Beautiful Torment Read Online Free

hell is wrong with me?
    With his back turned as he writes on the board, the class begins to talk in low whispers. Chloe tries to get my attention, but I ignore her, my mouth too dry to say anything even if I wanted to.
    Mr. Harrington’s arm extends, causing his jacket to lift and exposes the top part of his pants, revealing my newest fixation - his ass. I sink into my chair blushing. It gets worse when he briefly turns around and catches me red-faced. I immediately start looking around the room, which isn’t the smartest thing to do in front of a teacher, but he doesn’t say anything.
    Seriously, I have to ask again, what the hell is wrong with me?
     
    The next time I look up he’s already looking at me once again. He raises an eyebrow and the action renders me breathless. I absolutely detest what my body does next. It’s automatic, how I have to squeeze my legs together in order to stop the ache between them from completely igniting. Oh how that one look of his will haunt me into the late hours of the night.
    Embarrassed, I place head in my hands as I start to fill out the blank index card in front of me:
     
    Name: Lucinda Cunningham (Luci) 
    Birthday: December 18
    Parent names: Sue and Jay
    Phone number: 555-5555
    Life’s ambition: To be happy
     
    Next, we're told about the daily quizzes we’re going to have. I don’t groan when the rest of the class does in response to this, or when we’re given a sheet of the periodic table and are told to memorize it by next week for the first one.
    He doesn’t look my way again, and when he gives out the periodic table sheets, he makes a point to place them on my desk, rather than hand them directly to me.
     
    I couldn't be more thankful when the bell rings, and I dart up before the high-pitch sound even stops, the first to leave. 
    “What's wrong with you?” Chloe catches up with me as we head upstairs for our last classes of the day, she has Spanish and I have public speaking.
    “What? Nothing,” I sigh, out of breath.
    “Okay, weirdo,” she bumps my shoulder.
    “He's pretty young to be a teacher, don't you think?” I stop walking, anxious to see her reaction.
    “Who? Mr. Harrington?” I nod, but she's too busy waving to others in the hall. “I guess,” she finally answers, “But who cares about a teacher, even if he is hot! Did you see Kyle? You are so lucky to be sitting in front of him! He got way hot over the summer. And you, my friend, get to pass papers back to him! Maybe you can talk to him for me…” She goes on and on, but I’m still shaking my head from her question. No, Chloe, I didn’t see Kyle. Unfortunately for me, I was too busy noticing our teacher.
     
    I couldn’t tell you the first thing that happened in public speaking. Hannah tried talking to me and I nodded my head politely, having no idea what she was actually saying. Some guy sitting in front of me introduced himself, but my mind was totally elsewhere.
    When the bell rings it catches me by surprise, and I run to my car, hoping to beat the buses and traffic.
    I bang my head against the steering wheel as soon as the car roars to life, trying to get the stupid out. How the hell could I have such a reaction to a teacher ? And where the hell is Gracie? When I was a freshman, I had to take the bus just like everyone else. She’s lucky I take her to and from school.
    I continue to wait impatiently, checking my rearview mirror as the traffic builds up behind me, until I finally hear the click of the door handle.
    “You need to be quicker!” I snap before hitting the gas.
     
    I make it home in record time, already unlocking the front door before Gracie even gets out of the car. I head straight to my room, taking two stairs at a time. I scour my bookshelf for the large hardcover binding of last year’s yearbook. It takes me two hands to grab it, and I rapidly flip through the staff pages until I get to H.
    I spot his sister first, whose first year teaching was last year, but my