TELEKINETIC │ p.p

Chapter Twenty Four

Two weeks later, Vanessa stood outside the coffee shop with a nauseous stomach. She held onto her elbow with her opposite hand, as the rest of her arm relaxed against her side, clutching it as if it was her last lifeline. Why did she agree to tutor some kid she barely knew?

She stepped inside, walking over to the counter. After ordering herself her usual drink, she glanced around the quaint little building, searching for the face to match the picture the counselor showed her since he failed to show up at their required first meeting. Hopefully he'd show up to their first session.

She eventually found him, sulking in a corner. Her smile dissipated as she approached the boy. "Lane Walker?" she questioned. He glanced up from his phone, smirking.

"This'll be fun," he mumbled, inviting her to sit in the booth beside him.

"Thanks for showing up this time," Vanessa murmurs, sitting opposite him and opening her backpack, setting up her textbooks and notes.

"Can we just say you taught me here and head over to my place?" he asks, leaning over his arms as they rested on the table. Vanessa looks up at him, unamused.

"I'm not here to have sex with you in an alley," she blankly responds. "I'm here to help a fellow student."

Lane squints his eyes a bit, trying to hide his stupid smile. "Are you trying to set up a little foreplay action?"

"What if I told you I had a boyfriend?" Vanessa quizzed, now her turn to lean forward.

"I'd tell you that our little secret would stay between us," he whispers.

"You're disgusting," she scoffs, opening the textbook for their first class which happened to be Algebra.

Lane shuts her book gently, causing Vanessa to look up at him with questioning eyes. "You don't actually have a boyfriend, do you?"

"That's none of your business," Vanessa remarks. "We're here to work on school assignments, not to discuss our personal lives."

"You're so formal," Lane replies with disgust, resting back into the booth seat. "No wonder you're trying to hide the fact you're single - it's 'cause no one wants to touch Miss. Feisty."

"Ouch," Vanessa responds emotionlessly, "you got me right where it hurts." Lane continues to stare at her. "Can we fucking work now?"

"She swears?" he questions.

"And she can throw punches," Vanessa taunts. "So it's best to listen to her and follow as she says."

"Why do the pretty girls have to either be uptight or stupid," Lane murmurs, boiling Vanessa's blood. She kicks up her foot and presses it into his crotch. Lane glances up at her, smirking as he believes she's being playful. But he finds out too late that she's trying to be threatening, her foot squashing his manhood.

"Don't be a dick," she warns.

"Okay, fine," he chokes out, scrunching up his face. "Let's study."

Vanessa removes her foot, placing it back on the ground. "Thank you," she replies, grinning with a hint of mischief.

- - - - -

"Time's up," Vanessa announces as she checks the time on her phone. She cleans up her space and slings her backpack over her shoulder. She glances outside, smiling as her eyes catch Peter.

"See ya tomorrow?" Lane questions as he watches her stand from the booth.

"Yeah, sure," she speaks, running out to Peter. She jumps on his back and laughs at his reaction. He boots her off his back and spins around, planting a quick kiss on her lips before taking her hand in his and walking her to her car. Lane watched from the window, smirking. He had the right girl.

"Why are you here?" Vanessa questioned as they continued to walk. Peter glanced over at her, staring at her as her eyes were attracted to the damp concrete, the lighting dim as the sun crept into hiding and the streetlights flickered.

"Had to ensure we had some time together today," Peter responds. "And I missed the train back to my place." Vanessa smacked his chest but smiled nevertheless. She was thankful actually. If he had made it to his train on time, they wouldn't have had any time together, in person, today.

"So you need a ride?" she quizzed. Peter nodded, defeated yet unable to keep himself from grinning.

On the way to Peter's, they talked about their days and planned their future days, like summer break. It was coming up sooner than they'd expected.

"I forgot to ask," Peter groaned, slapping a hand over his face. "How was your first day of tutoring?"

"As great as you can assume," she grumbles. "Of course the kid is failing, he doesn't try at all."

"He doesn't have a single class he's excellent in?" Peter questions, feeling bad for her.

"He'd have an A+ in flirting class," Vanessa chuckled absentmindedly. Peter froze, turning his head toward their surroundings outside of the vehicle. "Oh shit, Peter, I didn't-"

"What grade would I have?" he asked instead. He wasn't going to let his jealousy get the best of him this time. He knew Vanessa, and remembered how happy she was to see him. Not that she isn't always happy to see him, she just seemed so much more relieved today.

"You're not the best," Vanessa teases, hoping he'd sense it, "but your kissing makes up for it." Peter smiles, though it's mostly forced. He just couldn't help how he felt on the inside, worsening the feeling as he tried to not let it affect the outside.

The car stopped, but Peter didn't move. He sighed, unbuckled after a bit, leaned over the center console and kissed Vanessa's cheek, then hopped out of the car and trudged into his building. Vanessa watched from afar, overwhelmed with guilt. Why did her stupid mouth move? Why did her mind let that thought slip out of her head? Especially when she knew of his insecurities?

But most importantly, she questioned why she didn't go after Peter and confess her love for him. Sure they were teenagers and they had become official not even a week ago, but she felt what she felt and couldn't help it. Maybe that would've vanished his self-doubt, made his confidence reappear again, or even allow his mind to settle and rest at ease.

Yet there she sat, in the driver side of her car, pulling out of the parking lot as these questions ran amuck in her head.