We arrive at Lukas’ house. It’s brand new. It has two levels and an attic. Some part of the walls are made of thick glass. The house is made of a strange metal that looks almost like mercury.
“Have you cleaned lately?” I ask.
“Of course not! Why would I clean?”
“Ahm, because this is your house,” I say.
Lukas pushes open the door. It’s metallic and is not making any sound. It’s different from the house I rented where the door handle is old and worn.
“Maids come in every Friday and clean up before my father arrives for the weekend,” he informs.
“You mean I won’t be able to talk to your father today?”
“Why would you even want to talk to him?”
“Because of your most recent offenses,” I say. “I also need to discuss with him about your education.”
“Then you will need to ask for a schedule to meet with him. He’s a busy man,” he says.
“Your family is in business, right?”
“Why do you care?” he asks. He places his arms across his chest and stares me down. “Are you not going to leave, Teacher Cassie? My father is not here.”
“Hmmm,” I mutter. “Who takes care of your food?”
“Maids. Cooks. Whoever.”
“So, you buy food outside.”
“If you have nothing else to say, just leave me! I’m at home now, safe and sound.”
“And alone,” I say, smirking. “I hear that your stomach is hurting. Let me just prepare something for you. Maybe—”
I push at him, but he bars my path. “Do you like me, Teacher? You are still young. I am not averse to having a student-teacher romantic relationship.”
I almost gag in disgust. “Are you serious? Stop being a disgusting little shit.”
“You are not allowed to insult your student!”
“We are not in school and besides, you are also not allowed to make that revolting, vile, sickening—”
“Stop! I get it already!”
“So? Is your stomach really hurting or not?”
He pauses and then, in a whisper, he admits, “I was lying.”
I sigh and massage my temple. “Are you not happy here, Lukas?”
“Who would be happy in this rural, agricultural land? Even the teachers are bad.”
“Ah! So you are lonely, but since you have no control over your situation, you are lashing out at me.”
“I am not lashing out at you.”
“Spreading rumors. Influencing the students to misbehave in the classroom. What do you think are those? Having fun? Trying to hide your loneliness?”
“I am not lonely!”
“Yes, you are!”
Then he pushes me out the door. “I am well now, teacher, so you can leave.”
I turn towards him. He meets my eyes with strange curiosity. Then he slams the door on me. I feel a surge of disappointment. Observing his reactions, I may be correct. His father really has little time for him. Is he always dismissed? With almost no conversation between them?
I sigh. Well, let’s try another day then.
****************************
Lukas’ eyes are glued to Alinn as he passes me and Alinn. He calls for her, but she ignores him. She might not be looking at him, but I know she is aware of him—the bad kind of awareness, though.
He moves towards us and sits on the table. “What are you doing here?” I ask. “You are still half an hour early.”
“Checking out what my little puppy is doing,” he says.
He peers into Alinn. His blonde hair falls across his eyes and the corner of his mouth turns up. It’s the look of delight. He smiles, and he brightens up the room.
Alinn, on the other hand, is not looking at him. She tries to concentrate on her paper, but she can’t take the stare anymore. She looks up at him.
“Shouldn’t you be working on something else, rather than staring at me?!” she snaps.
Lukas grins. He does that every time he arrives for his review with me. And every time he does, Alinn’s window of concentration just flew wide open.
“Join us in a bonfire tonight. It will be a group date,” he invites her and my brows raise. Aren’t we taking some small steps, little monster?
“I am busy,” she declines.
“You don’t need to study a lot. You will grow up ugly.”
“You can’t have fun too much, you will grow stupid,” she pauses and then adds, “Ah, right, you are already stupid.”
“Alinn,” I admonish.
Alinn looks at me and bows her head low, ashamed of herself.
“It’s fine, Teacher Cassie. I read from a book that girls insult the boys that they like.”
“What?!” I ask, incredulous.
Alinn drops her mouth open and blinks twice. The way she does it, I laugh. Disbelief is written all over her face.
“That’s impossible!” she sputters.
However, Lukas takes the opportunity. He leans towards her and places a kiss on her mouth. And no, it’s not those chaste first kisses that teenagers have, either. It’s an open-mouth kiss with his tongue going into Alinn’s mouth. She tries to pull back, but Lukas takes a hold of the back of her neck and presses on.
This time, it’s my mouth that hangs open like a rusty gate. I cannot believe it. The little monster is not so little after all.
Lukas releases Alinn. He licks his lips. “That’s delicious, thank you.”
Then she slaps him. “How could you?!” she gasps, wiping her mouth as if she’s been dirtied.
A wide grin appears on his face. “You should stop resisting me. Stop studying and have fun with me.”
“You disgusting animal!”
“Fell for me yet, my little puppy?” he asks.
Her little fists strike him, but he grabs hold of her and wrestles her close to his chest. He looks down at her and kisses her again, but more aggressively. She pushes him again. She reaches out with clawed hands, but Lukas dodges her. I can see her chest heaving.
Suddenly, Alinn’s sobs come out like a storm, loud and filled with revulsion. She crouches on the ground and this time, it’s Lukas who is confused.
“Why are you crying? You should be happy I kissed you. Girls want to be kissed by me.”
“I hate you!”
“What? Why?!”
This is a fight against teenagers and a one-sided crush. But then, one is befuddled and the other one is grieving as if it’s the end of the world for her.
I sigh. I think I need to interject now. I kneel before Alinn and hug her. She embraces me back and buries her face against my chest.
Lukas outstretches his hand towards Alinn, but I say, “You should leave for today, Lukas. And think about what you did today.”
He closes his fist. He opens his mouth and closes them again. With no other choice, he passes through the door and leaves.
Lukas is coming in from his other classes more consistently. He sits on the table beside the one that Alinn occupies. He is quieter, but from time to time, I catch him glancing at Alinn. He also learned the meaning of focus. And as a result, his quizzes are improving. As a teacher, I like these changes. “Teacher Cassie, my mother is outside. I will leave now,” Alinn informs. Lukas stands up at the same time that Alinn did. “I will come with—” “Don’t bother,” Alinn snaps. She is still furious at him for forcibly kissing her. Lukas watches her leave. His expression is a mixture of longing, confusion, and guilt. “I thought you said that nerds are uncool?” I ask, without taking my eyes off Alinn’s paper. “She’s not!” he complains. “You think she’s your adorable puppy, right?” “She is.” “Guess what? This sense of belongingness? That’s something she won’t like. First, you don’t own her. Second, you guys are too different. Not to mention that she currently hates you.” “You are the t
It’s the school’s midterm examination day. The students are all stressed out, including Lukas. He told me earlier that it was the first time he was nervous about exams. “I don’t know what to do,” Lukas shares. “This time, I really feel nervous about it.” “Nervous because you might be hated by Alinn forever?” I jest. We are in my classroom. Instead of the bathrooms, where students love to escape during their exams, he is lounging here, probably hoping to take a peek at Alinn. “Shouldn’t you return to the examination room?” I add. “You are right. I should.” Lukas stands up. However, the instant he does, the door bursts open, and Jason appears with a wide grin. “Guess what, Teacher Cassie?!” I look up at him. “What is it, Jason?” “Five of us in the school paper will go to the regionals!” “Oh,” I exclaim. Lukas leans towards me and asks, “What does that mean?” “That means they will write a feature about me in the school paper, and I will also treat them to nice food.” “Ha!” he
When I drop off Alinn at her house, we see Lukas sitting on the couch in the living room and talking to Mrs. Avery. Alinn retreats and is about to return to my car when I hold her arms. “Where are you going, little lady?” I ask, almost gagging at my own laughter. “This is your house.” “Alinn, welcome back!” Mrs. Avery greets. “You have a visitor.” Lukas’ gaze turns toward Alinn, and his lips curl into an embarrassed smile. “Congratulations,” he says. Alinn grimaces. “What are you doing here?!” “Alinn! Learn to treat your guest better.” She turns to her parents and purses her lips. “Sorry,” she apologizes, and Lukas grins. Alinn turns to look at me to ask for help. However, this time, I can’t. Lukas is a guest like me at her house. And so, I pat her shoulders and walk toward her parents. “Teacher Cassie, welcome to our house.” “Good day, Mrs. Avery.” I glance at Mr. Avery and bow my head at him. “I just dropped Alinn off, but I will leave soon.” “Stay for dinner,” Mrs. Avery
“Teacher Cassie, this is my father, Liam Chapman,” Lukas says with pride. “Father, this is Teacher Cassie.” When Liam Chapman approaches, I stand up and step back, hitting the back of my knee on the couch. His dark eyes are trained on me. He stretches his hand, and I retreat from him. “Nice to meet you,” he says. He takes my hand and shakes it. His grip is solid and warm. “I have heard so much about you. My son has been raving about you.” “Dad!” Lukas complains. “That’s not true!” Liam grins at his son and steps closer to me again. This time, his smile is on me as if we are old friends and he has known me forever. Well, he knows me, but on... only on a more physical level. His fingers brush my hand as he says, “I have wanted to meet you for a while, but you might reject the invitation.” Of course, I will! My mind screams. He is a picture of a dumb, but very sensuous mistake! Or rather, he looks as good as the day I thought he was Mr. Ellis. “It’s okay,” I say quickly, though I am
After my first class ends, I go back to the library to teach a class on literature and search for any coaching techniques for my new handles—the journalism team. I try not to think about Mark or Liam while I teach the class. I need to concentrate on the students who come to ask questions. However, the school is abuzz with hushed voices by the time lunchtime arrives. One of my co-teachers comes and says, “The principal is calling for us.” I wonder, what is it this time? When I reach the staff room, Mark is already talking to one of the senior teachers. They look at me with disdain, as if I should not be called here. They speak in low voices while glancing at me, their eyes full of contempt. “What is happening?” My co-teacher cannot answer because Principal Abra is coming out of his office. “I am sure you have heard the rumor.” He clears his throat before saying, “but none of it is true.” He glances at me and then at the teachers. “Teacher Cassie is not my mistress. I also don’t hav
“Alinn!” I admonish. This girl! Does she want to get expelled!? “Teacher Cassie,” she whispers, her voice trembling, and she is so close to crying. I grab Alinn’s arm and pull her away from Lukas while shouting for Jason to prepare so we can bring him to the hospital. I look at Lukas. Instead of laughing at him, I feel pity. He is crying and bruised. I doubt he ever fought back against Alinn. No one must have hit him like this before. Nevertheless, it is also apparent that it’s his heart that’s beaten up. Alinn never tried to escape my hold. She might be waiting for someone to stop her. However, the others look afraid of her, and Lukas is doing nothing to fight back. I move to Lukas and tap his cheeks. “Lukas?” I ask. “Teacher Cassie...” There is a pleading look on his face. “Good, you can still recognize me. I will bring you to the hospital, okay?” He mumbles a yes in between his pain. I help him up. He moves his legs slowly and awkwardly while his body shakes. He uses his fre
I wait outside the company director’s office. He said he would meet some important people for a new advertising project. But after that meeting, he needs to discuss something with me. I glance at my wristwatch. It’s already fifteen minutes over my shift. I guess I will file for another overtime. It’s been three months since I resigned as a teacher. It’s been good. None of the chaos that a school setting offers — no students whining about the teacher being unfair or why they are not getting an A for a subject. However, I am surprised that I miss the interaction with students and the teaching part of the job. The door to the Director’s office opens, and the director comes out with a beaming smile on his face. Two men and another woman accompany him. All four of them are dressed in suit and ties. But my gaze settles on one man. The familiar figure is unmistakably Liam Chapman! My heart skips a beat at the same time that my jaw drops in disbelief. What the hell is he doing here?! My eye
I choke on my wine. I cough as I try to maintain a sense of dignity. But I just can’t quite contain my surprise at the question. I grab a napkin and quickly wipe my mouth. I look up with shock in my eyes. “What did you just say?” I ask again. What had I just heard? “I need help with my son’s education.” He leans forward. “If you marry me, I will provide all your needs.” “You can just get a private tutor!” I exclaim. “Having a mother at home and focused on his education is essential and more effective. Besides…” He takes my hand, which trembles in his touch, and he adds, “... we already know each other, especially the physical and sexual aspect of marriage. We will have no problem in the bedroom.” I withdraw my hand as if scalded by his touch. “Do you even know what you are saying, Mr. Chapman?!” “During your interview, I heard you would like to travel more. That’s why you are working in your company. However, being my wife, you can focus on Lukas, and I will provide for your trips