Page 24 of Apparently, I’m A B!tch

Chapter14

Tristan

I spentthe rest of my class with a wet stain on my once-white shirt, not knowing what else to do but keep teaching.

With each portion of the lesson completed, I scolded myself for what I did.

What was I thinking? I should’ve kept my hands to myself. I shouldn’t have leaned over her, and I definitely shouldn’t have touched her. What was I doing? What did I think would happen?

She wasn’t my Nikki anymore, and I couldn’t suddenly start touching her like I used to. I lost that right when I bought the coffee shop.

After she sat and spun around to face her canvas, I snuck a glance at her. She was completely mortified, sitting with her red face in her hands. I did that. I made her so uncomfortable that she freaked out and felt embarrassed.

What was wrong with me? Why did I constantly do the wrong thing when it came to her now? It was like all those years between us were erased, and here we were acting like awkward strangers around each other. I hated it like I’d never hated anything else.

After I dismissed the class, people shuffled out. A handful of students stopped by my desk to thank me and said they couldn’t wait until next week, which did help to lift my mood.

I had to admit, aside from that episode with Nikki, it went well. I should’ve felt relieved that I could do this. Instead, I felt a pulse deep in my gut as I scanned the small crowd of students for Nikki and Uncle Henry.

They hung back, the last two in the classroom of excited, chattering students who were funneling out of the door. Uncle Henry’s shuffling gait came first with Nikki following, her eyes studying the ground in front of her, twisting the hem of her tee.

I took a breath as they came closer, wanting to say something before either of them could.

“Nikki, I’m really–”

“Hmph. That was a good class, boy. Look at what I did! I didn’t know I could do that.” Uncle Henry’s voice rose over mine, and I offered him a smile as he cut me off and gestured proudly to his canvas. “Do we leave them here?”

“To dry? Yes. Oil paint takes a while to dry, and this room was reserved for the entire six weeks. They’ll be safe in here.”

He puckered his bottom lip in a frown and nodded. “I want to see what others have done, okay?”

Without waiting for permission, Uncle Henry shuffled off, going from canvas to canvas, no doubt judging his work alongside the younger students.

Nikki watched him, her face and neck still flushed, covered in paint. It wasn’t edible paint, but I still had to ignore the urge to lick the color off of her. Instead, I rummaged around my desk and pulled out some wipes.

“Here,” I said while holding them out to her. “They’re alcohol free, but they might help.”

Nikki took two wipes from the pack, still not meeting my eye. As she rubbed them over her neck and face, she mumbled, “I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin your shirt.”

“It was an accident. Don’t worry about it. I’m sorry I…” Made you uncomfortable? Invaded your personal space and scared you? Touched you when I shouldn’t have? Anything I said would’ve only made things that much more painfully awkward between us.

She shook her head and tried to offer me a smile, her glance flickering to my face briefly before it landed back on the desk. “No, you didn’t do anything wrong. Can I dry-clean your shirt for you, please? It’s the least I can do, to try and get that stain out.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I want to. Please Tristy?”

She used that damn nickname, her voice begging-yet-teasing, making my whole body tense at the thought of hearing her plead for me. She stepped closer, holding out her hand as if she wanted me to take my shirt off here and now.

I looked down at myself, taking in the smeared stain of her green and yellow fingerprints on my chest, and started with the buttons. Her eyes flew to my fingers, and she took in a breath before saying in a rush, “You can give it to me tomorrow, at the shop. I mean, you don’t have to take it off here.”

I looked up in time to see her wide, panicked eyes and it made me want to take her hands and put them against me as I teased her. But I kept my hands to myself. We didn’t do things like that anymore.

“It’s alright. You can take it now; I’ve got a tee I can change into. I knew wearing a button-down would be a risk, but I wanted to make a good impression on the class. I was pretty freaked out about teaching today.”

She cocked her head, cheeks pink and brow furrowed as she watched my fingers reach the last button. “You didn’t have to be. It was a great class.”

I pulled off the shirt, feeling Nikki’s eyes on me as I folded it on the desk, and reached into the supply bag I brought with me. Dragging out one of my faded, soft cotton tees, I slipped it on, tugging it down and tweaking the sleeves to make sure they fit around my biceps.