Bound To you

Chapter 6

ELI’s heart was pounding so terribly hard and fast inside her chest that she was almost sure that Rika could hear and feel it beating through her skin. “I just wanted you to know-” She started to say, but stopped immediately when Rika pulled away from their embrace to lock their eyes — but still remained close. Very, very close. She was face to face with full red, plump lips and piercing chocolate eyes staring at her. Her body was paralyzed because of that magnificent woman and their sudden closeness. The trapped tension between them pushed ELI to do what her heart was in charge of, although her mind offered impositions several times which caused her to rethink if what she desired to do was the right thing to do.

But for a moment, she stopped thinking about that altogether.

She leaned in and captured Rika’s lips in a gentle kiss that caused her insides to melt just by the mere press of their lips together. ELI had never felt lips so soft and so flavourful before. Her whole body was tingling with excitement and desire for this woman. Her hands were sweaty and everything she felt inside was happiness and whole tons of curiosity for more.

Rika's mouth opened slightly, giving ELI space to tangle their tongues that she did not hesitate to do. The blonde moaned into the kiss when she felt the hot warmth of Rika’s tongue on hers. It was her first kiss with a woman, and all ELI could think about was how that was the best kiss she has ever had. 

ELI tightened her grip on the teacher’s hips and squeezed slightly, pushing her toward the edge of the wooden table. Rika clasped her hands on each side of ELI’s face and pulled her lips against hers, deepening the kiss. ELI quickly pressed their bodies tighter together and gasped when she felt the perfect slim shape of Rika against hers. It was the best feeling ever! Actually, ELI had never felt such delicious sensations with any man before. And with just one kiss with Rika, the blonde was feeling far beyond what she had imagined was possible.

She relished on those new sensations as much as she could, not able to stop thinking about how that kiss was so phenomenally sensational. She wanted to have the power to never stop kissing Rika, but all of that was in vain when the teacher let out a low gasp and pushed her away gently by the shoulders.

“ELI, someone’s coming,” the brunette said and they were in silent for a few seconds, lost in each other’s eyes seeming to look for an answer to what had just happened, until Rika spoke again, now looking a little saner and put together. “Act normal, please.” 

Immediately after, Rika walked away and sat in her chair. Her hand wiped her own lips to clean the blurred strikingly red lipstick away and ELI copied the movement, swallowing through her dry throat for what was coming next.

The door suddenly opened and Janitor Wilton entered, holding a gardening shovel in his hand. Scary much?

“Ma’am?” He looked at Rika, and then his weird eyes laid on the blonde. “ELI Swan, what are you doing here?” The blonde swallowed the lump in her throat as she stared at Janitor Wilton. s**t.

“Mr. Wilton, Miss Swan just came by to clarify her doubts about the test with me. She’s leaving now,” Rika said, showing the man a fake smile.

“Oh, of course,” he said, but continued staring at ELI.

“Uh, tha-thanks for your help, Miss Mills,” ELI stuttered and then waved goodbye awkwardly on her way out.

xXx

“Hey, ELI, how was the afternoon with your favourite-” Ruby stopped the moment she saw the state of her friend. “ELI, are you okay?” The blonde didn’t look at Ruby. She simply stayed put, staring at the wall blankly. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost!” The brunette placed her hands on ELI’s pale face, and then continued, “What happened?”

ELI’s breath became trapped and shallow as she finally admitted the truth, “I kissed Rika.” 

The blonde abruptly walked away to her bedroom, Ruby trailing behind her, and started pacing in the room.

“You what?” Ruby asked.

“I kissed Rika,” ELI said pointedly, her fingers finding its way to her lips as she remembered how it felt to kiss her teacher — who surprisingly kissed her back right after. “Oh, God,” she murmured, eyes widening at the realization. “And she kissed me back, Ruby. Sh-she did!” ELI grinned brightly, remembering the best kiss of her life.

“ELI! f**k! Ho-how did you... s**t. I’m-”

ELI interrupted Ruby with a tight hug. “She kissed me back, Ruby! She kissed me back! Can you believe it?” ELI hopped on the bed like a crazy person as she started laughing out loud, happy with what had just happened. Ruby failed to contain herself towards that happy situation so she started laughing as well, hugging her best friend tightly as they stood on top of the mattress.

“Now you have to tell me every detail, blondie!”

It wasn’t a big surprise when, on the next morning, all ELI could think about was that kiss. She had barely slept at night. She certainly couldn’t pay attention to anything the teachers were saying and kept lost in the world of fantasy for hours. During English class, Tinker had to nudge her to reality because the teacher was asking her a question. But ELI had no idea what the hell he had asked, and couldn’t answer, obviously. She didn’t care, actually. There were other things to be focused on right now.

That kiss had been so amazing; everything she had ever wished for a kiss to be. However, there were many insecurities regarding her kiss with Rika that kept tormenting her mind mercilessly. She just wanted to find Rika and talk to her or just… see her, at least. But she feared this moment. She didn't know what the woman would say or do. ELI felt like she was in the dark with no clue where to go or what to do. Her mind kept revolving around how Rika could possibly have kissed her back. ELI still had no idea how she was courageous enough to just kiss her history teacher. She was clearly out of her mind yesterday, and now the only thing she feels is fear, sadness and a bit of happiness for being kissed back.

When the English class was over, ELI picked up her backpack and hurried out of class. She couldn't stand there anymore, listening to the voice of that annoying teacher. She needed air and a good place to think.

“ELI, where are you going?” She heard Ruby call her.

The blonde turned around and smiled weakly at her friend. “I just need some air.”

“I know what kind of ‘air’ you need.” The brunette made air quotes with her fingers, causing the blonde to chuckle despite the anxious butterflies in her stomach.

“Thank you for supporting me, Ruby,” she said quietly and then left, walking towards the school garden.

She loved that place. It was always quiet and ELI loved to go down there to think. And now that she kept daydreaming and her mind was full of thoughts, she should go back there more often.

Looking at the horizon full of trees and flowers, she felt empty. And when she felt that way, she knew that she needed to vent. And the only way she could do that was through music, just like her old days in the orphanage.

Her thoughts wandered to the kiss: her hands touching the teacher’s slim waist, the soft lips touching hers tenderly. The taste of her tongue mixed with the apple scent Rika’s perfume…

But then, it came the whirlwind of negative feelings, which was what inspired her to write songs. ELI grabbed her notepad from her backpack and started writing exactly what came to mind:

I'm having trouble breathing

I'm afraid of what you'll see right now

I give you everything I am

All my broken heart beats

Until I know you understand

She sighed at the end of the thought. She felt the pain of having kissed her history teacher, and at the same time, the happy feeling was remembered when reviewing that moment in her mind.

ELI wanted to stop thinking. She just wanted to see Rika once and for all to end the agony of having to wait for a response from her.

And I keep waiting

For you to take me

You keep waiting

To say what we have

She huffed in annoyance and threw her notepad on the grass. Her head fell back to the bench where she was seated and she felt like crying. s**t.

Every time she thought about their next encounter, she imagined Rika coming up to her and giving her an exhilarating kiss — and at the same time, she imagined Rika pushing her away forever. What if Rika would push ELI away and never talk to her again? That would certainly be… the worst thing ever. 

“ELI, seriously, I can't stand here seeing you like this. I refuse myself,” the blonde heard Ruby’s voice right next to her and opened only her left eye to look at her friend. “Get up, grab your notepad and let’s go out for a drink. You need to unwind a little bit and maybe you’ll forget this- um,” she took a deep breath before continuing, a little baffled, “this kiss.”

“Ruby, I thought you were my friend,” ELI said dramatically.

“I am your friend! Your best friend and sister, by the way. Now c’mon, let’s go.”

“I can't believe you're asking me out to drink. Imagine if Granny could hear you saying that. She’d ground you forever.”

“She will never hear me saying this, blondie. Anyway, I want you to go out with me. In fact, I deserve it, don't you think? Lately, you've been replacing me for Rika all the time!”

“And look at what happened!” The blonde retorted with annoyance, already sick of her miserable situation.

“Well, your only chance is to go out with me to redeem yourself and put away those crazy thoughts that I know are going through your head right now.”

“You're right. I need to stop torturing myself.” ELI stood up with confidence.

“That’s the ELI I know and love!”

“You mean you don’t love me when I’m crushing over a teacher?” the blonde asked mockingly.

“Drama queen, gimme a break, all right?”

They laughed together and ELI’s day turned a bit lighter.

xXx

The night had come and ELI was ready to go. She was wearing dark jeans, a white tank top, and a black leather jacket; also because it was cold. On her face, she had only put some mascara on and her hair was slightly curly.

“I'm glad you're going, blondie.”

She heard Ruby’s voice behind her, and turned to her friend, smiling tenderly. “What would I do without you, Rubes?”

“I honestly don’t know, girl,” Ruby joked then pulled ELI into a hug. “Come on, Emms. Killian is downstairs waiting for us.”

“What did you say to Granny?”

“I told her we’re going to the movies.”

ELI let out a muffled laugh. “Did she believe you?”

“Yes. She trusts us, and that’s a good thing.”

“Let’s just not get too drunk.”

“Exactly.”

When they reached the first floor, Granny hurried to hug them tightly. ELI could notice the smile on the woman’s face, and at the same time, some kind of worry on her features.

“Be very careful and do not accept anything from strangers,” the grandma emphasized firmly, pointing her index finger at both of her granddaughters.

“We’re going to the movies, Granny. They’ll offer us popcorn.”

“It doesn't matter. You have to be careful everywhere you go.”

“Don’t worry, we will be. Can we go now? Killian is waiting.”

“Be careful!” Granny said one last time before they left the house.

xXx

They arrived at the Lord Hobo in less than fifteen minutes, getting in without any trouble with their fake ID’s. And despite being a Tuesday, the pub was crowded. Belle, Tinker, Killian, and August were already sitting at a table in the centre of the bar. Their drinks were in their hands and they looked cheerful. Soon, the waiter came to take the orders of the rest that had arrived and ELI asked for a glass of wine. Unfortunately, that didn't go unnoticed by her friends.

“Wine, ELI? Since when you drink wine?” Tinker asked, finding the situation extremely strange.

“Since today,” ELI answered without looking at her inquisitive friend.

ELI had ordered wine simply because of the colour and refinery that reminded her of Rika and their moments together.

Shit.

She tortured herself even unintentionally.

Some minutes passed and ELI kept drinking her wine. She was being very quiet and wasn't talking to anyone at the table. She just watched the people around the bar and didn't care about the weird conversation that her friends were having. But suddenly, something remotely scandalous coming from Killian got her attention:

“I wonder what Miss Mills is doing in a bar like this on a Tuesday evening,” he said with a lazy voice, probably because of the alcohol he’s already ingested.

ELI turned her head quickly to where Killian was looking and found Rika with a smiling redhead in front of her. Her heart began to beat faster as she felt her body freeze from head to toe.

“ELI?” Ruby called her with a careful voice, but the blonde could not take her eyes off of Rika. “You okay?” ELI swallowed, then nodded at her friend, finally able to deflect her eyes from the teacher across the bar.

“I would never have guessed that Miss Mills was like that,” August said making everyone at the table laugh, except for ELI and Ruby.

“She is so damn hot,” Killian commented as he looked shamelessly at Miss Mills’ ass. ELI immediately felt her face becoming hot with jealousy, but she controlled herself to not say anything impulsively. “And who is that woman with her? She’s damn hot, too. And she is a redhead!” Everyone now was looking at Rika and the redhead woman who was with her. The two embraced, and the redhead seemed very pleased to embrace Rika because she didn't want to release the woman at all. “Oh, is she a lesbian?” Killian questioned looking more intensively at them. “It would be even better to have the two-”

“Killian! That's enough!” ELI snapped angrily, startling her friends with her tone.

“What’s the matter, love? Are you jealous?” He blew a kiss in the air to her and ELI pretended she was going to puke, causing her friends to laugh. “I don't care about you, blondie. I'm going to say hello to Miss Mills.” He stood up but stopped after hearing another protest coming from ELI. “You’re so boring, Swan! Chill, I’ll just say hi.” He turned and started walking towards Miss Mills and her redhead friend.

“s**t,” ELI muttered, standing up from the chair.

“ELI, where are you going?” Ruby asked worriedly.

“I'm going to stop Killian.” ELI could hear the giggles of Tinker, Belle, and August, but she didn't care at all. She knew how much they were drunk at this time of night.

“s**t, girl,” Ruby said, standing up as well and accompanying her friend on the way to Miss Mills.

“Good evening, Miss Mills!” Killian said cordially when he got near the teacher. He took Rika’s hand and placed a kiss on it. He also kissed the redhead’s hand, who looked fascinated at him.

“Mr. Jones!” Rika muttered, seeming surprised and slightly uncomfortable by his presence. “What a surprise to find you here,” she said politely, then her eyes drifted to the back of Killian’s head, where ELI was walking towards her. “E-ELI?” She stuttered out her name as her eyes widened.

“Hey,” ELI said, flashing a sheepish smile at her as she put her hands in her jeans back pocket.

ELI felt slightly embarrassed, but that didn’t stop her from checking Rika out from head to toe. She desired the woman so badly that she couldn't help herself. And when her eyes reached Rika’s, she saw that they were shining intensely. She wanted to be able to deflect from the look, but apparently, it wasn't possible.

And that situation was drawing the attention of her friends, for sure. Killian, Ruby and the redhead looked blankly at them both, waiting for a reaction.

“Um… sis? Aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?” Rika looked away from ELI to gaze at the redhead.

“Uh, yes. Zelena, these are my students: Killian, Ruby, and ELI,” she said, pointing to each of them.

“Students? And what are your students doing at a bar? I thought they were in high school.” ELI swallowed hard at the observation. What if the redhead woman worked with the school department? Oh, s**t. 

“I’m actually wondering the same thing, Zel,” Rika said as she shot a pointed glare at ELI. She released a sigh, then continued, “And yes, they are my students.”

“Well, nice to meet you,” Zelena said, then waved at them with a mocking smile. “My name is Zelena and I’m Rika’s sister.”

ELI, Ruby, and Killian looked a little speechless due to the difference between the two, but none of them said anything. ELI, as well as her friends, were feeling a bit scared of what might happen now that their teacher and her sister knew that they own fake ID’s. She honestly wished Killian had thought this through before coming over here to greet Rika.

“They are looking so scared, aren’t they?” Zelena muttered to her sister; that mocking smile still firmly in place.

“I would be if I were them,” Rika said back, but then her mouth turned into a mocking smile similar to her sister’s. “I’m just playing with you,” the brunette said with a roll of her eyes. “I honestly do not care about what you do outside of school. It’s not my problem.”

All three of them visibly relaxed after hearing that. They could have been royally screwed.

“I like their attitude, Gina,” Zelena commented with a shrug. “They were bold enough to approach their high school teacher in a bar. We should hang out with them.” 

“Zelena-”

“Relax, dearest sister,” the redhead interrupted Rika and pulled Ruby and Killian to her arms. “Where are you sitting? Let's have some fun!” Killian gazed at the redhead woman with amazement as Ruby rolled her eyes.

“I'd love to have some fun with you, Zelena,” Killian said, making the redhead cackle out loud.

“Come with us, my darling sister!” the brunette nodded at her sister’s invitation but raised her hand asking her to wait a few minutes.

As Killian was drooling over Zelena and her charisma, Ruby just nodded upon realizing that ELI would stay there with Rika. They had a lot to talk about, anyway.

Their eyes locked as silence hung between them. ELI suddenly wanted to crawl herself in a hole and never come back. She couldn't stand the agony of being able to see Rika right now, and unable to say anything she wanted. She needed to say something. Even though she had to take a chance at apologizing for kissing her teacher…

“Rika, I…” she started awkwardly. “I wanted to apologize for-”

She was suddenly interrupted when her wrist was gently grabbed and she was pulled away to a darker side of the bar. It all happened so fast that she only heard a whisper in her ear calling her name and her back being pressed against a cold wall. Soon her lips were being attacked by Rika’s and ELI couldn't resist unleashing a gasp of surprise. She had desired so much for a new kiss or an answer that the actual situation was driving her crazy. Her hands grasped Rika’s waist and pulled her against herself; their bodies impacting tenderly and tongues mingling. ELI felt drunkenly in love with the taste of that woman’s mouth. She wanted her closer; she wanted to mergetheir bodies, noticing how good the pressure was.

They stopped when the air was missing and pressed their foreheads together.

“ELI,” Rika whispered out of breath.

“Rika,” ELI gasped with surprise and smiled.

“Sorry about that, I-” 

ELI chuckled. “Are you apologizing for kissing me?” She couldn't believe that Rika had kissed her and even apologized for such an act.

“Well, not exactly, Miss Swan.” The brunette flashed her a small smile, then crossed her arms in front of her chest, backing away from the blonde a few inches. “But it's not right to do that. I… I shouldn’t have done it,” she said looking straight at the floor as if she wanted to avoid ELI’s eyes.

ELI swallowed upon hearing the admission. Her heart was beating uncontrollably inside her chest, silently telling her that this could end here, right now. But ELI didn’t want to. For God’s sake, she wanted to kiss Rika so much more; wanted to touch every single spot of her gorgeous body. 

She took a deep breath and finally said, “Maybe you’re right.” She took a step forward, ending the remaining space between them. Her hands rested around Rika’s waist automatically, pulling her closer — so close that she could feel the teacher’s warm breath upon her lips.

“We really shouldn’t be doing this, Miss Swan,” Rika mutters quietly as her eyes gaze longingly at ELI’s pink lips.

“Shouldn’t we?” ELI asks rhetorically, then cups Rika’s cheek to gently bring their lips together once again. This time their kiss is slow and languid; as if they have all the time in the world.

The noise of footsteps approaching causes Rika to pull away immediately from the blonde, as a pink shade colours the brunette’s face.

“We have to go. Your friends are probably wondering what we’re doing here for so long.” Rika started walking away, but ELI held her hand, stopping her.

“Rika,” ELI called, watching as the teacher stared at ELI’s hand holding hers. “I… I’d like to take you out sometime.” ELI didn't know where this courage and boldness were coming from. Everything she wanted to say, her tongue flowed naturally and she spoke as if she had no insecurities or fears of being rejected.

Rika seemed to ponder for a while but then shook her head negatively. “I can’t, ELI.” She untangled their hands. “We are teacher and student. It's wrong.”

Even though she feared the answer, she asked boldly, “So, why did you kiss me back yesterday? And right now?”

Rika, once more, avoided ELI’s green eyes. She looked slightly embarrassed and the blonde almost kissed her again, noticing how cute her teacher was. “Just because.”

ELI smirked, grabbing the brunette’s hand again. “Rika, we already went out once together and you didn't bother back then. This time won't be any different,” ELI said, flashing her an encouraging smile. “Please?” The blonde pouted and Rika bit her lower lip to hide her smile.

“All right,” she agreed with a sigh, then walked away from the blonde.

On the outside, ELI was only grinning. But on the inside, ELI was about to scream her lungs out of happiness. This was much better than she had imagined.

A few minutes later, they were back at ELI’s friends' table, but the fact that they arrived together didn't go unnoticed by those curious people.

“Where were you?” Tinker asked with a weird shine in her eyes and a smirk playing on her lips. Oh, great.