Vanilla & Smoke || A.I.

Tenebrous.

Tenebrous. 
/ten-uh-bruh s/
Adjective 
1. Dark, gloomy,  obscure

~~~

  Thora was standing in Mr.Irwin's house, as he looked in her direction confusedly, waiting for a response. He didn't know it was her. 

  At that moment, she could do multiple different things. She could turn and run, though she'd probably get in big trouble. She could kill him on the spot- he was blind after all, couldn't be that hard- though, admittedly, if she couldn't do some light vandalization without getting caught, she probably couldn't get away with murder.

She decided on a more... legal option. "My names... Jenna," she lied, trying to disguise her voice. "I'm from the... community service... place."

The teacher smiled. "Nice to meet you, Jenna. Could you do me a favor and let me put my hand on your head for a second? That way, I'll know where to face when talking to you."

Thora accepted his hand, and guided it to her head, placing it carefully. It wasn't like he was going to get anything from just touching her hair, right?

He stiffened, and took a step forwards, sniffing the air. "Thora?"

"What the hell!" She exclaimed, pushing him back. "How'd you know it was me?"

"Vanilla," he grumbled, shaking his head in disbelief. "And your hair.... it's black, right? And you braid it?"

"Two braids," she agreed cautiously. "Down my back. What the hell do you need help with?"

She meant to ask why do you need a person serving community service to help you, but it sounded more like an angry I'm going to help you (wink wink nudge nudge). She quickly corrected herself, "Why do you need me?"

He was quiet for a few moments, before straightening, very teacher-like. "Don't cuss."

"I'm not at fucking school, you can't tell me what to fucking do."

"I'll fail you."

"I'll dye all your tighty whiteys bright pink," Thora responded just as fast. "And you'll never know, until one day you'll have a girl over and she'll pull down you finds to find, why, look at that? Bright pink underwear."

The teacher grimaced. "Point taken. And in response to your prior question, I need weekly assistance because I happen to be blind, in case you haven't noticed. And I live alone, so I need someone to help from time to time making sure I don't die."

"Wow, dramatic much?"

"It's hyperbole."

Thora licked her bottom lip nervously, not retaliating. "Fine. But why can't you just have your girlfriend do it?"

"I don't have a girlfriend."

"Oh sorry, boyfriend."

Mr.Irwin cocked his head to the side. "You think I'm gay?"

She shrugged- a gesture that was meaningless to a blind person. "Could've fooled me."

They stood in somewhat awkward silence, Thora looking around the apartment. It was very simple, the only light coming in from the windows, and no knickknacks or decorations.

"So... what exactly would you need me to do? Because I'm not scrubbing your toilet."

He smiled. "Well, I'm definitely not, so tell me if you come up with a better plan."

~~~

The nice thing about working for Mr.Irwin was that he was pretty easy to talk to, and was able to take a job. The annoying thing was that she had to work.

The first day was busy, vacuuming, sweeping, mopping, washing the counters, and yes, scrubbing the toilet. Mr.Irwin kept a pretty neat apartment, and Thora had to turn the lights on in every room she entered because, well, why have the lights on if you're blind? She hadn't thought of it before, but it made sense.

They talked about Mr.Irwin's favorite topic, and Thora's least favorite topic- school.

"The teachers all find you very interesting," Mr.Irwin commented offhandedly.

Thora stopped her scrubbing, holding the washcloth still against the counter. "Yeah? What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're a common subject in the teachers lounge. I'm assuming it's because of your wonderful grades?"

She scowled. "It's definitely not that." She had an idea what they were talking about.

"Is science your favorite class?"

Thora almost choked. "What? No."

He scratched his chin. "Really? Because Louis says your his favorite student."

"Louis?"

"Tomlinson, you'd probably know him as Mr.Tomlinson."

Thora grunted, and began scrubbing the counter again, more vigorously. "I hate him. He's a shit teacher."

Mr.Irwin hesitated, wanting to reprimand her language but stopping himself. "He's one of the best science teachers in the district."

"Yeah, but he's a complete pervert. He shouldn't have a lock on his classroom door."

Her voice was relaxed, but the words made Mr.Irwin tense. "Wait, what? What does he do?"

Thora looked at him, trying to judge the situation as best as she could. "He... suggests things. Tries to get girls to stay after class, makes rude comments."

"About what." The teacher's wasn't asking a question- he was making a command. "What does he comment on?"

"Skirts. He likes to pretend that whenever someone's wearing the skirt shorter than normal, it's for him. He thinks everything any vaguely attractive girl does is to tease him." She looked at Mr.Irwin worriedly. "Are you okay? You seem..." she didn't know how to finish the sentence.

He clenched his fists. "He doesn't deserve to be a teacher. I can't believe- Mr.Tomlinson? Are you sure?"

"Are you deaf?" She snapped back. "Yes, Mr.Tomlinson. Short, brown hair-" Thora stopped short when she realized physical descriptions meant nothing to him. "Never mind. But he talks about me in the teachers lounge?"

"A lot. A... creepy amount, actually. That's not right. Someone needs to do something."

The counters were clean, so Thora brought the washcloth back to the sink, wringing it out. When she spoke, Mr.Irwin quickly turned his head to be facing her again. "It's not like no ones tried anything. Like you said, he's one of the best science teachers. The schools not going to fire him."

Mr.Tomlinson was just like Thora and Calum- he had a bubble of protection, could do virtually whatever he wanted, and wouldn't be fired.

Thora wiped her hands on a dry towel. "What else do I need to do today?"

Mr.Irwin was deep in thought, and Thora had to repeat herself before he responded. "Hmm? Oh, you've done enough, thank you. I'll see you Thursday."

"Tomorrow."

"Hmm?"

"You'll see me tomorrow," she correctly. "Mr.Irwin... I'm in your English class."

This seemed to wake him up. "Oh! Right, you're... I'll see you in English tomorrow. Did you... finish the, erm.... homework-"

"You didn't assign any."

He straighten, pushing the dark glasses back. "Right. Just... seeing if you were paying attention. See you tomorrow, Miss Faye."

  Thora shuffled uncomfortable, walking over to the door. "K. See you tomorrow... Mr.Irwin."