The One (ReaderXJohn Mulaney)

Chapter 4

The trip to the mall was supposed to be super fun and de-stressing and stuff, but after seeing John in the middle of that Walmart, the rest of the evening just wasn't the same. My friends tried to cheer me up, and Hannah even got me pizza for dinner, but I'd lost my appetite. It wasn't that it was embarrassing, I mean it was, but, this whole ordeal was so confusing. He's 37.  I can't even with that. 

Anyways, after we browsed H&M like Hannah wanted, I wasn't really feeling it, so I made up an excuse about a test I had to study for and Krissy drove us home. They gave me sympathetic smiles as I got out of the car, but it didn't matter. Today had been too much to handle. Not even saying hi to my parents, I went to my room and crawled into bed, falling asleep. 

I was back in English class. Don't know how that's possible, but here I am I guess...

"Now, class, if you could please take out your copies of The Catcher in the Rye." John said from the front of the class. Reluctantly, I reached into my bag to grab it, but to my horror, it wasn't there. It wasn't in my bag, or my books, or anywhere. Tentatively, my hand went up.

"Yes, Miss (Y/N)?" John asked, eyebrows raised.

"I don't have my copy."

"Oh, you don't have your copy."

"No..."

"Did you leave it at home?" he asked, coming over slowly. Everyone in the class was staring at me. My cheeks were red hot.

"I don't know. I don't think so. I swear I remember putting it in my bag. Please can I just check in the library-"

"NO!!!" he screamed in my face. I wanted to cry.

"I'm sorry." I whimpered.

"Miss (Y/N), you have the moral backbone of a chocolate éclair."

The entire class started laughing at me. They wouldn't stop, and I started actually crying. This couldn't be real, it couldn't. The laughing got louder, and louder, until-

I woke up screaming. 

My head was tingling and embarrassment coursed through me. 

Thank god that wasn't real. 

My alarm clock read 6:30AM, and a second later my phone went off with my wake up alarm. 

Oh god, I really didn't want to go to school today. I mostly just didn't want to go through the same thing I went through yesterday. 

Thinking that that was maybe all a dream as well was what got me out of bed. There was no way John Mulaney was my English teacher.

---

WRONG, wrong, I was so VERY WRONG. Oh my god this is actually happening. It's real, all real.

Okay so, I got to English class, and I really thought I had been dreaming it all but then the teacher turned around and it was still him. I choked on my water and I had to go to the bathroom to calm down. There were a bunch of girls vaping in there so I locked myself in a stall trying to catch my breath.

"God, what a weirdo." one girl said. I frowned and peered through the crack, eavesdropping.

"She's so freaking shy. Like, grow a pair." another one said, blowing out smoke, or whatever you blow out when you vape. Cotton candy lies if you ask me.

"She thinks she's so quirky with her "ooo Mr. Mulaney is my English teacher bullshit." " 

"Oh my god, where did you hear that?"

"Brad told me. He passed them in the hall yesterday."

Passed. More-so smacked right into me. Idiot. Stupid jocks can never keep their mouths shut. I kept listening in.

"What does she hope to gain? A relationship? Someone should tell her that Mr. Mulaney is way out of her league. If anybody were to get him it would be me."

"Mia, you're so right. " her minion responded. I scowled. Why were they so rude. I left the stall and they all stared at me.

"All done barfing, freak?" Mia asked me.

"Yeah, sorry, your face was just too much to handle when I walked in here." I retaliated. 

The look on Mia's face was enough to both get me through the day and also compensate for what she had said about me.

When I told the story to Hannah and Krissy after school, we couldn't stop laughing. Hannah fell off the bed. 

"Okay but what are you gonna do?" Krissy asked after we all chilled out.

"I...I don't know. I don't even know what I want. I feel so weird actually being in love with a guy twice my age, but maybe it's fate?"

"Maybe...you should make a plan."

"Yeah...that's actually a good idea." I mumbled, a smile crawling onto my face.

"Just-" Hannah interjected, getting off the ground. "Remember that if it doesn't work out, don't push it. Don't be that girl."

"Okay, I won't. What do we do first."

"God, you're so lucky you have me, you don't even know," Krissy said, pulling out a clipboard and a pen. "Let's get started."