Illegal Innocence (Student/Teacher Relationship)

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"Mom, I'll be okay," I protested, grabbing my book bag from my desk and moving towards the door.

"Avery, honey, I want you to stay home from school today," she demanded. "You're black and blue all over. What will you say to the others who ask you what happened?"

"Simple, I'll tell them I got mugged," I said. I look in the mirror and tried not to grimace. Mom was right; I had bruises practically covering one side of my face from where I was hit repeatedly. I opened a draw in my desk and pulled out concealer, foundation, and powder. I didn't usually put makeup on when I went to school, but this was a legitimate reason.

"Do you really believe that they will buy it," she asked, crossing her arms.

"Mom, I can't keep missing school. I'm going to fail," I pointed out. Going slow, I carefully put on the makeup around my face, wincing at every soft touch that landed on my bruises. Tears came to the edges of my eyes, but I blinked them back forcefully. If mom saw me cry, that was the end of it. I finished putting my powder on and closed the compact, then turned to mom with a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine, mom. I promise."

She sighed, and I knew I had won this fight. "Alright, but call me if it starts to hurt again, okay?"

"Okay, mom. I promise,"  I said. I walked over to her and hugged her, then slid passed her and made my way downstairs. "Bye!"

~

"Oh my god, you look terrible," Chloe said as I sat down across from her at the lunch table.

"Thanks," I said bluntly.

"How are you doing?" she asked, this time more sympathetic.  I gave her a tired look, but forced a smile along with it.

"Could be better," I replied.  I sighed with frustration when the dismissal bell rang for the students at lunch. It was time to face the one person who I didn't want to see. But something in me really wanted his comfort. I wanted him to wrap his arms around me and make me feel better. But I knew it was wrong. That was the last thing I should want.

But Mr. Taylor had something. Something that Hunter didn't have. Something that I wanted desperately. Was it the spark that electrified me when we kiss?

"Come on, Avery, let's go!"

I snapped out of my thoughts as I was practically pulled up the stairs. I dreaded every step towards the classroom. When the inevitable came, I walked into the classroom, not looking at anything but my seat. I made a bee-line towards it, even though the eyes of Mr. Taylor burned into me as I made my way to the other side of the classroom. I sat down and stared out the window, making sure my hair was falling over the bruised side of my face. As fate would have it, the worst of my bruises were on the side of my face the Mr. Taylor stared at in class. The late bell rang and everyone got quiet. Well, quiet-ish. Mr. Taylor stood up and walked to the front of the classroom.

"Okay guys, today we are going to be doing something a little different," he announced. He paused, letting his words sink in. He clapped his hands together and walked back to his desk. He picked up a top hat that was sitting on his chair and held it up. "Group project time."

Most of the students began whispering to each other, excited for our first group project. One of the girls raised her hand.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Will we get to pick our groups?" she asked. The class grew silent in anticipation. Group projects with people that are assigned to each other were the worst kind of projects.

Mr. Taylor smiled at the girl, who I believed to be Stephanie. "Of course," he said. The excited whispering began again. Chloe turned around from in front of me and smiled. I smiled back, knowing I had my partner. From the front of the class, Mr. Taylor shook the top hat in his hand. The sound of slips of paper rattled around in the black hat.