Lessons of Love [Part 5]

          Norah stood in front of her closet still clad in her plush lilac bath robe with her hands on her hips trying to figure out what to where. It was the day of their date so she decided to be a little mean. She pulled out her black silk and lace camisole, and her skinny ripped jeans that hugged her curves better than any other pair she owned. She debated on wearing her black sweater but decided against it. After she finally decided on her outfit, she sat at her vanity to do simple smoky eye makeup with a soft nude lipstick; she ran her straightener through her hair before pulling her dark locks into a high ponytail and letting the branches from her cherry tree on her back peek out from her camisole. She grabbed her heeled ankle boots and slipped them on before grabbing her backpack, spritzing her rose perfume on, and walking out the door to class.


          Matthew walked up to the classroom, noticing the lights were on inside, which was unusual when he got there. He took a peek inside the window and saw Norah sitting at her new desk in front of his, doing her homework and looking down right mesmerizing. He took a couple more moments to admire her, how her hair was falling around her shoulders like a waterfall cascading down a Cliffside. The denim of her jeans clung to her, accentuating her perfectly toned legs.
          He finally cleared his throat before turning the door knob and entering the room. Norah's head popped up as he closed the door behind him and she flashed him a mischievous smiled before leaning back in her desk chair, allowing him to notice her silk and lace top.

          "You're early." He said, his dry throat making his voice crack slightly.
          "Yeah I had a few things I wanted to catch up on. I have a hot date tonight and I don't want to have any homework." She responded with a playfully seductive tone as she stood up and walked over to him. Without another word, he took her into his arms and crashed his lips against hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck returning his kiss, causing the butterflies to stir up in her stomach again. The dangerous game they were playing with their morning meetings in the classroom gave both of them a rush, this morning it was more intense than it had been the last couple of days. Norah's perfume intoxicated Matthew as he backed her up until she was sitting on his desk, their kiss deepening as Norah parted her lips to allow Matthew to slip his tongue in her mouth and swirl around. When Matthew finally broke their kiss, Norah crossed her arms and pouted.

          "You're so adorable Norah. I missed you my darling." He said as he brushed a strand of hair out of her face.
          "Well if you missed me that bad, why didn't you come see me?" She asked as her cheeks flushed light pink.
          "For the same reason that you're here early, I didn't want to have anything I had to do other than take you out and show you off." They shared several more kisses before it was time for them to separate and act normal.

          After class let out, Norah was walking back to her dorm to finish up her homework when she was suddenly jerked into an empty classroom. She could feel the throbbing pain deep in her muscles from the manly hand gripping her upper arm. She was thrown up against the wall before she was pinned up by her throat. She finally got a good look and saw it was Kenny.
          "Where's your boyfriend to protect you now." He asked maliciously as his lips curled up into a smile. He still had a deep bruise on his eye and jaw from where Matthew struck him. His fingers tightened up around her throat, not enough to cut off her air way but enough to cause discomfort before slapping her across the face and throwing her into the row of desks close to her.
         Norah's vision went blurry as the side of her head caught the corner of a desk and her face stung deeply as she grabbed the desk beside her to pull herself up. She shrieked in pain as Kenny grabbed her hair and threw her against the wall again, pinning her against the wall by her throat again. Despite the pain shooting up from her ribs, she let out a deep laugh.
          "What's so fucking funny?" He spat, tightening his grip.
          "He'll know who did this. I'd suggest running far away." She choked through his grip, an ice cold smile turning her lips upward.
          Kenny cursed before removing his hand and landing a solid punch to her face, letting her fall to the ground before walking out the door.

          Matthew was walking towards Norah's dorm when he noticed an empty classroom with the desks knocked over and in disarray. When he walked into the classroom, he spotted Norah curled up with blood on the floor around her.
          "Norah!" He exclaimed as he dropped his bag immediately and rushed over to her. He gently brushed the hair out of her face, noticing the injury to her cheek. His blood started to boil, but when he heard a soft moan escape her lips, all his attention focused back to her.
          "My darling I'm so sorry.." He trailed off as he carefully scooped her up into his arms and rushed her back to her dorm where Autumn could help him.
          "It.. was.. Kenny.." She spoke in weak intervals before slipping out of consciousness in his arms.
          Matthew clutched her tighter as his pace quickened. He told himself to make sure Norah was okay and then go hunt down the bastard responsible for harming his goddess. When he reached the dorm, he shifted Norah in his arms to be able to pound on the door. Autumn opened the door in a hurry and let out an audible gasp when she saw Norah.
          "What the fuck happened?!" She yelled as she cleared off Norah's comforter and laid a towel under her.
          "I have no idea! I found her in an empty classroom and brought her here!" He answered as Autumn grabbed her nursing kit and bringing it over to Norah.
          "Who ever did this better be long gone." Autumn mumbled angrily as she started to clean Norah's face of blood. Matthew remembered what Norah said before she faded out and almost put his fist through the wall.
          "I know exactly who did this. I'll be back." He said coldly before kissing the top of Norah's head. Autumn studied his face before nodding in agreement. "You better come back before she wakes up. You will be the first one she's going to want to see." Autumn said as she clipped up the fallen pieces of Norah's ponytail out of the way.


          "Damnit it Matt, was there anything of him left??" Norah heard Autumn shriek through the wave of fogginess. She wanted to open her eyes but her eyelids felt 10 pounds each. Every breath felt like agony and her head was pounding like a drum. Norah continued to lay there and listen to her dorm mate and her boyfriend bicker.
          "I threw a few for you too Autumn. Thank you for patching her up. I should have walked her back here. I shouldn't have left her alone.." Norah could hear him choke back his emotion.
          "Matt, she's okay.. She's sleeping and alive." Autumn responded gently.
          "What do her injuries look like?" He asked softly.
          "Well, from what I can tell, she has a bruise on her side but no broken ribs luckily, a gash on her cheek and a serious black eye, but that's just what I could tell. When she wakes up, we'll know more."
          Norah felt a warm tear slip past her closed eyes as she listened to them talk more. She heard the window open and a lighter being flicked on, then smelled the familiar scent of Autumn's secret smoke stash. "I feel like you need this more than I do.." She said as she coughed a bit then moments later Norah heard Matthew cough.
          "You're right I do." He said as he lifted the joint to his lips and inhaled once more.
          Her lips turned upwards as she heard them hanging out. Finally Norah's eyes slowly opened and glanced around their dimly lit dorm. She left out a painful cough as she tried to take in a breath, her ribs and throat rejecting the idea, causing both Matthew and Autumn to rush over to Norah.
          "Norah darling, how do you feel?" Matthew asked as he sat beside her and grabbed her hand gently.
          "Like I just got my ass kicked.." She trailed off as she flashed a weak playful smile. Matthew chuckled as he cupped the uninjured side of her face. "I shouldn't have let you go alone.." He said as he leaned down and kissed her forehead.
          "You didn't know this was going to happen my dear." Norah responded as she reached up and stroked his cheek.
          "I want you to come stay in my dorm for a little while. Just a week or so, so I know you're okay."
          Norah chuckled as she caught Autumn doing a little dance and giving her two thumbs up before nodding her head in agreement with Matthew. "I'm sure Autumn will pack you a bag too." He flashed a smile at Autumn before returning his attention to Norah, leaning down and kissing her lips delicately.

          Matthew opened his door with Norah in his arms again. She noticed he had a single dorm that was close to a one bedroom apartment. He walked over to the couch and set her down softly. "Can I get you anything?" He asked as he removed his jacket and tossing over the back of his recliner.
          Norah shook her head softly before letting her eyes study him. His black hair was messier than it usually was, he had a small bruise forming on his jawline and his bottom lip was split. Her eyes widened as she finally rested her eyes on his hands. They were both wrapped up in fresh gauze bandages. The dark gray button down and slacks he had on was slightly torn.
          "Matthew, what happened while I was unconscious..?" She asked softly as he walked over to the couch and sat beside her. His eyes were filled with a mixture of sadness and a fierce intensity.
          "After I left you with Autumn, I went and found the son of a bitch that did this to you. It was honestly too easy to find him. I beat the ever living hell out of him because he hurt someone I truly care about.." He reached forward, cupping the uninjured side of her face and stroking her cheek with his thumb. Norah's eyes fluttered closed as she rested her head in his palm, her heart was pounding in her chest by just the simple touch of his hand. "Norah, I want you to look at me." His voice was closer to her than before, so she opened her eyes and found herself face to face with him.
          "Yes?" She squeaked out, her face turning slight pink of both embarrassment and the proximity between them.
          "I won't let anyone hurt you again. I swear. I think.. I think I may be falling in love with you Norah."
          "I think I'm falling in love with you too.." Norah responded before she reached around to knot her fingers in his hair and pull him closer to her to crush her lips onto his.
          Matthew broke the kiss long enough to sit comfortably on the couch and place her in his lap and arms. Matthew cupped her face once more, bringing her lips back to him. Her lips were like a drug to him, he couldn't seem to ever get his mind off of her kisses. Parting her lips, his tongue slipped into her mouth and explored around, swirling in a dance with her tongue. She reached up and knotted her fingers in his dark, thick hair and pulled herself closer to him. His breath tasted like cinnamon gum and she couldn't get enough. She felt like he was breathing life into her soul.
          Matthew slowly unbuttoned her sleep shirt and slipped it off her shoulders, leaving her in her pants and sports bra. He noticed the softball sized bruise that was wrapping around her side and grit his teeth. Sensing his anger, she leaned over to slowly start kissing his neck and jawline. "Don't let that affect this.." She whispered softly in his ear between kisses. A low groan escaped his lips as her soft lips worked up and down, he cupped her face to bring her attention to his. Her hair was still in a ponytail, so he reached up and removed her ponytail holder, letting her long dark locks fall around her shoulders. In his eyes, she was his own personal goddess. His angel. Norah let out a small yelp as he swiftly stood up with her in his arms, and he walked towards his bedroom.