Working at Greene Heights Academy, day six--beginning of work day
It's 7am and my eye is on fire.
I pass the mirror in the teacher's workroom and stop to stare at it one last time before I head to my class. The swelling is almost gone and I can open my eye well, but the green in it is particularly accentuated by the red and purple blotches all around it.
To make things even worse, I'm not sure what to think about the beating I gave slug Friday night. Is Wheeler thankful that I saved her? Was my move heroic? Was it anti-feministic? Did it hurt her relationship with Niall? Is she upset about what I did? Should I have just left it alone?
The thing is, I couldn't, and the even more frustrating thing is, I don't understand why I couldn't. Not that I wouldn't have felt horrible if it was any other girl, and I probably would've even jumped in and saved them, but at the same time---I'm not one hundred percent sure. With Wheeler, I was. The minute I noticed Slug so close to her I completely lost it. I wouldn't have lost it like that for any other girl, ever. The worst part is, the first thing I thought wasn't "Oh my gosh, I've got to save her!" it was more like "Damnit, stay the hell away from what's mine!" and she's not. The thing is, she never will be. But I may have to accept that I do have strong feelings for her...even if I don't want them to go anywhere.
The bell jars me out of lala land and I hurry off to a particularly dreaded day.
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The whole class is already in and sitting down by the time I reach the room, and a chorus of gasps rises up when they all notice my eye.
"What the hell happened, tough guy?" Liam questions, causing me to grit my teeth.
"Watch it. Unless you want to see Mrs. Resati again," I threaten. He immediately quiets down, only to be followed by more annoying people asking pointless questions.
"Mr. Styles, a black eye is so hot. You have to tell us how you got it," Tiffany stares at me intently like she's waiting for a President to give his Inaugural Speech.
"Not only do I not have to tell you how...I'm not going to," I explain, almost being cut off by the sound of another voice.
"Is it scandalous?" Tiffany's sidekick Shana questions, winking at me and then whispering to the people around her. Suddenly the room ignites in a flurry of little quiet conversations and the only two not talking are Wheeler and Louis. I'm contemplating how to stop the madness and staring off into space as the room gets louder and louder. Finally a welcome voice erupts.
"Can't we all just leave him alone? It's NONE of our business!" Wheeler yells loud enough that the classes on the second floor have probably heard her, but I don't care. I can tell by her defensive statement that she's grateful to me, and something happy swells up inside me and quickly dies down when the room ignites with speech again.
"Teacher's pet!" Liam says, chuckling.
"She's in love with Mr. Styles," Shana adds loudly, laughing and looking at Tiffany.
"As if a hot guy like him would ever want someone so utterly hideous!" Tiffany states obnoxiously.
I expect Wheeler to leave, but she just sits there quietly and takes it. I'm strangely inspired by the strength it must take to ignore completely stupid people making such ignorant comments.
"Everyone. shut. up. Time to actually learn something!" they all quiet down and look at me, hopefully finally ready to stop being hooligans.
"Today we are going to begin reading The Great Gatsby," I announce proudly, passing out the books quickly as the whole classroom except Wheeler groans.
"It's a story of love," everyone groans again.
"Of loss," they continue to whine.
"Of friendship," they're ready to go on strike.
"And of partying!" the classroom erupts into cheers at my last statement.
"I want you to silently read Chapters one and two in class today and we will discuss them tomorrow," I explain, plopping down into my uncomfortable desk chair.
The Great Gatsby is one of my favorite books in the entire world, but I have to admit that I'm not keen on the ending. I'm sure that most of the class won't be either...if they even read it at all. It's a shame that someone invented Cliffnotes, but they did come in handy for me a few times during my school career.
After a short rest of the class, the bell sounded, and in an all-too-familiar fashion, Wheeler is the last one in the classroom and she is standing at my desk. My palms begin to sweat like that of a fourteen year old boy.
"Thank you," Wheeler extends her hand to me in an act of extreme gratitude.
My mind can't manage to fathom any words, so I just shake her hand, brushing her fingers a bit as we release each other, sending chills down my spine as she exits the room.
There is no confusion like the confusion of a simple mind. ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby
A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! If you haven't read the Great Gatsby or seen any of the movies, you HAVE to! I must agree with Harry and admit that I'm not too fond of the ending...but I love the rest of it and it's one of my favorite books! Also, I have a new reader to dedicate this chapter to---Pulsing! Thanks so much for voting on the story, I really appreciate it! As of now I'm out of people to dedicate things to as far as I know, so if I've missed you PLEASE let me know and thanks to all of you, I love you guys! <3
