The Wrong Type of Love (Teacher/Student Relationship)

Chapter Twenty Five

The streets were empty as I walked down them, my hands in my pockets and my head down. My thoughts were occasionaly interupted by the passing cars, their headlights blinding me. Rain poured down, matching the way I felt. But it's strange, not one tear fell. Perhaps because I knew that this day was bound to happen, it was obvious that it was going to end. Yet I still entered into a relationship with a man far too old for me and a man who could never understand how mucheffort I had to use to be able to stay with him. He would never, and never could, know how much pain I felt when I had to lie to my friends about where I'd been. A relationship is built on trust and lying will never help someone trust you.

After walking throught the streets for a while I decided to sit in the nearest park and I had just turned stepped onto the park's street when my phone began to vibrate in my pocket. When I looked at the ID the panic thathad been rising fell, it was Josh and not Noah, who I had believed was calling. It was seventeen minutes to two, in the morning, so no one should have been awake. Only Noah, which was why I thought it was him at first. I swiped the screen and accepted the call, my hands shaking from the cold.

"Aremor! Thank God you anwsered, where are you? Annie rang me in a panic because she had gone to find you but instead found out that you had gonesomewhere, Jack's parents didn't know where you went either. What did you think you were doing? Anne is a mess, not only did she watch Jack get taken away but she thought something had happened to you. Where are you? Let me come pick you up." He was waffling, showing that he was panicking, Josh had a car and even though I wanted to be alone, I told him.

"I'm on the park, Washington Street. About two miles from the hospital." I could hear himpicking up his car keys and shutting his door behind him.

"I know where you are, I've been there a few times. Stay put, I'll be there in fifteen minutes." I agreed and hung up. Once I had put my phone back in my pocket, I let out a sigh. This whole week had turned into the worst week of my life. Dan was put into a coma, I'd lost Jack. I thought that loosing Jack was the worst thing that could ever happen to me and I prayed that my bad luck was over. But then, looking Noah in theeyes, I knew what I had to do. I couldn't cope with the guilt that I felt and Jack's death had woken me up. I had suddenly realised that I was being an idiot, I was putting myself before anyone else, all for the sake of a man. Even though I felt like the world was crushing me, I knew that in the future, I would feel so much better because of it.

Josh arrived twenty minutes later, as soon as he stopped the car he came running, no not running, sprinting towards me. The sweatthat was dripping off him caused his hair to stick to his face. He was wearing a clean, pale blue shirt and a pair of black trousers.

I let my head fall into my hands when I realised why he was dressed like that. "You were with a girl, that's why you were awake so late. Is there anything else I can ruin?" Once he reached me, he knelt down and put my hands into my lap, he then covered them with his own. He moved his thumb round in cirles and I knew he was waiting for me to look athim, so I did.

"You did nothing wrong, you never have. I would drop the world for you, you are my bestfriend. You needed me, that girl didn't." He waited for me to smile, then he sat down on the bench next to me and draped his arm around me. "What's going on? I know you better than most people, so I can tell that there is something else, other than Jack, going on. Please, tell me." Very slowly I looked up from the floor and met his gaze."You are right, there is something else but that doesn't matter. Anyway, you would hate me if I told you." I looked back down, not wanting to meet his gaze anymore.

"Hey!" Josh shouted, making me jump. "Nothing can make me hate you, if you want to go back to mine and grab a drink and then tell me, I'm fine with that." He smiled sweetly and I nodded.

We drove in silence, his hand never left mine from the park tohis front door. Once we were inside, he grabbed two cans of beer from his fridge and we sat in the front room, lightly sipping the beers.

"So." He was tracing the top of the can with his finger and I could tell that he wanted me to talk to him, it was written all over his face.

"Look, if I tell then you can't tell anyone, no matter what! No one else knows about this because if they did both me and anotherperson would get into serious trouble." Worry came over his face, what I had just said had most likely caused plenty of ideas to come to his mind.

"I promise, nothing will leave this room." He took hold of my hand again and began tracing my skin with his thumb.

"My boyfriend picked me up from the hospital and took me back to his house. I left after leaving a letter telling him that I was ending our relationship." Ichecked his expression for anything but all I saw was confusion. "My boyfriend, Noah. He is..." I took a deep breath. "He is a teacher at my school." His eyes widened and he suddenly sat straighter.

"Carry on." He said, placing his beer on the side.

"I met him on the first day back at school, this year. He was new, he was my English teacher. Nothing happened until one night when I was coming home from Leigh'sand it was raining. He drove by and asked if I needed a lift, I said no and carried on going. It was awkward but then again, nothing happened. It was only until the day I bumped into him in town that I realised something was going on. We went to shops together and talked a lot, then we went for pizza and he sort of confessed his feelings. I reasoned with him and left. I want you to know that I tried, I tried so hard to fight the feelings but they grew and grew and grew until we kissed. I don't know whathappened then except that somehow we became boyfriend and girlfriend." He didn't say anything, he just stared at me and nodded slowly. After nearly five minutes I gave up on waiting. "I knew you would hate me, I hate myself."

"No." Josh looked around the room until his eyes eventually found mine again. "You can't help who you fall in love with, sometimes the person you love is the wrong type of person. Other times they are the right ones, butI think that you found someone who is both. I don't know how to explain that, he made you happy but sad at the same time. I don't care that he was older than you, I only care that he looked after you."

"He did, but I couldn't do it anymore."

"I know you couldn't. So, when you are ready to go back to school, I will be there to drop you off and to pick you up. If I need to, I will speak to him but I don'tthink I will. My time is now your time. So, we will go have fun and try to forget. I will come with you to Jack's funeral and to his parent's house when you need to see them. If you want?" I nodded. I couldn't ask for anything else. All I wanted was for someone to be there, who didn't want anything back.

And with that, he pulled me into a hug and we both fell asleep, in each others arms and on the sofa.