Teacher's Pet: The Sequel

Chapter 15: The First

She closed her eyes briefly and felt a tug behind them, something that pulled her into the darkness, but she urged the feeling away and attempted to gain some peace in imagining her wife and her son's faces.

She opened them again when she heard a shuffle and found herself beholding a shadow that loomed over her and for a moment she imagined it to be death to take her hand, but a voice rumbled like thunder, something concerned and urgent and suddenly her own cracked as she blurted out her fears to the figure.

"I don't want to die..." She croaked, her unfinished thoughts breaking through. "I-I can't leave them. I-I-I ca-can't leave Gina and I can't leave Henry! I-I want to see him grow up and..." A new warmth trickled down her cheeks.

"Emma.... Emma, you won't die. An ambulance is here for you." That thunderous voice spoke again and she recognized it as Graham. Gods, she wished that thunder was Regina because she could stand to tell her how much she loved that woman.

The words didn't quite register, though. What he said felt like a distant memory and all she felt was this sadness burrowed in her heart and the coldness that beckoned her to join the darkness. Gods, she had so much to say and she tried to will herself to say it, those words that couldn't leave her tongue, but the world was fading away and she felt herself being pulled, falling into that void she never used to fear.

She saw her that morning; smiling beautifully with her golden hair and jade eyes, looking like an angel in the morning sun. The coffee's steam surrounded her like an aura and Regina was mesmerized, or perhaps it was the way she looked at her through bleary eyes and sleep still on her brain like a fading drug.

But, even now, as she sat behind her desk, eyes distant and staring blankly at the bowed heads before her, she felt her heart flutter inside her chest. She should be doing work, grading those papers that she was days behind on, but she couldn't seem to keep her mind from wandering today. Perhaps it was the sleepless night and Henry's cries that kept her up, but despite the irritation that she tried so hard to shove away, she wanted to return home; to curl into her wife and to cuddle that little boy they loved so very much.

Sighing away her desires, she snapped herself back to reality to realize just how quiet it was in the room. Blinking her eyes to clear her daydreams, she was able to see the confused looks on the students' faces and immediately guided her attention to her desktop where a recording was supposed to be playing.

She always loved it when they studied a book in class. It was one of the easiest ways to block everything out and get work done. With a resigned sigh, she attempted to remedy the situation only to find that she couldn't.

"What the hell?" She muttered to herself, noticing the files for the next parts of that chapter were missing. Glaring at the offending screen and its abhorrent trustworthiness, she stood and addressed the class.

"The recording seems to be lacking the will to keep playing today. Now, don't go smiling and believing that there will be no more work for today because I have plenty for you. I would like for you to finish chapter seven up on your own while I attempt to get this situation figured out." Regina linked her fingers together as she surveyed the class once again, eyes falling to the back row where two students were chatting softly to one another. Pressing her lips together, she turned toward her desk and collected a stack of papers. "And, as standard procedure, I have an assignment to go with it. Are there any questions? Or, would you like to chat more while I am speaking?"

One of the students in the back rose their hand and she nodded, granting them permission to speak. "Can we start on the eighth chapter when we're done?"

"You are more than welcome to, Deandra," she answered, moving to the first row, a pleased quirk on her lips. "As a matter of fact, everyone can get a head start on the next chapter and-" She was cut short when a rapid buzzing sounded in the room. "Whose cellphone is that?" The brunette's eyes immediately narrowed as she scoped out the class for a guilty face but it hadn't taken her long to realize the disturbance was coming from behind her and when she turned, she saw that it was her own phone that was the culprit.