「 The Professor & I 」VOLUME II

(313) Brazen

Lynn's POV

Grass crackled and soil squished as my chair slowly trundled upon the lawn; it was presumably late with the deserted garden being hardly illuminated apart from a couple of lampposts.

I stopped randomly, fully appreciating the wonderful spring breeze.

The winds did not howl like the wolves of the jungles but rustled gently like the kind whisper of a mother. Faintly whistling drafts swirled in, softly meddling with my hair, but I quickly gathered the swaying tresses, tucking them behind my ear as neat strands.

Shutting my eyes, I faced my cheeks to the skies and inhaled deeply on the cool, but invigorating, air. The chilly atmosphere bore no reminiscence to the earlier season but there was nothing a glass of vodka could not conquer.

Except, perhaps, my apprehension.

There was absolute pleasure in savouring the first gulp as the clean, untainted, flavours burst in my mouth. The excellent distill was not just pure, it was raw, and impeccably coordinated with the open environment, it was more rejuvenating than before.

A warm, fuzzy, sensation proliferated in my gut as I decisively swallowed it down and my body soon succumbed to the comfort that wildly spread, leisurely slumping into my chair. Although still undeniably bothered, my mind had, likewise, severely relaxed.

Silence was in abundance, only occasionally interrupted by the fervent dash of night animals. In the absence of light, the ones that still lingered were solely governed by intuition. Predators hunted warily as they prey camouflaged in stealth mode and only the swiftest, strongest, could survive the arduous journey on this treacherous road.

Suddenly, the surrounding serenity was blistered by a string of ecstatic giggles exploding faintly in the distance. Certainly, the source of perturbation was joyous but the critters roaming could afford no error, scampering off in the heat of a moment.

Carefully working my wheels with my mind, I spun around in an unhurried manner, already identifying what had supplied that genuine spur of laughter.

She wandered along as the charm of his joke leached into the earth, hands tucked shyly into the back pockets of her jeans. With a pair of skates in his hand, he paced by her side but almost always fell a step behind, like all he wanted was to keep her in sight and make sure that she was alright.

They strolled on, seemingly casual—obviously unaware of my presence. Gradually moderating their footfalls, they eventually arrived before a fountain where they awkwardly came to a halt.

"This place can be home too," Bobby claimed, smiling softly at Kitty.

With just a touch of his finger, the surface of the water began to frost and there was a crisp crinkling sound as a layer of white crystals expanded rapidly over the top. Fluids that poured down from tiers above froze as icicles hanging motionlessly from the stones while hyacinths and lilies were locked in their positions, mildly covered in snow.

Seated on the structure of the round basin, Kitty excitedly swapped her sneakers into her specialised boots. Whilst she entangled her fingers amongst laces, Bobby simply waved his palm and spontaneously forged a set of glaciers to the bottom of his shoes, conveniently adding blades to them.

Marginally envious but clearly impressed, Kitty smiled at him in delight and they happily climbed onto the sizeable rink, still magnificent despite not being the grandest one within the boundaries of our property.

Kitty started off slightly wobbly but soon shone with a bright grin as she progressively glided with ease. Although intensely adoring the sport, she strangely lacked the gift to really master it and the obvious expert conscientiously sailed on an inner circle, allowing her more free space to manoeuvre.

Focusing on them, there was a mild shudder in my heart. The tingling could unmistakably be described as sour but it was incredibly sweet memories that courted its unanticipated manifestation and completely dissolved my defenses.

Yet, I wiped away the one stray tear that trickled down with a smile.

As she confidently gained on him, Bobby stretched out his arm invitingly and with a ton of bliss dictating her mind, she unhesitatingly accept it. He took her hand in a firm grasp and guided her for a few seconds before purposefully accelerating his treads.

Frankly, she was contented, and even thrilled, to be yanked along at high speeds, without realizing his true intentions of honing her technique, but her balance, unfortunately, was uncooperative. Despite the smiley chuckles, her body started to cave in to her mental fears, buckling at the next possible opportunity, and his innocent tug unwittingly evolved into a disastrous twirl that ended with them clumsily lurching into each other.

Both of them stumbled but Bobby was characteristically alert to react and hastily secured her in his arms. Strenuously catching their breaths, they ironically laughed and stared at each other in amusement until their chest rises reverted to normal.

"Thank you for this, Bobby," Kitty acknowledged in a sincere tone.

In stages, their gaze thickened, with a peculiar mix of impulse and tenderness.

Partially astounded that her fondness was, for what it looked like, duly reciprocated, Kitty followed the irrational pursuits of her heart with fair suspicions. She tipped her toes briefly, eyes sparkling with stipulated anxiety, but the flames of her passion burned vividly, helping her lips find their way to his.

Bobby kissed back, naturally and with a curious appetite not exactly elicited by reflex. Regardless, he earnestly fancied the little gesture of affection that both of them were so profoundly immersed in despite its short duration.

Nothing struck them—not the whiffs of winter or their clandestine observers—and the relish only diminished when logic kicked in as they broke apart with sharp regret.

"That's brazen of you two," I remarked, staring at them with a solemn expression.

Alarm vivaciously swamped their faces, inevitably diluting their afflicted expressions. They evidently panicked but the roots of their consternation were far less straightforward, comprising a complex amalgam of guilt for their disobedience, shame for their blunder and definitely, jolt for their oblivion.

"Lynn," Bobby gasped, plainly buffaloed that I just emerged from the shadows.

"We- We just-" Kitty stammered nervously, also positively disoriented by my unforeseen appearance.

"How could you leave me out of the fun?" I challenged in amusement.

Thoroughly chucking away my stern facade, I peered up at them with a cheeky smirk. Initially, they still looked legitimately stunned but their stiff stances soon burst out in relieved and hearty chuckles.

"Would you like to join us?" Kitty offered in an exuberant tone, cautiously scooting to the edge and extended me her arm.

"I'd love to, but I think I'll give it a miss tonight," I declined politely and she just smiled, guardedly dismounting the frigid arena.

"You look, off. Is everything alright?" Bobby probed in concern, coming up closely behind her.

"She misses the Professor," Kitty blathered enthusiastically and I chuckled as blood rushed to my cheeks.

"I do, actually," I admitted and they likewise giggled but noticing my face turning sober, their humour promptly dwindled.

"Listen, whatever happened just now, it's between the two of you," I stated calmly as they sat submissively before me, exchanging sheepish glances.

"But I think you ought to know, Rogue was watching too," I revealed in a composed manner.

Contrastingly charged with immeasurable apprehension, their eyes darted up to her window but her silhouette had gone from the glaring zone. The yellowish incandescence gleaming from her room was just the same as any other of the sparing ones still kindling with life but it was not for a fact that everyone recognised hers was frankly filled with gloom.