Page 1

Chapter 1

ROMAN

"Did you have a good summer break, Mr. Drake?"

I paused mid-word, glancing up at the owner of that breathy voice. I was exasperated and rapidly losing patience as Isobel stared at me from her seat at the front of my class. Her overly made-up eyes were focused on me, making her thick, fake eyelashes flutter like two moths against her lids.

This was the fourth time Isobel had interrupted my class by chiming in with another pointless question aimed at my personal life. It was starting to grate on me.

She licked her lips in what I'm sure she thought was a look of intimate seduction. Instead, she looked like a child licking a glob of red gunk off her mouth.

The class I was teaching was twelfth-grade Chemistry, so most students were either eighteen or on the cusp of reaching that milestone into what society deemed the start of adulthood. Theywere immature with an annoying sense of adult entitlement which they thought they'd earned since they were on the verge of leaving home, could consent to sex, and had the freedom of a driver's permit. But to me, they would always be children.

I loved teaching; truly, I did. The majority of students were a pleasure to teach. But a select few always liked to stir the pot for shits and giggles.

Speaking of giggles, Isobel's friend - who had been whispering and sending not-so-subtle elbow digs to Isobel - was giggling behind her hand as she eyed me. Like I said -children.

Isobel obviously felt emboldened by her merry follower to keep interrupting the class.

Too bad I ate disruptive students for breakfast.

"As you two insist on distracting the class from learning, please give everyone a brief rundown on the laws of thermodynamics."

Isobel's jaw dropped a fraction, and her face colored. Her friend inched slightly away, attempting to distance herself from Isobel's antics. But I wasn't in a forgiving mood.

"Both of you." I folded my arms as I glared at the cowering girls. The rest of the class hid smirks and stifled laughter behind coughs. "I've just spent the last twenty minutes going over this. Give me the first two laws."

I walked out from behind my desk and stood before their cowering forms. I watched them shift uncomfortably in their seats, both of them eyeing their closed textbooks and covertly attempting to open them. I sighed internally before unfolding my arms.

"Next time you choose to disrupt everyone else's learning, you'll be called upon to brief us on what we've missed. Am I clear?"

Isobel's eyes glassed over as she took in my stance. Her keen eyes skimmed over my black jeans and white polo shirt. She bither lip as her eyes swept and held their stare when they reached my biceps. "Y-yes, sir," she gushed.

I turned around and hid an eye roll as I strolled back to my desk. I picked up the whiteboard marker as I attempted to re-focus everyone.Again.

"Okay, can someone take us through -"

A small knock sounded on the open door - again interrupting my flow. I bit back another frustrated sigh. But before I could turn to the intruder, a soft, melodious voice penetrated the tense quiet of my classroom.

"I-is this Mr. Drake's Chem class?"

People have said they remember exactly what they were doing and wearing when a life-altering event occurred.

The birth of their child. When their partner proposed. The death of a loved one.

I've never had a significant occurrence unfold where I've wanted to take a snapshot of that exact moment. Something to retain in my memories so that when the smell of a particular scent or the sound of a familiar noise entered my sphere, I would be instantly transported to that precise moment when my world changed.

Lemon.

That's what I'd remember. As was my routine, I had wiped the tables down with lemon-scented surface wipes before class started.

The sound of my wall clock ticking and the hands pointing to nine and five.

Nine twenty-five AM.

The exact moment my world altered forever.

Black hair, the color of the sky on the darkest night. Cobalt blue eyes. The color of the sky on a warm, clear sunny day.