Teacher's Girl (Aflyingwhale)

Chapter 39: Game Start

EMMA’s POV :

"You want me to go to the dance with Tyler.Fine.I said yes to him,"

I announced as soon as lan opened his apartment door.

"Okay, come in?"he gave me a puzzled look but I just shove past him.

"What's going on, lan? Why did you tell me to go to the dance with Tyler? Are you having second thoughts about us?"

I just spilled all my thoughts out as soon as I walked into the living room.

"Whoa, slow down," he said as he closed the door.

"Tell me.Honestly,"

I pressed again.

He looked at me like I was an amusing sight.

He smiled a soft smile and reached for my arms, but I backed away quickly.

"Baby girl,"he said softly, his hand reached for my face and he said, "I am not having second thoughts about us,"

"So, what is it then?"

He let out a deep sigh before pulling me close to his chest.

I relented and let him wrap me in his arms.

He rested his chin on the top of my head and I snuggled into his neck.

"Emma, I don’t want you to miss out on the experiences that a high school senior should be experiencing, just because you're with me,"

he paused for a second before saying, "And also, if the school sees that you're involved with boys your age, that wouldn't be so bad too,

"I pulled away slightly and narrowed my eyebrows at him , You're afraid people might notice something’s going on between us?"

"We can never be too careful, love,"

"And this has nothing to do with you regretting your decision to be with me?"

"None whatsoever,"he stated with full certainty.

"You sure?"I wanted more reassurance.I was feeling horrible all day long because of all these doubts.I wanted it to go away.

"Emma,"he said softly, "You are still the best decision I've ever made in my life and I stand by it one hundred and two thousand percent,"

I couldn't stop the smile forming on my face.

He caressed my cheek with his fingers and let out a small smile.

"We just need to lay low around the school.Okay?"he asked.

"Okay,"I breathed.

"Go and have fun at the dance,"he leaned down and planted a soft kiss on my lips.

Pulling away slightly, he then said, "But not too much fun,"

"Yes, sir,"I smiled as I kissed him back.

A week passed since that day and lan and I were doing great.

We kept our interactions at school a minimal, and I still spent whatever time I had left hanging out with him in his apartment after hours.

Before I knew it, the homecoming dance was upon us.

This year’s theme was the Roaring Twenties.

Tiff, Carrie, and I got all dressed up Great Gatsby style and we were excited about this dance.

Thinking back, the homecoming dance was a big turning point in our relationship.

That was when I found lan’s sketchbook and his drawing of me.

That was the moment I knew he felt something for me too.

"Oh Em, I love your headpiece,"

Carrie said as she joined me in the mirror.

She was dressed to the nines in her red flapper dress and long pearls.

"I love your pearls, Car,"I said as I noted the details.

"Guys, don't forget about me,"Tiff chimed in, shoving her way into the mirror.She looked amazing.

She had this gorgeous black dress and long black gloves, and her hair was up in curls.

The three of us met up at my house to get ready.

I was an only child and I had the biggest room compared to all my friends, so my house was always the spot to get things done.

My friends were looking drop dead gorgeous, and I liked my outfit too.

I was wearing a simple golden dress and this cute headpiece I found at the Salvation Army.

"How can we forget you? You stole the whole damn show with that dress, girl,"

I said to Tiff and Carrie nodded in agreement. Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

"Do you think Nick’s gonna like it?"she asked nervously.

"Oh, he'll like it alright,"Carrie replied.

Nick was the hot new guy Tiff had met while grocery shopping at Target.

It was love at first sight.

They were reaching for the same box of Lucky Charms cereal and the rest was history.

I had never seen Tiff head over heels over a guy this bad before, and that was saying something.

This was Tiff, normally the girl would fall for a new guy every month.

But something tells me Nick was different.

He went to another school and he was also a senior.

He played football and baseball, but he wasn't just a jock.

He was kind and he liked animals, traveling, and vegan food all things that screamed Tiff.

"Who's that? Your phone won't stop buzzing,"Tiff said when she noticed my phone vibrating on the dresser.

"It's Tyler.He’s on his way,"

I said as soon as I read the notifications.

"Tyler, hm?"Tiff and Carrie exchanged a look.

"What? I told you guys, we're all going as friends,"

"And you're sure your boyfriend is okay with that?"Tiff asked.

"He’s actually the one that told me to go with Tyler,"I shrugged.

"Really?"

"Yeah.He wants to me have fun with my friends.It’s called trust, you guys,"

"Okay, if you say so,"

"Tyler's great.You guys will like him —"

"Knock-knock,"Mom said suddenly.

I didn’t even realize she was standing at my doorframe.

"Hi Mrs.Sinclair,"Tiff and Carrie said in unison.

"Oh, you girls look so pretty,"mom said as she admired all our clothes.

She was holding onto her camera as she said, "It's the last homecoming dance, I think this deserves to go into the photo album,"

"Sure,"I said and the three of us got into position.

"Okay, 1...

2...

3...

say homecoming!"

"Homecoming!"the three of us laughed and smiled for the camera.

"Great.Remember, don't be home too late.And have fun you guys,"mom gave me a quick hug and I nodded at her.

"Alright, let's go guys, we have a dance to go to!"Tiff exclaimed enthusiastically.

The school’s gymnasium had been transformed into this Roaring Twenties dance party.

Everyone was all dressed up, dancing under the glittering disco ball and plastic chandeliers.

The vibe in the air was full of excitement and nostalgia.This was our last homecoming dance, ever.

I wanted to make this count.

As soon as we stepped inside the hall, we spotted our dates as they were already waiting for us.

Mark walked straight for Carrie and Nick strode over to Tiff.I locked eyes with Tyler and we smiled at each other.

Tyler was wearing a black suit with a black tie and a white fedora hat.

He reminded me of the guys in the Godfather movie, and it was cute.

"Hey, you look great,"he beamed at me as he walked over.

"Thanks, you too.I like your hat,"I replied.

We were just standing there, somewhat awkwardly.

I looked over to my friends for help, but they were busy with their dates.

"Guys, this is Tyler.Tyler, come meet my friends,"I yelled over the music to get everyone's attention.

"Hi,"

Tyler smiled and greeted everyone.

"This is Mark and Carrie.That's Tiff and Nick,"

"Nice to meet you guys,"

"Nice to meet you too, Tyler.I think we were in the same chemistry class last year,"Carrie said.

"Right, Mrs.Martinez,"Tyler nodded.

"Guys, Nick and I are gonna hit the dance floor okay?"Tiff was just too excited to get moving with Nick.

"Sure, we'll see you out there,"I replied, but she was already on her way even without listening to me.

Tiff and a hot guy, go figure.

"I'll get us some drinks,"Mark said.

"I'll go with you,"Carrie followed after him.

Next thing I knew, I was left alone with Tyler again.

Some great friends I have, I know.

Somehow things felt awkward with him, he wasn’t his usual friendly, fun self.

"So..."I trailed.

"So...you wanna dance?"he asked nervously.

"Sure,"I shrugged.

Dancing would be an activity that doesn’t require much talking.

Perhaps things would be less awkward that way.

We made our way to the dance floor and the DJ was playing something by J Balvin.

We moved to the beat, awkwardly at first, but soon we found our rhythm.

I was in the middle of dancing and enjoying the music, when I noticed a certain someone on the corner of my eye.

lan was standing in all his handsome glory at the corner of the room.

He was chaperoning the dance, again.

He might have volunteered this time because he knew I was coming.He was just wearing a simple suit, but damn, he looked sexy with his hair slicked back like that.I gave him a small smile and he smiled

back.Then he started mouthing something that looked like ‘you look beautiful’.I blushed a little and mouthed back, ‘thank you.You too.’

The dance turned out to be a lot more fun than I had anticipated.After finding his rhythm on the dance floor, Tyler was on fire.He was a pretty good dancer and he was dancing without a care in the world.

That made me brave and excited to join in.

Tiff, Nick, Carrie, and Mark joined us soon after.

Next thing we knew, all six of us were jumping and screaming at the top of our lungs, celebrating the night while we were young.

I didn’t know how long we were dancing for.

Songs after songs played, lights were flashing, and bodies were moving against each other.

I was lost in the excitement and rhythm when I felt a hand behind me.

I turned my face to the side and noticed that it was Tyler.

His body moved in sync to the music, and I had to admit, that was low-key kinda sexy.

"You can dance, huh?"I said to him.

"You've seen nothing yet,"he replied with a smile.

He put his hands on my hips and guided me to move with him.

Our bodies moved in sync with the music and it felt amazing.

For a while there, I forgot about everything else in that room except for the two of us dancing to the beat.

Until suddenly, my eyes caught sight of lan and my body stopped moving instinctively.

He was still standing in that same spot.

His gaze was stuck on me and his jaw was clenched shut.

He didn’t look angry, he looked more hurt, though he was trying his best to cover it up.

"Emma? What's wrong?"Tyler asked and my eyes darted back to him.

We had stopped dancing and we were facing each other.

I looked up at him and I noticed our faces were only inches away from one another.

"I..."

I was about to speak, but suddenly Tyler leaned down and closed his eyes, and he kissed me.

I was frozen in shock.For a few seconds there, I couldn't even register what was happening.And when I finally did, I pushed him away in an instant.He staggered back in shock and his eyes shot open.

"Emma, I’m s— "he was about to say something but my hand had beaten him to the punch.

I had slapped him across the face. This time, he was the one frozen in shock.

People around us gasped and stared.

"Is everything alright here?"

lan’s voice broke the tension in the air.

He sounded stern, angry even.

He shot daggers at Tyler, like he was about to beat him up.

That wouldn't be good.

I had seen what he did to Zach when he was angry.

This was so not the definition of laying low! "I'm fine.I just need some air,"

I said to lan quickly.

His eyes softened when he caught my eyes and I gave him a reassuring look.

"Emma, I'm sorry —"

Tyler started to speak, but I cut him off.

"Don't follow me,"

I warned him.

I turned to my heels in an instant.

Tiff and Carrie were about to follow suit, but I saw that lan gave them a look and they nodded at him.

I got away from the crowd and out the door as fast as I could.