How to Hate Your Crush - My Teacher is the Devil

Chapter 3

I gently touched my fingers to my lips, wondering and struggling to find an answer, but none of it made sense. Why would he kiss me, and what did that kiss mean? There is no way he likes me, but would someone really do something so unfair to another just to tease? He isn’t that mean, is he? That was when I realized that I know absolutely nothing about this man. I thought I could see through his arrogant guise and find a kind and gentle soul within, but what if that was also a deception? Who am I to think I know anything about Mr. Brady when I am only a student with no personal involvement with him? Class upon class and day after day, these questions invaded my mind. I always thought I would be happy if something like this happened. I mean, my first kiss was taken by the man I love, but… I never thought it would happen this way. It had no meaning. My chest clenched at the thought of it and with every heartbeat, painful throbs took control of me.

            I entered Mr. Brady’s classroom slowly, trying to avoid eye contact, while at the same time attempting to glance at him discretely, wondering what he was thinking. I could not stop fidgeting, and the entire class time I seemed to be playing a staring and avoiding game with myself, for he appeared absolutely normal. No nerve of his seemed perturbed by the incident and it was if none of it had happened. It was just as if it had just been a dream – a cruel and unjust dream.

            However, on the other hand, I no longer seemed to be as invisible to him as I used to. Now, Mr. Brady’s eyes occasionally landed on me and he did call upon me to answer questions – something he never used to do. I stuttered and blushed every single time, and he seemed to enjoy this – to enjoy torturing me. A new wave of shivers ran down my spine and all my hairs seemed to stand. I have a bad feeling about this. Should I have never confessed to him?

            As the bell rang, I rushed out of the classroom in a bigger hurry than usual, scared that he might call on me. However, I made it out the door safe, and nothing happened. A feeling took over me and I wondered if it was disappointment, but still most of me was glad, for I no longer know how to act around him – not that I ever did, but it feels even worse now.

            I sighed. With all of this in my mind, I have hardly studied for any subjects. Dad is going to kill me if my grades keep up like this. Thus, after school, I walked into a classroom and sat inside with my books laid out in front of me, knowing that I would only get distracted at home. I forced myself to concentrate, even though studying was the last thing I want to d right now and, soon, I got drowned in the syllabus until I lost track of time. It wasn’t until I heard echoing footsteps across the hallway that I noticed how empty the school was. I glanced at the window beside me and saw that the sky was pitch dark and that my peripheral vision had been deceived by the streetlight standing before the window. Wow… I don’t remember the last time I lost myself in studying like this.

            I began to put my books away when I heard a knock on the door. The familiar shivers ran through me once again and my heart stopped. It was Mr. Brady. He stood with a curious expression, half-leaning onto the door frame in a naturally cool posture. I gulped and froze, not knowing whether to observe his chiseled chest and perfectly sculpted arms, or to speak like a normal person would. Instead, I froze like a deer in the headlights.

            “What are you still doing here? The school’s about to close.” he questioned, waking me from my perplex.

            “I was, uhm… studying.” I did my best not to stutter.

            “You? Studying?” he rose a mocking brow and I pouted in response.

            “Anyhow, it’s late. Come on, I’ll drive you home.”

            Every member of my body froze at his offer. “Huh?” I managed to utter after several moments of silence. “N-no. I-I mean, t-that’s fine, thank you. I can walk home. I live nearby.”

            His expression revealed some impatience. “It’s dark out. It’s dangerous for a girl your age to be walking in the streets alone at night. So, come on, let’s go.”

            “I—” I tried protesting, but he cut me short.

            “You don’t have a choice. Now get your butt up and let’s get moving, I don’t have all day.”

            I was shocked by his sudden retort and got up as fast as possible, grabbing my possessions and fumbling towards him with scalding cheeks. Am I supposed to be thankful or frightened at his intimidating kindness?

            Thus, we sat in his car and drove along a painfully awkward silence. The only times I spoke were to give him directions to my home. I wondered if I should say something else, but he did not seem like the small-talk kind of person and the scenes of my confession haunted me. Instead, I tried deciphering what was in his mind, playing out his possible thoughts in my head until I was more nervous than ever.

            “Is this it?” His question awoke me from my hypothesizing.

            “Oh. Y-yeah.”

            “Thanks.” I said after a pause, clearing my voice and grabbing the doorknob. However, a sudden movement stopped me from pulling onto it.

            I slowly looked back at Mr. Brady and was surprised to see him so close, leaning onto my seat and gazing fixedly into my eyes. Once again, a shock froze me. I stared back at him, unsure of what to do and unsure of his intentions.

            “W-what?” I asked in great fluster.

            “Don’t move.” he demanded, “There’s a spider on your head.”

            The shock spread throughout my body, causing shivers all over, and I could not help doing just the opposite of what he ordered. I shook myself all over and shut my eyes, squealing “Get it off, get it off!” It was just about the most embarrassing thing I have ever done – and I did it in front of him.

            “Wait, stay still.” he said with a chuckle.

            Mr. Brady placed a hand on my shoulder, gently pushing me back and I closed my eyes tightly shut. I waited for him to remove the insect from my head, and I could sense his hand raising towards my head, but it never reached the top of my head. Instead, it landed gently on my cheek with a soft, warm touch. Just as I was about to open my eyes out of confusion, a delicate warmth took over my lips. My eyes shot open and all I could see was Mr. Brady’s face up close, giving me a long-lasting kiss. Warmth flowed through me with his touch, but a cold, electrical shock shooting up my spine dazed me. Without thinking, I pushed him away abruptly and our lips parted. Mr. Brady broke into an amused chuckle, mocking my expression. I looked away. I could not bear looking him in the eyes. There was no spider, was there?

            “You should get going now, before your parents start to worry.” he said as if nothing had happened.

I looked at him in bewilderment, wondering how he could do such things and still act so normally afterwards. I gazed at him, trying to figure out his intentions before I was finally dragged back into reality.

“Y-yeah.” I said nervously as I opened the door and stepped out.

I walked into my house, greeting my father before shutting myself in my bedroom. Out of curiosity, I peeked out the window, and he was still there. As our eyes met, my fingers involuntarily touched my lips and I saw a malicious grin forming on his cheeks. He smirked and waved before driving off, leaving my heart pounding as my head spun in confusion. I wondered if these two kisses had any sort of meaning to him, or if he was simply teasing me.