Acting On Love

Even when I was back in my room, I still felt spellbound by Ville's kiss. It wasn't just that, though. It was a number of things. What if the camera had seen us? And what would happen after this - would we be together?

I heard Lisa knock on the door. I opened it up to see her, waiting eagerly on the other side. Oh, no. I'd said that I'd tell her everything...

"Come on in," I smiled half-heartedly.

I sat down on my bed, and she sat on my chair. She was still smiling intensely.

"So...?" she prompted me.

"The guy," I said, looking at the floor.

"Yeah...why are you so...tense?" she asked, frowning.

"Because of the guy."

"It isn't Billy, is it?" she gasped. "I could have sworn he was gay!"

"Huh?" I asked, startled. "No, it isn't Billy. You see, the guy is...forbidden."

"Forbidden? Why, is he older?" she frowned.

"You could say that."

She thought for a moment. Then suddenly her face expression dropped. She looked back at me. She knew.

"No. No way...not...Mr...Valo?"

I nodded slowly.

"Kristen..." she panicked. "Well, it's not like anything happened, is it?"

I blushed, keeping my eyes on the floor.

"Oh no...this is...big."

"You could say that again."

"Kristen, what are you thinking? You could be expelled - he could be fired."

"I know, I know. I just..." I pictured his face, trying to explain it to her. "I really like him, Lisa."

She stood up, still looking worried. "I think you should sleep on this," she said, leaving quickly. I watched after her, regretting telling her.

I did sleep on it, like she'd told me to, but my dreams were telling me the same thing as my heart. I relived the seconds we'd spent together in the lift. The dream was a slightly incoherent version of the reality, with one main different. When the lift doors opened, Ville was dragged from me. The look in his eyes terrified me.

"I didn't touch her! She's a student!" he roared, as they dragged him further and further down the long corridor. The lift doors closed, then I woke up.

As I headed off to acting, nervous and anxious, I was surprised to be stopped by another teacher on the way.

"Miss Puller?"

"Yes?" I answered, realising something was wrong about the look on his face.

"Come this way, please."

I followed him, up a lift, through many corridors, until we reached a rather grand part of the school. He stopped in front of a door named "Headmaster's Office". My heart stopped beating with him. This was it. My life at University was over before it had even begun.

He opened up the door, to reveal a big, dark office. Who I assumed was the headmaster sat at the desk, and Ville stood against the wall behind him. They both watched us walk in.

"Please, have a seat, Miss Pullen," the headmaster said, pointing towards the one in front of the desk.

I sat down.

"I've just been talking to Mr. Valo about an incident that occurred last night, just after the short power cut. The security cameras in our lift showed...something of a...curious nature," he paused, thinking of the exact right words to use.

He turned around his laptop to show me, and pressed play on a video. "I think this will explain my concern more clearly..."

It was only a short video. A few seconds, at most. Ville had his back to the camera, and my face was mostly hidden. My fingers were through his hair. I felt myself blush just watching it. How was I going to lie myself out of this one? After a second, Ville pulled away from me and walked off out of the door.

The headmaster pulled his laptop round, so it was facing him once again.

"Was anything going on in there, Miss Puller?" he put his fingers together and waited for my answer.

I threw a look at Ville. He looked tense.

"What do you mean? Of course nothing was going on," I said, feeling my cheeks burn brighter red. I felt like I was going to be sick with nerves.

"Right, that's what we were hoping to hear," he still didn't sound convinced. "So, what exactly happened, then?"

I sighed, begging my brain to think. And fast.

"Look, I freaked out. I have a thing about lifts. When it stopped, I thought we'd be stuck in there or something. I...got a little clingy," the headmaster raised his eyebrow on hearing the word 'clingy'. "Ville tried to calm me down. Then, the doors opened and I relaxed."

He thought for a moment. I made a silent prayer. I looked at Ville - he seemed to be impressed with my ability to lie half decently.

"Alright, Miss Puller. I'm sorry for making a fuss over nothing, then. Just...be sure to take the stairs next time."

I breathed. "Can I go now?"

He nodded, seeming happy that he thought there was nothing going on between one of his students and one of his teachers. That was too close, though. Way too close.