Except Me

Chapter 5.

Except Me.

Sage Dominic.

To say I was tired was an understatement. I was totally drained!

"What's up, man? You've been down since we came in." My friend, Elijah, spoke beside me.

I ignored him as usual and buried myself in my thoughts. I was trying to remember if I had the numbers in the account right. Last night, I was drunk while running the accounts of my father's company. Drunk because I was sealing a business deal with some corporate investors and it required a lot of drinking and faking happiness. Not until I saw her...

She was like a flower that bloomed in-between thorns. A calm in the storm. The more she downed the glasses and swayed in her seat, the more it felt like she was going to be pricked by the thorns around her. And I didn't even complete my thoughts when one of the investors called dibs on her. I didn't expect the irritation that crawled up my throat when I watched them leering at her. She was going to be swallowed by these monsters!

I walked out on them and went straight for her. What happened next... Ah!

I smacked my head to come back to my reality; walking along school halls just to feel what it's like to be in an actual school after being homeschooled for more than half of my life.

"You're not saying anything, Sage. Are you okay?" Elijah asked again as soon as we reached our class.

Again, I ignored him. My head throbbed painfully and I was finding it really hard to keep my eyes open. I just wanted to lay my head down and sleep to regain some strength while waiting for the worst. Waiting to see if my dad would call me to yell that I have messed up his company's accounts.

It didn't take long before the class got filled and there was a lot of noise. It pissed me off because I was trying to sleep.

"Can you all just shut the fuck up? Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?" The annoyance I felt was over the top. Didn't they have other things to do aside from talking over themselves?

My body seemed to calm when they all kept quiet and went to their seats... and that was when I heard her voice...

No, it couldn't be. I was just tired and haunted by the woman with siren eyes from last night. It couldn't be her.

Then, a sharp voice reached my ears in the serenity that the class had just provided me.

"Someone should tap the student with his head on the table. If there is one thing you wouldn't be doing in my class, it would be sleeping!" What the fuck? "Didn't you have enough sleep from last night? What would a student be doing up all night to be sleeping in class very early in the morning?" The shrill voice continued angrily.

Was she a new teacher here? Didn't she like her job? Who the hell was this? My head pounded more than ever, and I could feel myself running a really high temperature. I lifted my head from the table, not to shout or make threats, but to note the name of the teacher disturbing me.

My breath hitched at the sight of that black bouncy mane of hair, curled and styled elegantly. It was her. The stranger from last night... and somehow, her presence seemed to calm every chaotic emotion in me. Her voice seemed to soothe my soul... And the angry expression on her face was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen in a while.

Was she a new teacher here? Was this fate?

*

"Are you sure you're okay?" Elijah leaned into me and whispered into my ears. "You've been acting weird since morning. Do I need to call your dad?"

At the mention of my father, my eyes narrowed at him and he seemed to understand that I didn't appreciate that last statement.

He shrugged and raised a hand in surrender. "I didn't mean it that way. I mean, you're actually listening to what a teacher is teaching. You're usually sleeping or drawing. You don't even look so pissed that she woke you up from sleep. The last three teachers got their sack letters while they were still teaching, but—"

"They were boring, she's not." I responded dryly and looked over to her. So, her name was Lyla. I whispered it over and over again, loving how sweet and simple it was. She was evidently avoiding me. She remembered me.

"She Is just like the rest of them, and—"

"Gentlemen at the back..." Mrs. Lyla could not ignore us anymore as she stared between Elijah and me with her eyebrows creased into a frown. "I don't like being distracted while I'm teaching. Is there anything you'd like to share with the class?"

A wicked thought crossed my mind and my lips curled into a smirk when I raised my hand. "I have a lot of things to share with the class, Mrs. Lyla."

I saw a flash of fear in her eyes. Did she think I wanted to spill out to the class how I had bent her over last night? But she was quick to mask that fear. She pursed her lips and scoffed.

"That was a rhetorical question. Surely, you elite students know the difference between a normal question and that." Her voice shook from the beginning, but she struggled to keep it steady.

I smirked inwardly. It was good that I had that effect on her. It would prove itself useful in the long run.

"In fact..." She straightened her back and looked between Elijah and me— I was slightly jealous because her focus should be completely on me— and it seemed like she came to a decision. "I don't want to see both of you seated together in my class henceforth!"

I didn't wait for her to finish when I grabbed my books and bag and strolled to the front seat. I glanced at the girl that sat directly opposite Mrs. Lyla.

"Go to the back."

I didn't say much as I watched her scramble from the seat and run to the back where I had just come from. I stared at Mrs. Lyla, looking her dead in the eyes.

"Yes, ma'am." I could see her clearly now. Her apple-shaped face had a sweet softness in them. Her eyes, puckered pink lips, the tiny double chin she had... Everything about this woman only seemed to turn me on. Her voice was soft, smooth and velvety, and the way her eyelashes brushed against her cheek bones.

Damn!

She stared at me for a while before averting her gaze. She licked her bottom lips unconsciously before she went back to addressing the class.

"As I was saying, today is just an introductory class for me to get to know each one of you and let you know what you should be expecting as my student. For now, you all will have to get an exercise book that will be used to review some books I would recommend."

"But this isn't literature class, ma'am." One of the guys said from the back, earning giggles from all corners of the class. "You said it yourself. It is business and economics."

Mrs. Lyla's face turned red, and I could tell from here that she was frustrated. I didn't like that. Her face was meant to be writhing in the throes of pleasure and not frustration. Maybe I needed to start here to make a statement in the class. I pulled out my phone from my pocket and typed a few words, sending a text to my chauffeur.

After a while when the class had calmed, the principal stepped inside.

"Mr. Gonzales?" She seemed to be out of breath, and everyone turned to look at the boy that had just made the joke. "Please, pack your bags and come clear out your locker."

The class was more than silent now. They all knew it was me, and I think they seemed to get my message. No one was to mess with Mrs. Lyla, except me.