Secret Torture (Student/Teacher) - COMPLETED

Chapter One: Star Crossed

It was cold. The air bit at my bare arms. I wished I had a jacket. I wished I wasn't wearing this dress. I wished I wasn't here. 

The only good thing about this party was that there was a free bar- and believe me, I took full advantage of that. This was my third. Two usually does the trick for me, but I suppose tonight I was feeling a little reckless.

I sipped my drink and leaned against the balcony. It was a really nice hotel. Beautiful gardens stretched on for miles before me. Grand fountains danced in the distance. Parties like this were always held in 5 star hotels. I suppose I was used to it by now, but at first, when my mom first met Walter, this lifestyle was completely new to me. I didn't exactly grow up in a wealthy family. It was just me, my little brother and my mom, up until I turned thirteen. Four years later, black tie charity balls were now a regular occurance in my life.

I heard the door behind me slide open, but I didn't turn around to see who it was. I hoped that whoever was there would just see that this balcony was in fact preoccupied and leave, as soon as possible. 

A second or two later, I smelt the all too familiar smell of smoke. I glanced over my shoulder. . 

A young man stood there, jacket discarded, tie loosened, his shirts top buttons undone. He brought a newly lit cigarette to his mouth. He inhaled deeply, before expelling another cloud of smoke into the air. His eyes suddenly landed on mine, noticing that I was looking at him.

"Sorry - you don't mind, do you?"

I shook my head. "No, it's fine."

"Do you want one?"

I hesitated, before shaking my head. "No, thank you," I said.

I turned back around, not wanting to stare. He was very good looking, after all. But that was probably just the drink talking. I sipped cautiously, staring out into the black night.

"You look like you're enjoying yourself," a sarcastic voice said, a voice that was now much nearer to me. 

The smoking man stood next to me, leaning against the balcony railings just like I was. 

"Is it that obvious?" I asked.

He smiled. "Oh, yes," he brought the cigarette to his mouth again. "Very." 

Suddenly, there was a hand extended towards me. 

"I'm James," he said.

I eyed his hand with suspicion, hesitating. I'd never been good with strangers.

"Are you seriously going to leave me hanging like this?" he asked, with a smile, his hand remaining where it was. 

I couldn't help but laugh softly. There was something very likeable about him. He was amusing. 

I raised my hand and placed it in his. His grip was firm, but not too strong. A good handshake.

"Allison," I told him. 

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Allison," James smiled. 

"Likewise," I said.

"Let me buy you a drink, Allison,"

"It's a free bar,"

"Ssh, you're ruining my attempts at chivalry," he grinned. 

I laughed. "Fine, you can buy you can drink,"

"Excellent,"

After that, the rest is a blur. He 'bought' me one drink, and then another, and then another, and then we left the party altogether. I wanted to run around the gardens, but he argued that it was too cold. However, his hotel room, he assured me, was at perfect room temprature. 

After a lot of fumbling around with the room key, the door finally opened. 

And then, we were kissing. I was lying on his bed, he was on top of me. His hands were tugging at my dress. I was unbuttoning his shirt. 

I had never done this before. But I wanted to. In that moment, nothing else mattered. I knew it wasn't exactly romantic, but I didn't care. This was happening. 

...

I woke up to a phone ringing. It was pitch black. I was lying, naked, with nothing on me but a thin white sheet and a heavy arm. 

Fear surged through me. 

That arm lifted from my chest and reached over my body, for the phone lying on the dresser.

"Hello?" a tired, groggy voice answered. 

Who was this man? What was I doing in his bed? What the hell happened last night? I lay there, paralysed with terror, trying to remember.

A moment later, the man sat up. His bare back faced me. He ran a hand through his hair.

"It's 5 am, are we really doing this now?"

He sighed heavily, then started searching around until he found what he'd been looking for - his boxers. He pulled them on, and stood up, walking towards the ensuite bathroom. 

He glanced over at me. 

And then, I remembered. Only bits and pieces - talking, smoking, laughing, drinking, kissing... 

His name was James. That was all I knew about him.

"Sorry about this," he whispered, then left the room, closing the bathroom door behind him. 

I sat up, quickly finding my underwear and my crumpled dress in a pile on the floor. I pulled my shoes on, picked up my bag, and stood up. 

I was dizzy. Very dizzy. But I had to leave. I crept towards the door and quietly opened it, stepping outside into the hall and shutting the door behind me. I sighed with relief as I found I was still in the same hotel. Now I just had to sneak back to my room. 

I prayed that my mom hadn't noticed my disappearance.

I found an elevator at the end of the hall. I stepped inside and pressed the 7th floor button. It rose up, until it pinged, reaching my destination. I walked briskly down the hall towards my bedroom. I thanked God my parents had given me my own bedroom. This would not be fun to explain.

I entered my fortunately empty hotel room. The bed was still tightly intact, unslept in. I collapsed on top of it, exhausted. I didn't think I'd be able to fall asleep - my stomach felt sick with worry. Or maybe that was just the hangover kicking in. But I did fall asleep. The second I closed my eyes, I drifted away.