Don't Tempt Me

First Class

ELLA

Me: Hey, where are you?

Megan: I'm here. I woke up late. Won't see you till lunch. Sorry. :(

Me: S'okay. See you then.

I put my phone away, and closed my locker. I'd spent the rest of my time before school sitting at the picnic table, trying not to fantasize about Mr. Sexy. I hoped he wasn't teaching any of my classes this year.

Swinging my backpack over my shoulder, I headed to my homeroom. This year was going to be my most complicated, because I was focusing on courses that I needed for work. The only class I was excited about was my woodshop course. It was only available to seniors, and apparently, I was only the second girl ever to take it here.

Most people were focusing on college or university, but I planned to go from highschool right into work if I could. The guidance counselor told me last year that I was basically being stupid, that that never happened, but I was determined to prove her wrong.

I got to homeroom with minutes to spare, waiting patiently for class to start. I saw Angel Turner walk in with her crew, laughing and giggling at something on her phone. And yes, her name was really Angel, but she far from it. She was a b***h to everyone, even her friends. Her life goal was to make other people feel completely worthless so she could feel good about herself, and I always seemed to be a favorite target for her. Right on cue, she spied me sitting at my desk and sneered.

"If it isn't little Ella Greene. How was your summer Ella?" She asked with the fakest smile plastered on her face. She was wearing the shortest black leather skirt possible with a much too small red tube top. Her fake blond hair was in a braid, with knee high boots to top it off. Honestly, she looked like she should be working the street corner instead of being in school right now.

"Are you not going to answer me?" Angel quipped. I bit my tongue and stared straight ahead. "How rude! Didn't any if those nannies ever teach you manners?"

Thankfully, the teacher chose that moment to walk in, saving me from anymore harassment from fake Barbie.

"Alright, settle down everyone." Mrs. Dawn strode into the room in her usual no-nonsense way. "Summer break is over. School has officially begun. I have a couple of announcements to make. First, Mr. Goff has retired, and his position has been filled by..." She glanced at the paper in her hand, "Ah. Mr. Black."

I slumped in my seat. Mr. Goff was the woodshop teacher. Everyone loved him, and everyone always passed his class. Just my luck, getting stuck with a new teacher for the one class I needed to pass.

"Second, the west wing of the school is under renovation, probably until mid-December, and nobody is allowed in that area." She glared at the room, particularly a group of still rowdy boys near the back.

"Third..."

I tuned her out for the rest. It was always the same on the first day. All the teachers expected us to be respectful, no bullying, where we could and couldn't go on school grounds, etc. etc. Mrs. Dawn droned on for the rest of the class, explaining that we needed to memorize our schedules by the end of the week, and so on. When the bell rang, I jumped up, heading out the door.

English was my next class, and it was much the same. First day banter, the teacher welcoming us back, and then explaining the course load for the year. I took notes, and highlighted the things I would need to study extra for. My first three classes went by quickly, and then it was time for lunch.

I was switching out my books at my locker when Megan found me.

"Ella!" She squealed, pulling me in for a big hug.

"Hey you. How's your day going so far?" I asked. I slammed my locker shut and we headed to the cafeteria.

"Ugh, horrible! I already have homework from two classes, can you believe that?!" She whined and pouted.

"That sucks. I'm sure I'll have some too by the end of the day." Megan looked good. She'd been gone for the last month of summer vacation up north, and now she had a nice tan. Her blonde hair had grown out of its layers too. She was wearing minimal makeup that brought out her big blue eyes and cute button nose.

"Did you hear about the new teacher yet?" She asked me.

"The one who's replacing Mr. Goff?"

"Yeah! I saw him earlier and girl!" She fanned herself. "Talk about drop. dead. gorgeous!"

I stopped. "Wait, what?"

"Girl, he's like... the definition of sexy. And he's super young too. Probably still in his twenties."

Oh no. It couldn't be...?

"Does he have black hair? Wearing a black suit?" I asked anxiously.

"Yeah! So you have seen him!"

Oh, yeah. I've seen him. And talked to him. And fantasized all sorts of inappropriate things about him too!

"Ella? You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost." Megan searched my face worriedly.

This is what I got for being sleep deprived. I was so busy thinking and stressing about everything else, I hadn't clued into the fact that A.) I'd never seen that guy before today. And B.) Of course he had to be the replacement for Mr. Goff because there were no other new teachers this year.

"Ella?" Megan waved her hand in front of my face.

"What? Oh. I'm fine Meg. I just didn't realize who he was until now." I shook my head at my own stupidity.

"Well, you're lucky. Aren't you taking his class this year?" She was back to being excited.

"Yeah, I am." I sighed.

She rambled on about Mr. Black and how sexy he was, while I followed her silently into the cafeteria. I found that he was the topic of conversation for most of the students actually, particularly the girls. I wondered why I wasn't sharing in the excitement when this morning I'd almost ruined a pair of panties thinking about him.

Probably because I have to spend ninety minutes a day with him for the next year.

The thought made my stomach flip. For crying out loud, he was my teacher! No matter how gorgeous he was, that was still a fact. I just needed to really focus in his class, and not on him. The last thing I needed was to end up cutting a finger off with a sharp tool thinking about the hot, young teacher.

Focus Ella. Just focus on the work.

I repeated this like a mantra in my head for the rest of lunch, and throughout my next two classes. I was also right about getting homework before the end of the day. Before I knew it, I was standing in front of the door to the woodshop class, but I couldn't go in. I was so nervous I felt sick.

"Hey, are you lost?"

I turned and scowled. Jason Walters, Angels on again-off again boyfriend was standing next to me, with Angel practically sucker fished to his side. I was surprised he could walk with her glued to him like that.

"No." I said.

"You know this is woodshop right?" He asked.

"Yeah." I clipped.

"So... you are lost." He stated. I gave him a confused look. "This is a class that involves a lot of heavy, sharp materials. Girls like you don't take this class." He looked me up and down, lingering on my chest. Gross.

"For your information, I am taking this class, and I'm stronger than I look."

"Ooooh she's got attitude baby." Angel snickered. I rolled my eyes.

"Seems like it." Jason replied. He reached down to smack her ass, and I almost gagged.

Before he could bother me with anymore sexist remarks, I opened the door and strode in. All eyes in the room instantly looked up and widened. Ten students, and Mr. Black. Ignoring them all, I walked to a table and sat down. Jason followed me in, smirking at me.

Nobody moved for two whole minutes. Finally, Mr. Black spoke.

"Hello everyone. My name is Mr. Black, and I'm your teacher this year." His gaze lingered on me for a minute before roaming around the room. "Before we get started, let me address the elephant in the room."

This time, his eyes bore into mine. My bravado vanished, and my heart started pounding. Why did he have to be so f*****g good looking?

"Ella. Can you come up here?" He gestured to the space next to him.

I stood on legs that were suddenly numb, and walked to the front of the room. Standing this close to him, I could smell his aftershave and feel the heat emanating from him.

"This year, we have Ella joining us, and I expect every single person in this room to treat her just as you would if she were a guy. I don't want to hear any comments pertaining to her gender. She has as much right to be here as any of you." He gave a hard stare to every guy in the room. "Ella, would you tell the class why you're taking this course?"

I looked at him, but his expression said he was serious. I gulped.

"Uhm... I need this class for the career I chose." I said.

"What career did you chose?" Someone asked. I turned from Mr. Black to the class. Jason. Of course.

"I'm going into landscape design." I snapped at him. A couple people raised their brows at me.

"You do know thats mostly paperwork and drawing right?" Another guy asked. I vaguely recognized him from my English class.

I shrugged. "I have the impression that if you want to go into a business, you should be able to do everything that job requires."

"What does that even mean?" Jason called again.

"Well..." I floundered in my head for for example. "If you run a bar, you should be able to bartend, cook, clean, and manage. Otherwise, there's no sense in trying to do the job." I said.

"That's a very good attitude to have." Mr. Black said. "Thank you Ella. You may return to your seat."

I walked back to my seat, shooting Jason an annoyed glare.

"Alright. Onto business. This year, I'll be teaching you how to use all sorts of different tools. You will learn their names, and what their used for most. Some of the tools are expensive so try not break anything. You are required to use gloves and safety glasses at all times, no exceptions. And nobody will be running heavy machinery without me supervising. Understood?"

We all nodded.

"Good. Your final exam will be half written test. The other half will be an individual project that you will build. I expect you to use what you learn this year, as well as your imaginations. A simple bird house won't cut it."

I swear I heard a couple people groan.

"Now then." He picked something up from his desk and held it up. "This- is a screwdriver."

I snickered along with half the room. The rest of the class, Mr. Black showed us different tolls, and demonstrated the proper way to use them. He explained in more detail as time went on what he expected from each of us in the class. At one point, he took off his suit jacket, and I nearly choked. The guy needed bigger shirts.

When the bell rang, I rose to leave.

"Ella? Can you stay a minute?" Mr. Black asked.

I sat back down, waiting for everyone to go. Jason glanced at me on his way out, but I ignored him. When the door shut, I looked at my teacher. He was leaning against his desk, arms crossed.

"Ella." He clicked his tongue, his expression thoughtful.

"Yes?" I asked.

He sighed. "Don't take this the wrong way, but are you sure you want to stay in this class?" He looked at me. That was blunt.

"Yes. Like I said, I need this class."

"Yes. Okay." He looked out the window.

".... Is that all?"

"I'm just concerned about all the crap you're going to deal with this year. I can tell not everyone is pleased that you're here."

"Uh, thanks, but your concern isn't necessary Mr. Black. I don't really care what other people think about me." I shrugged.

"I can see that too." He continued to stare out the window, but I could almost hear the gears turning in his head. "How do your parents feel about it?"

My temper flared. Why did it seem like he was trying to get me out if this class? And how hypocritical, after his big speech about treating me equally. "You know, I really wouldn't know. It's kind of hard to ask them, with them being dead." I snapped.

His eyes snapped over to meet mine. I read shock and instant regret in them. "Oh. s**t. I'm sorry, Ella."

"I'm staying in this class. Okay? If that's everything..." I stood up and grabbed my backpack, slinging it over my shoulder. I walked to the door, pausing with my hand on the knob. "By the way-," I turned back to him, giving him a sarcastic smile,"- You shouldn't swear. You're a teacher after all." I opened the door and left.