@Gemini_99 old cover was uploaded on ch1 :)
~❤~
C h a p t e r F i f t e e n
Squelch, squelch.
The sound filling my ears distracting me momentarily from my nerves. I giggled silently to myself at the sound of our water-logged shoes as we made our way into his house through his garage. It sounded as though rubber ducks were strapped to our feet.
Mr. Green let out a small laugh ahead of me. I guess he also found it amusing.
We left our wet shoes and socks, hanging by his door, and entered into his home through the kitchen. The damp files in my grip suddenly feeling heavy with my guilt once more.
"I'm sorry again for dropping your files in the water." I bit my bottom lip while gesturing to the pile in my arms. I was unsure of where to put them or what to do with them exactly. If I opened them, I feared they would break apart. But if I put them down on the bench, it would be as if I was passing the problem off.
Feeling around the files with my fingers, I could tell that water had mainly entered from the top and bottom. I remained was somewhat hopeful that the insides would be salvageable. However, there was no telling how bad the real damage was until I could open it. I thought of a solution.
"Hey, Mr. Green?" I began nervously. "Do you happen to have a hairdryer that I could use? I would like to try and dry these out?"
Mr. Green turned around and gave me a look.
I held my breath.
I couldn't tell if he was angry or not.
Strangely, he hadn't mentioned anything about the issue at all until I'd brought it up. Although he very well could've been silently cursing at me the whole time for being an idiot. I would have too, if someone was as clumsy as I.
"I've got one upstairs. I'll grab it while I go and get changed." He replied simply, his face as still as ever. I let out my breath, relieved that he didn't chew me out.
But instead of going upstairs, Mr. Green, without warning, started waltzing in my direction. His eyes never leaving me.
I stumbled backward, grabbing onto a countertop behind me as he got closer.
Oh no, he's so mad...
Stopping in front of me, his eyes silently raked over my body, causing me to freeze like a deer in headlights. I gulped hard. I still had my school jumper on, zipped up securely, and my black stockings covered my legs. There was nothing to look at, so why was he staring? A small chill run down my spine as I shivered in the cold kitchen.
Just what was he doing?!
After what felt like a long time, he finally spoke up. "Your clothes are damp too. Let me go grab you something too, I think it will fit."
I opened my mouth to speak but I was taken aback by his penetrating gaze that had latched onto me.
And then before I knew it, he was gone again. Down the hall before I could protest.
I leaned onto the kitchen counter, clutching my chest taking slow and controlled deep breaths to soothe my heart. I was caught off guard, and I hope I won't be so careless again.
After calming down, a thought came to me. He still has not a deal about me ruining his files but was concerned about me being in wet clothes? Surely no one had that much patience. Something was up.
Mr. Green appeared later in the living room wearing a comfortable grey top and track-pant set. I noticed his hair was kind of spiked as if he ran his towel through it a few times to dry it and called it a day. It gave him a very boyish look.
He threw a change of clothes on the couch I was seated on as I flinch slightly as it plopped down beside me.
I was been using one of the decorative cushions as coverage for my legs but it was barely enough to cover me from the weight of the stares he was now giving me.
I slowly grabbed his clothes apprehensively and stood up. "A-am I meant to change into these?"
"Yes Rose. They're not towels. Speaking of towels, there's a bathroom down the hall from the study you could use. There's towels in the linen closet," he instructs while walking away into the kitchen. "I'll put the kettle on while you change. Take your time."
"Wait–"
Again, I couldn't say anything.
Ugh, it's like he says something and then leaves immediately right after so that I don't have time to respond. I didn't ask for his clothes.
With my cheeks slightly red, I gave a sigh and dragged myself to the bathroom. At least I would be able to get out of my wet top and this stupid school skirt we were forced to wear. Normally my stocking offered me extra peace of mind, but standing under his gaze like that in the kitchen, it felt like everything was exposed. I was glad to have actual long pants now because I don't think I could survive another round of his staring.
I emerged from the bathroom and headed for the kitchen. As much as I hated to admit, it was a lot warmer in his white, oversized jumper. The jacket stretched down to my mid-thigh, and the sleeves hanged over my fingers a few inches. The pants on the other hand were also way too long; it dangle past my feet so much that I had roll them up or I'd be mopping the floors. But they somehow they fit me well in the waist which was a surprise, despite the length. I didn't think he owned anything 'my size'.
The kettle's whistle sizzled away into a fizz and the steam dematerialized into the air. The curtains were drawn, shielding us from the miserable blue rain outside. And the kitchen lights had been switched on, instantly making the place seem more warm and bright. The lightning from the storm was barely noticeable now under the hot glow of the spot lights shimmering on the granite counter tops.
Mr. Green had his back to me and was busy pouring some water from the kettle into two mugs with each with a tea bag in them. "Ah, so..." I broke into the room hesitantly, "Where was the blowdryer again?"
He turned around holding both mugs in his hands and the instant he saw me, he started to shake.
"What?" I growled.
Mr. Green stifled a laughter, his hands wobbling unsteadily until he set the mugs down onto the floating island. "You look... comfy," he snickered.
I crossed my arms against my chest and gave him a frown. "Who made me wear this again?"
"Hey, it was the only thing you can fit into. Who called you to be so tiny? You look like you're drowning under my jumper."
"Tiny? I'm taller than average." I glared at him.
"Okay," he laughed. "You look fine, don't need to be so embarrassed. Now tell me how do you have your tea?"
"Ah... " I looked away, finding my fingers behind my back.
Darn him, there he went deciding things for me again. I would've declined having tea as I'd already brought my own water bottle. I wondered if I should bring it up but eventually decided to drop it seeing as he's already made it.
I cleared my throat softly and said sternly. "Ahem. F-four sugars with milk please. Lots of milk."
"Four sugars?!" Mr. Green yelled. "This isn't a jug Rose, it's a mug."
My face was feeling really warm now. I sat on the a stool and clasping my hands over my red cheeks flustered. "What, how do you have yours then?" I challenged. Peering into his cup, his double teabag sat unmoved, steeping a dark tinge into the water.
"Straight black of course, how else?" he replied as if it was the only sensible answer in the world.
I wrinkled my nose. "Right, pardon me. You're one of those."
He chuckled at me. "One of those? At least it's better than what you're having; diabetes in a cup. You know, you kids should really stop having so much sweets."
"Hey, don't disrespect!" I cried. "I have a sweet tooth, okay. I can't help it, unsweetened tea is too bitter for me." My voice constricted slightly in my throat as I was overcome with embarrassment over my childlike taste. I couldn't explain that certain foods or tastes were hard for me now as I'd ruined some of my taste palette; a consequence of years of neglect. It was something I'd rather not address to someone like him.
Anyway, I very easily pretend that I also don't take sugar or milk in my tea – in fact I'm sure a younger me would have told him so. But with how nervous I was already feeling, he probably would've guessed I was faking it with how long it would take me to finish. Not to mention the faces I no doubt would be pulling when downing the cup of black death. I hate black tea.
"Okay then Miss Mary. However you like it is however I shall make it." He grinned at me as he proceeded to make a show of dump four large lumps of sugars in, stirring the teaspoon around daintily.
I growled but he shot me an innocent look. "What's wrong, isn't this how you wanted it? Just making sure all that sugar melts."
After catching what he'd said to Brian about giving the squeaky trolly away to certain people on purpose, I knew he was grating me on purpose. "Mr. Green, I said before, Mary's my–"
"Middle name?" He smirked cutting me off. "Yes, Rosie I'm well aware. And on that note, my name is Jasper."
I grumbled at him and sipped my tea silently.
Also, he made the tea perfectly. It could rival my Aunt's but I'd never tell him that.
~❤~
I was on all fours along the hardwood floor of the conservatory. With a blowdryer in my hand, I aired over the remainder of the wet papers from the files. There were about thirty or so semi-crinkled paper, stretched out and laid covering ground in the study. Although most of them were dried enough to a decent state, some of them still had irreversible ink bleed that made every word illegible. Gulp.
I glanced up at the clock worried. Our piano lesson was meant to have started at least fifteen minutes ago if it meant I were to get picked up on time.
Initially, Mr. Green had just insisted to just lay the papers out to air dry naturally and get on with the lesson however, I refused. It was my fault that these documents got wet in the first place, and I felt even more bad finding out that these papers were meant for the eight graders. Even if it meant that it was for that no good stinking Brian. I was sure to fix my wrongs.
I flicked the power button off and nodded at the papers sprawled all around my feet. It was the best I could do. Decently satisfied with my work, I get up and dust my knees.
"I reckon I should leave them be for now to completely dry. Then I'll stack them together under some heavy books to iron out the crinkles and make them flat. What do you think? Mr. Green? Mr. Green? Jasper?"
I looked over to Mr. Green who was at his desk on his laptop, scrolling with his mouse and then periodically typing a few comments. He didn't seem to notice or hear me, and was still, even until now, quite unconcerned with all my efforts in trying to fix the papers – not that it bothered me anyway, it was never for his approval. It was only for my own conscience.
A long sigh came out from him as he ran his fingers through his dark and soft looking hair, visibly irritated. It peaked my interest. It was quite rare for Mr. Green to show signs of agitation, even during the roughest part of the day in class. Rather than raise his voice, usually he responded to off-tasked students with his infamous smirk and something clever to embarrass them. It was more effective that way.
Curious to know what the issue was, daringly I made my way to the other side where he was sitting and peeked over at his computer screen, careful to keep my distance.
"I swear, the school website is designed by an absolute amateur. This is my fourth time trying to upload all the assignment reports and I've lost all my progress, again. UGH! I swear I'm gonna yell at the IT guys to fix their shit one of these days! Incompetent!"
Whoa.
I backed away from Mr. Green, my eyes wide.
A sheepish half-grin appeared on his face, spreading to the tops of his ears which moved downwards with his smile. "Shh... Don't tell anyone I said that."
"I was gonna ask you if you were alright Mr. Green but I see you have your hands tied" I remarked, slightly amused. "By the way, was that a swear word you said?"
Mr. Green took off his glasses, and turned to me. From where I stood above him, I could see his perfect long lashes feathering beneath his bangs. "And what if it was Miss Mary?" He challenged, looking into the depths of my eyes. I felt some blood rush to my face but brushed it off.
"Beats me, Jasper." I deflected. "Anyway, I've finished drying the paper. I was saying before, but I don't think you heard me. I was going to let them dry out for a while, then stack them under a big, heavy book. So yeah, I guess we can get started with piano now.""
While waiting for a response, Mr. Green stretched his arms upwards while leaning back in his seat causing the bottom of his long-sleeved shirt to ride up slightly, revealing a flash of his smooth skin beneath. I did my best to ignored it.
"Mm-hmm, great." He agreed with a small yawn. "Let's get on with it before your brother arrives. Just a warning, you're gonna have to go twice as fast to make up for lost time." Standing up at his desk, he suddenly towered over me. I shivered at his breath was hot on my neck.
"Yep." I squeaked in a small voice, nervously glancing over at the clock. Barely 45 minutes to fit in an hour and a half long lesson. I went to the piano in a hurry as I could feel his presence, imminently behind me.
~❤~
I placed my manuscript onto the piano while Mr. Green reached over the piano to adjust the metronome speed.
"I do hope you're ready, Miss Rose." He purred dangerously before standing a short distance away. A small burst of lightning lit the window behind him, illuminating his silhouette, and a clap of thunder resonated around the walls. I gulped internally, shaking my fingers and arms out to get some blood flowing as it had been a little cold and stiff in this space.
The metronome started swinging rapidly, producing a click with each beat. I nodded my head with the tempo trying get myself adjusted to the pace, however something wasn't quite right. The pace was way faster than normal. I guess he wasn't kidding when he said we had to go faster.
I began to worry, big time. You would have to be inhuman to be able to play it well at this insane speed. He must be joking with me and just before I decided to say something he cut my thought off.
"Bb Arpeggio!" He announced with full seriousness in his voice. Welp, no time to worry, it's show time.
I began to play the scale. My fingers, still rigid from the cold, fumbled a bit at the beginning before managing to finish, some-what decently if you ignored the start.
"Again," He demanded loudly causing me to jump.
I restart the scale, it was going well until I stumbled again from the nerves. Damn it.
I began to feel flustered as I realised he was actually being serious.
"Did you practice? Again!"
I bit my lip down hard in concentration, willing myself to just get over the first scale. Somehow I managed to scrape by a pass the third time. Thank goodness. I hardly had a moment to gather my breathe when his voice thundered out.
"G# harmonic minor."
I took a breath in and began to play, hitting a wrong note just before I was doing the descend. Shit! just when I reached halfway too. Arghh!
"Again."
He ordered, this time commencing his usual pacing around the room whenever he really wanted to listen carefully. Ever single note I played and missed, measured in his mind. How evenly spaced each note was, the timber, the tone, everything in my delivery was compared and judged. It was either perfect, or it was trash.
"Again."
"Again."
Chromatics; Triades; He kept going on, throwing different scales in minors and majors, progressions and inversions at me at the top of his head.
Tick-tick-tick-tick-tick the metronome raced against the my palpitating heart. His pacing behind me sounding like someone was pounding against a door in my ears.
"Again."
"Again."
I struggled each time, barely able to hit them at the right tempo or the right moves for that matter. I cringed at each fumble, and I could hear the frustration in his breath as he kept asking me to replay the scales.
Finally after a deafening thunderclap, Mr. Green marched over and slammed his hand over the metronome to stop it from ticking. The veins along his arms protruding against his skin, outlined by the lightning outside.
I shrunk in my seat as I saw from the corner of my eyes his chest rising and falling rapidly. I held my breath waiting for the explosion to come. It was harrowing; the wait... the silence.
The air was growing thick in the room.
The rain had stopped, and the wind had eased to a small coo against the window as if it too, dared not to make noise.
After what felt like an eternity, I turned my head towards him.
His teeth was clenched, his face was black in the shadows, eyes darkened. A huge lump in my throat formed. Finally, he slid his hands down the metronome, dragging the indicator down, setting the speed to the lowest it could go. He let go of it, allowing the dial to start swinging again.
Tick... Tick... Tick...
The metronome was now ticking incredibly slow, at snail pace. Humiliating. No one played at that speed like that unless you were learning for the very first time. He let it tick for a few minutes while he remained wordless. I couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Can you please say something? I can't play with with this speed, it's too slow. I can't tell if you're being serious or not now." I pleaded to my teacher. He was staring at me unmoving, and his jaw twitched slightly. I ran my fingers through my hair, my face starting to burn up. The adrenaline was still pumping in my veins from the frenzy of the disaster just moments before.
"Jasper, say something." My voice was shaking now with frustration which was building up inside me.
What was the point of him staying so silent now? It was pretty damn obvious what he thought of my playing, it was pretty atrocious. But only because he set it up to be practically impossible in the first place.
I swear, I don't care if he has expectations higher than the bloody moon, or that he was a genius child prodigy. He must be delirious if he thinks that I, or anybody else would be able to pull that off playing at the speed of light without any warning whatsoever. I kicked the piano stool behind me and stood up, marching over to where he stood like a marble statue.
"Well?" I demanded, my voice was now low and full of anger. "Spit it out then, say what you want. I don't care!" I stared back at him daring him into a staring competition.
The corner of his lips curled ever so slightly.
"Vile."
He snarled at me, disgust in his eyes.
I fucking lost it. "You know what? That was fucking impossible anyway! Who the hell plays scales at 280 beats per minute without practice. Nobody. Freaking nobody. So I don't see why you're so mad at me when you're the one who set me up! You suck as a fucking piano teacher!" I shouted, pointing an accusatory finger above his upper chest.
His face remained the same; a mixture of offense and loathing.
"Well why aren't you saying anything else?" I yelled. "You normally have so much to say that you can't shut up!" I point a finger to his chest this time making contact with his shirt. "You're so randomly moody. It's pissing me off!"
At that point, he grabs onto my wrist roughly in an instant and pushed me back until we were against the piano.
I yelp.
He leaned in close, our faces inches apart while I stared bitterly into his eyes, my chest rising and falling quickly. The blue of his iris was swirling around in my view, distorting my judgement momentarily and I felt all the air in my lungs dispersing.
"Oh, so you agree. You didn't practice?" He snarled deathly.
"I did practice! Just not like that. That was too fast, it's not possible!"
"Liar. Don't you dare say that to me. It is possible, I did it. I used to play like that, that is why I can tell you now, you playing like that is just wasting my time. You're wasting your own time and effort playing piano too if you never go out of your comfort zone. You always shied yourself away from anything remotely uncomfortable to you, it's incredibly frustrating. You won't grow. You'll stay stagnant just like you are right now." His piercing words were like daggers into my heart.
I felt a hitch in my breath and moisture forming in the corner of my eyes. What the hell does he know?
I've pushed my comfort zone so much this year, attending this school. Even being here in his house right now, alone with him; it's no small feat. It took many panicked thoughts, many tears cried, many sleepless nights in bed to get here. He didn't have the slightest clue what I went through!
"If you wanted to be taken seriously, you need to step up to it, not run away right from the start." He released my wrist roughly and distanced himself from me. I blinked away some moisture, squeezing my hands into tight fists by my sides, taking sharp inhales of breaths trying to calm myself down. I refuse to burst out crying in front of him.
I wanted to yell back at him some more. Rebut all his claims. He doesn't know shit. But where had my burst of anger gone now?
Then my phone started ringing. I pushed past Mr. Green roughly and ran to my bag which was on the chair by the window. It must be my brother, he's coming to pick me up now. Good fucking riddance!
I can't wait till I leave this stupid place and this stupid man. I was wasting his time? He was wasting mine. Fine, I'll quit for real this time then we'll both be happy.
I composed myself quickly before answering the call.
"Hi Tom, you here yet?"
"Rose! No, I'm not. I'm sorry, I can't come right now." My brothers voice came wavering through on the other side. Instantly I felt despaired.
"What? Why! You have to come!" I cried out. If he wasn't here within the next few minutes, I was going to run home myself, even in this storm, even in the dark. Screw that asshole, I couldn't stand being here for another second.
"It's Emily! Someone on the highway T-boned her car on the way home and so I have to go to the hospital." There was a hint of panic in his voice and I could hear the indicator of his turning car in the background through my phone. He must be driving right now.
Instantly my fury started to melt away and I started to worry about Tom's girlfriend and how her condition was.
"W-H-HAT! T-that's terrible! Oh my god Tom! Is she okay?" I asked anxiously.
"I-I don't... I don't know. I don't think so. Her family is there, but she's knocked out. I don't know the details yet, I'm trying to rush but there's so many freaking cars on the highway right now!" I hear my brother beeping his car horn in the background. My chest starts rises up and down rapidly. Tom was usually a calm person so whenever he showed any signs of panic, I know something must be really wrong. I started to get even more scared.
"I can't freaking... I... Jasper. Put Jasper on the phone NOW! Rose!" He tells me.
I turned to Mr. Green, who was now at his desk. He had his head in his hands.
"It's my b-brother. He wants to talk to you." I thrusted my phone to his face without looking at him. Mr. Green, with a serious demeanour, grabs the phone from my hands.
"Jasper speaking. Yes, I understand... Yes, No. It's no problem at all... Yes, that's fine. Alright, I'll let her know. Right, don't worry, everything will be fine. Okay, take care. "
I turned away, it was my turn to pace the floor as I listened to his convo, trying to anxiously decipher what they were saying. It sounded bad. Oh gosh, I just hope Emily was okay. She was my brother's love and life.
"Rose."
I knew that when I was going through my ordeal years ago, my brother had been silently struggling inside as well. He hadn't been the most vocal of us, no that was Mum had. Tom was the rock for the family for the longest time. He stood so strong in silence while we all argued, when I went away, when Grandpa died and among other things. We ran to him with our troubles and he held it all in by himself.
He stayed so solid like a facade until he met Emily and he started to crumble and become human again. I'd always felt guilty for what I'd done to him and my family. But Emily, she was always so kind and real around him, bringing him out of the slumps even when I was getting better. I could never repay her enough for that. If something were to happen to her, I don't know what would happen –
"Rose." Mr. Green grabbed my shoulders, stopping me in my tracks mid step. I'd forgotten what I had been doing. I turned around and met his gaze as a tear trickled down my cheek. He reached over to my face, and wiped it away with his thumb gently. It took me by shock however I couldn't move away. My lip quivered as more tears threatened to fall.
"It'll be okay," he reassured. I just shook my head.
"No, Emily... she's important to him. She's too, too important." I whimpered as a few more tears escaped. "She was there for him... When I wasn't. If she dies..." I couldn't even say it; what it will do to my brother.
That was when he pulled me into his arms.
His hand came up, stroking my head gently as I hide my face in the middle of his chest, soaking his shirt.
His embrace was warm and all consuming, turning my legs weak. His touch left goosebumps on my neck, with each stroke of his warm hands on my hair. I want to push him away, but my hands wouldn't move. I could feel the heat radiating from all around his body. It felt so solacing yet, at the same time it left me feeling even more exposed like a double edged sword.
I was shuddering from fear but at the same time calming downs. My mind was scattering into pieces and I couldn't tell if I was swimming up or down.
"Shh... It's okay. She'll be alright." He hushed gently while brushing my hair, until all that remained of me was a few sniffles. I brought my hands to my face, and wiped away the rest of my tears. And when we broke away I avoided his gaze, feeling the cool air rushing through between us.
I was suddenly overcome with horror at how much I revelled in his embrace. How could I have allowed that?
"I'm sorry ," he began. "I shouldn't have rushed you before."
I sniffled in response. He chuckled softly and rubbed my hair on top of my head.
"Stop." I mumbled, swatting his hands away with my arms. My face felt pretty puffy and horrendous right now. I brought both my hands up to my face, using the long sleeves to hide my redness. He grinned at my reaction.
"Well, your brother told me that your parents will be picking you up once the restaurant closes for the night."
I froze.
Man, this was great wasn't it? It was Friday night, and they don't shut until well after midnight. It doesn't matter if there's a bloody cyclone or war going on, they were popular no matter what.
I peaked out from behind my fingers as he uttered the words:
"You're having dinner with me."
~❤~
Thanks for reading! Please let me know your thoughts~