The Teacher's Pet | Slowburn MJ FanFic

• | Chapter Seventy-Three | •

| Early Next Morning. . .

"How'd you sleep?" Michael asked while slowly running his fingers across the top of Riley's soft hair that was pulled into a lopsided, straggled bun. Strands of her pressed hair were beginning to revert back to their tight, coily texture.

She shrugged, then rubbed at her weary eyes. The occasional nightmares were quickly becoming more vivid and frequent. It kept her up throughout the night and by the time it reached eight this morning, she felt exhausted and restless. The shower she took helped somewhat and when she was finished with her hygiene routine with the extra things Michael gave her, she cuddled up with him back in the king-sized bed.

"I didn't. Every time I close my eyes, I'm always staring at his demonic face. Wasn't it enough that he tortured me while he was alive?" She exhaled in frustration while playing with one of his shirt buttons. "Sometimes it's like I can still feel him touching me."

Michael comforted her with a kiss to her forehead, then gently placed his fingers against her mid-back. She didn't react, so he proceeded with caution to rub her back in slow circles. "When do you start therapy?"

"I've started... I'm supposed to go later today." She slowly sat upright, then leaned against the headboard before noticing the glint from the chain necklace around his neck. A small smile came across her face as she subtly changed the subject. "How are you liking the chain?"

He subconsciously raised his hand to briefly touch it and shared the same smile with her. "I love it. You're the one that gave it to me, right?"

She nodded, then said, "It was my brother's. I wanted you to keep something special from me in case we didn't see each other again."

"Thankfully the universe had other plans." He lovingly pressed their lips together, never failing to make her heart flutter. "I'll forever cherish this beautiful gift from you."

A small grin surfaced across her face, then affectionately stroked his cheek with her thumb as they stared into each other's eyes completely mesmerized. Seconds later, her gaze drifted and she spotted his phone on the nightstand. "Can I see your phone?"

He shrugged, then handed it to her. "What do you need it for?"

His question was left dangling in the air as she quickly unlocked it and went straight to his messages. She found her old number and began scrolling through their old texts with another smile slowly forming on her face. She missed those moments so much. It was unbelievable how Javen was able to crush every ounce of happiness in such a short period of time and change her for the worse.

"What are you smiling at?" Michael gently poked her side while sitting up next to her, resulting in her squirming a little from the ticklish feeling.

"I remember you sending the corniest stuff when I'd be sitting in class, bored out of my mind." She giggled and he laughed with her. "It was cute but you were so corny."

"But that's why I did it. 'Cause you loved it and it put a smile on that beautiful face of yours." He said, making her look back down at the phone with a blush.

"I think my favorite was when you sent, 'if you were a vegetable, you'd be a cutecumber.' I loved that one." She said after she finally stopped scrolling. Slowly, her smile faded. "When that piece of shit destroyed my phone, it broke me a little that I had lost our messages and some of my photos with my best friends. Sometimes when I was having a bad day, all I had to do was read what you sent me and I would feel better."

The tips of his fingers gently stroked her arm. "We can make some new memories and new jokes between us."

A tear slipped from her eye and her voice cracked. "I still get so upset that he almost took you from me. Then there would be no new memories or anything of that sort."