Ugly Things

Elias had taken me to a room with small desks and a map hanging in front of the chalkboard. He shut the door behind us and leaned against it, frowning at me.

“What happened?”

I sat down, raised an eyebrow, and shook my head.

“It’s nothing important.”

He blinked at me, a small smile forming on his lips.

“Try me.”

I really didn’t think that telling teacher’s things about my private life were appropriate, but he didn’t seem to question it. First, I started with my dad and the divorce, how it devastated me. Next, I talked about Kaia with great difficulty, and lastly I told him about Caleb.

The last part seemed to upset him the most, which I didn’t understand. If he noticed my confusion, he didn’t say anything. Instead he just came to stand in front of me. Then he crouched down, placing his hands on the desk.

“That wasn’t very nice of Caleb,” he said, his green eyes flickering across my face. “He’s your friend and he’s going to treat you like that just because you denied him?”

“He was really hurt,” I said.

Elias stood and said, “He doesn’t deserve you.”

I stared at him, my eyes wide. That didn’t sound like something a teacher should say to a student, I was sure. Part of me wanted to leave, especially when he turned his eyes on me, but I stayed, unable to tear myself from the green irises.

“I think I should go,” I said, but even I didn’t believe that.

He smiled and reached a hand down to touch my jaw and an impossibly undeniable shudder passed through my body. As he pulled me to stand, drawing me to him, I caught sight of the door behind us half-open.

“The door--” I mumbled, hoping to distract him. One of his hands was around my waist, holding me against his warm body.

“Everyone is in class,” he whispered, grinning at me as he lowered his mouth to my ear.

“What are you doing?” I hissed, panic seizing my insides. I knew this was wrong. I knew he knew it too. But he was just being so nice and I couldn’t seem to stop myself.

I raised my arms and tangled them in his thick hair. It felt so soft that I kept twisting the locks and digging my fingers into his scalp. He moaned against my ear and I closed my eyes as I felt his mouth on mine.

Heat coiled around me just as his hands strayed from my hips. They slipped up my ribcage and wandered carelessly into my hair as e prodded my lips with his tongue for entrance. When I accepted his request, I felt his lips turn upward against mine in some sort of smile.

Elias’ fingers were warm as they left my hair and touched my face. He lifted my slightly so that I was sitting on the desk, my legs instinctively going around his torso. When he broke away from me, I frowned.

“I’m sorry.” He looked at me through glazed eyes, his lips still parted, like he expected me to just grab the collar of his shirt and drag his mouth down on mine. He ran a hand through his disheveled hair and smiled weakly.

That thought was sorely tempting.

I untangled myself from him and walked to the door, my fingers hesitating around the knob. “I’m not.”

I closed the door and faced him.