Kiss My Name

Chapter 4

You came into Ms. Venable's room, watching for any negativity in her expression. "I was just thinking about you. What brings you here, (Y/N)?" She spoke softly, her tone however was firm. "I was wondering how you were doing, you don't talk much." You explained, rubbing your arm out of nervousness.

"I'm doing fine. May I ask why you are worried about me?" Ms. Venable's tone was sharp, almost as if she was chastising you for caring. You frowned a little, taking in a quiet deep breath. Are you not used to people caring? "Because I care about you." Blurting your words, you met her gaze. Her face held no emotion, but deep in her eyes was a tinge of confusion. "I would like to be alone now, you are dismissed Ms. (L/N)." Her tone was achingly neutral, making your hands slowly ball into fists. "It was nice seeing you, Ms. Venable." As you walked away, you closed the door behind you as quietly as possible.

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It had been three days since you spoke to Ms. Venable. After expressing that you care about her, it seems she had made a note to avoid you. Everyday was the same. Eat breakfast, direct a session until lunch, eat, work on notes, eat dinner, read books for inspiration, go to bed. Tonight, you were alone in the library, or so you thought. As you huddled in a corner and focused on the book, the tap of a cane drew you out of your fixation. Looking up and blinking, you found yourself staring up at Ms. Venable. "Hello, Ms. Venable. How has your day been?" You inquired, marking your space in the book and setting it down on your lap. "I haven't seen you all day, Ms. (L/N). Normally you don't hide away." She curved past the question, slowly making her way closer.

You tilted your head a little, her thumb on your chin tilting your head up. "I've been busy with the same routine, Ms. Venable. I have to keep everyone entertained." Your tone was soft, not wanting to upset her any more. "Keeping everyone entertained? Well, Ms. Mead and I haven't gotten that memo." You felt guilt run through you at her statement. "If you both want, you can join the sessions." Ms. Venable pulled away at your suggestion. "Nonsense, I won't play immature meaningless games." A pang of guilt for enjoying the game ran through you, making you rub your arm uncomfortably. "Oh... Well, uhm... It was nice talking to you, Ms. Venable. I should head to my room. Good night, sleep well." You put the book back, walking away from the woman as fast as possible before she could get a word in.

Going to your room, you closed the door and took a deep breath. Immature meaningless games. You looked at your campaign notes, putting them away. Immature meaningless games. You hid them in your desk, making sure to put the book in there too. You got into the shower after removing your clothes, thinking over her expression when she said it. Immature meaningless games. She looked disgusted, revolted by your stories. You switched the warm water to cold, letting the cool temperature run over your skin.

Turning off the shower and drying off, you made your way to your closet and pulled out some pajamas. You took a look at your notes before going to bed, smacking the papers into your desk. If the most important person here thinks it's stupid, then it must be. "I should've known better than to bring my notes here." You mumbled.

Crawling into bed, you slept lightly. You couldn't reach a deep sleep, caught up in your thoughts. When your alarm went off, you got up and changed into a simple dress. You chose not to wear jewelry, liking just the simple dress with simple black heels. As you left, you sat in your usual spot. Coco ran up and sat beside you, Ms. Venable walking past the two of you. "Hey! (Y/N)! I can't wait for today's game! I've been thinking about what I want to do and-" you quickly cut her off. "There's not game today and probably not tomorrow." What you didn't see was Ms. Venable stop walking for a moment. "What do you mean there's no game today or tomorrow? We need to fight the Werewolf King!" Coco hissed quietly. "There's just no game today."

Receiving your food, you ate slowly. You could feel Ms. Venable's eyes burning into you, making the guilt seep deeper. You could hear Coco telling the others that there would be no game, feeling Dinah and Mr. Gallant staring at you with confusion and worry. When everyone was dismissed, you made your way to the library, not noticing that you were being followed. When you found the book you were reading last night, you turned to the page you left off on. "What are you reading?" You recognized that voice as Ms. Mead. "Felidae." You looked up from your book. "How are you feeling?" You set the book down, meeting her gaze. "I'm okay. How about you?" "I'm okay too."

The silence was deafening, then she spoke up. "You know, Ms. Venable seemed upset that you cancelled your game." I don't believe that a single bit. "I highly doubt that, she said it was meaningless and immature." Ms. Mead gave a small heartwarming laugh. "Well, I don't think it's meaningless and immature." Your gaze flickered to the side a little, Ms. Venable hiding amongst the shelves. There was mild guilt in her eyes. "It doesn't matter anyways, I'm cancelling the game for good. If you want to continue it, the notes are in my desk." Ms. Mead gave a small nod, her expression full of sadness.

"I'll see if Ms. Vanderbilt or Mr. Gallant will want to run the sessions. I'll see you in a couple of hours, Ms. (L/N)." You and Ms. Mead said your farewells and your eyes trailed off to Ms. Venable on the far side of the library.

She made eye contact with you, but she didn't say a word.