Hooked ~A Student/Teacher Love Story~

Chapter 1

“Stella, have you seen the new English teacher?”

I peered over my book at Bethany Achers, my preppy best friend, and pushed my wire-rimmed glasses up my nose.  She set her lunch tray down and stared at me expectantly.  I sighed, knowing this meant she needed my undivided attention.  Reluctantly, I shut the novel and set it next to my untouched apple.

“No,” I said, and braced myself for the onslaught of Bethany’s impending rant.

“Oh my God, he is unbelievably hot. Like, romance novel hot. I felt dehydrated just looking at him!”  I scowled, groaning at her new infatuation.  This was a preview of the whole year, I could tell.  Everyday, she’d go on and on and on about how he said something really funny, or looked at her while explaining a lesson, yadda yadda yadda.  I’d have to learn to tune it out like I already did much of the time, and if it got bad enough, I’d have to spend my lunch periods in the bathroom or something drastic like that.  Bethany may have been my best friend, but she got annoying really fast.

“I don’t care, Bethany. I really don’t care.”  I opened my book to start reading again, but she slammed it down on the table and leaned over her tray, putting us face to face.  Her bright blue eyes stared into my own unblinking green.

Do you believe me about her being unbearably annoying yet?

“You haven’t seen him, Stell! Just you wait. You’ll die of heatstroke in English.”

“You said the same thing about Mr. Jennings last year, and he was forty-three.  And married.”

“Well, Mr. Donnals is only twenty-five, is single, and is porn-star hot.”

I winced.  So not an image I wanted.

“Besides, you’re into older men; you told me yourself. All that maturity and experience BS gives you a girl-boner.”  My cheeks flared.  I’d mistakenly admitted that little fact when asked what I looked for in a guy during Truth or Dare at a birthday party freshmen year, and Bethany had been trying to set me up with teachers and the like ever since.  It was irritating as hell, not to mention embarrassing, especially since she hadn’t bothered to keep it a secret.

I’ll bet you’re asking yourself why we’re still friends.  To be honest, I have no idea.  Probably because I know I won’t find anyone else, and…

Never mind, that’s the only reason.

“Bethany, please just shut up,” I said, picking up my book again in an attempt to distance myself from the topic at hand.  My friend shrugged and set to eating her lunch.  Funnily enough, I’d lost my appetite.

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The lunch bell rang and I scurried away from Bethany as fast as I could, disappearing into the crowd of students.  Two flights of stairs took me to the four hundred wing, which held my next class --- you guessed it --- English III.  Mr. Donnals’ new room was Room 406, the room of my English class from ninth grade.  I was almost to the door when I felt a tap on my shoulder.  I whipped around to find my guy friend Evan Pearce being pulled along with the current of the school’s rush hour.  I flashed him a sympathetic grin as he reached out to me, and then entered the room that would rock my teenage world.