My Enemy, My Professor

Chapter 15 -I Hate It-

My head feels heavy, my legs feel tired and my eyes are barely opening. The bright light causes me to curse an expletive as I try to push myself up from what seems to be a bed. The small hum of a heater catches my attention and I notice the curtains covering me. I'm in the infirmary I realise. My gaze rests on my feet and I see that my right foot is bandaged up.

"Ah! You're awake! How are you feeling?" The nurse pulls the curtain a little and sits down on the edge of the bed. I nod my head sleepily, patting my leg, feeling a little confused. The last thing I remember is hiding in the gardens. But was that even real?

"How long have I been here?" I ask hesitantly, glancing around the room.

"Well, you've been asleep for about 2 and a half hours, darling. It's 4:30pm at the moment."

"What?" My eyes widen in surprise and I sit up properly, pushing my loose hair back. "Gosh, I need to get going."

"Oh, are you sure?" She looks at her watch and then back at me. "You can stay for a little longer, you've only just woken up."

"I really have to go." My mind is frazzled, I should have already been making my way home by now. The last thing I want is my father finding out-
"Where are my shoes..." I close my eyes in frustration, remembering that I had left them in the garden, muddy and wet.

"They're right here darling. I've also placed the handkerchief there too. Professor Abel managed to bring them here whilst carrying you. I must say, he is one strong man." The nurse chuckles heartily. "Oh right! Let me just go and prescribe you some medicine for your foot..."
I stare blankly at the chair that holds my heels, perfectly clean and the handkerchief, folded neatly beside them. His initials glare at me in the setting light and my heart does a sudden flip. So it really happened. His arms, his scent, his voice. All of it. The cat, the blood and the hiding. I must've fallen asleep along the way. I bring my hand to my hair and realise that my clip is not there. I see it on the side table and grab it frantically.
It was only a weird situation, nothing else. It's all over now.
The heels have a padding which I assume the nurse has placed in, to help with my injured foot. I pull the curtains back and grab my bag, stuffing the handkerchief into my pocket. Now I've got two things to give back to him. Great. Just great.

"Hang on there!" I stop by the door, now feeling the small pain in my foot. The nurse walks briskly to me with a prescription and cream. "Now you will need to apply this on every night before you go to bed. Your cut should heel within about a week but if it doesn't," she points to the piece of parchment, "you can get more of the cream from the pharmacy. Alright?"

"Y-yes. Uh, thank you."

"You shouldn't be thanking me dear." She winks at me with a grin. "You should thank your teacher for bringing you all the way here." My eyes fall to the ground as I nod my head at her. I walk out, scrunching the piece of paper in my hand. I need to get out of here. I just need to. My heart is pounding furiously and I hate it. I hate it so much.

Staff Room

Hayes takes his time, making his way towards the staff room. His hands are stuffed into his pockets and his head is lowered down, his eyes stuck to the ground. Once he took Amaya to the infirmary, all he could think about was her hair, loosely fallen just below her shoulders. He's never seen her with her hair down like that, always tight and pushed back. Once he took the clip off her, he didn't realise he was staring her for at least a few minutes before the nurse walked in. Gosh, what is wrong with him? Today has been a rollercoaster, his ex-girlfriend training to be a teacher here, his student getting into fights and now him, hiding because he didn't want anyone to assume the worst about his situation.