Lessons In Butterflies ｡ ｡ ｡ (StudentxTeacher Romance)

Chapter 31: Okay.. Dad.

Shella's POV:

I walked out of Mr. Caldwell's classroom, still trying to piece together why he had been acting so weird. Whatever. Not my problem. My brain needed a break from weird teacher behaviour.

Then, of course, the universe decided to humble me by making me trip over absolutely nothing.

"Whoa!" I flailed like a wind-up toy, barely catching myself before hitting the ground.

Tila and Madison were nearby, and their attempts to not laugh were so half-hearted I wished they hadn't bothered.

"You good, Shella?" Madison asked, her voice shaking with suppressed laughter.

"Peachy," I grumbled, brushing off my kilt and trying to salvage what was left of my dignity.

They sauntered off, giggling, and I was mid-eye roll when I spotted Ezra at the end of the hallway.

He was leaning against a locker with his arms crossed, looking at me like I'd just emerged from a clown car.

"Shella," he called out, and even from a distance, his tone was weirdly sharp.

"Ezra," I called back, trying to match his energy but mostly just feeling tired.

As I got closer, I noticed he wasn't his usual cool, smirky self. He looked... serious. Which was weird. Ezra didn't do serious unless it involved snacks or football.

"What were you doing in there?" he asked, nodding toward Mr. Caldwell's door like it was some kind of forbidden zone.

"Uh... talking about class?" I said, frowning. "Why?"

His eyes narrowed. "Class? With Elias?"

"Elias?" I blinked trying to act dumb. "Who's Elias?"

"My cousin," he snapped, like I should've already known.

My jaw dropped in mock astonishment. "Mr. Caldwell's your cousin?"

"Don't change the subject."

"I'm not!"

"You are!"

"Ezra, what subject?!"

Ezra sighed dramatically, stepping closer like he was about to interrogate me. "You've been in his classroom a lot."

I squinted at him. "Yeah. That's kind of the point of being a student."

He waved a hand. "Not that much."

"What are you even talking about right now?"

"I'm saying," he said, his voice dropping like he was about to reveal a conspiracy, "it's weird how much you're in there."

"Ezra, he's literally my teacher."

"Yeah, but..." He trailed off, frowning.

"But what?"

"I don't know!" He ran a hand through his hair, looking frustrated.

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, well, thanks for your incredibly helpful insight—"

"Just... I don't trust him, okay?" he interrupted, his tone almost sulky now.

"Wait, what? Why not?"

"He's..." Ezra waved his hand vaguely. "Old."

I blinked. "He's, like, 25."

"Exactly! Ancient."

I snorted. "Pretty sure he's younger than your dad."