Page 36 of Reading Between the Lines
“You’ve been saying that a lot lately, but if I wasn’t the person I was, we wouldn’t be dating, would we?”
He was right. I kissed him again instead of confirming what he already knew. “Come on. It’s miserable out here, and we’ll both be soaked to the bone soon.”
We hustled to the front door of the school, and Tallus broke into a rendition of “November Rain” by Guns N’ Roses. After a few bars, he said, “You know, I think these lyrics speak to us as a couple.”
“Not now, Tallus. I’m freezing.”
“They do.”
We reached the front doors, and I held it open as Tallus hustled inside.
He removed his glasses and buffed them the best he could on a moderately dry section of his shirt. “You know, we could always share a warm bath later. The tub in that room is huge.”
I deadpanned.
He chuckled. “It is. It fit all those clocks, and there were practically a thousand of them. It should fit one oversized cuddle bear and a moderate twink no problem.”
“With all due respect, I feel this conversation is not going in a direction I’m comfortable pursuing. To avoid further discord, I think it best we never discuss it again and refrain from finding ourselves in a situation where such a thing might happen.”
An evil look formed on Tallus’s face. “Did you just politely tell me to fuck off?”
“And it was surprisingly fun.”
“Diem Krause, you are incorrigible, and I’m not sure I like your sauce.”
“You mean sass.”
“No, I’m the sassy one. You’re saucy. There’s a difference. Are you saying you wouldn’t want to lie naked in a tub with me nestled between your thunder thighs?”
“I…” Got stuck on the image of Tallus gliding his slippery body against mine and choked on my own spit.
He laughed. “God, you’re adorable.”
“I’m not, and we’re curbing this conversation. We have a job to do.”
We’d landed in a lobby with stairs on the left leading to the second level and a long locker-lined corridor in front of us. No one was around, and there were no signs to direct us where to go.
“Thoughts?” Tallus finger-combed his hair, somehow arranging it so it looked presentable despite being soaked.
“Let’s wander and see if we can find someone to direct us.”
We started on the first level, and I wondered how far we’d get before we ran into a janitor or kid who didn’t like the look of us and called the cops. Our shoes squeaked on the linoleum floor, announcing our presence to anyone nearby, but the hallways were vacant.
We located the cafeteria first. A janitor used a wide broom at the far end, sweeping under tables where the benches had been moved on top. An oversized black roller bin, full to the brim, sat beside a cart with other janitorial supplies.
Closer to the doors, two teens, a boy and a girl, occupied a table that had yet to be cleaned. Crumbs and other debris littered its surface. The teens shared a bag of Ruffles potato chips, heads close together as they chatted. Both were strikingly blond with similar features. Their backpacks sat abandoned on the ground at their feet. The male teen kept checking his phone.
Double-checking the hallways to be sure they were empty, I hitched my chin, urging Tallus to approach since I was incapable of making my oversized frame appear smaller and less threatening. Even looking like a drowned rat, Tallus could charm the robe off a judge mid court session.
“Don’t get too personal.” I indicated the janitor. “Don’t want to get us in trouble. They’re underage.”
“I got this.”
Adopting a confident strut, Tallus sauntered into the cafeteria and approached the table. The teens noticed him immediately and glanced up.
It was the boy who acknowledged him first. “Hey, man. Can I help you?”
“I get that it’s a long shot since school’s already out, but my partner and I are looking for an English teacher by the name of Hugh… I can’t remember his last name. He runs the school newspaper, I believe. Do you know if he’s around?”
