Comfy Closets

41|| Reactions and Rejections

I giggled into the kiss as Leah held my face in place to prolong it. She smiled against my lips and finally allowed me to pull away after a few more seconds.

“I can honestly kiss these lips all day,” she grinned as she gave me another quick peck. Despite the wave of heat that suddenly flared on my cheeks, I smiled cheekily at that.

“Hey – there’s no one stopping you.”

She laughed and proceeded to pull me back in, her soft plump lips returning back to mine-

The click of heels on the hardwood floor echoed from the far side of the room.

At the sound, I pushed away from Leah and backed up a couple of steps, my heart pounding so hard that I felt the pulse down to my fingertips.

Leah’s honey eyes looked startled and confused, but all I could focus on was the sound coming from the entrance. When I frantically darted my gaze around Leah, I saw a woman and a student come into view just then as they stepped around the thick, black curtains that had been pulled over the door.

The older lady looked surprised to see us in the room, pushing her glasses up her straight nose and squinting at us. The other girl who looked vaguely familiar, probably a TA, had a bunch of papers in her arms and seemed to be accompanying the woman. It was then I recognised the older woman as the head drama teacher that had been in charge of the play.

“Leah? What are you doing here? I thought everyone was in the hallway with their friends and family…”

I could hear my girlfriend release a small breath. “Oh, I was about to change and head out, Mrs Nefan.”

Her casual tone was enough to wave off the drama teacher’s curiosity, and she continued on her way to the table in the corner for her bags. The other girl, however, was looking at me with narrowed eyes as she followed Mrs Nefan.

I stayed frozen in my place despite most of the suspicion having passed, not able to shake off the utter panic that had come over me like a tidal wave.

“And who are you, young lady?” The chipper woman asked as she swept her greying hair back. Leah nudged me subtly when I didn’t answer in the first few seconds and even then, my voice came out croaky as I responded.

“Um- ah, Alyssa. A friend of Leah’s.”

At that moment, I couldn’t think about anything else but about the ‘what if’. What if Mrs Nefan had seen us kissing? How would she have reacted? Would the other girl say anything about it? To her friends? To the school? Just the thought scared me so damn much.

I was brought out of my thoughts when the teacher turned back around and smiled widely with pride. “Oh, Leah, you did wonderfully by the way. Your best performance yet! Your parents must be so proud of you. They did come, right? Have you gotten a chance to see them?”

“Yeah, they were in the crowd somewhere, but I haven’t gotten to them yet. We’ll be heading out soon though.”

“Okay, well, I’ll leave you to it. Good job again, for tonight.” She motioned over to the girl, who was still eyeing us warily. “Come on, Lily. Let’s bring that to my office and we’ll be free to leave.”

The two of them left the premises and Leah turned to me with a frown on her face. “Well, that was…”

“Close,” I breathed out, rubbing a hand over my eyes.

When I let my hand fall, I saw her looking at me with a longing gaze. But underneath that, her expression held sadness. I didn’t know what to think of it.