Her Teacher's Muse

Chapter 23 Erika

Tuesday came and went. Naomi gave Erika another good song on the way home and Manon made sure to draw out her goodbyes before leaving. She was thankful for the peace and quiet the empty house offered her later though. The moon shone brightly, offering the perfect glow over the city. Instead of trying to sleep, Erika painted an abstract replica of the scene. The acrylic piece kept simple with a limited color palette and a simple background. Tommee Profitt's rendition of "I can't help falling in love with you" played in the background. The dark and hauntingly beautiful melody fueled her, instructing her brush strokes like an orchestrator. It resulted in a painting much darker that she intended but it felt right. 

The next day in class, Erika became restless with Stefan's continued absence. Rumor's floated around the school with every imaginable reason for his disappearance. While the sub droned on during a lecture, Erika took the chance to pry into Chloe's extensive knowledge of all things drama related. If any one knew anything, it would be her. 

"Hey Clo, have you heard anything about why Mr. McConnell hasn't come back?"

"Why do you want to know?" Chloe smirked. 

"Not for a reason you would like to think but I am curious." 

"I might know something, but you have to admit you're just as attracted to him as everyone else." She giggled. She loved to tease her but if only she knew the real truth. 

"Fine." Erika sighed before giving her best exaggeration "I think he's sooooo hot!" 

"You're full of shit, but fine." Chloe laughed. Leaning closer to her friend, she whispered in her ear so no one else could hear. "I overheard my dad talking to him on the phone. I guess there was some kind of family emergency like his dog is really sick or something. My dad is a sucker and gave him some time off." 

Erika knew he didn't have a dog. He was full of shit. "Huh, that's too bad." 

"I know." Chloe continued. "Hopefully he comes back soon. I miss that beard." She nudged Erika, adding that last part purely for her benefit. She rolled her eyes but secretly, she agreed. He had lied to get time off and no on knew when he was going to come back. Her anxiety was slowly killing her. She needed to find out what was really going on, especially if it had anything to do with that evening at her house. 

On Friday, she checked in with her classes before taking off early. After grabbing a coffee, she took off for a drive. The Tesla roared through the streets and eventually sped down an empty road outside of town. No matter how fast she went, she couldn't get those green eyes out of her head. Back at home, she did everything she could to distract herself until finally she couldn't take it. The sun was setting as she did squats in the gym. "Guys my age" ironically played on the speakers. Fuck it. A certain older guy had taken over her thoughts and it was time to get to the bottom of her stress. Erika bounded up to her room and freshened up. The song played over and over in her head as she hyped herself up. 

She threw on a pair of fishnet tights and jean shorts with a cropped hoodie. Her hair fell in perfect waves once she pulled it out of a bun. It felt good to get all dolled up in something a little darker than her typical pinks and gingham. In the kitchen, she sang along to "When you're gone" by Verte and searched for a snack. Pulling open a drawer that once held Manon's sweets stash, she was confused to see it full of papers. She must had converted it to a junk drawer. An address book sat on top, catching her attention. That's odd, she usually keeps this in her office. Erika tossed it on the counter and grabbed an apple. 

She scrolled her phone before taking a selfie in the hall mirror to post on her own feed. "I wonder..." She thought aloud, pulling up Stefan's instagram page. The last image posted was a mirror selfie from the night he had dinner at her house. There was no caption but he got several likes and comments. Some friends gave him slack for getting dressed up while a few girls gave him compliments but he didn't reply to any of them. Erika walked back to the kitchen to toss her apple away and spotted the address book. 

There had to be a reason Manon had pulled it out and left it out here. She was obsessed with filling out contacts for every person she met. The last person she would have added could have been Stefan while he was over... Erika flipped through the book until she got to the M's and sure enough, his name was the latest entry. That woman is relentless. 

A crazy idea popped into her head and before she could talk herself out of it, she was grabbing her keys and headed out the door. Her Tesla was charged up and ready to. She typed in his address and hit play on the radio before damn near peeling out the garage. "Want you" by Rynx started playing, the last track Naomi had played for her when they drove home. The lyrics hit home as she followed her GPS right into the heart of Paris. Her heart pounded in her chest as she stopped before an older building. There were shops along the bottom level with apartments stacked on top. He must be one of them. A big black jeep was parked off the side near a door reserved for residents. Yup, that confirms it. 

She parked next to it and cut the engine. Heading towards the building, she hit the lock button and reminded herself to breathe. Stairs led her up several levels until she was nearly to the top. Heading down the hallway, she counted the doors leading to the one she wanted tucked all the way towards the back. She took a moment to collect herself. Her heart now threatened to beat right through her ribcage and loud enough the neighbors could probably hear it. Slight gunfire noises could be heard from inside. Was he playing video games? 

Finally, she worked up the courage to knock. Holding her breath, she pounded on his door. The game paused and she could hear him cursing as he made his way to the door. A glass bottle fell, followed by more cursing. What in the hell is going on in there? After a moment, the door swung open to reveal a very disheveled Stefan.