Paint Me, Professor | Student-Professor Erotic Novel | 18+ | ✔️

65 - Cheater

Christopher
***

"Christopher, will you help me set the table?" asked Mrs Kent. "Use the red napkins, they're in that drawer. Oh, actually, the greens ones look better. Be careful with the centerpiece, it took me hours to arrange the flowers."

Even though Mrs Kent was a woman in her sixties, she couldn't stop still and was always working around the house. If you took in consideration that Christmas was her favorite holiday, it was no surprise she wanted to include me in everything the family did, and that meant house chores.

I could hardly complain though. Kent was outside picking leaves from the driveway in the rain. I'd much rather set the table than be at the mercy of the elements.

Mr and Mrs Kent treated us like we were still teenagers, but I didn't mind it. I still saw them the same way I did when I was a boy, so only naturally, even though I was almost thirty, they still saw and treated me like a young man.

I treated them with as much respect as I did back then although I had grown much more comfortable around them in the last few years. They treated me like family, and I was grateful for their kindness and generosity. Above all, it was their understanding of my situation that made me look up to them with enormous admiration. They never made me feel like I wasn't welcomed, that I was an intruder in their family festivities.

However, despite their kindness, there was nothing that could distract me from the pain, from the rejection, from the guilt.

Christmas was a difficult time of year for me. Kent and his parents knew it, his extended family knew it, everyone knew it, yet no one mentioned it. Even though I was being treated so well, I just wanted Christmas to end so we could all go back to our routines.

Alison was both a source of comfort and anxiety during this time. Being apart surely helped keep my situation a secret, but god knew how much it pained me to lie to her. I had no other choice though, so I just had to suck it up and focus on the good.

I welcomed the feeling of missing her. Even though it was a negative emotion that made me feel like shit, it helped paint over all the other emotions I was repressing.

Speaking to her on the phone was the highlight of my day. Her voice took me back to our moments together, to my land of fantasies where there was no sorrow or regret, only pleasure, care, comfort, and safety. Even though she had picked up on my low mood (which she certainly attributed to us being apart), this had been the best Christmas I had in years, all because of her on the other line.

Her idea of exchanging gifts on Christmas day helped me more than she realized. It meant more to me than just a simple gift exchange between two people who cared for each other: it meant that, for once, I had something to look up to on that day and it wasn't just a day that reminded me that I was alone.

Due to the time difference, I knew she'd open her gift sooner than me. It didn't matter though as long as I got to see her reaction. I knew she'd find the vibrator hilarious, but I was curious to know what she'd think of the book.

The first thing I did when I woke up that morning was check my phone. As expected, Ali had already texted me. I smiled at her cheeky words. Little did she know what I had in store for her.

I reached inside my suitcase and opened a hidden compartment. I went back to bed, the warmth of the sheets reminding me of the lazy mornings Ali and I had shared in my bed so many times before. I carefully opened the meticulously wrapped present, revealing a black velvet box. Inside there were two round cufflinks. I took them out, inspecting the small and elegant pearl-white pieces. I shook my head in disbelief: this must have cost her a fortune. There was also a note inside the box.