Shades Of Styles

"Just" Colleagues (part 1)

"Ms. (Y/L/N), and Mr. Styles. What is going on?" a voice shouts at us from the other side of the closet door. My body freezes and even though Harry is standing right in front of me I swear I can't see him anymore-maybe my brain doesn't want to see him.

I feel my face get hot as Harry moves from in front of me, my hands move away from where his collar was and to my hair to adjust it. I can't even begin to process what's in front of me. The science teacher, Mr. Horan in front of the closet door and Harry standing next to me, his hand still on my waist is all I can seem to comprehend. I should be able to understand that Harry and I have just been caught making out in his classroom closet but my brain doesn't know how to handle this scene at all.

Harry finally moves his hand from my waist, to his lips and uses his thumb to swipe our mixed saliva off of his lips. And suddenly I remember how I got here.

"Ms. (Y/L/N), this is Harry Styles-our new band teacher," my boss explains as I am nose deep into my work. I only have my lunch break to get the rest of the tests graded. The students keep asking for them back and I I'm tired of hearing about it. "Ms. (Y/L/N)," he clears his throat to get my attention and I finally pull away from my computer. My eyes go straight to the tall, green eyed man standing next to my boss. Of course they would, this Harry guy is very attractive. Not like my boss- Mr. Remington. Mr. Remington is a short balding man with gray nose hairs and a beer gut so big you could swear he drinks Coronas straight from his coffee mug. I wouldn't be surprised if he did, considering how he acts. This Harry guy, he's tall-like at least 6 feet tall. His hair is a beautiful mop on top of his head. His eyes are as green as you could possibly imagine. And that smile, god that smile could cure cancer-STOP.

I shake my head to rid the thoughts coursing through my brain and adjust my skirt as I stand up. Before we say anything, our arms stretch out to shake hands and he finally says "Hello, Ms. (Y/L/N)" he greets me in a British accent that makes him even more attractive. He follows it up with that smile once more.

"Oh, please-call me (Y/N)." I correct him as we pull our hands away.

"(Y/N), could you please give him a tour of the school. I'm very busy. You're the only one I trust to do thorough job." Mr. Remington asks. My eyes go back to my work and then back to Harry. The kids can wait.

"No problem." I tell him, not looking from Harry and he doesn't look away from me either.

"Great. See you around Harry." he nudges him and leaves the room.

"Shall we?" Harry asks as he gestures towards the door and I nod. I'm unsure where to begin as I don't know what Mr. Remington showed Harry so I decide to start with where we are.

"This is my room." I gesture to the door nervously. I've given at least 10 school tours in the last 3 years that I've been here and I swear I've never been this nervous.

"I know." he laughs a little.

"Right. Well, feel free to stop by if you have any questions then." I explain so he doesn't think I'm stupid. He nods and then we head down the right hall.

"This is, the library." I say as we walk in. He looks around and I can tell by his face he's amazed by how big it is. I know, I was too. A lot of schools now don't really care to spend money on the library but this school spends extra time on reading. We even have 2 free book fairs a year. That is one of the reasons I applied for this school.

"(Y/N)?" he says getting my attention and I realize my eyes are wandering around the space as well.

"Yes?" I ask.

"I said, it's quite big, don't you think?" he asks.

"Oh yes it is." I try to laugh it off. "It's my favorite part of the school."

"Right. You're the English teacher?"

"Literature as well." I nod. This is getting awkward. I need to ask him something to take the attention from me. "So, what made you decide to come to this school?"

"Well you are one of the top secondary schools in the state." he shrugs. "I don't mind Washington. The weather reminds me of back home."

"When did you move here? From England?" I ask without thinking.

"About 6 and a half years ago when I decided that I wanted to teach music. I was in a band for 3 years back in England and once we broke up, some old mentors told me to use my talent for good. It was my mum who told me I should teach. So I packed up, moved to Washington, got into Whitman, finished 4 years ago. Did some student teaching last year and then I finally started applying late last year. 2 schools called back. A high school in Tacoma and here. I decided that I liked the idea of Kirkland better. So I moved again and here I am. " he finishes explaining and I realize I've been staring at his mouth when he finishes speaking. "What about you?"

"I've lived in Kirkland my whole life. I went to this middle school. When I finished high school I started applying. I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do. I was originally going for law but then I realized I didn't want to lie for a living. My mom actually helped me to, she helped me realize I loved teaching. I hadn't even noticed the little things I did that made it obvious to her. Anyways- I got into Washington State and then moved back when I graduated." I finish with a shrug.

"What little things did you do?" he asks and caught off guard so I ask what he said. "What little things did you do that made it obvious you should be a teacher?"

"Oh, just simple stuff. Like, tutoring my siblings. Reading to them. Apparently my mom got me a chalk board for Christmas and instead of drawing on it like a normal 9 year old, I wrote down definitions." I shrug. When I look up from the my hands I notice he's staring at me with a small smile and when he realizes it he looks away.

"We should move on." he clears his throat. I take him to the cafeteria and then to the break room where we both share a nasty cup of coffee. He swears he'll bring his own tomorrow to share with me. Lastly we head to his room and take a seat on the band bleachers with our now Luke-warm cups of coffee.

"So what does your wife do?" I ask subtly but he laughs and I know that he knows what I'm getting at. My cheeks get hot and I clear my throat, powering through this award moment, pretending like it was a harmless question.

"Nothing yet, not married." he finally says and takes a sip of his coffee. I can tell by his mouth around the cup he's tryin to contain a smile. "What about you? Anyone to go home too?" he asks after the longest sip of coffee ever.

"Nope. Just me." I shrug, adjusting my coffee stirrer. I try my best not to look at him, trying to play it cool so I don't seem over eager.

"When does your class begin?" he questions after a long pause. I look at the clock on the wall and realize I have 5 minutes before my lunch is over.

"Uh, now." I laugh nervously. "What about you?"

"I don't begin till tomorrow. The other music teacher's final day is today." he explains and I nod as I stand up.

"Well, it was wonderful to meet you Harry. I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, meet me in the staff room for a better cup of coffee than this." he holds up his Styrofoam cup and I chuckle and cheers him before walking down the steps and out the door.