building a little after 10 AM. I noticed that the campus area was not as crowded since it was finals week. A lot of them were probably cooped up inside, studying, and taking exams. Walking up to her apartment door, I was praying to god that my timing wasn¡¯t off. Emma was probably stressed out enough by finals, hopefully me showing up at her door wouldn''t add to the stress. I knocked on the door and waited patiently. I rehearsed the same words again and again in my head, ¡®I¡¯m sorry, please forgive me¡¯. The door opened suddenly and Tristan was standing there. My fists curled instinctively, but I held it together. I didn¡¯te here for a fight. "What do you want?"he scowled. "Where¡¯s Emma?" "She''s not here," "Where is she?" "Why should I tell you?" This kid was getting on myst nerve. I tried to be nice, but he had the audacity to be a smartass with me. I gritted my teeth and my fist connected to the wall by the door, making a loud thumping noise. "I swear to fucking god, if you don''t tell me where she is..." "Tristan? Who''s at the door?" I heard a girl''s voiceing towards us.It was Sophie, Emma''s other roommate. Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. She looked shocked to see me, gasping, "Oh, it¡¯s you," "Where the hell is she?" I directed the question to Sophie since Tristan wasn''t amodating. "Wait here," Sophie said and she turned to the living room. She grabbed a white envelope from the coffee table and brought it over to me, saying "Emma left this for you," I eyed the enveloped suspiciously, but I took it from her anyway. On the inside were the engagement ring and the charm bracelet I had gotten her. There was also a folded up paper. I took it out and unfolded it, revealing her handwriting. So here it is. For what it''s worth, you''ll always have a special ce in my heart.You are the best and the worst thing that¡¯s ever happened to me.And though it had to end this way, I have no regrets. I hope the same for you too. Good bye. I scrunched the piece of paper in my hand and my fist connected to the wall again, causing Sophie to jump in shock. "Tell me where is! Now!" I growled. "Don¡¯t say anything,"Tristan told her. "He deserves to know,"Sophie pped back. "Know what?"I pressed. "She moved out.She moved right after we finished our finals,"Sophie answered. "Moved where?" "Paris," "What?" "Stop talking, Soph," Tristan ordered, but his sister kept going. "She got in the program and she left early. Actually, she just left for the airport this morning," It took me a split second to register everything I just heard. Emma was leaving for Paris. She just left this morning. I was about to turn around and head outside, when I felt a hand on my shoulder, stopping me. "Don''t go after her," I turned my face to the side and saw Tristan¡¯s hand on me. "Tristan, what are you doing?" Sophie asked. "Get your fucking hand off me," I warned. "She¡¯s way better off without you.You don''t deserve her, not after how you hurt her," "I swear to god, don''t flick with me.I know what you two did.She was cheating on me with you," "What?"Tristan gaped. "I saw you two at the quad," "Quad? Oh...that," There was no look of remorse on his face. If I wasn''t in such a rush right now, I would dly take the time to break his stupid jaw. "Tristan, what is he talking about?" Sophie asked. "Nothing, we never did anything. Emma was just pretending to kiss me because Monique was there," "Oh,"she mouthed knowingly. "What?"I questioned. "It''s a stupid thing.Emma was helping Tristan to make this girl jealous,"Sophie said tome. "What?"I repeated myself. "Nothing happened you dumb fiick!"Tristan red. "Emma and I aren''t like that.I mean, sure, I have a crush on her.But who doesn¡¯t? She never looked at me as more than a friend.She never did anything more than be a great friend to me," Wait, what? It was all just a pretend thing? They never actually got together? Emma never cheated on me? "I know my ce, I don''t deserve her either.I''m just the creep that watches her from the far.But at least I know enough to keep my distance and not hurt her the way you did," Tristan continued. She never cheated on me and I kissed another girl right in front of her face. And then I said the most hurtful things to her. And I made her leave. "If you really love her, you need to let her go.She¡¯s leaving because she wants to be away from you.You''re only holding her back," I red at Tristan as he said those words.This dumb motherfucker didn¡¯t know shit about me and my love for her.I would never hold her back. I would always be her number one supporter. He just happened to catch me at a really bad time. Actually, the timing for all this shit couldn''t be worse. "Yeah? That''s too bad. ¡®Cause I don''t give a shit," I spat at the kid and shoved his hand away. Not wasting any more time, I dashed out of there as fast as I could. My weak body was betraying me, but I didn¡¯t stop. With everything I had left in me, I raced to my car and sped away. Tristan didn¡¯t know our story. I was that guy before, I let Emma go because I thought she deserves better. I thought that was love, but it wasn¡¯t. It was insecurity and pride. Love is kind, love is patient. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. Sure, my love for her wasn¡¯t perfect. But that¡¯s the thing about being human. We weren''t meant to love perfectly, just whole-heartedly. As soon as I pulled up in front of the airport, I got out and left the car running outside, breaking whatever rules they had. This was nothingpared to the kind of rules we broke when we were dating the first time. Racing through the crowded airport, I scanned frantically for signs of her. Looking at the huge screen, I noted that the next flight to Paris was boarding through gate 4. I raced over to the gate, pushing past the sea of people. "Sir, sir, we need your ticket and ID,"the airportdy security stopped me. "I have to go see her.I have to talk to her,"I pleaded. "She''s leaving on that ne to Paris," "Sir," "Please," "Sir!"she raised her voice and stated firmly, "The ne to Paris had departed," "What?" She gestured to the board above her head and I looked at the board again. Next to Paris, it was written in big bold yellow letters: Departed. I was toote.She was gone. Chapter 90: Little Lies Chapter 90: Little Lies EMMA¡¯s POV : I waited for three days. I didn¡¯t leave my room and I cried nonstop. Tristan and Sophie tried everything to cheer me up, but I just wanted to be alone. For three days and three nights, I couldn¡¯t sleep and I could barely eat. I only left my room to take my exams, but that was it. Not even once. I was in denial at first. I thought, surely he would call. Surely he would apologize. But he never did. He really wanted out of our rtionship. I didn¡¯t see thising at all. I should have. The signs were all there. Ever since he moved to New York City and started that gallery with her, that was all he could ever talk about. They were together twenty four seven. Clearly, they were into each other. It was only a matter of time. And now it was done, there was no denying it. He chose her. And why would he not? She was beautiful and smart. They were great friends. Life with her would be easier and lessplicated. I guess she gave him things I couldn''t give to him. After three days of punishing myself and wallowing in my heartbreak, I got a call that would change the course of my life. At first, I thought it wasn, but it was actually the dean of my department. She congratted me, telling me that I got into the Paris program. She exined everything in detail, how the program works and what my next steps would be like. When she asked me if I had any questions, I told her I have just one. "How soon can I leave?" "The program itself starts in the fall, but you can leave as soon as you''re done with your finals.Paris is beautiful in the summer.You''ll have a wonderful time exploring the city,"she said. Long story short, I took her advice. In the next few days, I finished my finals, booked a ticket and Airbnb, and packed my bags. I said goodbye to Tristan and Sophie, we had dinner together and Sophie was balling her eyes out, saying that she''lle to visit me in Paris. I also talked to my parents on the phone, they were supportive of my decision and they told me to call every week, and I agreed to it. Everything was set and done, I was ready to go. Of course, I couldn¡¯t just go without saying goodbye ton. Despite our terrible falling out, it didn''t feel right leaving without saying anything. I thought about going to the city and talk to him in person, but after ourst conversation, I didn¡¯t think I could see his face any more. It was too painful.So instead, I wrote him a letter. It was already Sunday and I didn¡¯t have time to get a stamp and send it to the post office, so I left the letter with Sophie. She promised that she¡¯d get it done tomorrow. Tristan didn¡¯t say much as I said goodbye to him, but I knew he was sad to see me leave. I was sad too, honestly, but staying was gonna be even harder. Paris was exactly what I needed right now and we both knew it. This is from N?velDrama.Org. So on that fateful Sunday morning, I took my bags and I got on a cab. Tristan and Sophie wanted to take me to the airport, but I told them not to. It was hard enough saying goodbye at the apartment.I didn¡¯t wanna make things worse. As the taxicab rode through town, I was reminded of the memories I¡¯ve had in Philly. I remembered the first timen and I drove up to campus. He helped me move in and I met Sophie and Tristan. I remembered the parties I went to, the study nights, the holidays, thete night phone calls, and the train trips to New York City. They were beautiful memories. Some were more painful than the others, but beautiful nheless. But now, it was time to leave it all behind. Love came and went like the seasons that change. Our love story hade to an end. But with every story that ends, another one will begin. I chose to believe in that. So as the ne took off and I was brought up 30,000 feet into the air, I closed my eyes and closed the chapter on us. This was the end, and a new beginning shall begin. ---- Two Months Later - - - - I was right. Or actually, the band Semisonic was right when they sang, "every new beginninges from some other beginning¡¯s end". I had a lovely summer in Paris. Of course, I cried all night long the first week I was there. But after that first week, I made friends through the guesthouse I stayed in.I also met new people that attended the same program as me. I went and did an interview for a creative emercepany called Le Parisien, and they hired me as an intern, starting in the fall.I also visited the Sorbonne campus for the international student mixer, and that was a lot of fun.I also took full advantage of thete academic starting dates in Europe by taking a little road trip with the friends I made at the guesthouse. We backpacked through Croatia, Italy, and Spain, before spending some time in the south of France.It was truly an unforgettable experience.I saw probably some of the most beautiful beaches in the world.And some of the most beautiful people too. Wink, wink. I didn''t mean I was on going on dates or whatever.I was done with love, not at this moment at least.I did, however, enjoy the asional attention guys would give me, and I''d admit that I checked out some guys that I thought was attractive. But that was it. I never acted on anything as I had sworn off men.I didn''t want no drama any more.I just wanted a peaceful cultural study abroad experience, and if hot French guys happened to be around...well, I would watch, but not touch! ---- Three Months Later - - - - Time was flying by as soon as I started the fall semester at Sorbonne. My days were filled with taking sses at the university, making new friends every chance I could, and interning at Le Parisien for three days a week. In my free time, I took a French speaking ss and attended events like wine tasting or trying out Michelin starred restaurants. I barely had any time for myself, but I was fine with that. I wanted to experience to the fullest. Summer was gone as the air cooled and the leaves started to fall all around the city. The fall season was beautiful, but it came and went just as fast as the summer did. Before I knew it, I was nearing the end of December and the first break of my semester. Christmas was approaching and Sophie and Tristan wereing to visit me. Sophie, like always, managed to find cheap tickets and she convinced Tristan toe. I was excited for them toe visit Paris. I even made a seven day itinerary, listing all the ces I would like Sophie and Tristan to see. As if that wasn¡¯t amazing enough, my other two best friends decided to join in as well. Tiff and Carrie got on a ne and came to surprise me! They missed me terribly, but mainly they were also worried about me. I didn¡¯t tell them about the breakup withn until a few months ago. I always dodged the subject because if I said it out loud, it became so much more real. When I couldn''t lie anymore, I told Tiff and Carrie everything and they wanted to jump on an airne right away. I told them to chill and exined that everything was fine with me. Things were going great in my life and they had no reason to be upset. So, long story short, I got to spend the Christmas holiday with my four favorite people in the world. My favorite memory of the entire holiday was our trip to Disnend. We went there on Christmas Eve and though it was packed with people, we had a lot of fun. We ate so many sweets, rode so many rides, and watched the fireworks at the end of the night. And then the cutest thing in the world happened; Tristan and Tiff kissed during the fireworks! ? I couldn''t be happier for them. They were perfect for each other. The moment Tiffid eyes on Tristan when they first met, I knew she liked him then and there. But she was ying hard to get and Tristan wasn¡¯t the aggressive type. It took them a whole week of exploring Paris and a trip to Disnend before they finally admitted that they were into each other. That was really sweet. Before I knew it, another week had passed and it was time for my friends to go back home. We spent ourst night together in their Airbnb. Sophie and Tristan had booked a two bedroom apartment in the city and it was big enough for all five of us. After dinner and some drinks, Tristan and Tiff retired to one of the bedrooms. Carrie, Sophie, and I would use the other one. It was 2 AM in the morning and I was lying in bed next to Carrie and Sophie as we talked about life, love, and other girl stuff. Carrie had fallen asleep at this point, so it was just Sophie and I talking. She was telling me about hertest rtionship woes with Micah and I was just listening patiently. "Hey, Emmie..."Sophie said suddenly. "Hmm?"my eyes were closed and I was half asleep by this point. "Tristan didn¡¯t want me to tell you this, but I think you should know..n came to the apartment the day you left," "He did?"my eyes shot up instantly. "I gave him your letter, then he asked us where you were, and I told him you were leaving for Paris," "Oh..."I mouthed. That was weirdn waited a week before he decided toe look for me? "Did he ever contact you?"she asked. "No..." Granted, I changed my phone number when I got here, but there were other ways for him to contact me. I had social media. He knew my emails. "I know you said he chose another girl over you, but from the way he was looking for you that day, it looked like he was still in love with you," Sophie said.I found that hard to believe.If he loved me, why did he choose Ally over me? Why did he treat me that way? And why did he let me go so easily? "Do you still love him?"she asked.I didn¡¯t answer her, but I didn''t have to. My eyes pooled with tears and Sophie knew the answer right away. "Whatever Soph, the past is in the past," I shrugged, trying to sound as casual as possible, "It''s been eight months and he¡¯s three thousand miles away," "But you dated him for almost four years," "Not entirely for four years.We broke up here and there a few times," "It was always rocky, huh?" "Not always, but sometimes, yeah,"I admitted. "Do you think you guys will get back together?" I thought about the question for a while before answering, "No..." "We''ve tried it so many times already.We''re just not meant to be.It sucks when you think you¡¯re soul mates with someone, but then you realize you''re just two dumb people who were once in love,"Sophie listened patiently. There was a while of silence between us until she said, "So...are you like, moved on now?" Have I really moved on? Great question and the answer to that would be: No.Hell no. Of course, not.As much as I wanted to, there was no way I was overn. I had never loved anyone as much as I loved him.I never felt anything remotely close to what I''ve felt for him.I might never find anything like that again, ever. All I''ve been doing was keeping myself busy and suppressing my feelings. But with each day that passed, I was still haunted by the gnawing hole in my heart.I missed him so bad, it literally hurt. I thought about him all the time, even when I was out talking to people or traveling to new ces ¡ª he was always on my mind. I never said it out loud or acted on it because I was so deep in denial.I put up a good front, but on the inside, I was dying. "I wish I''ve moved on.I wish I could.You don''t know how bad I wish I could," "Oh, Emmie, don''t beat yourself up," "Breakups are like grieving.It¡¯s a process.It''s gonna take some time, but you''re on the right track. The first step is to admit to your denial," "How do I get to thest step? Is there a shortcut?" "There are no shortcuts when ites to the matter of the heart," "I just wanna move on already.I¡¯m tired of this torture," "You''ll get through this, I promise," Sophie hugged me and stroked my hair gently as we fell asleep that night. Asforting as that was, it wasn''t enough to cover the gigantic hole in my heart. I thought that with time the pain should be healed, but it was only getting worse and worse.I hated this.I hated him for putting me through this. For eight months I was haunted by memories and thoughts of him. I could only wonder if he¡¯d thought of me as much as I''ve thought of him.I looked over to my side and saw that Sophie had fallen asleep. Meanwhile, I was absolutely wide awake.Our conversation had awoken mepletely. Without thinking too much, my hand reached for my phone aimlessly and I did the first thing that came to mind.I typed in n Hayes¡¯ to a google search. Chapter 91: Parisian Romance Chapter 91: Parisian Romance EMMA¡¯s POV : For the first time in eight months, I typed his name into a google search. A few things came up. There was an article in The New Yorker about the gallery¡¯s grand opening. The article praised the exhibition, calling it a creative space for international contemporary art lovers. There was also a picture ofn and Ally, standing together in front of the gallery with Mayor de sio. They were smiling from ear to ear. They sure made a great looking couple. That was painful to see. The article even called them '' the power duo¡¯, New York''s hottest art lovers. I put my phone down and immediately regretted my decision. I should have never googled an ex. Ever. But I was stubborn. After my friends went back to the States, I was alone in my apartment again and I was forced to deal with my feelings. There were still a few days left in the holiday, so I had no excuse to be busy with school or the internship. In my desperate, boredom stage, I ended up googling his name again. This time, I found Ally¡¯s social media page. He wanted to keep himself and his activities hidden from the world. He also never liked the idea of social media in the first ce. But finding Ally¡¯s Instagram page was like finding and mine. Her page was filled with pictures of her andn. Ian looked...great, of course. His hair was longer and his jaw was scruffier. He wore a lot of suits now and he looked amazing in them. His tattoos would peak out of his cor and I remembered how much I enjoyed running my fingers through his inked skin. Ugh! I need to stop! We just entered a new year and this year my resolution was to stop pining over my long lost love. Stalking his girlfriend¡¯s instagram page wasn''t gonna help my case. I threw my stupid phone on the bed groaned into a pillow. I''m so pathetic! I can¡¯t keep living like this! I have to do something! Suddenly, I was hit with an idea. I grabbed my phone again and stared nkly at the screen for a few seconds. Not wanting to overthink things anymore, my finger tapped the screen several times and I got right to work. This was probably not one of my brightest moments. I just download Tinder. For a while, all I did in that app was swipe people. Swiping left, swiping right, it was just something to entertain myself. I wasn¡¯t in any mood to find love, especially not on Tinder in a foreignnd. I was just bored, honestly. And looking at these guys¡¯ faces on my screen was a safe way to remind myself that there are other people out there. There could still be a future for me aftern Hayes. Sometimes the guys I matched with would send me messages and they could be ttering. They were a great confidence boost, and I would leave it at that. But some days when I got super bored, I ended up replying to their messages. I didn''t think of much of it. I only downloaded the app for fun anyway. But after talking to several guys for a few weeks, the idea of meeting one of them seemed enticing. "I don¡¯t have to marry the guy, I¡¯m just looking for friends," I said to myself. So one day in early March, I agreed to go on a date with this guy, Olivier. He seemed like a sweet guy with beautiful eyes, and we bonded over our love of Harry Potter. We agreed to meet at this bar not too far from my apartmentplex. The thing about online dating that I quickly learned was that people were not what they seemed. Yes, he looked nice in his pictures and he seemed like a genuine guy on the phone, but as soon as we met that night, all he wanted to do was to shove his tongue down my throat. Needless to say, it wasn¡¯t a great experience. Maybe I was too naive going into this date thinking that ms nA im his it wouldn¡¯t go this way. I mean, think about it, what is France famous for? No, not the French fries, they were actually from Belgium. I was talking about the French kiss. Kissing in France was more than an act. It was like an art form, and French people were more than willing to indulge in them in public. I noticed that French men were effeminate. Of course, there were masculine French men in the city, but I was talking about their culture. They tended to embrace their feminine side more openly than guys in America. In America, men showing their feminine side were often considered gay or weak. In France, guys were more vocal about their love for art and romance. They didn¡¯t care about being too forward or mushy, they only did what they feel. Still, shoving their uninvited tongue down my throat did not scream romance to me. "Uhm, yeah, okay, no, sorry, I don''t think this gonna work," I said as I pushed Olivier by his chest. He looked at me in confusion as I gathered my purse and stood up straight. "Something wrong?"he asked. Oh, gee, if you have to ask, I don¡¯t even know where to begin.I smiled politely at him and said, "Sorry, I''m just not into it.Have a good night," Not waiting for him to say another word, I turned to my heels and walked out of the bar in a sh. It waste at night and I didn¡¯t feel like walking home alone, so I decided to get an Uber. I was waiting for my Uber in front of the bar, when suddenly a tall guy in messy dirty blonde hair and bright blue eyes approached me. "Tough night, eh?"he greeted. "Excuse me?" "I saw you inside.From the looks of it, you could use some of this,"he lent out a pack of cigarettes to me, and I shook my head in response. "No, I¡¯m good, thank you," "You are an American?" "Yes," "What state are you from?" "Georgia originally," "Oh, I thought you''re from Tennessee.Because you''re the " "Only ten I see?" Iughed drily. Our eyes met and weughed at themeness of that pick-up line. For a French guy, his English was pretty good even though his ent was heavy. "What''s your name?"he asked. "Emma," "Nice to meet you, Emma.I¡¯m Elliott Jacques,"he put his hand out to me and I took it politely. When I was about to pull away, however, he held onto it a second longer. There was tension in the air, absolutely. "So tell me, aside from being drop-dead gorgeous, what do you for a living?"he said after a while of silence. "I''m still in my third year of college.I''m on an exchange program,"I said, sounding as casual as possible. "Oh, my mistake.I thought you are a magician," "Why?" I narrowed my eyes at him. "Because every time I look at you, everyone else disappears," I couldn¡¯t help butugh a little. "Are you always this...cheesy?" "Me? You''re the one who''s made of cheese," "What?" "Because you''re looking Gouda tonight!"he grinned. "Stop!" I rolled my eyes at him. "Oh, I can keep going all night long," N?velDrama.Org content. "..That¡¯s what she said,"we both said this joke in unison. Our eyes met again and we smiled appreciatively at each other¡¯s humor. It was a weird moment, like we both somehow clicked together. At that moment, my Uber pulled up in front of the bar and I took a step towards it. "It¡¯s my ride, I have to go," "Wait, before you go," he stopped my tracks, pausing for a second before saying, "Don¡¯t tell me if you want me to take you out to dinner.Just smile for yes or kick me in the nuts for no," That was funny yet charming. I didn''t know how to respond to that, so I just said, "You''re so weird," But at the end of that night, I did agree on getting dinner with him and he did get my number. Not counting the weird meet-up with Olivier at that bar, I hadn''t been on a proper date with a guy other thann since I was sixteen. Then again, I couldn''t really count that as going on a date since we mostly stayed in his apartment and made out. I honestly couldn''t remember thest time I went out on a proper date. Elliott was surprisingly a very sweet guy. On our first date, we got dinner at this romantic restaurant by the Seine River. As we were having dinner, I found out that he was actually a music teacher. What was it with teachers and me? Anyway, we took a walk along the river after dinner and we talked about everything from music to our existential crises. He asked if he could hold my hand and I let him. There was something so nice about a twenty five year old guy asking to hold my hand instead of shoving their tongue down my throat. For our second date, Elliott and I went to the Carnavalet Museum and took a walk around the garden. It was sunset by the time we got to the garden, so the ce looked extra beautiful. I noticed he was looking at my face a lot throughout the day and when I confronted him about it, he calmly responded with, "I keep looking at your because it¡¯s so beautiful and I want to kiss you," We did kiss that day. In the garden at sunset. It was just a short, sweet kiss. But I had a feeling I wouldn''t forget it that easily. On our third date, we took a day trip to Loire Valley. It was a beautiful area with a castle, historical towns, vineyards, and fruit orchards. We did a wine tasting in the vineyard and Elliott kept raving about this ss of wine being the best wine ever. I asked him if I could try it and he proceeded with kissing me on the lips, parting my mouth open with the tip of his tongue, and a slurp of wine poured into my mouth. He was very smooth with that. Our fourth date was a lot of fun. We went to a jazz club called Le Bal Blomet and I learned that Elliott was a great drums yer and dancer. He was like a gift that keeps on giving. We drank martinis, danced all night, and we made out a little. Okay, fine, we made out a lot. So far in my life, I had kissed six guys in total. The first one was Zach, thenn, Ryan, Tyler, and Olivier the too much tongue guy, and Elliott. Elliott was definitely on the top two. He was so good with his tongue, he might even be a better kisser thann. Tonight was our fifth date. Elliott mentioned that he enjoyed cooking and he wanted to make dinner for me. So after my internship that day, I went to his apartment in the heart of the city. There was a balcony in his apartment and you could see the Eiffel Tower from it. It was absolutely gorgeous. Dinner was exquisite too. He made a ssic Lyonnaise sd and filet mignon with B¨¦arnaise sauce. It was like a meal straight out of a five star restaurant. After dinner, we sat on the balcony, listening to music and watching the beautiful Paris skyline in front of us. I had a ss of wine with me and we were just talking in the beginning, but as the night went on, talking turned into locking lips. We were kissing each other for what felt like an eternity. I was relishing in the way his tongue danced around the corners of my mouth. My hands ran through his lush dirty blonde hair and his hands were on my hips. His lips now left my mouth and he inched towards my necks. He peppered kisses all along my jaw until he reached the crook of my neck. His hand traveled up from my waist, resting just below my breasts. I felt a familiar warmth burning inside my stomach, something I hadn''t felt in a long time. When his lips found the sweet spot on my neck, I almost lost it. Ian¡¯s face shed before my eyes and I gasped instantly, my body jolted like it was struck by lighting. I pushed Elliott away with both my hands, causing him to flinch. "I''m sorry, did I do something wrong?" he asked, wildly confused. "No...no, it¡¯s not you..." "Emma, it¡¯s okay.We don''t have to do anything you don''t want to,"he said sweetly. Elliott was absolutely sweet and I wanted to kiss him some more, I didn¡¯t know whyn had to pop up into my head like that. Shaking that stupid image out of my head, I took a deep breath and made perhaps one of the biggest decisions of my love life sincen Hayes. "But I do," I said to Elliott. His eyes lit up as soon as I said it. He leaned his face down again and kissed me gently on the cheek, saying, "Are you sure?" "Yes, I¡¯m sure," A sweet smile curved up his face as he got up to his feet. He lent his hand out to me and I took it. Slowly, he led me back inside and we kept walking until we reached his bedroom. Standing in front of his bed, Elliott titted my face up with one hand and captured my lips with his again. His other hand snaked around my back and found the zipper to my dress. Tugging the zipper down, Elliott peeled the dress from my body until it pooled around my feet on the floor. My hands worked on unbuttoning his shirt until he was topless, revealing his lean but toned muscles. '' "Have you ever had a French man made love to you before?"he asked seductively to my ears. "No,"I replied. The only guy that had ever made love to me was he who must not be named, and it had been almost a year since then. "Then you will remember this forever," he said and in one fell swoop, I was brought down to the bed and he was hovering on top of me. He leaned down and I felt his tongue traveling from my neck down to my chest, then stomach, and now it rested in front of my lower area. He looked up at me and smiled a beautiful smile. I tilted my head back and surrendered myself to his touch. I hope so too, Elliott. Please, make me remember this and forget him instead. Chapter 92: Return Policy Chapter 92: Return Policy IAN¡¯s POV : When I saw that she had left, I was hit with the realization that I was a scum that never deserved her in the first ce. I knew she was better off without me, so I tucked my tail between my legs like goddamn bitch and and let her be. Still, no matter how hard I try, I could never get her off my mind. No matter how busy I was, how much money I was making, or how well the gallery was doing, all the sesses in the world couldn''t satisfy me. "What you need is to getid," Ally had been saying that since day one. Sure, I¡¯ve thought about gettingid before. The gallery was a hotspot for art lovers, celebrities, and models. There were plenty of times where I could¡¯ve got myself an easyy. But every time I looked at a girl, all I could see was her glimmering eyes. I''d look at a girl''s lips and think, that¡¯s not her lips. I''d hear a girl¡¯sugh and I think, that¡¯s not herugh. And all I wanted was her. No one else but her. Pathetic, I know. She was the one for me, but I let her go. When I saw that her ne had left, I thought to myself, maybe it was a sign. People said that love is a feeling you feel or love is an action you take, but to me love is timing. You could have all the feeling in the world and take all the actions you could take, but if the timing was off, it wouldn''t happen. The right person at the wrong time would still be the wrong person. I guess what I meant to say was this: I was wrong for her. She was right for me, she was perfect for me, but I wasn¡¯t that guy for her. That punk Tristan, no matter how much I hate the guy, was right. I had hurt her so bad, she left an entire country to get away from me. I was done forcing myself back into her life. I''ve done that before, she gave me plenty of second chances, and all I did was ruin it. I broke her heart so many times already, she didn¡¯t deserve that shit. So, I made a resolution that I wasn''t gonna try and get her back. If someday she''de back and we meet again and the timing was right, maybe we were meant to be. But if she went out there and found something better than what I could give her, then by all means. "Is that your third ss already?" I looked up from my ss of scotch and saw Ally standing at the doorway. We just closed the gallery for the night and I decided to reward myself with a little scotch in the back office. "Fourth.But I''m done now," I said as I put the bottle back in the bottom drawer. Ally and I made a deal that I shouldn''t be drinking too much. Three sses were my limit. But today was a hard day, so I gave myself an extra push. "Hey,n, are you okay?" she tilted her head to the side and watched me intently. She always knew when something wasn¡¯t right.I couldn''t get anything past her. "It¡¯s just one of those days,"I shrugged. "You''ve been having a lot of thattely,"shemented. That was a true observation. Not sure why, but I¡¯ve been dreaming a lot about Emma these days. Thoughts of her kept me up all night. Some nights I would wake up searching for her on my bed, but all I caught was empty air. Guess I''ve just been missing her a lot moretely. Ally walked over and reached for the top drawer. She pulled out a clear tube with blue colored pills on the inside. Shaking the tube in front of me, she said, "Do you want some of this? It''ll help you get a good night sleep," That was probably her medication. She had been seeing a psychiatrist and he prescribed her some meds that would help her with sleeping and anxiety. My eyes were glued to the pills as I thought about her offer. "You know what, give me that,"I said as I reached for the tube. "Thread lightly, it''s kinda strong,"she warned, but she was toote. I had already popped two or maybe three of them in my mouth. I downed the pills with the remaining shot of whiskey in my ss. Once I was done, I looked up at Ally and her face began to blur. She was right. That shit was strong. Because the next thing I knew, I had cked outpletely. I woke up to hot shes. My head was heavy, my eyes were seeing things, and my body was rendered motionless. I waspletely delirious. It took me a while to make sense of everything. I was lying naked on a bed. Not my bed, someone else¡¯s bed. I was in a bedroom and it was dimly lit, obviously, it wasn''t my room. And there was a girl straddling my knee, and I couldn''t see who she was because she was leaning down and her long brown hair was covering her face. Then I felt a hand gripping my hard length and a warm, wet mouth was sucking on the tip. My hand reached for this girl and wiped a strand of hair away from her face. She looked up at me and I recognized those eyes instantly. "It''s okay, I''ll take care of you,"she said.Not waiting for me to respond, her mouth was back on my length again. Her tongue rolled from the tip down to the base, leaving hot, wet trails of saliva. For a moment there, I couldn¡¯t move. My eyes were fixed on her mouth and I was caught in a trance. I was seeing Emma. It was Emma''s lips on my length. Those were Emma''s hands. And those were Emma¡¯s eyes looking back at me. I was so happy to see her, I let go of all inhibitions. She bobbed her head up and down my length, taking me deeper and deeper as her hand continued massaging the base. Within seconds, I was a goner. I released a huge load of cum into her mouth and she swallowed all of them. I hadn''t felt this way in a long time, it was pure ecstasy. But when she finished swallowing, she looked up at me and I realized it wasn''t her. It wasn¡¯t my Emma. "Fuck, no!" I pushed Ally off of me abruptly. n, what''s wrong?"she was taken aback, sitting on the edge of the bed with nothing but her bra and panties on. "Al, this is a mistake," I groaned as my hand went to rub my head. My head was spinning as images from earlier tonight flooded my brain. I remembered cking out in the office. I remembered Ally hailing a cab and taking me home. Shey me down on her bed and then she climbed on top of me. After taking off her dress, she took off my shoes, then my belt, and everything else until I was butt naked. I was still struggling with those images when I felt Ally¡¯s hand on me again. Using one hand, she started stroking my length back to life and her other hand unsped her bra, revealing her full set of breasts as they jiggled free. "Ally, stop it!"I pushed her away again. "Why?"she whined. "You seemed to be enjoying it five seconds ago--" "Because you''re not who I want!"I hissed through gritted teeth. Seeing my clothes all crumpled on the floor, I used all my strength to roll to the side and grabbed them up. Ally watched in silence as I slid my boxers and pants back on. She was just sitting there with her chestpletely bare to me. "It¡¯s been almost a year,n, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s time for you to move on?"she said finally. Her tone wasced with jealousy and bitterness. "How long did it take you to get over Richard?"I said as I slipped my shirt back on. "Not too long.I guess I''ve always known he¡¯s not the one," "What do you mean?" A smile slowly curved up her face and she started moving towards me, saying, "Deep down inside, I''ve always known you''re the one," "Ally..."I warned. I caught her hand as she was about to reach for me. "It''s true.I never told you this before, but you¡¯re the reason why Richard and I ended our engagement.Since we started working together, I never had time for him anymore.I stopped giving him attention, and he figured it out.He knew I was still in love with you¡ª am still in love with you," Using all her strength, she lunged forward until her lips were inches away from mine. My hand quickly went up to stop her. They caught her by her chest, right on her breasts. She moaned lightly at the contact, but I was only doing that to shove her away. I sighed in exasperation and got up as soon as I could find my footing. "Ally, we fooled around, like what, in high school? You can¡¯t possibly " "Possibly be in love with you all this time?"she asked challengingly. "What do you think,n? Why am I here with you in this city doing this gallery in the first ce?" "You said you were done with the corporate world.You wanted to be an entrepreneur and start your own thing?" "You bought that?"she scoffed. "I left everything in Jersey for you.I left Richard, I left my work, I left my family," "Ally, I never asked you to" "No, I know.You never asked me for it, but I wanna do it because I wanna be with you! That¡¯s how much I love you!"she eximed. Fuck, I didn¡¯t expect that at all. I''ve always thought of Ally was one of my closest friends. She was like family to me, I''d trust her with my life. I thought I was the same thing for her. Slowly, she got up from the bed and her hand reached for my face, saying, "I meant what I said that night at the softunch...I love you,n.Not just as friends...Isn''t there any way you can see me the same way?" Her eyes were pleading with me. I took a deep breath and exhaled a long sigh. My hand went to grip her hand that was on my face, and slowly I peeled it away. "No, I can¡¯t.I''m sorry," Tears were pooling around her eyes as she choked, "Why not? We''re perfect for each other,n.Ask anyone!" I shook my head quickly and said, "I can¡¯t look at any other girl the same way again, not after...her," Tears fell from her face and she wiped them away with her hand. She turned to the side, avoiding looking at me. "You know, I never understand this.What is it about her? Why is she goddamn special anyway?"she spat sourly. Honestly, I never understood it either. She was an enigma to me. My soul felt full when I was with her. Nothing else in this world could make me feel the way she made me feel. She was my first ever real heartbreak. My first ever real love. "She''s everything.She¡¯s my entire world," I said in a whisper. Ally didn''t say another word. I looked at her naked back and I felt bad for her. I never realized she was feeling all these things for me. I wouldn''t have worked with her if I knew. I saw a nket on the armchair next to her bed. I grabbed it and draped it over her naked body and said, "This was a mistake.I¡¯m sorry, Ally.I¡¯m not the one for you," n, wait, please don¡¯t go," she said when I was halfway out the door. I turned back to face her and said, "Ally, for both our sakes, I don¡¯t think we should do this anymore.Starting tomorrow, I''m quitting the gallery," "What?!n!"she gaped, waiting for an exnation. But I''ve said all that I needed to say already, so I just turned around and headed for the door. n!" This is from N?velDrama.Org. I heard her calling out after me several times, but I never turned back. When I stepped out of Ally¡¯s apartment, the sun was starting to rise over the city. I hailed a cab and watched from the car¡¯s window as the sky turned pink and purple. It was a beautiful sight. My mind wandered back to Emma and how I wished she was here to see this too. My hand instinctively reached for my phone. I had written her a thousand texts and emails that I never send, and this morning was no different. Emma and I hadn''t contacted each other since that day, but I''ve always kept track of her and her activities. Her social media profile wasn¡¯t locked, thank God, so I could see how she was doing and what she was up to. Yes, I''m a pathetic excuse of man. She had just posted a new photo. She was standing on this balcony with the Eiffel Tower on disy behind her. She was smiling so brightly. Such a gorgeous smile. "Someone else was probably making her smile," I thought bitterly. In a desperate attempt, my finger went to type a message for her. My hand stopped moving after I typed the word ¡®Hey¡¯. I didn¡¯t know where to go from there. I mean, what would I even say? Hey, Emma. We used to talk about the future together. Now it¡¯s here, but you''re not. It doesn''t feel like the future without you, though. I know it''s all my fault, but will you please take me back? That sounded shitty as hell. I deleted that text and started typing another one. "Hey Emma, so I was missing you a lotst night..." What the fuck? That was even worse. "Hey Emma, I miss you..." And what? I couldn''t have her back anyway. What''s the point of writing this stupid thing, then? Realizing full well that this wasn¡¯t gonna work, I laughed at my pathetic ass and deleted the text, putting the damned phone away. If at first I thought she''d be better off without me, after what happenedst night, now I know damn sure that she''s way better off. You''re the best thing that''s ever happened to me and I''m sorry that I''m the worst thing that''s ever happened to you. I hope you''re happy out there, baby girl. Chapter 93: Before Sunset Chapter 93: Before Sunset EMMA¡¯s POV : ---- Three Months Later - - - - "What time¡¯s your nending again?" Sophie squeaked over the phone, I could feel her excitement three thousand miles away. "5 PM.But Soph, you don''t have toe get me, I can just take an Uber," I said as I continued folding my clothes on the bed. I was leaving Paris tomorrow and I haven''t even finished packing. It was hard to do since Elliott was keeping me busy and distracted. Even as I was on the phone and my hands were busy folding up clothes, Elliott''s hand snaked around my back and hugged me tight around my stomach. His lips were on my neck, peppering my skin with small kisses. "Nonsense! I haven''t seen my roomie in six months, I have so much tea to spill.And so do you!" Sophie eximed. "What do you mean?" I stifled augh. "I''ve seen your posts on Instagram, Emmie. Who''s the cute French guy you''re always out with?" "Ah...his name¡¯s Elliott..." I said as I turned my face slightly to get a better look at him. His lips never left my skin, but he smiled when he heard his name being said out loud. "Uh-huh, keep going,"Sophie pressed. "We''ve been hanging out for the past three to four months, I guess?" "Hanging out? What does that mean? Are you two dating?" I peeled myself away from Elliott and he let out a disappointed groan. He was pouting at me as I skipped towards my bathroom. Closing the door shut, I whispered to my phone, "I, uh, don¡¯t know, honestly.We never really talk about it," "So, what, you two are friends with benefits?" "I guess you can call it that,"I mumbled. "How does your ¡®friend¡¯ feel about you moving back to the States then?" "Again, we haven''t really talked about it..." "Geez, what do you two talk about then?" "We don''t talk much, okay? We do...other stuff," I couldn''t help but smile. "Tea! I call dibs!" Sophieughed maniacally. "Anyway, I gotta go, Micah¡¯s making me dinner.But Tristan and I''lle get you at the airport tomorrow.You have to tell us everything," "Alright, alright," "I''ll see you tomorrow at 5 PM," "See you tomorrow," Turning off the call, I opened the bathroom door to see Elliott standing right in front of me. "Who was that?"he asked. "Just my roommate, Sophie.She¡¯s picking me up at the airport," I replied as I walked past him, going right back to packing. "You''re really leaving me, huh?" Elliott said as he stood right behind me. "My year in Paris is up, Elliott.I have to go back to Philly for my senior year," "I don¡¯t want you to leave," he wrapped his arms around me, locking both my hands on my sides. "Elliott, I thought you''re gonna help me pack? You''re not helping me pack," Iughed as I failed to break away from his grip. Using one hand, Elliott tilted my face to the side so that I was facing him. With his eyes locked on mine, he whispered, "Can''t I persuade you to stay?" I licked my lips instinctively as I felt his warm breaths fanning my cheek. "I guess you can try..." Elliott smiled at my response. Pushing the folded up clothes off the bed and creating a mess on the floor, Elliott turned me over and hoisted me up on the bed. I couldn''t stop giggling as he climbed on top of me and his lips attacked the soft spot on my neck. '' Not wasting any time, Elliott''s hands swiftly pulled the oversized T-shirt over my head and Iy there topless. Leaning down, his lips captured one of my nipples and he rolled his tongue around it, causing me to squirm. His one hand was massaging my other breast, making sure it got the attention it needed, and the other hand yanked down my panties, exposing my womanhoodpletely. His thumb ran circles around my clit as his index finger yed with my entrance. I bucked my hips up in response, giving him more ess. After gathering enough juices around my slits, I felt his finger enter me, and I let out a soft moan. His mouth traveled down my body and it stopped right above my clit. My hands went grab his hair, pushing him down slightly. Elliottplied and his lips began sucking at my sensitive nub. His tongue moved ferociously on my clit as he slipped another finger inside my core. I was thrashing and squirming under his merciless attack. Within moments, I felt my stomach clenching and the heat rising through my body. His fingers pumped in and out of me in sync with his tongue as it flicked my clit. "Yes, don''t stop!" I grasped his hair tight in my fingers as my walls clenched around his fingers. Wet juices spurted out of me as my body convulsed in my climax. Elliott and his tongue should be illegal. He was grinning from ear to ear because he knew what he just did. Pulling his fingers out, he sucked on my juices and let out a happy moan. I pushed myself forward and pulled his t-shirt over his head, revealing his toned body. I was about to reach for his pants when Elliott grabbed my hand and pushed me back down on the bed, pinning me with his body. Still smiling, Elliott pushed his pants down and his manhood sprang free. He was hard and ready for me. His length was big and he had girth, but it wasn¡¯t as big asn¡¯s. That didn¡¯t matter though. I liked his size, it was easier for me to handle. After stroking himself a couple of times, Elliott reached for a condom from his back pocket and ripped it open.I watched impatiently as he rolled the rubber down his length slowly and he pinched the tip. I didn¡¯t wanna wait anymore, so as soon as he was done, I pushed him back and climbed on top of him. He was chuckling as I straddled him, using my hand to guide his erection to my entrance. "You are always very impatient,"he noted. "Whatever," I rolled my eyes and slid myself down his length, slow and carefully. Sex with Elliott was always fun. It wasn¡¯t as intense as what I had withn, but it was enjoyable. There were no heavy feelings attached. We''ve kept it casual and easy. The sound of skin pping and our hot moans filled the air. I was riding Elliot''s cock as he moaned my name carelessly into the air. His one hand was on my hip and the other was rubbing my clit. I pushed myself to rock harder as I felt the buildup inside me again. My nails dug deep into his skin as he started thrusting himself up, meeting my movements. "Oh, yeah, baby, I¡¯m gonna cum,"Elliott grunted. "Don''t stop, don''t stop,"I panted. He picked up the pace and started hammering himself into me. My hips rocked and met him as much as I could. Within moments, I felt his length pulsing inside me and I was brought over the edge. I clenched around thetex covering his skin as I rode the wave of my orgasm. We were still panting as we fell onto the bed. Elliott peeled the used condom away and threw it into the trash. Returning back to me, he scooped my body and spooned me from behind. His chin rested on the crook of my neck and he nted another kiss there. "I''m really going to miss you,"he murmured. "Me too..." I didn''t know how I managed to do it, but I was all packed and ready to go the next morning. I got up early, took a shower, and made breakfast for two. Elliott had stayed the night and he offered to drive me to the airport. After we finished our breakfast, Elliott helped moved my bags into the car. Once we finished piling all my stuff in his trunk, he closed the door and let out a sigh. We were standing outside my apartment building inte spring. The weather was warm and the streets were lined with colorful trees and flowers. Elliott looked up at me with a sad smile on his face. He didn¡¯t have to say anything, but I knew he was sad to see me leave. We never talked about what we are or about having a future together. It was all too much pressure and we were just having fun. This was good enough for me. So, I smiled back at Elliott and took his hand, my fingers caressed his skin in a soothing manner. Although it was only for a couple of months, Elliott was like a source of hope. I didn¡¯t love him or anything like that, but I wasforted by the fact that I could still find some type of happiness someday, withoutn Hayes. "Thanks for everything, Elliott.It''s been a really fun couple of months," I said to him. He smiled and brought my hand up to his face. He kissed the top of my hand gently and said, "The pleasure¡¯s all mine," I let him hold my hand like that as he leaned closer to my face. Inching our faces together, our lips were locked and we kissed for what felt like an eternity. I would be lying if I said I wasn¡¯t a little sad. Goodbyes were always a difficult thing for me. When we finally pulled away, Elliott kept his gaze on me and he sighed lightly. His finger went to cup my cheek and he caressed the skin gently, saying, "Maybe I cane and visit you sometime? Check out the jazz scene in Phdelphia?" "Sure, call me anytime you''re in town,"I nodded. We kissed each other one more time before we knew it was time to go. We went back to my apartment to make sure I didn¡¯t leave anything behind. I double checked every room and when I was sure that I had everything with me, I stepped towards the door and said, "I think I''m ready to go now," Elliot stalked towards me and said, "Emma...I have to tell you something," "Hmm?" I looked at him quizzically. There was this look on his face that I couldn''t decipher. "I can''t let you go without telling you how I feel...I''m in love with you, Emma.I know we''ve only known each other for a little while, but I love you.I don¡¯t want to just be some guy met and fiicked while you were in Paris.I want more than that," "What...?"I gaped. I didn¡¯t expect that at all. My jaw fell open and I couldn''t do anything but stare at him. "I''ve thought about it and I''ve decided that I want to be with you.If you can¡¯t stay here with me, then I''ll go there with you," he stated, calmly and firmly. "I''ll get a job there, it¡¯s not a problem.I don¡¯t care where we are as long as we''re together," "Elliott...I..." I was at a loss for words.I never knew he''d thought so seriously about us.I thought we were just a fling. "I don''t know what to say,"I admitted. "You don''t say anything.Just smile for yes or kick me in the nuts for no," He was referring to the line he used on me the first time we met. That was cheeky and cute, but this wasn''t the time to be joking. "Elliot...This is serious,"I said sternly. "You''re willing to uproot your life and move to a different country for me? Have you thought this through? Are you sure about this?" "No, but I''m sure about you," his tone was serious as his hand reached for my face. He cupped my cheeks and stared right into my eyes, saying, "I wannae with you if you''ll have me," My heart was beating so fast, it felt like I was gonna explode. I was feeling so many things all at once; shock, confusion, reservations, but also happiness. Yes, I admit, I was happy to hear those words. As much as I downyed my emotions for Elliott, I did feel some things for him. I never had the chance to really think it through, so now I just stared at him for the longest time. "So, what do you say?"he asked again. I didn¡¯t say a word. But I couldn''t stop the smile from forming on my face either. My body was betraying my brain. Elliott saw it too and he knew. He knew he got me. It was totally unpredictable, but I ended up getting on that ne that day with Elliott sitting next to me. I still pinched myself thinking this must be a dream. It was so surreal and crazy, but it was real. He was holding my hand the entire time and Iy my head on his shoulder as my eyes drifted to the bright blue sky. I really had no idea what''s going to happen from here on out. This could be totally amazing, or a huge epic fail. Either way, there was only one way to find out¡­ America, here wee. Chapter 94: First Love Chapter 94: First Love EMMA¡¯s POV : Sophie was expecting me to spill some tea about Elliott when Ind, she didn¡¯t, however, expect that I would actually bring the entire person with me. To say that Tristan and Sophie were shocked to get another roommate in the apartment would be an understatement. But honestly, I was shocked too. I was still inplete denial until I woke up the next morning and saw Elliott sleeping next to me in my queen size bed. Sophie said I was crazy to let a guy I''ve known for a few months uproot his entire life for me. Tristan said Elliott and I wouldn''tst another three months in the States. Sophie was right, but Tristan was wrong. It was a crazy move, but somehow, Elliott and I made it work. He was kind and easy to get along with. Being with him was uplicated and effortless. The universe seemed to be on our side too, because by the end of the summer, Elliott was offered a job teaching music at a private school nearby. The school even provided housing for him, he got a one bedroom apartment a few train stops away from mine. Elliott went back to Paris once in that summer to deal with the work visa and all the stuff he left behind at his apartment. When he came back, I picked him up at the airport, and at that moment I knew: we were in this for the long haul. ---- Three Months Later - - - - Summer was over in a sh and I was back on U Penn''s campus again by that fall. Being in Paris for a year was a great experience, but I''ve missed this ce so much. I loved that everyone here speaks English and I didn''t have to worry about directions. I loved that we have Chipotle right next to a Popeye¡¯s and Chick-fill -A. Most of all, I loved being around people that I know and love. I could always count on Tristan and Sophie to make me feel loved and keep me entertained. Sophie was ecstatic about being college seniors. She and Micah had broken up for the twentieth and final time. Choosing to focus on her future career instead, Sophie worked her butt off and she got all these job interviews all lined up. She was on track with her n to move to Chicago or New York after college. Meanwhile, Tristan and Tiff were going steady. They were doing long distance since Tiff enrolled at the University of Floridast year. Tristan and Tiff finally understood my struggles with long distance rtionships. Fortunately, they were good atmunicating and putting each other¡¯s first. They made it look so easypared ton and me. Uh-oh, I said his name again...We had broken up for over a year.We had no contact with each other since. I had moved on and I was happily dating someone else. Still, I didn''t understand why saying his name still affected me so much after all this time. Shaking off all thoughts of him, I focused myself on the task at hand. I was standing on Elliot¡¯s kitchen floor, hunched over the counter as my eyes squinted over this recipe book. N?velDrama.Org content. I was making dinner tonight, Coq Au Vin, which was Elliott¡¯s favorite food. It was a Friday night and we had just finished midterms week. Sophie was out celebrating, and of course, she dragged Tristan with her. She would have dragged me out too if I didn¡¯t tell her I had ns with Elliott. It was Elliott''s twenty six birthday today. I asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday and he asked me to make him dinner. So here I was, standing in his kitchen, trying my best to cut and butter these baby potatoes. I was never the best cook, so even the smallest task required my fullest attention. I was lost in the rhythm of cooking when I heard the front door jiggle open. I whipped my head around and saw Elliott beaming at me. He had a bottle of wine in one hand and a bouquet of roses in the other. "Hey, sorry I''mte.Got held up with parent teacher- night at the school," he said as he strode over and nted a sweet kiss on my cheek. "No worries.Dinner¡¯s almost ready,"I replied. "These are for you, love,"he handed the fresh red roses to me.They were bright and beautiful. "Oh, it smells good, thank you," I turned around and reached for an empty vase. I was busy putting some water into the vase while at the same time keeping an eye on the simmering stew, when I felt Elliott''s hand snaked around my waist. "Hmm, you also smell good,"he murmured to my skin. "Stop distracting me or I¡¯m gonna overcook it,"I hissed. "Don''t I at least get a birthday kiss?" Letting out a defeated sigh, I turned around to face him and stood on my tippy toes, closing the distance between both our lips. He smiled victoriously after the kiss and I turned back to my brewing stew. "There, now you go sit your pretty ass down,"I ordered. "Yes ma¡¯am,"he chuckled. Elliott walked over and sat down on the table but his gaze was fixed on me. He watched intently as I finished the stew. I stirred it a few more times and turned off the stove. Carefully, I poured the contents on a serving te and put a little garnish on top. I was beaming with excitement as I served the food on the table. Elliott popped open the wine and poured some into our sses."Well, how is it?" I asked as soon as he put a spoonful of the chicken to his mouth, "Tell me if it¡¯s bad, I can take it," He paused for a moment, swallowing hard before saying, "It¡¯s not bad..." "But it¡¯s not great either?" I slumped in defeat. "That doesn''t matter because who made it matters more," he said as he reached across the table and took my hand. "No, that¡¯s not the same thing,"I pouted. "I¡¯m sorry I sucked," "No, you don''t, love.You''re brilliant...outside the kitchen, definitely.In the bedroom, especially,"he smiled meaningfully. "Stop," I blushed and pulled my hand away. Weughed it off and continued with dinner. Honestly, on a scale of one to ten, I would say that my Cog Au Vin was about a 7.But Elliott had much higher standards for French cuisine, to him it was more of a 5.5. And that was him being generous. After dinner, we had dessert, of course. I didn¡¯t make it, but I bought a ssic strawberry Fraisier cake from our favorite bakery downtown. I put a little candle on top and I got him to make a wish before he blew it. I swiped a little icing with my finger when he closed his eyes and brushed it over his nose andughed maniacally. He shook his head at my immature antics andughed. He then gripped my hand tightly and I thought he was going to exact his revenge on me so, I squirmed in my seat. But instead, he brought my finger up to his lips and sucked on it gently, making sure my finger was clean of icing. That got me to stopughing and started blushing. Anyway, we ate the cake and drank some more wine. After I finished my third ss that night, I was absolutely tipsy. We started dancing and suddenly I couldn''t keep my bnce, I ended up falling t on my butt. I was aughing and giggling mess as Elliott got me up to my feet and my body instinctively leaned against him. "Okay, I think that¡¯s enough wine,"hemented. Ignoring hisment, I linked my arms. sloppily around his neck and pulled his face down towards mine. Our lips crashed and I kissed him hard, tasting the sweet remnants of wine on his tongue. Elliott returned the kiss just as passionately and he led me towards his room. We didn¡¯t break the kiss until we reached his bed and he pushed me down on my stomach. He took this opportunity to slip out of his sweater and pants, leaving him with only his boxer briefs. I followed suit and unzipped my dress from the back. He helped me pull it down from my body and I kicked it to the side. Elliott''s eyes hooded with lust when he saw that I was wearing my whitece bra and panties. I noted the bulge on his briefs was tenting and before I could do anything else, he was on top of me and his lips were on me again. "Mmm...yes..." I let out a moan as I felt his bulge rubbing against my clit. His mouth now moved down my chest and his hands skillfully unhooked my bra. He kissed each one of my nipples erect before fondling them with both his hands. Meanwhile, my hand made its way south and slipped into his briefs, finding his hardening length. I pulled him out and massaged him slowly, making sure I paid attention to his balls too because I knew he liked that. "Hmm...oh yes, love," he groaned appreciatively and my hands massaged him harder. It didn¡¯t take long for him to get rock hard and pre-cum started dripping from his tip. I was getting impatient, so I brought his length closer to me, guiding him to my entrance. Elliottplied with my request. Using one hand, he swiped thece fabric covering my hole to the side and let his tip enter my core. I arched my back towards him and opened my legs further, giving him more ess. Elliott took the cue and pushed himself deeper into me, slow and steadily. We stopped using condoms since Elliott and I had been dating for about eight months now. I was on the pill though, of course. "Oh, Emma, you feel so good, love," he grunted as my wet walls contracted around him. He pulled one of my legs up and put it over his shoulder, leaving me even more exposed to him. "Yes, that¡¯s it.Faster," I urged him when I felt his thrusts were getting stronger. His mouth was leaving hot kisses all around my neck and his finger was rubbing my clit incessantly. I was quivering under his touch, my breathing became shallow and fast. I could feel the heat building up in my stomach, aching for release. He knew it too, because he picked up the pace and plunged into me faster and faster."Oh...I''m cumming...!"" My eyes fluttered closed in the intensity of the moment. "Yes,e for me baby," "Oh, yes..¡ªn, ah!" I came hard, thrashing and panting all around the bed. And the craziest part... I had said his name out loud! But my scream was mumbled as I was panting breathlessly. Elliott didn''t catch it and he kept going. He was also in his own world. He was moaning and groaning aloud as he continued ramming his length into my core. "Oh, Emma...Emma...Oh...!" Finally, after a few more thrusts, he came inside me as my name rolled from his lips. His length twitched and pulsed, filling me with hot spurts of liquid. Elliott was absolutely spent and satisfied. With azy smile, he leaned down to kiss my lips before pulling me into a hug. So wey there on the bed, he was spooning me and his arms were wrapped around my stomach. Elliott''s ragged breaths had calmed down and he was drifting into sleep. I, however, was wide awake and absolutely mortified. I couldn''t believe I had said his name out loud...during sex... with another guy! Even though Elliott didn¡¯t hear it, I heard it, I knew what I said. I felt absolutely horrible. I was the most horrible person in the world. I couldn''t get a wink of sleep that night. Elliott had rolled over to his side and I was left to move around freely. My eyes darted to the clock and it was past 3 AM. No matter how hard I tried, my eyes wouldn''t stay shut for more than five seconds. Sighing to myself, I gave up on trying to sleep and got up instead. I was feeling a little cold, so I pulled a T-shirt from Elliott''s dresser and put it on. While walking back to bed, I caught sight of Elliott''s work desk on the corner of the room and he had hisptop there. I didn¡¯t know what came over me. It waste at night and maybe I was delirious from the wine, but I ended up going over to theptop and opening Google. My mind was nk as I typed in his name. After scrolling for a while, I saw that there were no new entries regarding him. That was odd since the gallery was still up and doing exhibitions and Ally¡¯s name was all over the news. His name, however, was nowhere around. I decided to check the gallery''s website and to my absolute surprise, his name was no longer listed there. Then I went to Ally¡¯s social media page, thinking I would see loads of pictures of her andn, but again I was shocked to see that there were none. Not even a single picture of him or them together. "..Emma? What are you doing there?" I heard Elliott''s faint voice calling after me. I looked up and saw that his eyes were half open and his arm was reaching around for me. "Come back to bed, love," I closed the page and turned off theptop. I walked back to bed and slipped under the duvet as Elliott''s hand pulled me close to him. His eyes were closed and he moaned appreciatively as his nose snuggled into the crook of my neck, inhaling my scent. A soft smile curved up his face as he drifted into sleep again. As Iy there with Elliot''s arms around me, I was hit with a dark andplicated realization. Yes, my body was here on this bed with him, but not my mind. And definitely not my heart. They were somewhere else entirely. Somewhere about ny miles away from here. People say that your first love will always have a special ce in your heart. But it¡¯s not just that he has a ce in my heart, he still has my heart! Even after all this time and everything I''ve been through...will I ever get my heart back? Please, please give it back. Chapter 95: Last Love Chapter 95: Last Love EMMA¡¯s POV : --- Eight Months Later--- - "To thest finals week ever!" I eximed and raised my ss. "I''ll never have to see another Calculus textbook ever again!" Sophie chimed in, raising hers too. "Four years of sleepless nights and anxiety over student debt, and now we get to do it all again, except with a job instead of school," Tristan added and we burst outughing. Sophie, Tristan, and I were celebrating thest finals week of our college career. The three of us and Elliott went to this fancy Italian restaurant and ordered one of their most expensive bottles of wine. Why? Because we freaking deserved it, that''s why. We had been ving our asses off for thest four years, and this week was the end of all that. "I don¡¯t remember being this happy graduating from university," Elliott chuckled and watched us merrily downed our drinks. "Once you start working, you''re going to wish you''re still back in school," "That''s what a lot of people say, but I¡¯m just tired of learning, you know?" Sophie replied. "I''m ready to get out there and do something real for a change," "Hear, hear," Tristan raised his ss again. "Yeah, me too," I agreed. "I¡¯m kinda over school.I¡¯m tired of being a student," "Ah, school," Elliott nodded and sighed, "Students hate it, and us teachers hate it too.How could itst for so long? Who knows,"he shrugged and weughed. This was a big week for me, thest week of me being a student. What an interesting word. Student. School. Teacher. He hasn''t been my teacher for years, but every time the wordes up, all I could think of him was him. "So, what are your ns after graduation?" Elliott asked the group. "I''m thinking Chicago or New York, but I might be persuaded to stay in Philly if there¡¯s a good offer," Sophie answered. "I''m keeping my options open," Tristan said. "I applied everywhere, but I¡¯m really into the Times or the San Francisco Chronicle.If I could get a shot out there, that''d be amazing," "And you, love?" Elliott asked me. "Well, I''ve been applying to ces, but so far I haven''t heard from any" * RING * RING * RING * My words were suddenly cut short by the sudden ringing of my phone. I picked it up quickly and muttered, "Sorry..." I was about to hit the reject button, when I noticed that it was a 212 number calling me.212 was the area code for Manhattan.Who could possibly be calling me from Manhattan? Oh, wait a minute... "Guys, it''s a New York number," I said, pausing for a second before getting up and leaving the table. "Excuse me for a second," Making my way through the row of tables, I quickly stepped outside the restaurant and picked up the phone before it stopped ringing. "Hello?" I pressed the phone tightly to my ears. "Hi, is this Emma Sinir?"a woman''s voice spoke. "Yes, this is she," "Hi, Emma. I¡¯m Margaret, and I¡¯m calling on behalf of David Haskell from the New York Magazine," Margaret''s voice was calm and clear, but the moment I heard the words ¡®New York Magazine¡¯, I almost dropped my phone in shock. "Oh, hey, hi, yes," I stammered nervously. "David''s seen your resume and he¡¯s heard great things about you from your professor. There¡¯s a position in our office that he thinks is perfect for you and you can start right after graduation. He wants to see you for an interview, maybe sometime next week, would you be avable for that?" "Ah...yes!" I half gaped, half shouted. "Yes, absolutely, yes!" "Great, then is Friday the 20th good for you? Say around 11 AM?" "Yes, that¡¯s perfect," I nodded vigorously, though she couldn''t see me. "All right.I will email you with the details of the interview time and ce," "Yes, wonderful," "All right, have a good night, Ms.Sinir," "Thank you, Margaret, thank you so, so much!" I was squealing and squeaking in excitement as I turned off the call. I had the biggest smile on my face as I made my way back to the table. A part of me felt like I was floating, like this must be a dream. "What was that all about?" Sophie asked as I reached the table and sat down."Guys... David Haskell from the New York Magazine wants to interview me for a job!" I yelped and squeaked and shook my hands in excitement. "Who?" Sophie asked. "Holy crap, he¡¯s like one of the greatest editors of all time!" Tristan gaped and I nodded feverishly. "Oh my goodness, that¡¯s the job you wanted!"the light bulb finally clicked in Sophie¡¯s head. She quickly ran up to me and gave me a hug, "Congrattions, Emmie, you totally deserve it!" "Oh god, you guys, I''m freaking out," I said through ragged breaths. I was fanning myself with my hand because suddenly I felt so hot. "He wants to interview me on Friday, next week!" "You''ll do great.He''ll love you," Sophie waved her hand carelessly. "I mean, look at you, who wouldn''t?" "Exactly," Elliott nodded in agreement. "Perfectly said," "Oh no, I''m so nervous all of a sudden," I said through gritted teeth. The New York Magazine was my dream job ever since I found out I wanted to work inmunications. When I applied for the job, I didn¡¯t even think I was gonna get a call, let alone an interview with perhaps the greatest editor of all time! "You''ll be all right, love.I''lle with you to the interview if you want," Elliott smiled reassuringly and took my hand in his, squeezing it gently. "Yeah, I¡¯m free on Friday.I can drive you guys to the city," Tristan added. "I have a meeting with my professor that Friday, so I can''te," Sophie pouted. "But I''ll be rooting for you.And I''ll be waiting at home with pizza and champagne to celebrate!" "I don¡¯t even know if I''ll get the job, Soph," "Even just getting an interview with David Haskell is a feat in itself, you should be proud of yourself," Tristan replied. "I mean, David Haskell is a busy man.He must really think highly of you to interview you himself," "Exactly, so we''re celebrating no matter what,"Sophie stated matter-of-factly. "Aw, you guys,"I smiled and looked at all their supportive faces. "I don''t know what I''ll ever do without you," Sophie and Tristan smiled brightly, and Elliott leaned in to give me a kiss on the cheek, whispering, "Anytime, love" "So, what else did they tell you?" Tristan asked. "Well, if I get the job, I could start working there immediately right after graduation..." "Wow!" Sophie gasped. "Whoa," Elliott looked taken aback. "That''s amazing!" Tristan nodded. "I know, I still can¡¯t believe this is happening.Everything happened so fast," I stuttered, somewhat hyperventting a little. Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. "I still need to do my research, prepare my portfolio and oh god, what am I gonna wear?" "Rx, we''ll figure everything out.You have time,"Sophie said. "A week is not enough time to impress David Haskell, I have to get started right away!"I got up to my feet instinctively. "I have to go now!" "But, Emmie, we''re in the middle of celebrating,"Sophie protested. "Sorry guys, I''ll celebrate after David Haskell,"I gulped thest of my wine down and grabbed my purse. "You two should stay and finish the meal, I''ll make sure she gets home okay,"Elliott stood up next to me. "Please do," Sophie said, and there was a little naughty glint in her eyes when she added, "And help her blow off that steam, will you?" Elliott chuckled and waved goodbye. Rolling my eyes at her, I gave Sophie onest re before turning to my heels. Over the next few days, I was Emma the busy bee. I was cramming all kinds of information about David Haskell and the New York Magazine. I even made a whole speech about why I think I''d be perfect to work in their office. I was preparing so much for this interview, it was haunting me in my sleep. Last night, I dreamt that as David Haskell was interviewing me in front of the board of editors, I was standing in front of them, butt naked. Gah! I need to find something to wear! My interview was in three days and I hadn¡¯t picked out an outfit yet. The outfit was an important part of the interview because first impressions matter. I needed something that would say, "Hello, I''m Emma and I''m a confident and hardworking employee, but also I can be fun and creative and I work well with people!" Leaving the stack of books and research paper on the floor, I jumped up to my feet and headed for my closet. My closet was aplete mess, Marie Kondo would be appalled at the sight. Dirtyundry was scattered everywhere and old boxes and suitcases and everything were just crammed in there. I figured I was going to do a deep cleaning after I was done with finals, but turns out I had one more thing to prepare for before I could finally rest easy. Now, where¡¯s that zer? I know I have it in here somewhere... Kneeling on the ground, I pushed and shoved the pile of dirtyundry away, scavenging for my favorite zer. But as my hand reached deep into the corner of the room, I felt something small and hard. It was a book. I pulled it towards me and under the dim closet light, I read the title of the book, Wuthering Heights. It was the book thatn and I used to read together and we quoted it all the time. Normally I''d keep my books on the shelves, but I had shoved this book so far deep inside my closet because looking at it made my heart ache. This book was what started our whole rtionship in the first ce. It was my favorite book before I met him, but now, it was the most horrible book in the world. I mean, why does something so beautiful have to hurt this bad? And deep inside the closet, right under the book, was the heart locket thatn gave me. On the inside, he had our favorite quote from the book engraved. It was the first present he ever got me and probably the best present I''d ever gotten in my life. It was so meaningful to me that I kept it all these years, hidden deep inside the dark and dirty closet. "Emma?" I heard Elliott''s voice pulling me back to reality. "Love, are you in here?" I pushed the book and locket back to the corner and covered it with a pile of dirty clothes. "Elliott!" I turned around to see him standing in my room. "Hey, what¡¯s going on?" "I just came by to drop this off for you," he smiled brightly, holding a bag of groceries in his hand. "Sophie and Tristan said that you¡¯re not even leaving your room to eat.You need to take it easy, love.Eat something," "Thank you, you''re so sweet," I got up to my feet and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "But I''ll eatter, right after I find my zer," I was about to turn away again, but Elliott pulled me by the hand. Looking down at me tenderly, he let out a sigh and said, "Overstressing yourself isn''t going to get you anywhere, love.If you want to impress the editor, you have to be the best version of yourself.Stress is only going to bring out the worst in you," I sighed and leaned my face into his chest. He put the groceries down and cupped my face with his hands, WR fat Im bine: tilting my cheek up to look at him. "Look at you, when''s thest time you sleep?"he said, searching my eyes with a look of worry. "This is not the same girl I met in Paris," Leaning down, he nted a soft kiss on the top of my head. Then to my nose, then to my cheek, and finally on my lips. His kiss was nice and sweet. It did calm me down for a second, but then I remembered the list of things I still needed to do. "But Elliott...I have to¡ª" "Just rest with me for a while, love,"he said, cutting me off. "Rest is for the dead..." "No, rest is for the living,"he insisted. "The dead don''t need to rest because their job is done," That made me smile. I stifled augh and said, "You always know just what to say, do you?" "Come on, let me make you something to eat," he said as he pulled me to the kitchen. "And coffee?" "And coffee," Watching Elliot made breakfast and coffee for me was a treat. He had amazing pancake flipping skills and his French brew was divine. As I sat there and admired Elliott in the kitchen, I couldn''t help but think that it¡¯s been almost a year since Elliott moved to Philly to be with me. Our year together could be described as peaceful and idyllic. I wonder if life will be like this forever? Is this it for me? "Why are you looking at me like that, love?"he said when he caught me gawking at him. "Just thinking about how amazing you are, Elliott,"I replied with a big smile on my face. "What did I do to ever deserve you?" "You exist, and that¡¯s enough for me,"he said matter- of-factly.Ah...he¡¯s really the sweetest guy...and life with him is easy and nice...what else do I want? "Emma, listen, I want to tell you something," he said suddenly, dropping everything that he was doing, and he stepped closer to me. "I know that things are happening and changing very fast, but I just want you to know, I''m going to remain constant.I will always be here for you no matter what.You can count on me," He reached over the counter and gripped my chin with his hand. With a tender gaze and smile, he then said, "I love you, Emma," My mouth fell open, but there was nothinging out of it. I froze like an idiot, just muttering the letter, "I...I He smiled knowingly and said, "I know you still can''t say the words back, and that¡¯s okay.I will wait for you and I will keep working on being the best boyfriend ever until one day, you can say it back to me," Smiling softly, I leaned my face into his hand and sighed. Elliott is always so understanding.He is safe.He is secure.Elliott is...my future. He leaned over the counter and nted a kiss on my lips, a quick and lovely kiss. With my chin still in his hand, he said, "I may not be your first kiss, your first date, or your first love.But it doesn''t matter.Because I just want to be yourst love," A tear trickled down my face involuntarily. I was touched by how generous he was with his love for me. And he was right, it didn''t matter if he wasn¡¯t my first love, what mattered was that he be thest one. "Elliott, I...I..." I stammered. "It''s okay, love.You don''t have to say anything.Just smile for a yes," And I smiled. Through the tears, I smiled wide and free. Elliot was fast asleep on my bed. Just like he suggested, I spent the entire day just resting with him. He was right, overstressing myself wasn¡¯t gonna bring the best out of me. After eating, making out, cuddling, and sleeping next to him, I woke up feeling refreshed and better than ever. Slipping off the bed quietly and gently, I managed to get up without waking Elliott up. In front of me, the door to my dirty closet was ajar and I had a feeling, it was time for that deep cleaning. With a smile on my face, I pulled the dirty clothes off the floor and stuffed them into theundry bin. I threw away things that weren''t needed and made room for things that were. As I went through all my stuff, I was reminded of how much I¡¯ve grown over the past four years. I owed a lot of that ton, sure, but I wasn¡¯t stopping here. I''m still going to keep growing and changing and looking into my future. On the corner of the room, I saw the book and the locket just sitting there. Bending down, I put the locket inside the book, and I closed it tight and put the book inside my bag, where it could finally rest in peace. Because though we didn''t end up together, we loved each other greatly, and that was epic. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are still the same. And though I''ve loved and lost, it is better than to have never loved at all. Chapter 96: Secret Journal Chapter 96: Secret Journal THREE MONTHS LATER EMMA¡¯s POV : "Home is where the heart is." I don¡¯t think there was ever a truer statement. Standing in my new and empty bedroom, the framed quote was the first thing I put up on the wall. Boxes and un-built furniture were scattered everywhere, but I looked around the room and felt completely satisfied. Because I am home. Turning to my side, I started unpacking the box closest to me. On the side of the cardboard it wasbeled, ¡® Emma''s old stuff¡¯. My lips twitched into a smile as soon as I peered inside. The box contained everything from my younger days. Everything from my old books, music CDs, photo albums, to my favorite teddy bear Mr.Snuggles. I reached for Mr.Snuggles and picked him up, but then I noticed a familiar looking pink leather book lying behind him. A soft smile curved up my lips at the sight of that pink book. I knew that book like the back of my hand. I thought I had lost it somewhere, but it was here all along. I picked up the book and sat back against the wall, making myselffortable. With Mr.Snuggles on myp, I opened the pink book and flipped it to the first page. This diary belongs to Emma Rose Sinir. Happy Birthday Emma, from Emma. Do not read unless you are Emma! Iughed at my silly old self and flipped it to the next page. August 24th, 2014. Dear Diary, Today I did something absolutely crazy. Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. First of all, you must know that Zach is a total asshole and we hate him for life! He cheated on me with another girl in his college dorm! He had been doing it for a while too, and he med me for it, saying that it was because I didn''t wanna have sex with him! What an asshole! So, guess what I did? I went ahead and had a one night stand with a random stranger at a bar. He was absolutely gorgeous. He had jet ck hair and dark brown eyes. Amazing body covered in tattoos. And he was older, maybe in his mid twenties? It was so... crazy! I couldn''t believe it myself, but it happened... We were at the back alley behind the bar. He pinned me against the wall and he kissed me possessively and so passionately. No one ever kissed me this like before, not even Zach. So I kissed him back wantonly, biting on his lower lip, causing him to growl. Without breaking the kiss, he released my hands, gripped my legs, and he linked them to his waist one by one. He propped me up so that all my weight was on him. There was such power in every move he made. My hands curled to grip his shoulders, feeling his strong, hard body under the thin fabric. His hand traveled from my thigh to the hem of my dress. He slid his thumb underneath the fabric as his hand continued moving up. The feeling of his fingers touching my bare skin lit me on fire. His thumb stopped when it reached the band of my panties. My heart had absolutely given up when I felt his fingers cupping my wet area through theced fabric. I let out a slow moan in response,pletely involuntarily. "Baby girl, you''re so wet,"he murmured to my ears. I almost lost it when he called me baby girl. No one had ever called that before and I was loving it. It was a feeling I had never felt before. His body was warm against my pounding chest. His kisses sent tingles up and down my spine. And before I could process it all, he stuck a finger over my panties, causing me to gasp. He started stroking my clit his finger and I was whimpering against his touch. My back arched up so I was exposing more of myself to him. All the while, he hadn''t stopped kissing and sucking on my neck. I was moaning unintelligible words at this point. Zach had tried to finger me once before. It felt weird and awkward. I didn¡¯t like it, so we stopped. But this was different. This guy knew exactly what he was doing and how to control my body. And before long, he slid another finger in and I was losing my vision. He started thrusting into me with his two fingers, and I was feeling the bittersweet pain. Things were going so well and I didn¡¯t want to ruin things by saying I was a virgin. I had never felt anything like this before, and I never wanted it to stop. The clenching in my stomach was getting more and more intense with each of his strokes. He knew it too, and he started moving his fingers with more speed this time, doing this scissor movement thing and it was sending me over the edge. And just when I thought this couldn''t get any better, something exploded in me and my body convulsed in shock. Diary, I just had my first ever real orgasm! I was still reeling from the high that I felt moments before. I didn¡¯t even notice that both his hands were now cupping my ass, his nails digging into my skin. And then I heard the sound of fabric ripping and I felt cold air blew against my butt cheeks. He had ripped my underwear open and the broken piece of fabric fell graciously on the ground. And then he took out a condom and he made me open it. As I was doing it, I saw his erect manhood for the first time, and hot damn! It was sooo big! He closed the distance between us again and I didn¡¯t say a word. I just stood flushed against the wall, thinking somehow that the stupid wall would protect me. Smiling that gorgeous smile, he then grabbed my left thigh and lifted it high and open. I waspletely exposed to him once again. He didn''t go in right away, he was taking his sweet time, purposefully teasing and torturing me. I was a squirming mess as I kept trying to reach for him. He positioned himself so he would let his tip enter me, but only a little bit, before pulling away. I was now writhing in agony. "Please, I want it now," I pleaded. "You''re not there yet.It¡¯s gonna hurt you," "I don''t care, just fuck me," And so he did. He gave me what I asked for. Without warning, he thrust himself into me all at once. It was the most painful thing my body had ever endured. He stopped for a moment to let my body took in his full size, then he pulled out slowly and mmed himself inside me again. He did it several more times, until there was no sounding out of my screams. It was pain and pleasure, all mixed into one. I couldn''t have one without the order. Our eyes were locked into each other¡¯s as his dark gaze bore deeply into mine. This was getting too much. I felt something building up inside of me, demanding a release. He responded by moving in and out of me vigorously. The sound of his body smacking against mine filled the air. His breaths were heavy and coarse. I couldn''t hold it together anymore. I trashed my head back and my core clenched around him, hard. "Fuck!" he grunted through gritted teeth. And with that, we both came almost at the same time. My wet core clenched so hard around him, it made his thick cock pulsed in response. He mmed his whole length into me onest time as he cum. He stayed inside me for a while as he let out a deep relieved sigh. When he finally pulled away, he gave me the widest, sexiest grin I had ever saw, feeling absolutely satisfied. It was the craziest night of my life, diary. Even though I was absolutely heartbroken at what Zach had done to me, I was d that at least I lost my virginity to someone else and not to him. Mr.random stranger, whoever you are, thank you for that night. Though we might never meet again, I hope the experience was just as good for you as it was for me. September 3rd, 2014. Dear Diary, Holy freaking shit, diary! I saw the Bar Guy again in the flesh, and you''ll never guess where... He was at my school! At my freaking school, in my art ssroom, he was my teacher! I can¡¯t believe this diary. My life must be some kind of darkedy series or something, because this can¡¯t be real! It can¡¯t! But it is...and I''ll have to see him again tomorrow...and call him, Mr.Hayes. This was intense. I had to put the book down for a few minutes to catch my breath. Memories began to wash over me, and they were as strong and as vivid as ever. That was six years ago. I was sixteen. I was such a kid. I flipped the pages around randomly and stopped at one that was a bit crinkled. The pages looked as if it was drenched in droplets of water and it had dried out. February 13th, 2016 Dear Diary, Help me, diary. I don¡¯t know what to do.I just toldn that I''m pregnant and his reaction was... "Fuck!" he growled, "How did this happen?!" "I messed up...I forgot to take the pill..."I said in between sobs. "Fuck!"he backed away from me and raked his hair in frustration. His breaths becamebored and he had one hand rubbing his temple. "How far along are you?"he said slowly. "Maybe four weeks give or take, the doctor won''t know for sure unless I take more tests," "The doctor?" "I took a pregnancy test earlier and it came back positive.So, I went to the clinic just to make sure.I was there just now and I came right over,"I exined. I was trying to search his eyes to get a reaction, but he kept his gaze down, avoiding eye contact with me. "Shit, Emma!" he muttered, and suddenly his fist curled into a ball and he punched the wall next to him, yelling aa fag im bet "Fuck!" I had never seen him so angry before in my life. He was punching the wall so hard, blood ran down his knuckles. I was genuinely scared of him, but I tried my best to calm him down. But no matter what I said to him, he was convinced of the ultimate result. "We''re not gonna have a fucking baby, that¡¯s for sure,"he scoffed. "Why not...?" "Because you''re fucking seventeen and you''re going to college.And I''m still your fucking teacher!" he cursed and pushed my hand away, leaving me again. He didn¡¯t want anything to do with this baby, diary. This little thing inside me. He hates it. He wants it gone. So I¡¯m gonna have to get rid of it, tomorrow. On one hand, I know where he¡¯sing from. This baby''s gonna cause us a whole lot of trouble. But on the other hand...it¡¯s our baby. Help me, diary. What should I do? Tears welled up in my eyes as I remembered this moment. One of the lowest points, if not the lowest point of my life. I put the book down as I couldn''t continue reading anymore. The memory of this day was too much for me to handle. But as much as I wanted to look away, I knew I had to keep reading. The story wasn''t over yet. So I picked the book back up again and flipped it several pagester¡­ Chapter 97: Home Coming Chapter 97: Home Coming EMMA¡¯s POV : June 22nd 2016, Dear Diary, Today I''ve officially graduated high school. Today I¡¯m officially notn¡¯s student anymore, in fact, I''mn¡¯s fianc¨¦e now. It''s so surreal to say those words. Future Mrs.Emma Hayes. Oh, I''m so happy, diary. Call me crazy or whatever, but I know who my heart belongs to. He¡¯s my soul mate. If I''m going to take this leap of faith with anyone, it''ll have to be with him. So, I said yes, diary. I said heck yes. September 12th, 2016 Dear Diary, I''m officially a college girl. College is intense, diary. I really hope I¡¯m not falling behind. But thank God for my awesome roommate, Sophie. She¡¯s the best. She¡¯s so funny and sweet, I couldn''t ask for a better roommate. Her brother, Tristan, is also pretty cool. We all got along well and with their help, I feel like college will be manageable. Meanwhile,n and I are doing okay. We''re doing long distance, so it¡¯s kinda hard. I miss him everyday, I miss him a lot. Send him my love diary. Send him all my kisses and love. December 4th, 2016 Dear Diary, I missn so bad. Long distance sucks. It¡¯s so hard to get ahold of him now. Am I being selfish that I want more time with him? Am I being immature? I just really miss him. What''s a girl gotta do? Help me, diary. Emma. October 10th, 2017 Dear Diary,n and I just had phone sex today! Oh my goodness, it was hot! "Show me how you''re touching yourself," he ordered. I was nervous and my cheeks were flushed pink. I had never done anything like this before. It was weird, I could see everything. It was like masturbating in front of a mirror. My hand shakily started rubbing against my clit. Despite my earlier reservations, my body rxed and I started to feel good about it. "That''s it.Does that feel good?"he urged me on. "Mm-hm,"I nodded. "Would it feel better if it was my hand?" "Yeah," "Or my tongue," "Yeah," "Next week, it will be. But for now, close your eyes and imagine that it¡¯s me," "Hmm..." I closed my eyes and let his voice dictate me. "Imagine those were my fingers...Imagine my lips on your breasts...Imagine me sucking on your nipples..." "Ah..."I couldn''t stop the moans from escaping my lips. "Damn, you can make me cum just by looking at you,"he grunted. His words were stirring something inside me. I arched my back and let my fingers slip through my folds. Two fingers pushed through my opening and into my wet, throbbing core. "Go faster for me baby girl," "Yes, daddy," Following hismand, my fingers slid in and out faster, and I angled it so that my fingertips would rub against the front wall of my pussy. Hot moans escaped my lips as I found my rhythm. I moved harder and deeper, and my thumb was still rubbing against my clit. I opened my eyes and saw thatn was moving with my speed. His breaths were ragged as he came closer to his climax. He didn¡¯t break eye contact with me and I was seeing everything, how his hands moved up and down his length and how his rock-hard manhood was twitching with pre-cum. The sensation was too much for me to handle. I felt the tension building in my body, pushing me towards my orgasm. "Cum for me, baby girl," he said through gritted teeth "Cum for daddy,"My fingers pressed against a particrly sensitive spot and my walls mped around my fingers in response. I let out a muffled scream as I reached my climax and I came down hard. I came so damn much, I was practically squirting... It was so intense! Not as amazing as the real thing, but it was great that at least we could do this over the phone. Oh diary, I miss him! I love my daddy so much! I can¡¯t help it! January 15th, 2018 Dear Diary, Diary, I''m so scared. I feel like I¡¯m losingn to this gallery. I know he¡¯s happy and this is his dream, but I¡¯m no longer an important part of his life. Plus, his friend Ally is seriously getting on myst nerve... I think she¡¯s in love with him, diary, but he¡¯s too blind to see it. Oh diary, I hope he¡¯s not gonna rece me with some building. Emma. April 7th, 2018 Dear Diary, I''m confused. I need your advice. There¡¯s a program in Paris and I might be perfect for it. I''ve always wanted to travel abroad, so I really want this to happen. But on the other hand... what''s gonna happen to my rtionship withn? I feel like it¡¯s gonna drive us further and further away. We''re barely hanging by a thread. What should I do, diary? Emma. May 22nd, 2018 Dear Diary,n and I are over. Emma. June 2nd, 2018 Dear Diary, I''m leaving for Paris tomorrow. I''ve said all the goodbyes I needed to say to everyone. I even wroten a letter. Anyway, this is the end of our journey. Thank your for always listening to my stories. Good bye, diary. Emma. There were still some nk pages left, but was thest diary entry I had. I must have stopped writing when I left for Paris. I didn¡¯t bring this book with me. I left everything that reminded me ofn behind because I wanted to start over. Looking back at it now, it was crazy how everything unfolded in the end. He was my one great love. We had all these rules stacked up against us, we had different people came in and out of our lives, and time and space were stretched far between us ¡ª it was a lovestory doomed from the start. But together or not, our love for one another still existed, and would always exist. And I''m d for even just that. I shall cherish all the moments I''ve spent with him forever. The good, the bad, and everything in between. N?velDrama.Org content. Our story will forever be alive in my heart. But everything inside this book was the past, and I today, I was all about the future. My story was not over yet, not even close. Today was a start of something new. I was building a whole new life, moving into this new ce we call home together with the love of my life. Our journey had a been crazy journey, but somehow we ended up here, together. And I couldn''t be happier. If six months ago someone said that I''ll be moving in with my future husband today, I wouldn''t have believed them. But here we are. We''re finally home. "Hey, are you sure you wanna put the bookshelf in that room? I think it''s too small," I heard his voice and turned my head around instinctively. The love of my life was standing at the door, bringing up anotherrge box. He wasn''t wearing a shirt, all the heavy lifting made him sweaty. But even under all that sweat, he still looked absolutely delicious. "What are you doing here on the floor?"he narrowed his eyes and took a seat next to me. "Nothing, I was just reading..."I smiled and put the book away. My eyes caught sight of his bare toned chest and the new tattoo he just got. Emma, the tattoo read. "Hey, have you been crying?"he asked, tilting my chin up to him so he could study my face. "It''s happy tears," I shook my head quickly, "I''m so happy we''re here, in our home," He smiled and leaned his forehead down to mine. For a while there, we were just smiling at each other like a bunch of love-struck teenagers. Love-struck, maybe, but I wasn''t a teenager anymore. I was twenty-two and I was moving in to my first apartment with my boyfriend.Oh, sorry, fianc¨¦e. "What were you reading?"he asked when he noticed the pink book lying facedown on the floor. "A love story,"I said simply. "A love story? Is it about us?" "Some parts of it, yeah," "And what does it say? Can I read it?"he tried to reach for the book, but I quickly grabbed it and hid it behind my back. "No, not yet,"I shook my head. "Why not?" "Because...our story is still being written," Chapter 98: Boiling Point Chapter 98: Boiling Point EMMA¡¯s POV : ----- THREE MONTHS AGO - - - - - "You''re gonna do great," Elliott said as he took my shaking hands. "You got this, E," Tristan gave me a reassuring smile. Elliott, Tristan, and I were standing in front of the massive structure that was the Hudson Yards in New York City. It was a very special day today, I was having my first ever job interview in the famous New York Magazine. I was absolutely over the moon when I got the call for an interview. Sophie, Tristan, Elliott, and I were having dinner together at a restaurant when I got the news. They were excited for me too. So much so, that Tristan offered to drive me to the city for the interview. Sophie had a meeting with her professor today, so she couldn''te. But she promised that she would be waiting at home with pizza and champagne. We were gonna celebrate this moment no matter what, because whatever happens, at least I got to tell people that I was getting interviewed by David Haskell, one of the greatest editors of all time. This was pretty much my dream job. If I ace this interview, I could be the next editorial assistant to David Haskell or to the other great editors that worked in the magazine. I would be living in New York City right after graduation, working at one of the greatest publishing companies in the world. I mean, what else could be better than that? "Oh God, I''m so nervous, I think I¡¯m gonna hurl," I was taking deep breaths and trying my best not to hyperventte. "Just go in there and be yourself.You don¡¯t have to worry about anything,"Elliott said. "Yeah, they''ll be crazy not to hire someone like you," Tristan agreed. I still didn¡¯t feel ready, but there was no more time to waste. I nodded at them, took another deep breath, and curled my hands into fists. With confidence as strong as the croissant I ate this morning, I turned to my heels and climbed the stairs towards the entrance. "Here goes nothing,"I mumbled to myself. Walking into the grand lobby of the building, I suddenly felt so self-aware that my heels were too loud. Slowly, I made my way to the receptionist and told her I was here for the interview. She directed me to the waiting room area and told me to wait there. There were several other people waiting alongside me. There was a guy who kept twitching and fixing his sses every ten seconds. And there was a girl with a severe case of the hups. I waited for about twenty minutes before they finally called me in and said David Haskell was ready to see me. I saw a glimpse of the room where the interview was taking ce and I gulped instinctively. I saw David Haskell sitting there, alongside two other people who I assumed were other senior editors in the magazine. "No matter what happens, I¡¯m here for the experience," I repeated the sentence like a mantra as I stood up. "I''m proud of you even for just going in here and trying," Thedy that escorted me into the room probably thought I was weird, talking to myself like this. Excuse me, but I had never been so nervous in my life before. This interview was gonna determine my future for the next, I don¡¯t know how many years. And with that thought in mind, I took a deep breath and stepped into David Haskell¡¯s office. "So? How''d it go?" Elliott and Tristan¡¯s faces were full of questions and expectations as they saw me walking out of the building. They were waiting on my every move as I stepped down the long stairs slowly and carefully. I wore my extremely tall high heels today, as I wanted to make a good impression. If I walked too fast, however, I might just do the opposite. "It went...kind of great!" I told them. I couldn¡¯t stop the smile forming on my face. "I was so scared and intimidated at first, but David Haskell is such a great person.He¡¯s down to earth and he listens, you know?" "I''m d it went well, love. I knew you could it," Elliott pulled me into his chest as soon as I was an arm¡¯s length away from him. He kissed me on the cheek and smiled brightly. "You were in there for a while, what did you guys talk about?" Tristan asked. Tristan¡¯s dream was also to work for a newspaper or a magazine. He preferred something heavier on the journalistic side than the New York Magazine, though. New York Magazine heavily emphasized on lifestyle, culture, politics, and the world of arts in New York City. He preferred something more like The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal. "First, I had to wait about twenty minutes for David Haskell to finish his other interviews. There was this guy that kept twitching and this girl with the hups, but anyway, I went in after them and we did the typical introductory stuff like where you''re from, et cetera, et cetera. Then he asked me about my school, the dean of my department which happened to be great friends with him, and then we talked about my year in Paris. He took a look at m resume again, saw some of my portfolio, and then he asked me if I was willing to relocate to the city. He never actually said the words '' you''re hired¡¯, but I still think that was a good indication," "Wow, that sure does," Tristan nodded approvingly."He said someone will be in touch within the week to let me know further details," I continued. "Further details? Dude, that pretty much means you''re in," Tristan said matter-of-factly. "Oh, I don¡¯t know, T. I don¡¯t wanna get my hopes up, but I sure hope so!" I yelped with my fingers crossed and my eyes closed. This was totally a great opportunity for me, or for anyone, really. To be able to start working right away after college and in a ce like the New York Magazine, this must be a dream. Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. "This is great news, right? We should celebrate,"Elliott said. "Yeah, what do you have in mind?"I asked him. "Well, we have a couple of hours to kill, maybe we can start with some lunch?" "Oh, I know a great sushi ce not too far from here," Tristan said. "Sounds good to me.Come on, I¡¯m starving.I haven''t eaten all day because I was afraid I¡¯d hurl," I said and motioned for Tristan to lead the way. "Ew, TMI," Tristan rolled his eyes. "By the way, you¡¯re paying for lunch, E.You¡¯re gonna be a paid sry woman now," The thought of being a sry woman brought a smile to my face. I could just picture it; me in my high heels and silk zer, walking up those flights of stairs every morning with a cup of Starbucks coffee in my hand, going into work. Look out New York, herees Emma! "Fine.Get whatever you want, lunch is on me boys!"I eximed. "Yes!" Tristan put his hands up in excitement. We got lunch at this ce called Sushi Seki in the heart of the city. It was a warm spring day in mid May, so we decided to take advantage of the nice weather and sat on the outdoor patio. Tristan was right about the ce, it was probably the best sushi I¡¯ve had in my life. After we finished lunch, we decided to take a walk around Central Park before driving back since the weather so nice today. Okay, so my heels were not made for walking, but big deal. I liked how butt looks with them heels on, and plus, I had Elliott and Tristan with me so I was pretty much putting my body weight on them. I was walking in between Tristan and Elliott, my left arm was linked around Elliott''s waist and my right hand held onto Tristan¡¯s arm. "So this is New York City," Elliott''s eyes were wide in wonder as he took in all the sights. The buildings were tall, the trees were green and full, the flowers were blooming, people were out enjoying the sun, and the sky was a gorgeous shade of blue. "Can''t believe you''ve been in Philly for almost a year and you never visited New York City.It¡¯s only a one hour train ride," Tristan said. Elliott shrugged and looked at me for confirmation, saying, "I guess we just never got a chance?" A nervousugh escaped my lips. Yeah, it wasn¡¯t that we never got a chance toe visit, there were plenty of chances toe visit, but I never wanted to. Thest time I was in this city, I saw my fianc¨¦e kissed another girl and we broke up in the middle of the streets under the rain. It was traumatic, to say the least. "Why haven''t wee here before?" Elliott muttered casually. "Well, you know...I was busy with school..." My eyes darted to the side to avoid eye contact with Elliott, but I caught Tristan¡¯s eyes instead. That look on his face said it all. Tristan knew exactly why I never wanted toe to the city. Our eyes met and it was like we were having a telepathic conversation. "You never told him aboutn, didn¡¯t you?" he asked with his eyes. "No, and don''t you say a word!" I warned him. We stared at each other in awkward silence for a few more seconds before Tristan coughed and shuffled away. "I, uh, I''m gonna go get some of those hot dogs.Sophie asked me to get her some.Be right back," he said as he headed towards a hot dog cart. I let out a small sigh of relief as I watched him go. Elliott was oblivious to everything. I had never told him aboutn, the topic of ex lovers never came up anyway. Elliott never liked talking about the past, so our conversations were always about the present or the future. "So, tell me, when you get that job..." Elliott said suddenly. "If I get the job," I corrected him. "There¡¯s still a chance I might not," "When you get the job," He insisted, emphasizing on the word ¡®when¡¯. "Does that mean you''ll be moving here?" "Well, yeah.I can¡¯t be taking the train from Philly every day,"Iughed. "Why?" "Nothing, it¡¯s just that, I wanna be near where you are, that''s all,"he smiled sweetly. Elliott still got another year of contract with the school he was working for. If it wasn''t for that, he¡¯d probably want to follow me to the city too. "It''s okay if we don''t live in the same city for a year, right? We''ll figure it out," I said, pausing for a moment before continuing, "And like Tristan said, New York is only an hour train ride away," I gave him a reassuring smile, but he didn¡¯t smile back. Instead, he stopped our tracks and turned to his side to face me. "Emma, do you see a future for us?"he asked in a serious tone. "What do you mean?" I looked at him quizzically. "I have left everything behind for you so I''m sure you know that I¡¯m very serious about our rtionship.We''ve been together for almost a year now and I need to know if you''re on the same page with me on this.I''m talking about taking the next step with you," "What are saying, Elliott? You want us to move in together?" "Yes, but not exactly," his hand went to his jacket pocket and he fished out a small velvet box. Slowly, his hand pulled the box open and he said, "This is what I''m saying," My eyes widened instantly and my jaw fell to the ground. Inside the box was a little diamond ring, and it was shining bright at me under the sunlight. "Oh my god!" I gasped. "Oh my god," I heard Tristan¡¯s voice as he wasing back towards us. Elliott took my hand in his and said, "I¡¯ve searched my whole life for someone like you, Emma. Youplete me. When I look into your eyes, I can see a reflection of the two of us and the life I hope we''ll share together. This past year with you has been the best time of my life. You¡¯ve made me the happiest man alive and I promise I will do everything in my power to make you happy," I couldn''t say anything, I waspletely caught off guard. I looked at the ring, then at Elliott¡¯s nervous face, then my eyes darted to Tristan who also had the biggest look of shock on his face. At that moment, it was like Tristan and I were having another telepathic conversation with our eyes. "What the flick is happening, E?!" "I don¡¯t know, T! I don¡¯t flicking know!" "So, will you marry me and be my wife, Emma Sinir?" Elliott said again. His voice pulled my focus back to him. His eyes looked nervous, but they were also hopeful. My mouth fell open as if to speak, but there were no intelligible wordsing out of it. "E...Elliott...I...uh...I Knowing that I wasn¡¯t able to give him aplete answer right away,¡± he smiled and said, "Don¡¯t say anything.Just smile for a yes or kick me in the nuts for no," He was using our little inside joke. That was cute so darn smooth. And dammit, I almost smiled! Oh crap...what am I gonna do? Chapter 99: Ninety Miles Chapter 99: Ny Miles EMMA¡¯s POV : "Elliot...I...l.." I took a deep breath and steadied myself, finally saying, "I''m sorry, but I can''t give you an answer right now.This is a lot and it¡¯s serious and I have to think about it first..." "Oh,"his mouth formed an ¡®O¡¯ and the look of hope and excitement in his eyes faded into disappointment. "I have no idea you''re even considering something like this.You never even told me about it," I said to him. "That''s what I''m doing now, I''m telling you.This is what I want,"he paused for a beat before continuing, "Is this not what you want?" "l...I mean, it¡¯s a big step..."I stammered. "I¡¯m just turning twenty-two this year...and I may look like it, but I don¡¯t feel like an adult.I still feel like I''m just a child and I don¡¯t even know what my life is gonna be like a month from now.You know what I mean?" "I understand," Elliott put his gaze down and sighed. He closed the little velvet box and shoved it back into his jacket pocket. The air suddenly felt cold and I could hear the faint whispers and murmurs of the people watching us. I didn¡¯t dare to look, I was afraid I''d be faced with judgmental eyes or pity smiles. "Ehem," Tristan coughed awkwardly as he stepped towards us. I was d that he decided toe in at this point. He was saving us from the awkward ¡®now what¡¯ conversation. "You got your hot dogs?"I said to him. "Yup..."he replied. "So...uh, is there any other ce we should go to before we head back?"I said to both Elliott and Tristan. I was trying to make the situation as calm and as normal as possible, but Elliott wasn¡¯t buying into it. "I think I''ll just go home,"he said, pausing for a moment before continuing, "You two can keep going, I''ll take the train back.I could use the time to think," "Are you sure...?"I asked cautiously. "Yes.I''ll see you at home," he let out a small smile and leaned towards me for a kiss. I didn¡¯t move away, and I thought he was going to kiss me on the lips, but he kissed me on the cheek instead. I didn''t say another word. I just watched quietly as Elliott turned around and walked out of the park. Meanwhile, Tristan was studying my face intently and he let out a long deep sigh once Elliott was out of sight. "Whoa, E, what in the world happened just now?" "I don¡¯t know, T.I don¡¯t know where this ising from.We never talked about marriage or anything like that.Elliott¡¯s just always so...unpredictable," I started babbling out of control. "It¡¯s like Paris all over again.We never talked about being together, but suddenly he wants toe follow me to the States.And okay, so he wants to have a rtionship with me, I can handle that.But this? A marriage? All of a sudden? Like...how?" I only stopped talking to catch my breath. Tristan fished out a bottle of water from his hot dog doggie bag and handed it to me, he knew full well that I was thirsty after all that ranting. I quickly took it from him and gulped down half the bottle at one go. All this talk about marriage was suddenly making me dizzy and dehydrated. "I''m not ready for a marriage, T.I mean, look at me, I can barely walk in high heels!" I continued the rant as Tristanughed. "I just got out a super heavy rtionship withn and all I wanted was something easy and light and fun, not a marriage!" "To be fair, you andn broke up, what almost two years ago?" Tristan raised an eyebrow. "And you Elliott have been dating for almost a year.You can¡¯t me the guy if he¡¯s thinking about being serious with you," "Serious, sure, but a marriage? Really?"I scoffed. "I''m only gonna be twenty-two in a couple of months!" Tristan wasn''t buying into what I was_ saying. Narrowing his eyes at me, he asked, "Is age really the thing that¡¯s standing between you and saying yes to him?" "I''ve been through this before, T.I know not to make the same mistake again twice,"I sighed. "What do you mean?"he questioned. "I feel like Elliott''s proposal is more of a Hail Mary to save the rtionship than an actual proposal," "Where''d you get that idea from?" "Let''s just say...I was faced with a simr situation before," Tristan blinked a few times before saying, "Withn?" I smiled bitterly and nodded. "I was graduating high school.We were broken up, or actually, he broke up with me because he thought he was doing me a favor.But being apart from each other, he realized he¡¯s made a mistake.So he proposed," "And...what happened?" "I said yes.I moved to U Penn and started college, and he moved to New York City to start the gallery.And I guess you know the rest of that story," "I see..." "Marriage is not some Band-Aid you put on the rtionship, thinking it''s gonna save it.In fact,marriage is only gonna highlight the problem even more," "Wow, spoken like a true once engaged person," Tristan chuckled and fake pped. "I¡¯m d one of us is finding this situation amusing," I rolled my eyes at him. "So, what are you gonna tell Elliott then?" "Wel, I know what I feel and what I want to tell him, but I just don¡¯t have the right words for now.But, I''ll get there.I just need to take a walk and arrange my thoughts," Tristan nodded. He was quiet for a beat, but suddenly he said, "Hey E, can I ask you something?" "Hmm?" "Do you love even Elliott?" "Of course!" I said quickly and somewhat defensively . "You think I''m in a yearlong rtionship with a man I don¡¯t even love?" "No, ¡®Cause I''ve seen you two together and I''ve seen you andn together, and the way you look at himpared to the way you look atn, they¡¯re not even remotely close," Tristan argued. "I...I..can love a lot of things, okay?" I stammered a little. "Like, I love my family and I love you and Sophie too, and I love Elliott...but..." "Not the way you loven?"Tristan was quick to guess. "Exactly..."I admitted in defeat. Tristan looked at me with an expression I couldn''t decipher and let out a small sigh. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?" "E, I said love, not loved," "...I probably just misheard you,"I mumbled. "Come on now, it''s me you''re talking to.You don''t have to lie," I looked at Tristan¡¯s face and I knew he was right. It was just pathetic and sad to admit it out loud, that I was still hopelessly in love with a guy that left me almost two years ago. "T, what am I gonna do? I¡¯m gonna lose regardless..." I sighed in exasperation, "If I say no to Elliott, it might be the end for us. But if I say yes, I know I''m lying to myself and to him too, and that¡¯s not fair... And it¡¯s not that I don''t love Elliott. But I''ve been hurt so bad before, I''m scared of ever loving someone the way I loven. I want to love Elliott the way he deserves to be loved, but I just need some time to get there," "So, you want more time with Elliott to figure things out? To see if you can love him the way you do lan?"he deduced. T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org. "Yeah...pretty much.Does that sound bad?"I asked. "I don''t know, E.What if you never get there?"he asked back. "What if you could never love him as much as you don?" "That''s the thing I''m afraid of..."I admitted. Tristan didn¡¯t have aeback for that. We were quiet for a while now, we just continued walking aimlessly while our thoughts were flying around our heads. "Hey, T, will you do me a favor?"I said after a while of silence. "Anything,"he said quickly. "Can you take Elliott homme? He¡¯s alone in a foreign ce, he doesn¡¯t have any friends. Can you call him and keep himpany tonight? I just need to take a walk and reorganize my thoughts, alone, but I''ll be backter," Tristan nodded reassuringly, "Sure, of course," "Thanks, T," Tristan turned to his heels, but before he ran towards the direction that Elliott took, he turned back to me and said, "Hey, you''ll make the right decision.I know you will," We smiled knowingly at each other, another telepathic moment type of thing. I nodded and he nodded back. And the next second, Tristan was gone. Just as I had asked for, I was left alone with my loud, rambling thoughts. I was walking about fifteen blocks north. I wasn¡¯t counting or anything, but when I looked up at the street sign, I realized I was in 63rd street already. Fifteen blocks didn''t seem like much when your mind was clouded with uncertainties. I was back to my old ritual of making a pros and cons list. I didn¡¯t write it down or anything, but it was all in my head. To be honest, there were a lot more pros than cons to saying yes to Elliott. Pros: He is genuinely a really good guy and he loves me a bunch. He¡¯s got a stable job. He¡¯s willing to relocate for me. He¡¯s always supportive of everything I do. He can cook very well and he¡¯s clean, so he''ll make a great roommate... Cons: I''m not sure if I love him enough... He has given up so much for me, and I¡¯m afraid I might not be able to do the same for him. Would all the pros outweigh the cons? Was this enough reason to marry someone? How will I ever know? At this point, my feet were killing me. I was certain my heels and toes were covered in blisters. I decided to take a break from all the walking. Looking around, I tried to find a bench or a cozy spot where I could rest for a while. Suddenly, my eyes caught sight of this ck and white building with huge windows on the front. It had a bright red awning on the front door that said, New York School of the Arts. Under the red awning were several posters stered on the wall. I gasped instantly when I read what was written on the poster in bold ck letters. "Wait, what?n Hayes? Myn Hayes?"my brain immediately went to overdrive. My feet instinctively crossed the street to get a closer look. The front door was open wide and people wereing in and out, but I didn¡¯t go inside. I chose to stand in front of a poster next to arge window. I just wanted to read what it was about. Histest collection of contemporary art paintings and instations are currently on disy in the school for the duration of the month of May. Opening hours are from 10 AM to 4 PM. Checking my watch, I saw that it was a few minutes before 4 PM. I didn''t know what I was thinking, but the next thing I knew, I had stepped inside the building. My hands and feet were moving on their own ord at this point. I followed the sign that read ¡®Her: Exhibition¡¯ and arrived in this big room with tall ceilings and clear white walls. On the walls were paintings after paintings and in the middle of the room was a big instation piece made out of ss bottles. I was inplete awe at what I was seeing. Stepping closer towards one of the paintings, I saw that it was titled ¡®Ny Miles¡¯. It was an abstract painting consisting of two dots and a long stretch of line in the middle. My lips twitched into a smile. This painting was about us... about the stupid long distance between us. My eyes then darted to the next art piece next to it. There were some study cards stacked on a canvas and it was covered in sshes of watercolor. It took me a second to know that those were my study cards! I used those when I was studying for my finals atn¡¯s apartment. My eyes were starting to get blurry, but I pushed through it. I wanted to see more. Walking to the next art piece, I saw this big ck painting with shes of bright red paint. When I got a closer look at it, I noticed that there was something else on that canvas other than paint. There was a piece of redce underwear, all torn up, but it sat beautifully in the middle of the painting. It was trash, but it became an art piece. Isn¡¯t that my red underwear? The one I wore that night when I met him and we... "You like this one? It''s one of my favorites," I heard a familiar voice and my head whipped around automatically. Wearing an all ck attire, his dark brown hair was pushed back and his facial hair was neatly trimmed. He looked as cool and as fierce as ever. n?"I gaped. Chapter 100: Artistic Mystery Chapter 100: Artistic Mystery EMMA¡¯s POV : "Well, I wasn¡¯t expecting to see you here.But, what a great surprise,"he chuckled lightly, pausing for a beat before saying, "How did you know I was here?" "I don¡¯t.I just happen to walk by,"I replied. "Wow, fate must have a great sense of humor,"he smirked. I hadn¡¯t seen him in two years and I forgot how much his smile or his eyes had an effect on me. Quickly, I averted my gaze. I didn¡¯t want him to know how much of an impact his presence had on me. "What is all this anyway?" I blurted, trying to sound as nonchnt as I could. "It''s an art exhibition, of course.My art exhibition," he said matter-of-factly. "Yours? Wait, but how? I mean, what?" I was stammering like an idiot. He stifled augh and said, "It seems like you have a lot of questions.You''re lucky I''m on my break, I''ll be d to answer all of them," He took a step closer to me and I stepped back involuntarily. My eyes darted around the room and I noticed that the exhibition visiting hours had ended. The door was closed shut and it was just the two of us in that room. Suddenly I felt a shiver up and down my spine. "I don''t understand,"I said to him. "Why are you exhibiting your work here? You''re not working in that gallery with Ally anymore?" "No.As it turns out, we don''t have the same vision for the gallery,"he shrugged as if it wasn¡¯t a big deal. That gallery meant the world to him, he poured out his time, heart, and soul into that gallery. But here he was, making it look as if it was nothing. "Why? I thought you two are..." "Are what?" "Together,"I said bitterly. "No, we''re not,"he shook his head. "But, that night? You two were ¡ª " "That night was a mistake,"he said firmly. "I was ridiculously intoxicated and I was totally cking out, I would''ve made out with a dude if he was in front of me,"heughed. "So, you weren''t in love with her?"I had to repeat that again to make it clear. "Fuck no,"he scoffed. "We''ve been through this already.She was only a friend to me," He was shrugging and grinning, but I wasn¡¯t amused. That night was the night that scarred me for life. I didn''t understand, I thought he was being difficult with me because he wanted an out from our rtionship to be with Ally.But if that wasn¡¯t it... "So, why did you break up with me then?"I asked. "Because I thought you were cheating on me with someone else.But man, was I wrong about that too,"he rolled his eyes. "Huh?" "I saw you and your friend Tristan around your campus.I came because I wanted to apologize for the whole Paris program thing.But then I saw you two and you looked like you were kissing each other, so..." '' "Oh, that was..." "Fake, I know," he cut me off, nodding his head and he said, "Your friend told me about it when I came looking for you," "So you knew I never cheated, why didn¡¯t you try to get me back?" "I was toote.You were already gone.And I''ve messed up so much already.I kissed another girl, drunk or not, that was an ass move.You clearly don''t deserve that," It was starting to make sense now, all of it. I remembered that day out on the quad when Tristan and I were pretending to date in front of Monique. I knew I saw someone that looked liken, but I thought it was a mistake. Turns out, it was really him and he thought I was cheating on him. Add that to the whole Paris thing, and Ally, and everything got all blown up to pieces. "I know it¡¯s way overdue, but I''m sorry.I was such a shit fianc¨¦e,"he said, and I knew he meant it. His gaze was gentle and warm.Warm enough to melt my hardened heart. "That''s alright,"I smiled. "I wasn¡¯t a super great fianc¨¦e either.I should¡¯ve been honest with you about the Paris thing since day one.I didn¡¯t know why I was so afraid,"n smiled, and I mean really smiled. He smirked and grinned a lot, but this smile was different from all of that. It was this hearty, genuine smile that I didn¡¯t see on his face often. I was caught in a trance. I couldn''t move and I didn¡¯t say anything else either. All I could do wasmely stare at him. "So, uh, what brings you to the city anyway?"he said after a while of silence, breaking the thick air of awkwardness. "I had a job interview earlier...and then I was just talking a walk around the area," "A job interview?" "For the New Yorker Magazine," "Wow, that¡¯s great," "They said they''ll contact me within a week," "That means you''re in,"he said confidently. "Really? How do you know?"I narrowed my eyes at him. "If you didn''t get in, they''ll just tell you they''ll let you know, but they wouldn''t say when. They said they''ll contact you within a week because they already knew their ns for you," That made a lot of sense. That also made me smile real wide. I was really hoping I''d get that job. This made it all the more certain for me."I suppose, congrattions are in order?" he said when he caught me smiling. "Thank you," I had to bit my lip to stop myself from smiling too much. His eyes were fixed on me and his gaze was prating so deep into my soul, I was feeling self- conscious. I turned my eyes away again, looking at anything other than him. "So, how are you? How have you been?"he said with his head cocked to the side. "Not too bad.I¡¯m graduating in a couple of weeks and I might have just got hired for a job in the New Yorker," I said as I walked around the room, examining all the other art pieces. I was trying to be as casual as possible, if you didn''t know that already. "How about you? You don¡¯t seem to be doing too bad for yourself,"n opened his arms out wide and said, "I¡¯m ted.This is probably the highlight of my career right here," "What? An art exhibition at a school featuring all your works?" "An art exhibition featuring all my works with my muse in the room," That word caught my attention. I stopped moving and looked up at his face, asking him, "What are you talking about?" "Take a look around.Who do you think inspired all of these?" His hands motioned to all the art pieces all over the room. My eyes nced over the paintings and the instations, everything that he had made. T¨ºxt ? N?velDrama.Org. Basically, he was saying that I was the inspiration behind all of this. Obviously, it was very ttering. But I didn¡¯t wanna be in over my head, and I wanted to appear casual, so I just kept walking around the room, taking a closer look at each and every one of the art pieces. "What''s this one? I don¡¯t get it," I pointed to the big instation in the middle. There were hundreds of ss bottles hanging from the ceiling and some of them were broken apart. The piece was titled ¡®277 Bottles¡¯. "Those were all the bottles it took for me to finally hear your name out loud without breaking into pieces," "What...?"I gaped. "It was a rough year for me," "It was?" I meant to say that to myself, but I had said it out loud. Meanwhile, I felt a pang in my chest. All this time, I thought he''d moved on so fast. I thought he was happy being with Ally. I didn¡¯t know about all of this. "What''s this one?" I turned around quickly, pointing at another piece. My eyes were starting to blur and I didn¡¯t want him to see it. "That one¡¯s inspired by one of those boards you see in the airport.I went looking for you the day you left.I was toote though, so..." "You came to the airport?" I looked up at him instinctively, forgetting about the tears that were pooling in my eyes. "Yeah,"he said simply. "Why didn''t you say anything? I thought you just gave up...so easily," "You were already gone and I didn¡¯t wanna ruin Paris for you.Or to force you to turn around ande back for me," "Why didn¡¯t youe to find me sooner? I''ve waited for days..."I choked, holding back the tears from falling. "I was in the hospital.I was unconscious for days.I had severe dehydration, it was too much of these," he motioned to the ss bottles again. Tears were trickling down my face and I hated myself for it. I didn¡¯t wanna stand in front of him and cry, so wiped them away quickly and turned around. "What does this one mean?" I pointed to another painting, desperate to change the subject. "That one¡¯s a little embarrassing," he stifled augh, "I have a confession to make...I''ve been stalking you a little bit.Virtually, not physically," "What?" "I''ve been following your social media.I saw the pictures you took or the pictures that people took of you, and one day I saw...some French guy posted a picture of a homemade meal and he tagged you and he said something along the line of ¡®my girlfriend made me dinner¡¯. Anyway, I got jealous. ¡°You never made me dinner," "You should consider yourself lucky you don¡¯t have to eat my cooking," I snickered. "Nah, still jealous,"he shook his head. "But that¡¯s okay because that jealousy fueled the creativity," He started pacing around the room, pausing for a moment before continuing, "It¡¯s interesting, isn''t it? How one person can make me feel all these things and more.Everything this girl has made me feel, the highs and lows, all of them are here.Because all of them are important," n..." Ignoring my warning, he kept going, "You know, Roman Payne once said, the muse is not an artistic mystery, but a mathematical equation.The gifts are those ideas you think of as your drift to sleep.The giver is the one you think of when you first awake," and suddenly, he stopped moving and turned to face me, saying, "That''s who you are to me," "No, I...I can¡¯t be all that.I''m not that great," "You don¡¯t know this, do you?" "Know what?" "Baby girl, you are art..." He said it as if it was a known fact. And he called me by that nickname... It was making my heart stir and my stomach tingling. "..You are madness and chaos.You are fire and you are a flood.You''re a perfect storm.You''re New York City in the summer at sunrise.You''re the green light at the end of my dock.Don¡¯t you see? You''re the muse, Emma, you''re everything to me," "That was perhaps the greatest thing anyone has ever said about me.But all I could say in response was: "..But why?" ..He still loves me...? My heart felt so full and so big. Suddenly, all the feelings that I had felt for him, all the love that I thought I¡¯d forgotten, everything was rushing back right in front of my eyes. But my brain was quick to pass judgment. I reminded myself that I shouldn''t feel these things forn again. It wouldn''t be right. I was with someone else. n, you know I¡¯m with someone else now.So, if you''re saying all these things because you''re trying to win me back" "Don''t worry, I''m not," he said quickly, pausing for a second before continuing, "Well, I mean, I''d love to have you back with me, sure, but it¡¯s not my intention to hold you down anymore.It was before and it was selfish of me.I projected my own insecurities out on you.But not anymore," I He held my gaze as he continued, "I don¡¯t want anything from you, Emma.I do this because it¡¯s the only way I can keep you alive in me.And that¡¯s all I want, that¡¯s enough for me," The fact thatn wasn¡¯t trying to anything on me should bring me relief, but somehow it didn¡¯t. Taking one step closer to him, I challenged, "So, are you saying that if I leave right now, you''re not gonna try and stop me?" "No, I''m not gonna stop you.You can leave whenever you want, and you cane back anytime you want too.I''ll be here," He was confusing me with his words. There wereyers afteryers and the more I stand here listening to him, the more I would lose. "I have to go.I have to get back, someone''s waiting for me at home," I decided finally, and I took a step back towards the door. "Okay,"he nodded simply. "Good bye,n.It was nice seeing you again," I had already turned to my heels when I heard him speak again, "Where''s the ne, Emma?" "What?"I turned around. "You gave me back the ring and the bracelet, but you never gave me back the ne.The gift I got you on our first Christmas together," "Oh...I probably just forgot about them..." "You forgot? Or maybe it¡¯s something you keep because you don¡¯t want to forget?" I was frozen in shock. I didn¡¯t expect him to ask me about that ne. That ne was my best kept secret. My brain was telling me to run, but my heart was telling me to stay. Finally, he stopped when he was less than an arm''s length away. He was so close to me, so dangerously close. I could smell his delicious scent again, and it was sending my brain into oblivion. Inching his face closer to mine, his lips brushed my ear as he whispered, "I¡¯m not gonna ask you to stay, but I might try to kiss you," The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!