The Teacher's Pet | Slowburn MJ FanFic

• | Chapter Seventy-Two | •

"I didn't know you were still up." Tia suddenly said as she emerged from the kitchen in her robe with a cup of strawberry yogurt. Startled, Riley nearly dropped her phone before plastering a fake, small smile on her tired face.

"Oh, uh, yeah... I couldn't sleep. Can I sit outside on the porch for a few minutes?" Riley stammered a little as she swept her disheveled curls away from her sweaty forehead.

Tia slightly narrowed her eyes, then stepped forward to place the back of her hand against Riley's forehead. "You're burning up. What's the matter?"

"Nothing, the room is just a little too hot and I need some fresh air. I'm okay." Riley said. She wasn't completely lying since her room really felt like it was cooking her alive and the cool air could help clear her active mind.

Tia still felt skeptical, but let it go. "I'll tell your uncle to adjust the vent so it'll be cooler. You'll let me know if anything is bothering you, right?"

She silently nodded.

"Okay... don't sit out there all night. I'll check on you in a bit." Tia said while scooping up a spoonful of yogurt.

"Alright." Riley replied, then quickly walked past her and shut the front door behind her. She sat on the porch steps and closed her eyes as she deeply inhaled. Almost instantly, the gentle breeze cooled her heated skin and fluttered some of her tight curls that tickled her face.

Opening her eyes, she found Michael's number in her contacts and called him. As the phone continued to ring several times, she was quickly growing impatient and anxious.

"Hello?" His soft voice finally answered, causing Riley's heart to jolt in mere excitement.

"Can I come over?" She immediately asked before nibbling on her bottom lip nervously. At this moment, she didn't care about how her aunt or uncle would react. Just being in his presence again was what all she wanted right now.

Michael raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Um, yeah. Where am I picking you up?"

"Don't worry about it, I can walk." She tried to say, but he instantly shut that down.

"Walk? Ry, I'm not letting you walk here. God knows what is out there waiting to snatch you up." He said as he wasn't feeling the idea of her walking the streets this late at night, not knowing what could happen to her between here and there.

"I'll be fine, Michael." She tried to assure him, but he wasn't having it.

"No, I'm not taking any chances. Either you stay where you are or you're letting me come over to get you."

She rolled her eyes and sighed, though she appreciated his concern. "Fine. But don't park close to the house."

"Okay." He said and the call between them ended. She sent him her location right after.

While she waited for him to come get her, Riley got up and went back inside the house quietly. She peeked around in the living room and the kitchen and didn't see a sign of her aunt. She grabbed her Nike's nearby and went back outside while quietly closing the door shut behind her. She slipped on her shoes and sat back down, nervously bouncing her knee. She didn't know how long he would take and she didn't know when Tia might pop out of the blue, demanding her to come back inside.

As she was becoming more anxious as time wore on, she saw a pair of headlights  suddenly flash at her in the distance. Then she got a text from Michael saying he was here. She looked back over her shoulder for any signs of shadow movements from behind the blinds, then darted from the porch to his red Camry as quickly as her body would allow. She got in, then leaned over to kiss him.