Love At First Spike (GirlxGirl) (TeacherxStudent)

11

A/N: ;)

"My real name is not Valarie Hart."

Confusion washed over me, evident in the furrow of my brow and the widening of my eyes. I struggled to grasp the enormity of her revelation, unable to hide the bewilderment that clung to my features.

"W-what do you mean your name is not Valarie Hart?" I stammered, my mind racing to piece together the fragments of this unexpected puzzle. What could possibly compel someone like her to live with a different identity?

To my surprise, I heard Miss Hart let out a soft chuckle. It was a sound that danced on the edge of relief, or perhaps amusement, but I couldn't be sure. Still, I felt a flicker of warmth in my chest, glad to see that the burden of her secret didn't weigh her down as heavily as I had anticipated.

"Wait, before you start, what's your real name?" I blurted out, my curiosity intensifying with each passing moment.

"Now that's a secret," Miss Hart replied with a casual shrug, a hint of amusement dancing in her eyes as she observed my eager reaction.

"Why did you change your name?" I pressed, unable to contain my growing impatience. The anticipation was almost unbearable, and I needed to know more about the woman sitting beside me-this enigma that was both familiar and foreign.

The atmosphere suddenly became suffocating. Miss Hart's face transformed, a stoic, stern seriousness. She was ready to speak, and I was prepared to sit by her side and absorb everything she had to share.

I felt a knot tighten in my stomach. Gulping, I braced myself for her story.

Miss Hart cleared her throat, the tension thick in the air.

"You may recognize my past name, to be honest," she began, her voice steady but laced with an undercurrent of pain. "I told you about all the parties, but it wasn't pleasant. One night, I was drugged. I lost all consciousness, and the next thing I remember was photos of me-naked, unconscious-spreading all across the internet. My face was blurred, but what's the point when my name was leaked all over the world?"

Her words hung heavily between us, and I felt my heart ache for her.

"My manager was able to take down most of the articles, but obviously, people had already saved them. The articles spun all sorts of ridiculous fairy tales about what happened that night. So, I quit, I ran away. I changed my name and moved away."

"Like a coward..." she trailed off, her voice slightly wavering despite her efforts to maintain composure, and all I could do was shake my head in disagreement.

"My team that was supposed to have my back. I later found out they were all conscious and fully aware of my situation. They let it happen. No one protected me. They leaked my name, and to this day, I have no idea who did it or why it happened. I had to leave the professional league because I was either the pitied one or the one who got herself into that situation for being irresponsible."

Her words hung heavily in the air, each one a reminder of the betrayal she faced. I could see the hurt etched on her face, a painful contrast to the strong, confident persona she usually projected. This was a side of Miss Hart, a woman stripped of her armour, revealing the scars beneath.

As I sat there, I felt an overwhelming urge to comfort her, to tell her that she was not alone in this, that she was more than just the labels that had been forced upon her.

"I'm so sorry," was all I could manage to say, my heart aching for her. I knew that nothing I said could truly ease her pain.

She shrugged, offering a bittersweet smile. "It's okay; it's not your fault." A long sigh escaped her lips, as if a ton of bricks had been lifted from her shoulders.