"H'llo." A groggy Jack answered and Alex couldn't help but smile at the teen's sleepy voice.
"So, I checked out Jack's Mannequin. So far I like Dark Blue best and I'm guessing its the song they're most known for too." Alex said, waiting for Jack to register who it was after a momentary pause.
"Oh, hi Alex."
"Hey Jack. Did I wake you?"
"Little bit but its fine." Alex could practically imagine the blush crawling its way to Jack's cheeks and he couldn't help but smile further. This was the last thing he expected from his first year of teaching, but he had to admit he liked what was going on.
"Okay, so Barakat, why'd you give me your number?" The silence on the other end returned and Alex almost wanted to laugh, he could already imagine Jack shaking in his boots and blushing like crazy. That mental image was absolutely adorable in Alex's opinion. "I'm just teasing. Don't get your panties in a bunch."
"My panties are not in a bunch!"
"So you wear panties instead of boxers like normal people, eh?" Alex laughed and cocked an eyebrow though Jack couldn't see him.
"No! God, Alex aren't you supposed to be the mature one?"
"Yeah, I suppose but that doesn't mean I'll always be the mature one." The double edged meanings to those words, Alex laughed and shook his head. This was so, so wrong.
- Jack smiled when Alex walked into the class room, he was wearing tight black skinny jeans with a plaid button up shirt and a grey beanie covering his mess of brown blonde streaked hair. At the least Jack had to say his teacher looked hot and he could tell by the way some of the girls were looking at him they thought the same. He rolled his eyes and pulled his notebook out of his bag along with a pen. He looked up to find Alex standing in front of him holding out what looked to be his graded paper.
"Thanks." he mumbled and took the paper, Alex smiled and walked away like it was nothing, but Jack knew good and well that his teacher was messing with him. He was also pretty sure that Alex had figured out that he had a crush on him, Jack wasn't sure how he felt about that yet. He wanted Alex to know because that would be a huge relief on one hand but on the other he had no idea where they'd go from there. Would they start sneaking around? Would they even get caught? Or would Alex want nothing to do with him in that way? Honestly Jack was really fucking scared of what was going on, but he yearned for the answer so badly.
Jack flipped through his paper smiling at Alex's comments and stopped at the rubric with his grade on it. Minus one point, Jack's Mannequin and your number had absolutely nothing to do with your topic. Plus one point for great conversation and music. The teen smiled and looked at his teacher who was talking to some student, probably a kid who forgot their paper despite the fact that this was meant to be an AP level course. The way Alex knotted his brows together while talking to the kid was super cute though, Jack had to admit. He wondered what faces the teacher would make at him if he were to forget an assignment, although he wouldn't musing over Alex's facial expressions during the time before class officially started was fun. -
"Wait, you've got a flaming crush on Gaskarth, don't you?" Rian laughed. The lunch group was out at Chipotle and everybody had decided to pick on Jack and his obvious fondness for the teacher.
Jack just blushed even harder and covered his eyes with his fringe.
"Rian, leave my baby alone." Zack cooed in attempt to get Jack to look up but he didn't.
"Guys it's not funny. And he's like twenty three, he doesn't like me back."
Cassadee laughed on the other side of the table and everyone turned to look at her.
"What? The crush isn't funny, it's cute." She reassured Jack. "But he likes you back, I mean if you guys talk the way you do and he teases you like that theres something there, Jack."
"Ugh, can we just drop it? I know I've got a raging homo crush on my teacher and it's a big deal but it's really bothering me and this isn't helping."
everyone nodded and Zack slung an arm around his best friend's shoulder whispering It'll get better in his ear before kissing it lightly.
Jack really wanted to hug Zack for that, he was the most understanding of them out of their group of friends. Cass would often be there for him but not like Zack was. He could cry on Zack's shoulder and he wouldn't care one bit he'd just hold him and kiss his hair or where ever until he was done. In a lot of ways Zack was there the way other people couldn't be and he could never thank the older teen enough for that.
"Thanks Zacky." Jack whispered back and kissed his friend's cheek.
"Get a room you guys!" Rian laughed and threw a piece of corn at the pair.
"Oh shut up, Rian." They said in unison and carried on with their whispering conversation.
-
Jack walked into Alex's class room with a new form of confidence after talking with Zack at lunch. He was still nervous as hell at the thought of being around the teacher but he shrugged it off as best he could and sat down in his usual seat closest to Alex's desk.
The teacher looked up from yet another book, which Jack guessed to be the one on bass clef instruments, and smiled when he saw Jack.
"Hey!" The teacher said with one of those stupid half smiles that made the teens stomach erupt in butterflies.
"Hi, thanks for the paper grade." Jack said, a soft smile tugging at his lips.
"No problem, you earned it. Besides it just might be the best of all the papers I grade, I've already finished ten from your class and none of them have gotten a hundred yet. I'm hoping the next thirteen will be better."
Jack nodded slowly, he was beyond nervous now, he was fucking scared. Of what, he didn't know but something was just off.
"Jack, is something wrong?" The teacher asked ad he stood up to get a little closer to the teen.
"N-no." He murmured, looking straight into Alex's eyes. "Yes..."
Alex frowned in concern and pulled a stray seat over to Jack's desk and sat down.
"What is it?"
"I-I..." Jack sighed and shook his head.
"Are you sure?" Alex reached out putting a hand over the teen's making him tense up in turn but Alex didn't move. Jack shook his head, he knew he either looked absolutely mortified or as though he was about to pass out. Jack looked directly into Alex's eyes for a long while, not saying anything at all. And then it clicked, he knew something was there, he didn't know what or to the extent but there was something. The teen inched himself closer to Alex not realizing that Alex was doing the same.
Jack was the one to lean in and press his lips to the teacher's but Alex gladly complied and moved a hand to cup Jack's jaw. This wasn't Jack's first kiss, but it sure felt like it. His stomach was doing flips and he felt as though no matter what he did his lips wouldn't mold with Alex's the way he wanted them to, but Alex was gentle about it despite all of that. He moved his head the way Jack had been trying to move his own and pressed his lips slightly harder onto the teen's. And Jack had to admit he liked this, no he loved this, which didn't explain why his stomach dropped and he felt the need to break away.
Jack pulled his lips from Alex's with no warning, mumbling an apology as he grabbed his bag and ran from the class room. Jack had fucked up big time and he knew it. He wanted to kiss Alex and Alex was fucking kissing right back, so why he ran away, he had no idea. He was scared when he came into the class room, he would've been no matter what...but that kiss that he thought would make the fear go away...it came back even worse and with a new vengeance after. This entire fucking situation would be the end of him.
It was too stressful, too dangerous, too much for a teenager to handle, but Jack still felt like he needed to know what was going to happen. The teen let out a sigh and went into the music wing where he knew he'd find Zack, definitely not to talk about what happened though. Those emotions were too raw, too new, he needed time to settle down first. And he needed time to let go, he basically needed time to cry, which is where Zack came in since he knew the older boy wouldn't question him or try to get him to talk. God, Jack was lucky to have Zack as his best friend, he needed him a lot more than he ever let on.