Teachers Pet

9: Your Heart You Fool

        "I think that's considered snooping." My lips twitched into a smile almost. Of course Mr. Pierce would show up at the wrong moment. He seemed to just always be there when I needed him not to be. He smirked at me as I tossed Deans script back onto the pile.

       "Am I in trouble?" He leaned against the door frame, measuring my expression. His amusement was mixed in with something else. What that was, I didn't know.

       "If this were my class, maybe." I could hear the playfulness in his voice, but he also seemed to be challenging me somehow. Did he like it when I got smart with my words? He hadn't said anything before when I let myself slip up.

       "It's a good thing this isn't your class then," I shot back. My voice was just as playful. It felt wrong, speaking this way with a teacher. He was allowing it though and he seemed to like it. I did too.

       "If it were, I'd make you stay after school with me." Alone with him? It sounded like something I would very much like. His eyes roamed my face, searching... seeking something. I'd give him whatever it was he was looking for. No, I have to stop while I can. These thoughts, these feelings... When was this all going to stop happening? I bit my lip, trying to let the small amount of physical pain clear my head. Mr. Pierce looked to my lips, tensing his jaw and swallowing hard.

       We both jumped when the last bell rang for third period. He probably knew I didn't actually have a class right now, but that wasn't going to stop me from lying about it. "I'm late," I lied. I looked to Deans script once more before trying to escape. It was a mistake to do so. My heart and stomach ached in synchronization. A painful rhythm echoing in the pit of my stomach.

       "Blair." Mr. Pierce blocked the doorway with his arm, causing me to bump into it. He stared down at me with concern, just like earlier on stage. "Are you okay?" How had the mood changed so fast, so dramatically? Did he know more than I thought he did? He wanted so badly for me to be honest with him, but he should know that I can't.

       "Why wouldn't I be?" I laughed it off, hearing it as a failed attempt. He tilted his head and rose an eyebrow. Of course he didn't believe it.

       "I saw you out there. You weren't okay. Is being the lead in this play a problem? Because I can talk to Mrs. Burns about it. She'll listen to me." The last thing I need is Mrs. Burns in my business. She was the last person that I would ever trust to help me.

        "It's nothing, really." He didn't look reassured, so I looked down. I couldn't see the concern anymore. It was going to make me spill everything to him. Why was he doing this to me? I was just another one of his students.

       "Look at me." I shook my head, pressing my lips together tightly. It was all I could do to stop myself from crying. There wasn't a single person that knew what really happened between me and Dean. My mom knew, but even she had her doubts that he would ever do something so cruel to me. She was as hurt as I was, but she still had hope and an open heart for him and Jillian. She was much more forgiving than I was.

        "Can I go?" I whispered. My voice was betraying me, making me feel weak.

       "Not until you look at me." But I couldn't. His face was too painfully beautiful for me to just look at him and not feel a single damn thing. It wasn't fair. None of this was fair. I should just duck under his arm and run as fast as I can. Before I could act on that thought, he gently placed a finger under my chin and lifted my face up. I swallowed back the lump in my throat and felt my eyes widen. I tried to compose myself. He was touching me. He was actually touching me and I knew that this was inappropriate. It had to be.