Chapter 1

Hannah Page watched the snowflakes as they drifted down onto the ground below, admiring the way they swirled and twirled in the air as the wind blew them. It was winter, almost Christmas in fact, and she was stuck in school. They kept the students in for as long as possible, leaving them only a few days to do their Christmas shopping.

She sighed heavily and her breath fogged up a small patch on the window. She wrote her name on the glass with her fingertip and was soon fogging up a large patch of the window with her hot breath and drawing patterns on the glass. Unfortunately, her artwork soon disappeared as the window cooled and she watched the numerous hearts and stars fade away.

She turned her attention to the teacher and listened to her droning on about chemical reactions and whatnot for a few seconds before becoming distracted again. This time it was a person who had caught her attention and nothing on earth could have stopped her from watching him. Well, maybe not nothing.

"And how do you balance an equation, Hannah?" the science teacher asked.

She dragged her eyes away from the window and Mr Jones and looked at Ms Lemms, stalling for time by flicking through the pages in her textbook. She had no idea what the answer was and was frantically searching for a page that would give her a clue as to what the old bat was on about.

"Come up here and show us on the board, Hannah," Ms Lemms persisted.

Her stomach felt as though someone had just dropped an enormous weight into it and she cringed with the embarrassment of the situation. To make matters worse, she felt her face grow hot and knew that, in a few seconds, she would be as red as a tomato.

"Erm, well, to be honest, I'm not quite sure, Ms Lemms," she stammered.

Hannah prayed that the teacher would think she was just embarrassed to write on the board in front of the class and not realise that she had no idea what she was talking about.

However, it seemed that, like most days, no one was listening to her prayers.

"Hannah!" Ms Lemms despaired. "I taught you three months ago how to balance an equation, we are only doing a review before the exams. How do you expect to pass this subject if don't know how to balance a simple equation?!"

She squirmed in her seat and stayed quiet. Silence was always the best option in the situations, she had learned after being scolded many times for "answering back" when a teacher really just wanted to yell at you.

Ms Lemms looked at her as if she was stupid. She hated that look; it made her feel so worthless. She was trying, but she didn't care about science. It didn't matter to her what the chemical symbol of carbon was or how many electrons were in it or whatever. She wasn't planning on studying science in the future and was not looking for a career in it, so why should she care? Sadly, all the science teachers insisted she needed to pass this exam even if she didn't like it.

"See me after school, Hannah," she said, narrowing her eyes.

Her stomach felt as though another huge weight had been dropped into it and, when the bell rang for the next lesson, she couldn't get out of there fast enough.

As she made her way to English, she tried to think of what she could say to Ms Lemms after school, or even if she could get out of it somehow, maybe fake being ill. Hannah knew it was pointless, though, she saw right through her excuses every time. She stood outside the door of the English classroom and knocked before entering. At least she enjoyed English, it was her favourite subject. She wanted to be a writer when she grew up and, even though she knew the chances of succeeding were slim, she was determined to do her best. Her parents thought it was a phase that she would grow out of and would choose a sensible career. Hannah was sixteen, though, and she knew that she wanted to be a writer and nothing would change her mind.

She heard the teacher shout from inside and went in and sat at her usual place in front of the teacher's desk. She was the first one there as pupils had a fifteen minute break between lessons and everyone else was busy with their friends or having a quick fag by the gates.

"Hello Mr Jones," she smiled.

Mr Jones raised his head from the book he was reading and looked her in the eyes and she felt her heart flutter. He had the most gorgeous eyes she had ever seen, they were brown with hazel flecks in them and she was jealous of his long lashes. He stood at least 6' tall and was muscular, a stark comparison to her slim 5'6 frame, but she didn't mind as she always felt protected when they were together. She couldn't help but admire his figure whenever she saw him and had been watching him during Ms Lemms' lesson.

"How many times have I told you, Hannah? Call me Andrew when we're alone, I hate the whole "Mr Jones" thing," he chided gently.

"Ok ... Andrew," she giggled, saying his name deliberately. She only called him Mr Jones so he would tell her to call him Andrew and he knew it, it was like their private joke.

He returned to reading his book and she watched him for a few moments before remembering she had something to give him. She reached into her bag and pulled out a book. She had stayed up most of the night reading it because he had given it to her and told her she would like it.

"Here's that book you gave me, Andrew," she said, holding it out to him.

He looked surprised. "I only gave it to you yesterday, Hannah. How did you read it so quickly?"

She felt herself blush with pleasure. "Oh, I'm quite a fast reader. Anyway, it was a great book, I couldn't put it down until I'd finished it," she beamed at him.

He smiled warmly at her and she admired the way the corners of his eyes crinkled slightly. She loved it when he smiled like that, it was one of his special smiles that he did when something really pleased him.

Hannah handed the book to him and nearly gasped as his fingers lightly touched hers as he took it. His fingers were so soft yet so strong and, even though she knew it sounded stupid, she yearned to spend the rest of the day passing books to him, just so she could feel his fingers on hers.

He stared at the book for a few seconds and smiled again. "You know, I think you're the only student in this entire school that can borrow a book and return it in the same condition as you took it."

Her blush deepened and her smile widened even further to his astonishment. His eyes gazed into hers and they stayed like that for a few seconds. Her heart sank when he looked away but she could swear that she saw disappointment in his eyes when the other students arrived.

Hannah spent the entire lesson watching Andrew and hung on every word he said. She raised her hand every time he asked a question and he nearly always picked her to answer it. He gave her an affectionate smile each time she answered correctly and she felt as though she was the only person in the class.

When the bell rang to signal it was time to go home, she felt the weights in her stomach once again. She put her books in her bag as slowly as possible, not wanting to see Ms Lemms. She was the last to leave and Andrew noticed her hesitation and looked at her enquiringly.

"What's wrong Hannah?" he asked.

She opened her mouth to explain and was horrified when she felt tears welling in her eyes. She struggled to wipe them away before he noticed but it was too late.

Andrew sat on her desk and looked down at her. "There's no need to cry," he said soothingly. "I'm sure it's not that bad."

She took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself before she started sobbing. She didn't want him to think she was a child who cried over silly things like science work.

"Hey, look at me," he whispered.

She raised her head slowly and looked at him through a curtain of her brown hair. He was smiling gently, but it wasn't patronising and she didn't see any pity in his eyes, only concern.

"Sorry," she croaked, brushing her hair out of her eyes. There was a lump in her throat preventing her from talking properly, but she wanted to apologise.

He shushed her before she could continue and handed her a crumpled tissue he found in one of his pockets.

"Don't worry, it's clean," he joked.

She managed a watery smile and reached for the tissue. Their fingers touched, but this time he gripped hers gently and didn't let go.

"Oh, Hannah," he sighed.

She held her breath, not daring to say anything in case she had misread the situation. The air around her felt as though it was crackling with electricity and she was aware of every nerve in her body. Her watery brown eyes met his and she searched for anything that would tell her what he was feeling. She was sure she saw passion hidden in the golden flecks of his eyes, but didn't dare imagine what it meant.

She decided to go with her instincts and brushed her thumb gently over his fingers. The action was simple, though her meaning was clear. She saw the surprise in his eyes and thought she had made a terrible mistake. She tried to pull her fingers from his but he held them tightly.

"I'll let go if you want me to," he said.

She knew then that she hadn't made a mistake and her heart swelled with joy.

"I don't want you to," she whispered.

Their eyes met and, this time, she knew that he felt the same way as her. She shuddered as he stroked his fingers across the palm of her hand, tracing each line as if he were trying to predict her future. His touch was so simple and light but it seemed like the most erotic thing in the world to her and her lips parted as she drew in a great lungful of air.

"You're so beautiful, Hannah," he whispered, leaning towards her.

She knew then that he would kiss her and closed her eyes in anticipation of the moment she had fantasized about for years. She could feel his hot breath on her face and her heart almost stopped beating as his lips touched hers. His mouth opened and she moaned as his tongue swept across her lips. She parted them and nearly collapsed when his tongue touched hers. They kissed slowly, taking their time as they explored each other's mouths with their tongues, their fingers still entwined. She wanted it to last forever and nearly screamed in frustration when she heard someone knock on the door.

They parted quickly and Hannah grabbed a book out of her bag, opening it and pointing to a page so, when Ms Lemms entered the room, it looked as though she was querying Andrew on something.

"Hannah, I told you to meet me after school," she snapped, her eyes boring deep into Hannah's. "I've been waiting ten minutes! I'm not doing this for the good of my health, you know!"

The young girl flushed bright red and mumbled an apology, her head downcast.

"I'm sorry, Mr Lemms," Andrew said, his voice slightly deeper than usual. "It's all my fault, Hannah told me she had to meet you but I insisted she stay and do some extra work. I hope you don't mind."

She looked up through lowered lashes and fought the urge to laugh when she saw Ms Lemms blush. She had suddenly transformed from a moody, old spinster into a giggling, little schoolgirl!

"Oh, it's quite alright, Mr Jones," she smiled warmly. "I can always see Hannah another time. Have a good evening!"

She left the classroom, closing the door behind her. Hannah breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Andrew. Her heart sank at the expression on his face. She could tell he had regretted their kiss and felt stupid. The mood had disappeared and the tension in the air was thick.

"I'd better go," she mumbled, throwing her bag over her shoulder.

She almost ran all the way out of the school and down the track, not stopping until she was completely out of the school grounds. She felt like kicking herself for being so silly. Andrew, no, Mr Jones had probably been trying to comfort her and she'd jumped on him like a stupid schoolgirl with a crush. She dragged her feet the rest of the way home and collapsed onto her bed when she was inside, pulling her duvet over her still-clothed body, she shut herself away from everyone else and cried herself to sleep.