Perfect Student

Chapter 16

The fluorescent lights flickered to life, illuminating the long room. The floors were glossy like they had just waxed them making them look slippery and wet. My shoes made loud squeaks as I crossed the room while Hunter's treaded quietly as we toured the place.

I don't know why I expected the classroom to look dramatically different in the night as it did from the day, but it did not meet my expectations. The desks were in their usual rows, the teacher tables held organized piles of papers and the writing on the whiteboard today was the same as it had been when the bell rang. 

The only difference was the silence in the air, unaltered by the sound of students chattering in the halls and the air conditioner blasting in the daytime. 

My head seemed to be screaming in the silence. I walked to the center aisle and sat in my usual desk while Hunter wandered up to the front, setting the now empty bottle of vodka on Mrs. Cliff's desk. 

"Today I'll be teaching about historical fiction but first let me tell you way too many personal stories about my life," Hunter said, mocking Mrs. Cliff. "Honestly, she never shuts up!" 

I silently disagreed. I liked her personal stories. They were fascinating and insightful and a lot of times she tied them into the lesson to help make the concepts relevant. I tried to keep my eyes on him as he continued his speech, but my focus drifted elsewhere. I turned to the back of the room, looking at the table where Mr. Mason sat. 

Hunter noticed. "That's where that prick Mr. Mason sits. I hope he realizes he isn't as cool as he thinks he is."

"Not true!" I said reflexively, before Irealized that might not be a good call. He turned to face me and walked slowlydown the aisle towards me, one foot placed softly in front of the other. He stoppedat my desk and tilted his head to the side, daring me to argue. 

"Excuse me?" he asked, in a cold voice. Ishrugged my cardigan off and let it fall against the seat, exposing more of mybody with hopes it might distract him. My large pajama shirt slipped off oneshoulder, but his gaze didn't waver from my face. 

"Nothing. He's just... my brother's friend. They'rereally close," I confessed. My conscience was clear, knowing that this was thetruth, and Hunter could see that I wasn't lying. 

"Oh, well... I still don't like him." He walkedback to the front of the room and unscrewed one of the Expo markers with asqueak. He turned to me with his dangerous smile, the one that I liked. 

 "Do you want to write something?" he asked me tauntingly. I shook my head. I knew the school couldn't afford to have cameras, but they could definitely still compare handwriting to my homework assignments. He shrugged and began pressing the red marker firmly to the board, creating huge letters that filled the large space.

When he finished, he stepped back to examine his handiwork.

FUCK SCHOOL was written on one board while MR. MASON IS A PRICK was scrawled on the other.

"Brilliant," I said dryly, making an amused face at him. He chuckled at my expression and held up a finger, beckoning me forward. I stood and walked over, unsurprised when he pulled me towards him, and we kissed.

I remembered our very first kiss on the football field fondly. He held my chin up even though he was only a couple of inches taller than me and pressed his lips softly against mine, barely brushing them before he pulled back to check that it was alright. I nodded fervently and he leaned forward, more passionately that time. But after our first kiss, he changed. He kissed me like it was a competition, or a challenge. He moved his lips quickly and breathed heavily, making me hot but also nervous, giving me the feeling that everything was out of my control. Part of me liked the feeling of having no control while the other part of me wondered if it was normal. He was my first relationship and Bryce didn't exactly explain how everything was supposed to work.

Hunter pushed me away from him jokingly, pulling me from my thoughts. I tumbled back against the desk and stretched my arms out, barely managing to catch myself before I fell.

"Okay, time to go," I decided, checking my phone, and seeing the battery die. He nodded in agreement and grabbed the bottle from the desk, heading towards the door.

"Nuh uh!" I said, hands on my hips. "You better wipe off that marker, so you don't get in trouble!"

He turned back and shot me his boyish, contrite look and I laughed. I left the room after making sure I could hear the soft scraping sound of the eraser against the board. He caught up with me when he was done and grabbed my hand, opting to stroll with me through the moonlight. When we got back to the front, he boosted me over and we got into our car and out of the parking lot as expeditiously as possible.

The car idled in front of my house while I gave him a kiss goodnight and sprinted to my doorstep. I shivered in the coolness as the alcohol that had warmed me began to fade. I pressed the handle down gently and crept into the house and up to my room without a problem.