Date: Mon, 26 Feb 2007 06:11:20 -0000
From: Chris Angel <moonknuckle@hotmail.com>
Subject: Those Who Live Between Reason and Emotion, Chapter Two

**********

Chapter Two: A Window or...?

**********

Ever had one of those moments when it felt like time was standing still?
Like the final bell was purposefully taking its time before it rang? At
this point in time, lunch; Hannah Harris was going through something that
was relatively similar. She sat with Erika on one of the grassy knolls
that rested behind the glassy and metallic presence of Winnicot High's
main cafeteria. It was a bright sunny day like none other before it this
year. Summer was definitely on its way. But there was a cool breeze out
and about too, and it whipped its light movements to and fro, cooling the
flesh of the freshmen and sophomores hanging between the cafeteria and
the sports fields.

Erika sat back and out of the corner of her eye she watched Hannah stare
blankly at something. That `something' was a history book... an item
that you didn't often see Hannah spending time with. But her
gossip-prone friend merely nibbled at the candy bar in her hand rather
than say anything. It wasn't like Hannah was a bad student or anything...
in fact she got pretty decent grades in most classes. But Erika knew full
well that history wasn't one of them. Maybe that was the point somehow.

And eventually Erika just couldn't keep her trap shut any longer. "All
right, spill it. What's the deal?"

Hannah's eyes remained on the book in her hands; `Deciphering the
Enlightenment' it was called.

Needless to say, Erika didn't like to be ignored. "Hannah!"

"Huh?" Soft cerulean eyes blinked when she was finally dragged out of
the attentions she fixed on that book. Then suddenly she remembered where
she was. She and Erika were eating lunch (kinda) together beneath the
shadows of oak trees atop the knoll. At the foot of the hill were a bunch
of jocks, headed off by the surly Coach Wittenberg, marching together
toward the football field east of the main building. A short few metres
behind them you could here the numerous and vibrant bouts of chatter and
eating that echoed from the cafeteria.

Erika smirked. "Welcome back, space girl. You've been spacing out a lot
recently, you know."

"Oh... right. Sorry, Erika."

"What's up with you? You sound dull today."

Hannah faked a smile to put her at ease. After all, Erika couldn't have
known that she wasn't really reading that book but rather fantasizing
about the woman she was reading it for; that haunting earthbound
demi-goddess known to Winnicot High's student populous as `Karen Leigh
Williams'. Nor could Erika have known how much it irritated her to be
taken away from her thoughts about the history teacher. Fortunately
Hannah wasn't the kind of girl who'd take out her frustrations on her
friends.

"Sorry," Hannah apologized. "I guess I'm a bit... rattled today."

That was the complete truth but Erika was smart enough to know that there
was a little more to it than just being `rattled'. Her little
expression, mixed between concern and curiosity, said as much. But again
Erika didn't know the causes behind Hannah's distance. The blonde one
bit her lip and stared off into the distance. It wasn't like she didn't
want to hang out with Erika right now... but the only thing she really and
truly was concerned with at this point was what would be happening later
this afternoon. She and Miss Williams would be studying together in the
library afterschool. It was a golden opportunity for her to be alone with
that beautiful specimen of womanhood. No other kids, no stupid jocks, no
interfering nerds, just Hannah and Miss Williams together. And although
Hannah was trying to bone up on the subjects they had been studying in
class (hence the book on the Enlightenment) she didn't care about or
take in anything within its covers. The only thing she was thinking
about, worrying about, concerned about; was her time with Miss Williams.

Which was why she was getting so royally pissed at the way this day was
dragging its ass.

Why is it that whenever you're looking forward to an upcoming event,
time always seemed to move at a snail's pace? It seemed like everything
around her was taking ages to get moving. The class she'd had straight
after History with Miss Williams was Math with Mrs. Ogelsten. It was a
boring sermon taught by a bitter woman who was old enough and ugly enough
to pass for a Picasso painting. Most horrific of all was the fact that
the lesson took damn near a millennium to end itself. When the bell rang
Hannah bolted out of there, quicksharpish, only to land herself in
another class that took just as much liberties with the progress of time,
French. By the time lunch rolled around, which was now, Hannah's
patience was well and truly tried. Why couldn't Miss Williams teach
every lesson of the day? Then maybe when the last class was over and
everyone was gone, that glorious woman would keep her in just a bit
longer. Miss Williams would pierce her loving student's heart with that
beautiful elfin smile of hers, a smile she'd offer only to HER and
nobody else. And then finally she'd grab Hannah and force her up against
a wall and then...

"Hannah! You're spacing out again...!" Erika barked.

The blonde girl shook her head out of her second reverie. "I am? Oh,
sorry..."

"All right, that's it, what's up with you?" Probed her best friend.
"You've been flaking on me since this morning."

When it became obvious that she'd never be able to focus on the book,
Hannah closed it and slotted into her backpack with the rest of her gear.
Hopefully the next time she took it out it would be Miss Williams with
her rather than Erika. "It's nothing, Erika. I guess I'm hungry or
something."

"...Well, okay. But if something was wrong you'd tell me about it,
right?"

Hannah bit her lip again. If there was any absolute reason as to why she
didn't enjoying hanging out with her best friend it was that she
couldn't bear keeping a secret this big from her. And she hated having
to lie every time Erika questioned her about it. But it was a no-brainer
choice of either lying or losing Erika for good.

"Of course I would," She lied. "Believe me."

Erika pulled her knees up to her chest and bit off another piece of her
candy bar. "I do. It's just... these past few weeks you've been acting
kinda weirdly, Hannah."

When Hannah glared at her for that, Erika gave her a nervous grin.
"...Not `Norman Bates' weird or anything. I mean it's like you've
stopped having fun doing the things you, you know, used to have so much
fun doing. I mean it's like this morning. You promised me you'd hit the
mall with me but you've like, said jack about it since then. It's
almost like there's, you know, something you're not telling me."

Hannah rolled her eyes. Maybe it was no more than a good friend knowing
enough about her buddy to see that she wasn't 100% happy. In all honesty
Hannah loved her for that. But there were times when it really frightened
her that Erika might learn the truth. It was like she was an extra on
Scooby Doo hunting for clues to catch some thieving guy in a monster
costume. The difference in reality in this case was that the `guy in the
monster costume' was Hannah's sexuality. And that was someone who
certainly didn't want to be unmasked until she was ready to be.

"Erika, I'm fine, trust me." She assured her. "I'm cool."

The brunette stared at her for a moment then rolled her eyes. Erika
obviously wasn't convinced. But she was backing off the subject anyway.
It kind of reminded her of the way Miss Williams was concerned for her
earlier, as in, not being convinced when Hannah said that she was
`okay'. Apparently she wasn't all that good at hiding her feelings.
She made a mental note to work on that later.

"Whatever," Erika whispered. She glanced ahead whilst finishing up the
last bit of her chocolate. And while her pouting little cheeks were
churning a strikingly cunning smile crossed her face. Hannah noticed it.

"What's up with you?" She asked.

Erika suppressed her giggles and pointed forward. "Heads up, `Miss
Cool'."

Hannah looked and saw what (or more aptly, who) she was pointing at. He
was a boy, roughly Hannah's age give or take a few months, but just a
little bit taller than she was. Dressed in neat and orderly blue jeans
and a pale waxen shirt and red Doc Martens, this guy ascended the knoll
that Erika and Hannah were sitting on with a shy smile on his face, his
warm green eyes partially obscured by the length of his bangs. All of a
sudden... Hannah wanted to run a mile. This boy happened to be Matt
Stokes.

Erika grinned deviously, first at Hannah then at Matt, when he stopped in
front of them. "Hey Matt. How's it going?"

"Uh, fine thanks, Erika..." He scratched the back of his head and turned
his awkward smile toward the one they all knew he'd come to see. "...Hey
Hannah. You... you look great today..."

"...Thanks." The situation was so uncomfortable. Yet Erika sat back
watching the two of them. Matt was as sweet and as oblivious as ever he
was. And Hannah was wedged in between both their expectations.

Things went silent when it became obvious that there was little for them
to talk about. Neither of them knew each other very well. Matt
perceptibly wasn't much in the way of a conversationalist and Hannah
could neither find the heart to shoot down such a basically decent guy...
nor find a feasible excuse for Erika if she did.

But Erika didn't let the byplay between them lag. "So Matt, like, what
class do you have next?"

"...Um... Contemporary Art."

"Wow, what a coincidence," Erika gave her blonde friend a sly grin.
"Hannah just loves that, don't you, Hannah?"

She gave Erika her swiftest and most subtle `I'll-kill-you-for-this'
look before weakly professing to the shy boy, "...Yeah, I guess. It's
okay. I'm not an expert or anything."

"I think it's... you know, pretty cool," Matt explained. "Has a bit
more reading than I thought it would though. B-but I still think... I
still... like it."

"Books and stuff, huh?" Erika prodded.

"Well, yeah..."

"Need any knew ones?"

Though Matt didn't quite see where Erika was going with this, Hannah
did, and unfortunately she was quite powerless to stop it. Nonetheless
Matt answered her after a moment of thought, "Well there was one Mr.
Filson told me about. It's about the cultural and philosophical roots of
Cubism? I can't remember the name but he said it would really help on
this project I've been working on."

Apparently Matt was less terse when talking about things he cared for,
which was exactly the kind of reaction that Erika was gunning for. But of
course she didn't stop with the loosening of his tongue, "Well if you
need a book then maybe you might wanna come with Hannah and me when we
head off to the mall tomorrow afternoon?"

"Erika...!" Hannah toned herself down a little. "I really don't think
Matt wants to hang out with-"

She immediately cut the blonde off with, "You know what? Lets let Matt
decide. Do you want to come?"

"Well actually, I'd really like that," His smile mellowed out when he
perceived Hannah's lack of one. "But I don't have to if... I'm in the
way or anything...?"

Both Erika and Matt were looking at her now. Hannah just knew from the
moment that she'd been told of Matt's feelings for her that she'd be
put on the spot like this. She didn't want him to come. If he did then
Erika would get all excitable about it and before you knew it she'd have
come up with a guest list to their freaking wedding. She'd always
fancied herself as a matchmaker. But then Hannah couldn't turn him down
either. If she did then she'd look bad, Erika would get suspicious, Matt
would be hurt (awkward though he was he was truly a decent guy) and
considering her own feelings for Miss Williams, Hannah couldn't do that
to him.

So what choice did she have?

"Um... I suppose it's okay if you really want to come with us, Matt..."

A smile returned to him and he started saying something. At first Hannah
tried to listen to it. But then a short few moments after that she stared
behind him and saw a figure walking across the pathway at the bottom of
the knoll. It was Miss Williams. She was walking (or perhaps floating,
Hannah's imagination never really could contain itself when she was
around) along the winding stone pathway that the football team had run
through earlier. She clasped a selection of folders in her arms, which
she had pressed against her chest. A few of the students who knew her
said hi as she walked by. She gave them all her sweet and seductive smile
when she returned their greetings.

In the short few seconds that Hannah saw her she felt it all again. The
quickening of her heartbeat, the hitch in her breathing, the swelling of
her nipples beneath her tank top, it all came rushing in on her when she
hazarded a prolonged glance at her one and only love. Before she was even
aware of it she was clamouring on her feet and making her excuses to
Erika and Matt. As Miss Williams walked around the cafeteria toward the
west building (more specifically the humanities department) Hannah
stumbled giddily down the grass to catch up with her.

Ever see that episode of Friends where Chandler runs half way down a busy
a New York street just to say hello that woman Cathy? That was the
general idea Hannah had when she veered up to the stone of the pathway
from the grass, loudly proclaiming, "Miss Williams!"

The woman in question stopped and turned. Hannah's smile brightened.
Then the gravity of it all dissolved when her foot slipped against one of
the bricks that delimited the pathway. The teenager gasped and fell
backward. A thud was felt.

Then an indecipherable amount of moments passed.

Hannah groaned and opened her eyes. At first she witnessed only a pure
sky blue. Then a head poked through it. It was Miss Williams. She had an
apprehensive expression on that angelic face of hers. But in spite of
that Hannah blinked, blushed and smiled all at once when she saw her.

"...Miss Williams..."

The history teacher tugged a tress of her dark chocolate hair behind her
ear. "Hannah, sweetheart; are you all right?"

"...Yeah, I... I think so..."

When she paid a bit more attention to her surroundings she saw that Miss
Williams was kneeling next to her. Matt and Erika were nowhere in sight,
they probably hadn't seen her fall over (either that or Erika was too
busy drilling him for information about his feelings). There were a few
kids passing by who saw her slip and sniggered accordingly.

Miss Williams ignored them. "Hannah, try and stand up."

She did just that, slowly at first. She wasn't hurt. But she'd messed
up her top and pretty much succeeded in making a fool of herself in front
of Minneapolis' sexiest teacher ever. Miss Williams picked up her
folders again whilst Hannah dusted herself off (and had a luxurious and
prolonged stare at her teacher's cute little ass when she bent over).

"Sorry," Hannah looked away with a blush when Miss Williams stood
upright. "I can't believe I fell over like that. God, I'm such a
dork."

It was said more to herself than to Miss Williams. But that didn't stop
the older woman from reacting to it. With her folders clutched to her
body again, she shook her head with another small and tranquil smile to
fob Hannah off that idea. "You're all right, that's all that matters.
But be more careful in future. You shouldn't run down this hill like
that."

"...I'll try."

"Okay then."

Hannah looked up at her. "But um... do... do you remember what you
promised me?"

"Of course I do. 3.45 sharp. I'll be there. Just remember to bring your
books." She fumbled to hold up her folders and check her watch at the
same time. "I have to get going now, Hannah. I'll see you later,
okay?"

"...Okay..."

The older woman then started walking toward the humanities department
again. Hannah watched her go reluctantly, almost immediately trying to
think up a reason to follow her. But at the end of the day she didn't
want to embarrass herself twice in front of Miss Williams. Hannah made
due with a few fleeting glances at her angel whilst she walked away in
short, elegant steps. Just a couple more hours and they'd be alone
together. Just a couple more hours...

**********

3.44.

To say that Hannah had been waiting for this moment with bated breath
ever since the whole thing had been arranged would be an understatement.
Now that it was finally here she was ecstatic. After lunch she and Erika
had afternoon role call then English Literature. That was a class they
shared together but it was one that Erika didn't actually do to badly
in, mostly because they talked about and did reports on books that she
already liked to read. Hannah didn't want to do it anymore than she did
Math or French, but after seeing Miss Williams out in the fields, she put
herself in check and tried to get on with things until the time finally
came. And now it had.

Hannah stood outside the glass doors of the library, book bag in her
hands. She leaned up against the wall of the corridor and watched some
kids pass by every now and again. Every few seconds she checked her watch
or stared at one of the doors either end of the corridor for Miss
Williams. Eventually (only a couple seconds before the precise allotted
time of 3.45) the auburn-haired woman gaited through the doors on the
southern end of the corridor sans the folders. Hannah's face brightened
up like a Christmas tree when she saw her. Every single time she looked
at that woman she felt just like a kid who'd been bought a new toy. She
could hardly wipe the smile off her face.

"Hello, Miss Harris," the teacher said with a playful tint. "Ready to
hit the books?"

Hannah was ready to do anything as long as it meant spending time with
her history teacher. She was ready to do anything *for* her teacher.
Problem was that the things she most wanted to do were a bit less
`traditional'. If Hannah had her will fulfilled then they wouldn't be
standing in front of a library right now -- they'd be in a hotel room.
And she wouldn't be studying; she'd be pouring hot honey down the cleft
of Miss Williams' breasts before licking every last droplet off of her
body.

"I'm ready," Hannah said plainly, sporting an unsuppressed blush.

So the teacher led her student into the library from there. The library
of Winnicot High wasn't elaborate but it was big. It was split into four
sections. One of them was the basic main one where all the books were
stored in wooden bookcases and mounted shelves. The second one was the
computer room, which had printing capabilities and monitored Internet
access and what not. The third was the silent study section. It was
basically just a large room with around twenty or so tables for quiet
group study sessions. The forth section, the one that Miss Williams was
leading Hannah to, was a split off from the third one. It was a row of
cubicles at the end of the room. Each one had a small plastic table and
twin chairs. Each cubicle allowed for privacy between individuals. The
two women would be sharing one.

When Miss Williams picked out a cubicle she gestured to one. "Have a
seat."

Hannah sat down and put her bag on the table. Miss Williams ran a hand
through her hair then set her briefcase down also. After taking a moment
to adjust her glasses she flicked open the briefcase's seals and pulled
out two things -- a book and a selection of papers.

"What're those?" Hannah asked.

The older woman thumbed through the papers. "These are the lecture notes
from my previous classes. I had them photocopied for you. Tonight, I want
you to read through two or three of them."

In all her expectation for this, Hannah had actually forgotten that she
was here to work, not just to ogle this woman. That thought kind of
depressed her for a moment. Then she caught herself when she took a good
look at Miss Williams' pretty face. She couldn't deny her anything. It
was true that Hannah didn't want to work, if anything she would be happy
just to sit here and stare at her, but if it would make Miss Williams
happy for her to make progress then she *wanted* to make progress.

When she handed over the papers Hannah took them and pushed them into her
bag. "Thanks. So, um... where do we start?"

"Well, when was it you started falling behind?"

"...I..."

"Okay let me rephrase that," Miss Williams posited. "What topic do you
last remember us tackling in class?"

Hannah honestly couldn't remember much. The only thing she did remember
was a name that had been bouncing around in those earlier classes.
"Something to do with... Louis XIV, I think...?"

"Age of enlightened despotism, okay..." the teacher took the moment to
write something down on a notepad she had handy. "We started and
finished that about a month ago. But we'll catch you up."

Hannah's physical attraction to Karen Leigh Williams was a given. That
went without saying. But beyond that there was an even deeper attraction
to Miss Williams' personality. Just then, knowing that Hannah had been
slacking off for more than a month, she didn't bitch or moan or chide or
lecture, she just got on with it. She was such a wonderful teacher.
Everyone in school liked her, everyone who counted. It really wasn't
hard to see why.

Because of that Hannah felt herself slipping again. She sighed dreamily.
And whilst Miss Williams started to speak passionately about the issue of
enlightened despots, Hannah's eyes lingered with a loving gaze over the
older woman. Time slowed down (this time for the better) and Hannah
watched every little detail expressed on her face. She loved the pinkish
rouge of Miss Williams' lips, and the way they curved and pursed when
she spoke. Hannah was fixated on every element of her, like a gang of
jocks drooling over a girl-on-girl porno movie. The only difference was
that there was genuine emotion and caring behind Hannah's soul-consuming
lusts.

But she started to snap back into focus when Miss Williams looked
directly at her, finishing off her comments summarily with a question,
"and those debts eventually became a contributing factor to very
significant episode in French history. Do you want to guess what that is,
Hannah?"

Hannah was still away with the fairies when Miss Williams asked her that.
So when she suddenly blurted out an answer she had no real idea where it
came from, "...The French Revolution...?"

"...That's right...!" The teacher gave her yet another of those million
dollar smiles. "Oh sweetheart, I knew you could do this."

Unbeknownst to either of them, there was a wet patch in Hannah's
panties. It widened when the word `sweetheart' came out of those supple
pink lips. Hannah blushed again (that was one thing about herself that
she could never hide, how easily she blushed) and pressed her palms into
her lap. Just being praised by Karen Leigh Williams turned her on.

But from then on events proceeded in a way that Hannah didn't
anticipate. She actually was starting learn something. Perhaps it was
better to say that she realized that much of what she and Miss Williams
went over was work she actually did remember -- she just hadn't been
paying much attention to what was said and more or less focused on who
was saying it. It wasn't until they started discussing the subject of
the Enlightenment that Hannah came up short. It was the subject they had
been studying most recently -- and it came at a time when Hannah's
feelings for Miss Williams had jacked themselves up a notch. When it
became clear that this alone was the topic that Hannah really hadn't
taken any note of, Miss Williams went out of her way to make sure that
the focus for that study session was the Enlightenment.

Two hours later.

A selection of books and papers were now sprawled out over the table.
Hannah's history notebook now actually had something written down in it.
There was also a half-eaten bag of M&Ms, a bottle of water, and an empty
can of Sprite on the table. The water was Miss Williams' and the Sprite
had been for Hannah, while the M&Ms they were sharing between them. The
history teacher bought all three items and had brought them with her.
Technically they weren't supposed to be eating or drinking in here, but
according to the brunette it was `their little secret'. It was little
things like that that proved and demonstrated how cool Karen Leigh
Williams really was. Unfortunately, time decided to speed its ass up
whenever Hannah was with her.

Miss Williams checked her watch. "...Wow, it's nearly six. I think we'd
better wrap this up now."

"Do we have to?" Hannah asked, pleadingly. "...I mean... isn't there
more we need to do...?"

"There probably is, but... I really do have to be getting home. I have
some papers I need to grade before the weekend and I can't really put it
off. But I think if we did a couple more sessions then you'd be up to
speed with the rest of the class. Would you like to do this again, maybe
tomorrow?"

Hannah smiled softly, somehow forgetting that she was supposed to be
going to the mall with Erika and Matt tomorrow afternoon. "...I'd really
like that..."

"Okay then. Same time tomorrow."

And then Hannah said something odd. "...But, um... maybe we could do this
somewhere else?"

"Huh?" Miss Williams had already started packing some of her things
away in her briefcase. "What do you mean, Hannah?"

"...Well... how about we do this... at my house?" Honest to God, Hannah
had no idea WHY ON EARTH she had suggested something like that. But when
it was said it couldn't be taken back.

"...I'm not sure that that would be appropriate..." The teacher remarked
sceptically. "I can't really be your tutor."

Despite her horny teenage mind Hannah caught on to the logic in that
statement. But the more the idea had a chance to marinate in her brain
the more appealing it became. She could be relaxed at her house and
she'd never have to worry about someone catching her out or anything.
Her mom would be at work and her brother Darren would just be locked up
in his room listening to nineties metal while stoned off his ass on dope.
He'd be no bother. So Hannah wanted this. It felt right.

"Please?" She asked. It was the first time Hannah realized that she
sounded desperate rather than just feeling desperate. "I wouldn't ask,
but... I really want your help and I can't be... comfortable here in
school. So please can we do that?"

Miss Williams paused with the thought. And Hannah actually felt guilt for
a moment as she waited. She was asking her teacher to compromise her
professionalism to help a student learn (which in fact was merely a ruse
for that same student to spend more time with her -- whether the student
was conscious of it or not was beside the point). For a moment the girl
became convinced that Miss Williams would say no... but then she saw her
pull a defeated grin and knew implicitly that that would not be the case.

"Well, all right..." she offered. "But on one condition, you have to
get your parent's permission first. If they say yes then I'll help you
study at your house. Deal?"

Hannah's heart couldn't have been beating any harder. "...Thank you so
much."

The older woman waved that off then started assembling her things. She
left behind Hannah's notes, the photocopied notes of her previous
classes, and the bag of M&Ms. When everything else was packed into her
briefcase she stood up and gave Hannah yet another dazzling smile. "You
did good work today. I really want you to keep it up in the future,
okay?"

"...I will." Hannah would do ANYTHING for her, especially if it made her
smile.

"Good. I'll see you tomorrow. Don't forget to ask your parents."

Hannah watched her leave. Then when she did, the blonde teen reached for
the papers she'd left behind. They still had traces of Miss Williams'
scent lingering on them, a beautiful bastardisation of cherry bark and
almonds. Hannah shut her eyes, pressed them against her nose and slid
down in her chair, hugging them. With a breathless bubblegum smile on her
lips she whispered, "...I love you so much, Karen..."

**********

Chris Angel Says,

* Well, I DID get a significant reaction to the first chapter (sorry to
those who sent me e-mails and haven't received replies yet, but believe
me, I've been busy. University's a bitch! ^_^) so I decided I would in
fact continue the story. I hope you enjoyed the newest instalment and if
you have any comments or suggestions you'd like to make (I'm actually
willing to do a side-story involving fan-created characters if any of you
have any ideas) e-mail me.

* Someone asked me (I forget the name) to summarize the location of all
my lesbian stories on Nifty. They are as follows;

-          Lost and Karmic (Lesbian/Highschool)

-          Smells Like Sapphic Spirit (Lesbian/Highschool)

-          The Misadventures of Anna (Lesbian/Highschool)

-          The Misadventures of Kandi (Lesbian/Highschool)

-          The Misadventures of Holly-Raine (Lesbian/Highschool)

-          Those Who Live Between Reason and Emotion
(Lesbian/Adult-Youth)

-          Legends of Asgarth: The Starball Crystal (Lesbian/Science
Fiction or Fantasy)