"There ain't no sunshine, no sunshine where I was before. But I found the love, the warmth in your arms. Won't you come closer, let it take over. I don't need anything; I just want you."

••

"Yeah, I applied some Icy Hot on the area so, she will be fine after a while." The slender nurse assures Nikolai. She is one of Camber High's designated nurses, who they had asked to accompany them in case of any emergency.

"Alright. As long as she'll be okay." Mr. Todd stares at a sleeping Kelly from the doorway of the small room. She is lying against the white bedlinen with her mouth parted agape.

His lips pull back in a soft smile at the sight, and the nurse tilts her head to the side as she stares at him with interest.

Surely, it appears weird for him to be staring at his student with that smirk plastered on his mouth.

He knows this too, so when he senses her curious gaze, he clears his throat and looks away.

"Let her rest and give me a call when she wakes up. I'll come for her." He tells the lady, who gives him a pleasant smile with a polite nod of her head.

Her eyes are shielded with a pair of thin-rimmed glasses, but it doesn't miss Nikolai's perception the way they twinkle with admiration.

This isn't a rare occurrence. Women tend to boldly swoon over him whenever they come in contact with him. He likes to pretend not to see sometimes. And so, with a brief nod of his head, he turns away and leaves her workstation.

As soon as he arrives outside, he is met with the cold night air, an atmosphere reeked of rain, and a feminine voice, calling out to him from behind.

With hands stuffed into his pockets, he whirls around to see Ms. Smith sauntering up to him. A slanted smile is hanging on her lips, and her eyelids are swollen as though she has been crying.

Her bouncy hair dances in the wind as she comes to a stop in front of him.

"Is she alright?" She asks, her mild perfume surrounding them.

The earlier anger toward her returns tenfold, and Nikolai supplies a curt nod as he begins to walk away.

"Nikolai." She frowns.

When he fails to halt his strides, she hastens to catch up to him and steps into his pathway.

He sighs as he comes to an abrupt stop, hands still jammed into his pants as he puffs air from his cheeks. "What is this?"

"What is what?" She drops her shoulders.

"This. What are you doing?"

She opens her mouth, but he cuts her off. "I thought I told you. I don't date my coworkers."

"Just listen." She presses. "I-I am sorry I called her dumb. I allowed my emotions to get the best of me, and that was wrong as a teacher. I won't let it happen again."

"Okay." He tries to walk around her, but she promptly blocks his path, causing another sigh to generate from him.

"Fine. I admit. I was jealous of her. I was jealous because I kept seeing you two together. She's a cute girl, and I fear you'd see that and—"

"Put your feelings aside. You're my colleague. We work together, and that is all it's ever going to be." Nikolai blows his cheeks out, the heavy wind flurrying his hair into his eyes. "If you keep this up...I don't think we can be acquaintances anymore, Ms. Jade."

"So that's it? You don't have even an ounce of feelings for me?"

He stares at her in confusion. He has never done anything to suggest that, so why would she even consider that possibility in the first place? He's befuddled.

"No. I have no such feelings for you. Please let our relationship remain professional. That's all I ask of you. Have a good night." And with that, he walks past her.

She blinks her eyes as she freezes in her stance, the clear rejection taking a moment to sink in. When she finally comes to terms with it, her bottom lip trembles as she presses a palm over her mouth, allowing the cold tears to drain down her face.

••

"I am so sorry, Kelly. This is all my fault." Derrick sighs in remorse as he sits by his best friend's bedside. Regret and guilt hemmed on his face. If he weren't so busy chasing behind Gabriella, he would have been around to ensure her safety.

Kelly frowns and fans him off dismissively. "No way; how was it? It was not. It was that woman's fault..." She crinkles her nose in enmity.

"Woman?" His eyebrows furrow in confusion. "Which woman?"

"Never mind that. What did you bring for me?" She lifts her eyelids as she peeps over into the black plastic bag he's holding.

He smiles and takes out a pack of skittles and a small box of milk from the carrier. Kelly grabs the beverage from him and pops the straw off the back of it.

"You can have the skittles. I don't eat sweets anymore."

"Really? Why?" His voice is stifled as he uses his teeth to rip the end of the bag. A few of the sweets scatter on the tiles, and he frowns, bending over to pick them up.

Kelly jabs the straw on her thigh to get it from the plastic, then scrunches her face up as Derrick blows on the ones he found and shoves them into his mouth.

"What? It's the ten-seconds rule." He grins.

"Whatever. I stopped because I promised Mr. Todd that I would." She answers in a softer tone.

"Oh. Speaking of which, he looked so nervous when I told him you were lost. The man was on the verge of a panic attack while he was rounding up the teachers." Derrick smiles suggestively. "I think your feelings for him will be reciprocated very soon enough."

Kelly's eyes almost pop from their sockets while the straw sits lazily between her lips. "Feelings? I have no such feelings for him; I think you have mistaken."

"Come on. I see the way you look at him." He waggles his eyebrows.

She smacks him on his arm, causing him to wince in mock pain. "You don't see anything. Shut it. Aren't you tired? Go back to your room; I want to be alone."

"No, I am not leaving you." He insists, throwing one of the candies in the air and catching it in his mouth.

Kelly's childishness kicks in and she sits upright. "Woah. How'd you do that? Let me try it."

He drops one of them in her palm and she tosses it up, then slants her head back and catches it on the flat of her tongue.

"Woah, you learn fast." Derrick ruffles her hair, and she chuckles.

"You're awake." A voice comes from the doorway, and the two teens turn their heads in the direction.

Nikolai is standing there. Arms crossed against his torso as he leans against the wooden sill. He's now garbed in grey trousers and a white cotton sweater. The color brightens his chocolate eyes and makes them even more compelling under the bright ceiling lights.

"Sir." She says, surprised he came back. She was not expecting him to return after he had already taken her here.

"I see you've eaten." He mentions, referring to the carton of milk she is holding.

Derrick looks between the two people, and a soft smile appears on his mouth as he gets up. "Well, I have to help Henry with something so, I will check up on you later, Kelly."

She wants to tell him to stay, fearing being alone with Nik, but as she opens her mouth, she closes it back. Not sure how to bring that message across.

"Goodnight sir," Derrick lifts his hand to Nikolai, who only nods briefly as he squeezes past him to leave.

The room is now uncomfortably quiet, and Kelly is feeling awkward. Her educator is not saying anything either which makes it even more unbearable. To cope, she stares at the label on the milk box.

100% Dairy, Contains Calories...

"The nurse says you can leave now," he finally speaks, redeeming her from the torture. "She gave you a small tube of Icy Hot to use later. After you shower." He slips his hand into his pants and retrieves the white tube.

He tosses it to her, and she catches it easily into her open palms.

"Let's go." Is all he says before he turns away.

••

"Are you sure, Kelly?"

"Yeah, I got it." She tells Nikolai as she comes to a pained stop at her room door. She can hardly walk on her injured foot, and he has been countlessly offering to assist her. However, she prefers to walk on her own. She doesn't want to appear dependent.

As she stands in front of the electronic door leading to her shared room, she remembers a valid point. During her impulsive decision to depart from the resort, she had left her door pass on the nightstand before leaving the room.

"Is there something wrong?" Mr. Todd bends his head a little, noticing that she has been motionlessly standing for a while now. The aisle is freezing, and the rain has started on the outside.

"Um..." She looks at him sheepishly. "I left my room pass inside. So, I am locked out."

"Oh..." He lifts a hand to rub the back of his head. "Try knocking."

She nods and turns toward the door again, knocking a few times. Gabriella and Tiana are the type of girls to ignore her even when they know she needs assistance. Therefore, it is useless trying to get them to open the door at this time of the night, and Surrey could care less about anyone outside of herself, Instagram, and cherry-flavored tootsie pops.

"It's almost 11:00 pm, so they're probably asleep. Most of the resort is." Nikolai confirms.

Kelly turns to him. "What am I going to do then?"

"Mm..." He looks away for a while, tugging at his earlobe and contemplating. "Would you like to spend the night in my room?" He meets her gaze again, seeing the immediate change in her skin tone. She is blushing again.

"Sir...I don't think—"

"You're right. I am sorry." He dismisses the thought, but Kelly cannot resist such a tempting offer. The night? At his room? Just the two of them?

He begins to dip into his picket. "I'll try to call Ms. Peterson and see if she would—"

"Okay." She quickly blurts out, wanting to stop him from solving the problem. Admittedly for her, this isn't a problem at all. "I could stay the night at your room...if that would be okay..."

Nikolai slowly removes his hand from his pants, shifting a little. He is getting discomforted. In several places...

"Okay, let's go then."

She awkwardly smiles as he turns around and begins to lead the way down the hall.

••

The familiar noise resounds in the quiet hallway as the door unlocks. Inside is dark and smells like him. She wonders how he manages to dispatch his scent all over the room in the space of two days. Her room smells of new leather and fresh sheets. His smell just like him.

"Come on in." He tells her, leaving the door open for her to follow him.

She does so hesitantly and closes it upon her entry. The room is warm and cozier than hers, though the interior is the same.

He curls his fingers under his sweater and drags it over his head, and Kelly watches him from behind as he does this. He is now only wearing a white tank top as he turns around to face her.

He smiles a little, but the darkness camouflages it. "Why are you just standing there, Kelly?"

"Oh." She snaps back to reality and walks further into the space, her palms becoming clammy for some reason.

Nikolai figures she feels weird with the lights off, so he flips the switch on the wall, and the room comes alive.

And so does his flawless face. Kelly finds it unfair that one man could be this handsome. He cannot be human.

"You can take a shower if you like." He tells her.

"Um, yeah...but Derrick took my backpack up to my room, so I don't have my clothes to put on..." She fools with the end of her sweater.

Her teacher's observant eyes slump to the action, and his lips twitch.

"Oh, yeah. Well, would you like one of my shirts?" He offers.

Kelly's head snaps up so fast she almost got whiplash. "Sir?"

"I could lend you a shirt. Would you want that?"

"Yes, thank you." She agrees.

"Wait right here." He turns away and disappears inside a room.

She glances around the area as she waits for him to return. When he does, he's holding a folded white T-shirt in his hand.

"My shorts are too big for you. But my T-shirts are long enough to be a dress. Hope that's fine?" He hands it to her, and she nods.

"Yes, Sir. Thank you."

"Bathroom is the second door over there." He points toward it, and she follows his finger before nodding again. But she is already aware of this since the bathrooms are situated at the same place in all the rooms.

She trots her way to the lavatory while Nikolai moves toward the kitchen area.

The bathrooms at this resort get her every time. They are spacious and inevitably luxurious, with nature-like designs that makes it feel as though she is outdoor next to a river of some sort.

She quickly strips out of her dirty clothes and opens the shower door. Switching the faucet on, she begins to wash up quickly.

The water feels refreshing as it trickles down her back, but this entire situation feels weird. Spending the night in a room with Nik has her heart flipping, and racing, and doing odd antics in her chest. He's her teacher; he won't cross the line. She knows this, but that doesn't mollify the apprehension.

When she's through, she gets out and dries off, then gets dressed in his T-shirt and slip her black biker shorts back on. He was right; his shirt is huge, stopping a little above her knees. She walks out of the bathroom, realizing that he's now inside the bedroom. She enters to see him standing by his bedside, his phone in his hand and...shirtless.

Her cheeks become redder than they have ever been before. The room lights are dim now, and the rain droplets sliding down the transparent window reflects on his chest as he stares down at the device with scrunched eyebrows.

This man has to work out 24/7 to attain such strong arms.

She clears her throat and drops her gaze, and he looks up, the light from his cell illuminating his face. But he isn't surprised by the fact that she's seeing him without a shirt. It is not the first, neither is it the second time.

"Oh, you're done." He says as he places his cellphone on the nightstand.

She nods her head.

Then silence falls upon them. Just the roar of the thunder on the outside. The weather could easily become a thunderstorm at this rate.

Nikolai emits a soft sigh and walks over to where she is. She watches him from beneath her wet lashes as he comes to a stop in front of her, easing his hands into his pockets.

"I don't like nonverbal communications, Kelly, but I am letting this slide because I am still apologetic for what happened today."

She bites her lip and grips the end of his shirt.

His shoulders lift in an exhale, and he removes one of his hands to grip her chin, tilting her head back. "Still mad at me?"

She shakes her head. "No..." She swallows. "Sir," she quickly adds.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, sir..."

"You don't convince me." He states. "You're not looking at me, for one."

That's not because she's mad at him, but because he isn't wearing a shirt. Yet he's so close.

He releases her chin. "Look at me, Kelly?" He says it like a question, and she hesitates a bit before finally lifting her head, meeting his eyes.

They are so breathtaking that she has to intake a glob of air. Unable to keep up, she lowers her gaze again.

Nikolai is satisfied with that, however, and takes the white towel from around her neck.

She looks up in confusion as he begins to ruffle her hair with it, drying it. He offers a reason. "You were out in the cold for so long today; I wouldn't want you getting sick."

Blood rushes all over her face, making her earlobes warm. The thoughtful gesture has her heart racing in her chest at an unhealthy pace. Would he do this for all his students? Or just her? It's driving her crazy to know.

When he is sure her hair is dry, he walks away to the bathroom while she goes to put her worn clothes in a white bag he left on the bed. Most likely for her.

She perches against the navy sheets as she grabs the ointment from the skirt she took off. She unscrews the lid and rubs some of it onto the pad of her forefinger. Then she crouches over to try and apply it to the sore area.

"Here, let me help you, Kelly." His presence appears above her, and she cranes her neck to look up at him.

"Would you want me to?" He confirms.

She nods, and he sits against the bed next to her. She straightens up as he takes the tube from her hands.

"It says a small amount," she tells him.

"Yeah, I know." He holds her leg and hoists it onto his lap, and her eyes widen uneasily.

"Sir."

"Yes?" His voice is laced with amusement as he opens the tube and rubs his finger on the top.

She gulps down the anxiety and leans back on her palms. "N-nothing."

He looks down to hide his smile as he puts the white cream on the sore spot. He uses the flat of his palm to massage it in, trying his hardest not to stare at her appealing leg in the process. She does have a pair of attractive thighs, sexier than all the women's, he encountered in the past.

The stretch marks, the beauty marks...he notices them all. And he loves them. He wouldn't admit that to anyone but himself, though.

Kelly unnoticeably squirms in discomfort. It's happening again. That darn sensation between her legs. She tries to block the weird feeling out by focusing on something else. Anything. She opts for his arm, but that's a wrong move.

The muscles on Nikolai's bicep bulge and flex as he works in the lotion on her ankle. It doesn't hurt, but even if it had, she wouldn't be able to feel anything, as the sensation from his touch would null it all out.

It always does that to her. Although he's touching an innocent area, it feels so seductive. She's certain that he is not doing that on purpose. He's just skilled when it comes to things like this; perhaps a masseuse wouldn't be such an unfitting occupation for the likes of him.

As he continues to tend to her injury, the odd sensation in her lady area grows even more urgent, demanding her earnest attention. The thing just won't go away no matter how hard she tries to block it out. She shifts a little, her thighs drawing a bit closer, and Nikolai notices her weird antics and looks up.

"Does it hurt?"

She shakes her head, her face flushed.

He continues, and she shuts her eyes. God, go away, goddamnit! For some reason, his touch begins to get even gentler, and she cannot withstand it anymore.

Abruptly, she drags her foot away and clenches her thighs together. "I am okay now, sir."

He looks up at her, a bit confused. "I wasn't done applying—"

"It's okay. It feels better to me." She reaches over to take the tube from him, and he notices her shaking hands.

"You okay?" He worries.