Here’s to Never Growing Up (teacherxstudent)

Chapter 11

Confused, we both looked at Mr. Damon who shut the door and stood beside it, preventing either of us from escaping.

I sighed before finding the courage to speak up, “So you’ve heard the rumors, huh?” We’re doomed.

“Yes, I have.” He seemed disappointed. “And as much I’d hate to mistrust you, Kiddo, I’m pretty sure they are not just false rumors, especially given the way your friends treated you during last class.” Mr. D sighed before he added in a tone with less severity, “Although I’m glad to see that everything is back to normal with you and the gang.” I was surprised at his words, but then I noticed that the picnic tables were clearly visible through these windows. He really is an all-knowing and all-seeing being.

“So, will one of you care to explain what happened between you two?” Mr. D insisted.

I glanced over at Cohen who had already been looking at me. I’m guessing this jerk is expecting me to say it all myself. What does he hope to get from this? Is it amusing to him, watching me suffer as I wander through my spiky memory lane? I sighed. Well, I suppose there is no way Mr. D will let any of us leave this room without hearing the truth.

My breath trembled as I sighed, trying to find the courage to begin telling him. “Three years ago,” I began, “I developed a crush on my English teacher, Mr. Cohen.” This was enough to grasp Mr. D’s attention. “I guess he noticed this and, seeing how vulnerable and naïve I was, he took advantage of it. When he first confessed to me, I thought it was the happiest moment of my life, but I was way too stupid to realize the truth.”

“Wait, ‘confessed’? As in you told her you loved her, even though you were her teacher?” Mr. D, baffled, interrupted with eyes wide open, not wanting to believe this story. Cohen gulped and looked down, shamefully. I frowned at him.

“We dated for almost two years.” Mr. D’s eyes seemed to have widened to the point that they couldn’t open any further. Mine started to fill with tears. Yet, Cohen’s seemed to have a hint of pain in them as if he were the victim. Maybe instead of being a teacher, he should try out for an acting career. Is he trying to make Mr. D feel sorry for him? That jerk.

I sniffled once before continuing and let out a chuckle as I rubbed my nose, trying to relieve the pain. “Well, it turns out that I was nothing but a toy destined to be thrown away as soon as he was done playing with me. One year ago, on the last day of school, he made this pretty clear as he told me that he was just using me and never had any feelings for me.” I glared at him with eyes soaked in tears that would not dare fall.

“Em, I…” Andrew began, but was soon interrupted by Mr. Damon.

“You told her what?!” he demanded, scowling at the man who was still trying to victimize himself.

Andrew remained silent and his head only raised to look me in the eye once a tear hit the floor. I wiped my eyes as he took a step closer, attempting to reach me. Does he enjoy himself, watching me cry like this over something he did to me? It’s just like that day, all he did was utter cruel words and laugh as I stood there crying my eyes out with my heart shattering in his hands.

“Emily…” he raised a hand, trying to reach me, but I backed away, raising my voice and interrupting him.

“As I recall, your exact words went something like this: ‘When I noticed your feelings towards me, I just needed to see how much fun I could have with you. But you were gullible enough to believe that I actually loved you, so I just had to test it out and see how far I could go with a high school girl.’ which I clearly remember you saying this with a smirk plastered on your face and occasional fits of laughter.” More tears started rolling down my cheeks and I gave up on trying to wipe them. “‘And now that we’ve gone all the way and I’ve had all the fun I could get from you, it’s time to take out the trash. To think that you were stupid enough to believe in me…’”

“After this, he just disappeared and I never saw him again until that night that you two were hanging with the surfer teacher.” My breath trembled and I frowned at the asshole who did nothing but sit quietly and stare. “You jerk! I opened up to you in a way that I had never trusted anyone before, you took all of my firsts, and I finally thought that I could trust someone fully… Only so you could play around with me!”

He did nothing but stare at me wide-eyed. Why won’t you say anything, you i***t? I burst into tears and covered my face. The next thing I knew, there was a loud thud and crashing of chairs and tables and, once I looked up, Andrew had been thrown onto the floor and Mr. D was massaging his fist. My eyes widened and I suddenly remembered the stories Mr. D told us of stupid things he did whenever he lost his temper. He could lose his job for doing something like this.

“Mr. D!” I exclaimed, worrying about this.

“It’s okay,” he answered as if he read my mind, “I trust that Andrew won’t say anything given the secret you just shared with me.” he scowled once more at Andrew with a look of disgust.

“So, you promise not to tell anyone about this?”

He sighed and patted my head, “I suppose I have no other choice but to keep it a secret if that’s what you want.” he smiled gently at me.

“And you.” Mr. D’s kind face completely changed into a scary expression as he turned to face the jerk who was still sitting on the floor, dumbfounded. “If you ever even come near to laying a finger on Emily, I swear next time it will be much more than just a meek punch.” That was meek? He nearly sent him flying across the room.

“Wait.” Andrew said, finally lifting himself back up. “That’s not the entire truth. Emily, please hear me out. I was wrong to say those things, but there’s a reason –”

“Save it!” I cut him short. “I don’t want to hear any more of your lies.”

“Emily, please…” he kept begging.

“You can go now.” Mr. D told him as he noticed that I was at my limit. With this, Andrew sighed as his eyebrows pressed upwards together. He dragged himself out of the room and closed the door behind him. As he did so, Mr. D hugged me, pressing our bodies strongly together. For some reason, this made me feel tingly and I couldn’t find the strength to hold in the tears anymore, so they flowed down my cheeks uncontrollably, staining his shirt as I hiccupped against his chest.

“It’s been over one year, why can’t I just forget about all of it already?” I murmured.

“No punch or kick can hurt as much as a blow taken to the heart, and the pain of love can only be healed with time and when you find the courage to trust and love again.” He said in a soothing tone that seemed to sway me. I wrapped my arms round his back and tightened my grip as he did the same. I will never forget the words of such a wise man.