azrael_studying_with_jake/set?id=225969831
The next day, walking into Literature class with Bethany. I'd mentally prepared myself, determined not to let my guard down around my partner. I'd spent most of the morning, thinking of normal sounding answers to any questions that he could possibly ask. I was ready to face him, but what I saw wiped all of my preparation away.
Jake was sitting on the edge of Ms. Castle's desk, his eyes watching her every move. A red rose was laid in front of her and her eyes were as wide as saucers. His hand was over hers in a way that was extremely inappropriate, considering her age-roughly 30, and the fact that she was our teacher.
"This is inappropriate." She whispered so softly even I could barely hear her.
"According to what laws?"
"The school's for one. You're my student!"
Jake chuckled. It was clear that he had full confidence in himself, "I'm all grown up-old enough to make my own decisions."
"But what if we're caught? I'll lose my job, I'll never be able to work as a teacher again, I'll..." Jake silenced her, placing a finger against her lips and sliding it down to the hollow of her throat.
"We can be discreet."
He began to lean forward and Ms. Castle closed her eyes, completely under his spell. Suddenly, there was a loud bang behind us that made Bethany jump and Jake jump of of Ms. Castle's desk. Ms. Castle began nervously shuffling papers around on her desk as Ben Carter walked in, having dropped his book. I rushed to my seat and sat down, thinking about what I had just witnessed. Jake was at least eighteen. Legal to date her if age was the only issue. As our teacher though, this could have been very bad.
"Hello." Jake greeted me, sliding into the desk next to mine. I tried not to meet his eye. I may have been an angel, but like I'd told Bethany, I was more susceptible to human emotion, and I didn't want to fall prey to his charms like Ms. Castle.
Later in the cafeteria, I was alone. Maghen was sick today so I ate in silence. I could have gone over to sit with Bethany, Molly, and their friends, but they were going on about the shopping trip they'd planned for that afternoon to find dresses. Finally deciding that I was bored, I threw away what was left and walked out into the hall. Seniors we're allowed to roam the school during lunch hour as long as they were back in their classes by the time the bell rang.
I had already gotten my books and was taking a short cut to my next class through an outdoor walkway when a silky voice called out to me. "Hello there."
I turned around to see Jake there, arms crossed, leaning against a brick wall with a cigarette in his mouth. I walked toward him, noticing new things about him the closer I got. he had a stud in one ear and wore a half moon pendant around his neck. The pendant had strange symbols on it, though also slightly familiar and hurt my head looking at it for too long.
"Since when do you smoke?"
"A while now." He blew a ring of smoke into the air. "Calms the nerves you know."
"Yeah. And it will kill you." I knew from experience. I rolled my eyes and shifted my bag so that the weight of my books wasn't digging into my shoulder. "Besides. I don't hang out with smokers."
Once again, I saw that strange look in his eyes and he took the cigarette from his mouth. "Very well. If it would make you happy." He dropped it on the ground, put it out with the heel of his shoe and kicked it into a flower bed just as the librarian walked by, giving us a suspicious glare. "I think you just saved my skin."
"You would have talked your way out of it. You must have been used to getting away with things at your old school."
"Very true." He smirked, "I took some risks. Some didn't pay off, hence my exile here. You know the Romans Preferred death to exile. At least mine isn't permanent."
"How long are you staying?"
"As long as it takes. I'm staying in the rooms above a tattoo parlor right now."
"Never one to do things the normal way, are you Jake?"
"Guilty. Though I suspect you and I have more in common than we realize. By the way, what are you doing Sunday? I thought we might work on our masterpiece."
"Church." I arched an eyebrow. "You're welcome to come with. We can work after."
"Thanks, but I'm allergic to incense."
"Shame."
"How about this afternoon then? After school?"
"Fine. Yours or mine."
"Mine. I'll pick you up around four. And I already have the first line of our poem." He tossed me a crumpled ball of paper. "Don't be too hard on me-it's only a beginning. We can take it anywhere you want from here."
He flashed me a bright smile and walked away, no longer having a reason to be here now that I'd made him but out his cigarette. I smoothed out the paper and gazed down at his calligraphic print. The words put an uneasy feeling in my stomach.
She had the face of an angel
It took me a moment to calm down. This didn't necessarily mean anything. Millions of other poets had used similar metaphors when describing a beautiful girl. Jake was sticking to the love theme that Ms. Castle had wanted and I couldn't fault him for that.I would however, try to steer the topic of the poem away from celestial references.
After school, I braided my hair and slipped into a gray Alchemy England t- shirt with an intricate 'A' over the breast and some jeans. Just because I went to Bryce Hamilton, didn't mean I wanted to stay in the uniform all day. Like most school uniforms, it was terribly uncomfortable. I was about to go down to the kitchen to get a snack when I heard a knocking at the door. I went to open it and found Jake standing there.
"Ready to go?"
"I suppose." I sighed, grabbing my bag from a hook on the wall.
He led me to the curb where a shiny jet black Yamaha V Star 250 was waiting. A sudden since of Deja Vu washed over me and I remembered the rider from the night I reaped Andrew Milford. "Uh...Jake...How long have you been in town?"
"A few weeks. Why?"
"Never mind. Let's go."
He put on his helmet and sat down, helping me onto the motorcycle. Without warning, he shot off down the street, making me hang on to his waist so I didn't fall off. I would survive any accidents, but it would be very bad when people noticed no scratches, bruises or broken bones. We rode through town until we came to a stop in front of the local tattoo parlor, Black Magic Woman Tattoos. I'd never been in here, simply because I'd had no reason to.
Jake escorted me inside, the tattoo artists stopping their work to give him a nod of greeting. He lead me behind a curtain in the back of the store, into what looked like an employ break room. We began walking toward a staircase leading to the second floor when a big man, covered in tattoos stopped us.
"Jake." He flashed me a toothy grin, "Finally bringing home a girl?"
"Hey, Rob. This is Azrael Church. Azrael, this is Robert Borden, the owner."
"A pleasure." I gave him a small smile. I remembered him. His wife, Dana, had been into tarot cards, fortune telling, and the like. She had died trying to give birth to their son. He had been premature...Neither made it. It was these reapings that I remembered. The one's where I had wished there was something I could have done. That was about two decades ago and he had opened his shop soon after that in memory of her.
He shook my hand enthusiastically. "Well you kids have fun...But not too much fun. We still have customers down here."
"Oh...No, it's not like that." I said hastily, "We have a school project to work on." But Rob had already gone into the main parlor. I had to admit, I was glad he was doing better. He'd been a mess after Dana and Charlie.
"Come on." Jake brought me upstairs to the small apartment above the parlor. It had one main room that contained his bedroom, kitchen, and a small living area. Light shone through a big window above the couch, illuminating the room. "Let's get started." He smirked, sitting down on his bed and pulling out a binder and journal from his bag. I took a deep breath and went to sit down beside him.
Soon, We had the first stanza finished. I' d manage to keep him off of the topic of angels, luckily. It now read,
She had the face of an angel
I saw mirrors in her eyes.
We were one in the same, she and I,
Both bound by potent lies.
It wasn't much, but it was a start. Jake got up and stretched, his back popping as he did so. "I think it's time we take a break."
"Alright." I closed the binder and set it aside, "We have been working for a while."
I leaned back, letting my arms hold me up. It was about six now. I had been here for two hours already. Jake locked his eyes on mine and leaned over, still standing. He supported himself with one hand on the mattress and strokes my cheek gently with the other. "You're very beautiful..." He murmured, his fingers hot to the touch, "I've never seen eyes like yours. They're captivating."
"Jake. Why are you telling me this?" I said frowning. He was getting a little too close for comfort.
"There's a lot more I'd like to tell you if you'd give me the chance. I could show you what it's really like to be in love. Make you feel things you've never felt before...Show you pleasure on a scale you never thought possible. Things beyond your wildest imagination. It would be just you and me against the world." His voice was low and hypnotic like it had been with Ms. Castle. If I hadn't witnessed that, maybe I would have fallen for his charms. Unfortunately for him, I had witnessed it.
"I happen to like the world, thank you." I pushed back on his chest. "I think I should go." I got up to leave, but he grabbed my wrist, his usually manipulative eyes, pleading.
"Don't be angry with me. Please sit back down. Can you blame me for trying? You're different from other girls Azrael. I want you."
"Just like you wanted Ms. Castle?" I glared at him. "And yes, I saw that."
"Don't be like that. I'm sorry. Can you please forgive me?" My hardened eyes softened a bit. It was angel nature to grant forgiveness when it was truly asked for. He must have seen it because he asked again, "I need you as a friend. Give me one more chance?"
I sighed. "Fine. But this never. Happens again."
"Okay, Okay. I promise." With that I sat back down and we continued to work. Some how, he'd managed to get into my head. Exactly like he wanted.