He sat up in bed. The mirror glared at him again. The image of Ray crying in bed was still in his head. He hadn't seen her today. He didn't have any classes with her, and besides, he was trying to avoid her. Chanell too, for that matter.
He thought of Chanell again... he'd scolded himself so much for that after last night's argument with Ray. She was a bad person. A vampire, to boot, but… she had an incredible, hypnotic charm about her, radiating a dark yet captivating beauty.
He looked at the mirror again. “What do they see in me?” he thought. He was handsome, but he would never say that about himself. Not because he was modest, but simply because he didn’t think so. He was as critical of himself as anyone else, and he had the impression that sometimes he was critical of others as well. He viewed the world through the prism of a person with an incredibly distorted opinion of himself. His self-criticism was incredibly intense. Perhaps that was why he couldn’t find a girl he loved. For him, there was a rule: if you don’t love yourself, you won’t love anyone else.
The mirror sometimes made Nick hate himself even more.
Thousands of thoughts raced through his mind. Suddenly, somewhere deep in his subconscious, he heard a distinct voice… a desperate cry calling for someone… it sounded like… “Free my lady… my princess…” and repeated over and over, dripping with unimaginable longing.
A moment of reflection. "Nick, you couldn't have come up with this yourself," the teacher repeated to himself. Whose voice could that be? And who was he calling out to so desperately?
Four days later.
"Nick..." Ray, a sad expression on her face, looked at the teacher standing in the middle of the school hallway.
Stepping unsteadily on the soft carpeted floor, she approached Nick. She looked into his cold eyes and whispered uncertainly,
"I wanted to apologize... I think I should."
"Maybe... not here, Ray. Come to me when you're done, I'll be in my room.
" Ray nodded and walked away. Nick returned to his room. It was empty, this emptiness, this oppressive silence, soon began to drive him mad. He let the group he was supposed to be teaching enter. They scattered around the room like bees in their hive.
Nick went into the back room to avoid being observed. He sat down in a chair and listened to the commotion coming from behind the back room door. He closed his eyes for a moment… he heard that voice again, calling for his teacher. He heard it more and more often lately, and he believed less and less that it was his subconscious wanting to reconcile with Ray.
The bell rang.
Nick emerged from the back room and stood next to his desk. In a single moment, the classroom fell silent. The boys stared at the teacher, hoping for an interesting lesson. Nick read it in their faces.
"Take the balls and sweep them onto the field," he said.
Shouts and loud applause echoed through the classroom. Thanks for the relaxed lesson. In truth, Nick simply didn't feel like teaching. It seemed to him that he needed to reflect on many things. A lot had been going on lately.
A few minutes before the bell, Nick – already cheerful – returned to his classroom. It was empty again. Once again, the silence reminded him of the voices, Ray, and all the other things that were troubling him. He sat down at his desk and hid his face in his hands in a desperate gesture.
The bell rang.
A moment later, Ray entered the classroom, having knocked to make sure Nick was there. She approached his desk. She stood in front of the seated teacher and stared at him silently.
"I should apologize to you too," Nick said, looking at her friend.
"I'm too jealous, and it's ruining me," the girl replied.
"Exactly—too jealous. Don't you think you should slow down a bit?
" "I know… Nick… I don't want to argue again. I want things to be like they were before.
" "It won't be like before."
The girl looked at him bitterly.
"Chanell showed up and she won't be ignored.
" "So… agreed?
" "But hold back sometimes… and don't be afraid to talk to her. She doesn't bite, despite appearances.
" "I promise," Ray said with a smile.
Nick stood up to leave the empty classroom.
"You have no idea how much I've missed you these past few days," the girl declared.
"We'll make up for it," the teacher announced, smiling broadly.
He looked at Ray. She looked so girlish, holding those books in her hands. So innocent… so sweet… so pretty… And suddenly he felt an overwhelming urge to kiss her. So intense, he couldn't help himself.
He leaned toward the girl and gently brushed his lips against hers. Gently, but it didn't calm his hormones, which suddenly began behaving like inexperienced teenagers.
A gentle kiss wasn't enough.
Nick looked at Ray. He saw her eyes sparkling. They were gleaming, wanting more.
Nick leaned in and kissed her again, this time deeper.
It was like magic. Like the most beautiful, misunderstood, mysterious magic, the magic of love. Books slipped from Ray's delicate hands and fell to the floor with a thud. The girl's fingers began to slide over the teacher's body. Their bodies, joined in a kiss, were on fire.
The classroom door suddenly flew open. The shocked principal and a pair of teachers stood in the doorway. All three stared at the embarrassed faces of those caught guilty – the teacher and his student. No one spoke, they didn't know what to say.
"Nick, understand! I really want what's best for you, but… it was a rather ambiguous situation, and you know very well that you have to be punished. You both will be punished," the principal scolded Nick in his office.
"But… she can't be expelled! I'd rather leave… but… please don't send her away, she has no one to come back to… you know that.
" "I'd love to, but you understand that I can't!" Two other professors saw you, this matter can't be covered up. None of the students will know, but Ray has to leave the school. There's no other way.
"This school is her life... she needs her... I'm leaving. If you don't fire me, I'll resign. If you expel her, I'll resign too.
" "This is blackmail, Nick. You're our best teacher, and we couldn't find someone to replace you because no one teaches that subject. And what am I supposed to do with you now?
" "You decide. I've already said my piece.
" "You're putting me in a stupid position. You're essential to this school."
The principal stared at Nick. He sighed deeply and then said calmly,
"We'll enforce regulations. You both stay. But you're strictly forbidden from seeing each other. Got it?
" "Thanks. I really do," Nick thanked, rising from his chair.
"And let me just see you together," the principal said, emphasizing the word "see."
Nick left. The first place he went was Ray and Chanell's room. Ray was sitting nervously on the bed, but there was no sign of Chanell.
"Where's Chanell?" Nick asked, closing the door.
"I don't know. You don't explain things to me. She's always going out. So what did you do?
" "It's not so bad. We're staying at school. Both of us. "
The girl breathed a sigh of relief, thanking God.
"But... we're not allowed to see each other," Nick added.
"And what about classes?
" "That's probably unavoidable. I have to go now, someone will be here soon to check if you're alone. I'll see you at night, in the courtyard. Just be careful.
" "I definitely will," Ray replied, calmly.
It was late at night. Ray sat in her bed, looking out the window at the night sky. She was waiting. Although she didn't know what for, she was waiting.
In the faint moonlight, she looked like a true princess. Her delicate complexion was caressed by the calm night breeze. Her eyes stared into the darkness. What did she see there? Nothing, just foolish fantasies…
She imagined herself and Nick dancing on the lawn, illuminated by the moonlight. She in a white ball gown, he in a black suit, a stately couple, dancing in a magical dance, gazing at each other.
She felt his gaze on her, his hands delicately roaming her slender waist, his warm breath on her neck, his tender whispers in her ear… she felt the closeness of his body and soul, the magical bond of love between them.
Huddled together, they danced a waltz on the lawn. Magnificent music played in their minds, resonating with a thousand emotions through every inch of their bodies. Love lifted their hearts to the starry sky.
Ray sat by the window, imagining it all, seeing and feeling it all. She waited.
The large, massive door loomed menacingly at the girl strolling along it. She was already on her 15th lap and still didn't know how to open it. Walking clearly wasn't helping her thinking.
"The key, the key..." she thought, "Where can I get it?" The lack of a key irritated her agitated mind even more. The old director had all the keys; getting them was child's play, fitting them into the keyhole was no problem, so what was the problem? None of the over 100 keys fit. How was it possible that this door didn't have a key that could open it? Nonsense...
This door had been the object of the girl's interest for a long time. Persistence wouldn't let her give up, especially since behind it lay something she so desperately desired...
The stupid door wouldn't stop her from achieving her goal. She would open it. She didn't know how yet, but she would. If she had any information, any clue as to where to find the key... but she didn't. Searching the entire castle for the key was incredibly tedious and pointless. But there was no other option. Surely no one even knew the key to this door existed…
The persistent voice wouldn't give Nick a moment's peace. He kept calling for his longed-for princess. The teacher had no idea who this princess was, and he was sick of the voice pestering him. He also had a headache, which irritated Nicolas even more.
It was already quite late. He should go to the courtyard, where Ray was probably waiting for him. This whole thing with the girl had somewhat messed things up. It didn't bode well. He would have to explain this to the girl. Above all, he had to explain to the girl that it was just a moment of weakness, nothing more. The important thing was not to get her hopes up too much. Everything would change now, whether they wanted it or not.
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