Icy Flames

Chapter 1

Emerald College, Seredonna, U.S.A
What a nice ass.
" Leo Sullivan will you please stop staring at Miss Alita derrière." The whole class burst out laughing.
Alita quickly walks quietly to her sit but unfortunately the teacher was not yet done with her.
"You are late again young lady, and for heaven's sake Leo stop staring, this is your final year in high school and this is an algebra class, so would you stop staring at a girl." A series of giggles erupted again.
Alita was thoroughly embarrassed. She hid her face in her hand in order to shield her tomato red cheeks. What was wrong with Leo why couldn't he just mind his own business, she loved her simple life style of being a nerd. It was an easy routine: shun people out, read your books and be the top of the class.
************
Leo watched Alita walk home, her usual self: lonely and typical definition of a nerd.
But even as she tried to go unnoticed, she just couldn't with an hour glass for a figure. He had liked her ever since they were in seventh grade. He just hadn't had enough courage to ask her out or at least talk to her. A lot of guys had tried of course and Alita had just walked past them as if they had said nothing. Couldn't she just at least look him in the eye? right now, after almost six years of silently dying for her, she still hadn't even muttered a "good morning" to him. Prom night was only six months away and he had always wanted Alita for his date. Now what would he do?
*************
Alita poked her head out of her door and glanced sideways making sure her mom and little sister were occupied. Her dad was never a problem. He almost never came out of his home office or come back home from work unless it was dinner time.

  Satisfied that she was not being monitored, Alita stood in front of her mirror and looked at her derrière. It wasn't so big, just a big generous - or  so she thought. She just couldn't understand why she couldn't go anywhere without drawing attention to her butt.
Then, what had happened in class replayed again.
"Leo's a cute guy you know" an inner voice told her. "Shut it" she thought angrily. She had no place for guys in her life. She couldn't and wouldn't end up like her mother who hardly saw her husband and had to take up the functions of both a father and a mother for their two daughters.
But Leo's  face kept appearing in her books as she tried to read. She was about to scream when she heard soft footsteps and the familiar voice of her mother.
"Lita , it's time to eat." Then she appeared at Alita's doorstep. Looking around and seeing the room filled with books of different sizes and contents, she sighed and said
"Alita, one day; you will have to come out of your shell. You can't possibly spend your whole life being alone."
"Mom, this is how I like my life. But it's not my fault that I don't get to make friends you know, it just my nature. C'mon, let go eat."

Her mother shook her head as her daughter walked ahead of her. As the first child of a billionaire, she had  a lot of responsibilities and her father had made that clear to her at a very young age, forcing Alita to face her books and shut the world out.

*************
Leo tried to read but he kept seeing Alita's dark blue eyes and jet black hair rolled into a tight bun as usual. He had dated a lot of girls but he hadn't felt this way with anyone of them. "Damn it" he muttered dropping his book and heading to the sitting room to meet his father. His father, Mr. Sullivan was his closest friend and confidant. His mother had died while having Rose, his younger sister. Ever since, his father had assumed the roles of both a father and a mother. He worked but had just enough time for his children.
Entering the sitting room, his father looked up from the files he was holding and smiled at his son.
"Leo, how are you doing?"
"Fine, dad." Leo answered his face downcast.
"So what's up?"
"I just wanted to ask, you know, when you were in High School, did you, um, kinda......."
"Like a girl? Is that what you're trying to ask? His father asked smiling".
Leo scratched the back of his neck "You're not mad? His father smiled "Well you're growing, so it's normal. So what's happening? You're having problems talking to her?"
Leo hardly flushed but his neck was deep red by now. "How'd you know?"
"I didn't date much, but your mother was quite a hard-to-get" he winked at his son. His wife's death still gave him pain but he was fast getting healed.
"So what should I do?"
"Well, different women need different antiques. Your mother was a tough one so I tried different methods. But for a start, why don't you......"