Taboo

Keywords: White, Trash, 03, Mouse, Ch.,

*Chapter Three: Predator and Prey*

It seemed, for awhile at least, that things had indeed returned to normal between the two of them. Rainer suffered only from the boredom of actually reading "Catcher in the Rye" so he would understand what Mouse was trying to explain to him. However, she was an astute teacher and he was pleased with the end result. Friday rolled around and it was time for the final test of their work together: Ms. Kowell.

Rainer set his ten page report down on her desk and then walked to his own desk and sat. Glancing to the side, he noticed Mouse writing something in her poetry notebook. He studied her for a long moment, grinning when he noticed the color of the pen: bright tangerine. Rainer liked the quirky colors she chose to write in. As if she felt him looking, Mouse lifted her head and glanced over at him. She gave him a faint smile, then went back to writing.

"So, class," Ms. Kowell said, standing up from behind her desk. "Today is the big day. Time to see if Mr. Aceto actually managed to complete his assignment the way he was supposed to. Open up "Pride and Prejudice" and please start reading while I...look this over."

Groaning inwardly, Rainer reached for the copy of "Pride and Prejudice" that sat on his desk and opened it. Looks like I might just be keeping Mouse on as my tutor, he thought as he stumbled over the first few lines on the page. I don't understand this stuff the way she does. Looking over at her once more, he saw that she had opened the book and was leaning back, reading quickly. No doubt absorbing every last word, from what Rainer had seen over the last week.

"Mr. Aceto," Ms. Kowell said sharply. "What is this?"

Rainer looked up and blinked. "My essay."

"I know that!" Ms. Kowell snapped. "You could not have possibly written this! Who did it for you?"

"No one," Rainer told her, frowning.

"Don't lie to me, Mr. Aceto," Ms. Kowell said. "I know what your abilities are and they do not include-"

"He wrote it himself," Mouse interrupted suddenly.

Ms. Kowell narrowed her eyes. "Excuse me?"

"He wrote it himself," Mouse repeated. "I explained it to him and helped him to express his thoughts, but the work is all his."

The class was silent and all of them were staring open mouthed at Mouse. It was so unlike her to speak up in class unless forced to, and she never interrupted a teacher. Is she...standing up for me? Rainer wondered, staring at her in amazement. She is! Her large, liquid brown eyes were narrowed on Ms. Kowell, as if daring her to argue. When Ms. Kowell turned and sat back down at her desk, the class seemed to let out a collective sigh, and returned to their books.

Shy, mysterious little Mouse, Rainer thought, studying her curiously. She always put her hair up in a ponytail, although he could see that she had springy banana curls, and she always wore her glasses, too. Under her far too big clothing, he knew, there was soft skin and very nice legs. Rainer could bet she had quite a nice body beneath that oversized t-shirt. And she stood up for me, she helped me, he thought, smiling slightly. I think it's time for me to find out more about sweet little Mouse.

*****

Mouse settled down on the couch with a sigh. Her parents were out with friends, it was Friday, and she had the place all to herself. She had to do something about dinner soon, but she really wasn't in the mood for another can of Spaghetti-Oh's. Setting her head on the arm of the couch and propping her feet on the opposite arm, she relax. Mouse was just closing her eyes when the doorbell rang, startling her. Grumbling, she climbed off the couch and went to answer the door.

She was much surprised to find Rainer standing in the doorway. He was holding up his essay paper and there was a big grin on his face. A minus, Mouse thought, studying the paper with raised eyebrows. That's damn impressive, I'm the only one in her class who usually gets As.

"Is it okay for me to be here?" Rainer asked. "I wanted to see you. I thought we could celebrate, if your parents don't mind."

"Um, they're out, actually," Mouse answered quietly. "I mean...I suppose you could come in for a bit..."

"Great!" Rainer exclaimed, stepping inside.

What am I doing? Mouse wondered. It's Friday night, I'm home alone, and I'm letting a guy in my house. She eyed him as he walked into the living room, wondering what he had been up to. Clinging, wet finish leather pants and an equally clingy, somewhat sheer mesh shirt of dark crimson, looked like party clothes. Oh, man, Mouse thought. Hot guy in hot outfit shows up and my parents aren't home. I think my innocence is going out the window. She chewed anxiously on her knuckle, not sure what to do.

"So, have you eaten yet?" Rainer asked, leaning against the back of the couch.

"Um, no," Mouse replied. "Haven't really been able to work up the desire to heat up my Spaghetti-Oh's."

Rainer chuckled. "Well, then, we'll order out. My treat. What would you like?"

"Well, there's this great pizza place that delivers..." Mouse began.

"Say no more," Rainer interrupted, grinning. "Where's the phone?"

Mouse pointed into the kitchen to where the phone was mounted on the wall. As Rainer called up the pizza place, she sat down on the couch, tilting her head back and groaning inwardly. I thought this had passed, she thought. I thought he was just Rainer again, but he's...damn. Mouse straightened when Rainer came back into the room and sat next to her.

"I ordered some Coke and breadsticks, too," He told her. "Half an hour, they said. Not bad for a Friday night."

"Definitely," Mouse agreed.

It was a frightening thing, sitting next to him. She reached for the T.V. remote and flicked the T.V. on. Flipping through the channels, she browsed for something decent to watch. Mouse wasn't a big fan of T.V. since there was rarely anything interesting on.

"Oh, 'Pretty Woman' is on," Rainer pointed out. "I love that movie. Richard Gere is so cool."

Mouse snorted. "Oh, I'm sure you like the movie because of Richard Gere."

"The man looks good in Armani," Rainer said defensively. "And uh...Julia Roberts is pretty hot in this movie, too."

"That's what I thought," Mouse said, grinning.

"Oh, just put the damn movie on," Rainer grumbled.

Mouse chuckled and changed the channel. The movie was just beginning, and it was on a movie channel. That meant no editing or censoring. She wasn't certain how comfortable she was watching a movie like this with Rainer. Mouse glanced sideways at him, but he seemed completely relaxed. This is bad, she thought. No good can come of this.

*****

Mouse's eyes were intent upon the T.V. Rainer's eyes were intent upon Mouse. He shifted between watching her eat, the way her lips parted slightly before she took a bite and the way she licked them clean of sauce, and staring at her long, bare legs. She was sitting on the floor, leaning against the couch. Rainer was sitting on the couch, which he felt was safe. Being too close to her right now was going to drive him mad. He was already going mad, between the images on the screen, and her presence.

Rainer shifted uncomfortably on the couch. He wanted another slice of pizza, but it was out of his reach, sitting on the floor near the T.V. Grumbling, he slid down off the couch, and stretched across the floor to grab another piece. It was really good, just as Mouse had said. Sitting back, he settled on the floor next to her, and nibbled at the slice of pizza. Another steamy part was starting up on the screen, making Rainer squirm, uncomfortable.

"Geez," Mouse muttered, licking sauce from her fingers. "This is like, so overblown. No one does that on a piano."

"Why not?" Rainer asked. "Kinda looks like fun..."

"It's a piano!" Mouse stammered.

Rainer wasn't certain, because the room was dark, but he could have sworn she was blushing. His eyes kept drifting towards her and he found himself wishing he hadn't had pizza for dinner. Garlic breath, Rainer thought, rubbing his head. At least I'm not alone in that. He inched closer to her, watching, studying the slight part of her lips as she watched the movie. What is it about her that does this to me? he wondered. She's small and mousy and stubborn and...oh god, don't do that... She had her finger in her mouth, suckling away the last traces of sauce.

"Mouse?" Rainer called softly.

"Mm?" She murmured, turning to face him.

Rainer reached out, his fingertips brushing her cheek gently. His gaze trailed along her lips, watching the way they parted temptingly. Allowing his hand to drop to her shoulder, he leaned forward and kissed her gently. Rainer felt her surprise, felt the way her body stiffened. He pulled back to find her regarding him with wide eyes.

"I'm sorry," Rainer said softly.

Mouse stared at him for long moments, still wide-eyed, and silent. He waited, breathless, for some sort of response. When she did respond, it wasn't quite what he'd expected. Rainer shivered as she rested her hand against his chest and leaned forward, bringing her mouth timidly to his. He slid his hand up from her shoulder to the back of her neck, cradling her as he allowed her to shyly explore his lips. Her awkward, timid attempts were such a turn on that he could only brace himself, forcing himself not to make a move.

When she pulled back at last, Rainer let out a soft sigh. This is strange territory, he thought. Not that he hadn't kissed girls before. He'd done more than kissing, that was for sure. But Mouse was different. He saw a spark of vibrant personality that she didn't show around others. Rainer tugged at a strand of her hair that had come loose from her ponytail and she laughed softly. Trailing his finger down her cheek and along her neck, he felt her shiver slightly.

Rainer wasn't quite certain how it happened, but moments later they were on the floor, Mouse pinned beneath him. He slid his hand beneath her shirt, just enough to rest it against her stomach gently. His teeth nibbled gently at her earlobe; he appreciated the little noises she made when he did it.

Keywords: White, Trash, 03, Mouse, Ch.,