[RECAP: Sera is being ignored by Mr Marek after they danced together at a local nightclub]
On Saturday morning Sera had the blissful peace of the house to herself. Much as she loved her brothers they were two nightmarish balls of noise and energy when she wanted to relax. They had gone with her father and Marisa to visit Marisa's parents for the weekend, and would stay there overnight.
Sera was always welcome to visit Marisa's parents, they treated her as though she was their own grandchild, but she wanted some time to herself and they understood that she had a lot of schoolwork.
Turning on the kettle and putting a slice of bread into the toaster, Sera considered calling Lois and hanging out later that day. They could go into town in the afternoon and go shopping and decide what to do that night: clubbing or staying in to watch movies. Assuming Lois didn't have a date, which Sera was pretty sure she didn't.
Sera rarely threw parties when her parents were away because the prospect of returning the house to Marisa's exacting standards filled her with dread. It was so easy for a house to get completely trashed as well.
But having Lois over was fine. Even Lois and Joel, though he sometimes got bored when they talked girl stuff.
She looked outside of the window. It was grey and raining but the sky had a brightness that suggested it might clear up. Sera hoped so. Going shopping in the rain was never fun, as most of the shops they liked to visit were in the High Street rather than a mall.
Still wearing her dressing gown, she was about to jump in the shower when the phone rang. It was Lois.
"Hello, you must be psychic. I was going to call you right after I shower. Want to do something this afternoon, go shopping, maybe?"
"Sure," Lois said. "I was actually ringing about tonight. My sister is going to some party and we're invited. Some people in a huge house the other side of town. We don't even need to bring booze, apparently there'll be loads there."
It sounded good to Sera. Better than paying the entrance fee to Aether and being surrounded by fifteen-year-olds.
"There should be loads of hot guys," Lois said. "The guy whose house it is does Phys Ed so all these sporty university students should be coming."
Normally this would have been a big enticement to Sera but she found it hard to work up much enthusiasm. She didn't want to admit to herself why, though her mind kept wandering to The Retro and wondering if they went there, whether they might again bump into...
The doorbell rang, shrilly.
"I've got to go, there's someone at the door. Meet you by the fountain at midday?"
"Sounds great, see you there," Lois said and they ended the call.
Sera went to the door, expecting a neighbour or a Jehovah's Witness. They'd just have to cope with seeing her in her nightwear. Her robe, although made of rather slinky satin, at least covered what it needed to.
"Hello?"
She stopped, shocked.
It was Mr Marek. What was he doing here?
He looked gorgeous but wrecked. His hair was tousled and he had shadows under his eyes. He also hadn't shaved that morning, which made his face look darker and more angled.
"Sera."
His gaze dropped, instantly noticing what she was wearing. His eyes burned through the silken fabric of her night slip where it showed at the front of her robe. She realised how low cut it was and felt paralysed with embarrassment. If only she had quickly thrown on some jeans.
She couldn't try and cover herself up because it would make it even more obvious.
Sera had absolutely no idea why her art teacher was standing at her door. He seemed as lost for words as she was. But to bluntly ask "why are you here?" seemed rude. To say "can I help?" sounded presumptive. But he was just standing there, staring at her.
Seconds ticked by. Sera was starting to worry that the neighbours would notice her standing at the door, in a state of near undress, with a male visitor. Enough curtain-twitching and gossiping went on as it was.
Eventually he spoke. "Are your parents in?"
"They're away for the weekend."
Something momentarily flared in his eyes then was extinguished. "I won't come in."
Sera stood there, awkwardly. She panicked that she must look a sight with no make-up, her hair messy from bed. She tried to smooth back a lock of hair behind her ear.
This really was the last way on earth she would ever plan to greet her art teacher.
Before she could ask Mr Marek what he wanted he spoke again, and what he said took her breath away.
"I need to paint you. I need you to pose for me. I can't get the image of you in class out of my head, and until I have it down on canvas I can't concentrate on any other work."