The bell rang, freeing Tristan from the torture of poetic prose and brilliant minds that had died decades before.

“Tristan, may I have a word, please?” Miss Warren hindered his retreat. A few students eyed him as they brushed past and out the door. He turned sideways, letting the room clear before shuffling back into it. Miss Warren walked around her desk, smoothing down the back of her beige skirt and taking a seat.

He stood in front of her, his jaw clenched as his gaze traveled the front panel of her desk.

“What’s up?” His teacher rested her chin on her knuckles, settling in for a conversation Tristan didn’t really want to have.

He shrugged.

“Tristan Parker, you have a burden weighing you down. I have no idea what it is and it may not be my place to even ask. I’d love to refer you to the school counselor, but I have a sneaking suspicion you’d refuse to go.”

He pursed his lips, the sudden silence between them thick and awkward.

Miss Warren huffed out her nose and pulled a sheet of paper from underneath her planner. She slapped it on her desk, giving him a pointed look.

Tristan leaned forward to glimpse his Shakespeare test. A vivid F was circled in the top right corner.

“Explain to me how you can get an A+ in your assignment work and an F on the final test. Where were you last Monday?”

Tristan frowned and mumbled, “I was here.”

“Your body may have been here, but your mind certainly wasn’t.” Her eyebrows lifted, her stern expression giving him no comfort. “Do you have to catch the bus after school?”

“No, I’ve got my bike.”

“Good, then sit.” She pointed at a front row chair.

With a heavy sigh, Tristan slipped the bag off his shoulder and slumped into the desk.

“You know this’ll go much faster if you lose the scowl.” Miss Warren’s right eyebrow peaked as she dipped her head with a pointed warning.

His jaw worked to the side and he looked away from her, training his eyes on the door he desperately wanted to escape through.

“Now, I am willing to let you redo this test, claiming that sickness hindered you from success when you first did it. But before I offer that, I need to know if it’s worth the effort I will have to go through.”

His lips pulled into a straight line and after a long, slow beat he shook his head. “I can’t pass it.”

“Why?” She leaned forward, her gaze shifting to one of such sincere concern that Tristan felt his insides begin to fracture.

“I…” He swallowed, picking at the desktop and struggling to breathe past the rock in his throat.

“The girl who helped you with Romeo and Juliet. Is she still around?”

He nodded, then shook his head, his chin trembling.

“What happened?” His teacher’s voice dropped to a husky caress that yanked the truth right out of him.

“Her mother.” His laugh was dry and brittle. “She doesn’t want me to see her anymore. She’s kind of paranoid. She caught me over there and won’t let me back in. The woman’s psycho.”

“Is this friend of yours safe?” Miss Warren threaded her fingers together, an uneasy frown flashing over her expression.

Tristan didn’t know how to respond. If he said no, Miss Warren was the kind of teacher to take that stuff seriously. She’d be calling child services before he even left the school grounds. That could save Helena. She could go into foster care… She could…

Foster care?

Who the hell are you kidding?

Leaving that safe haven of hers would kill her. As much as he wanted to set her free, he didn’t want her drowning either.

Pressing his lips together, he forced a nod. “Yeah. Her mother loves her. They have a good relationship, I think.”

“So, maybe not so much psycho as overprotective?” Miss Warren’s elegant finger brushed beneath her chin, the silver ring on her middle finger catching Tristan’s eye. He stared at the intricate oval design. It reminded him of the vines wrapped around Helena’s tower.

“Yeah, you could say that,” he mumbled.

“I take it she doesn’t want some strange boy stealing her precious daughter away.” Miss Warren winked.

Tristan’s chuckle was hollow and raspy. “I’d never steal her. I just want to be with her. I miss her.”

Miss Warren’s gaze softened, her lips rising with sweet affection. She was no doubt swooning at the idea of young love.

Tristan blushed and looked back to the desktop.

“Young love has to be one of the most powerful forces on this planet.” Miss Warren chuckled. “Throw a little forbidden in there too and you’ve got something quite intoxicating.”

“Not being allowed to see her isn’t why I want her so much.”

Miss Warren tipped her head at Tristan’s desperate whisper. “Then why do you want her?”

“Because…” He raised his hand, then squeezed the back of his neck with a sigh. “She makes me feel happy and like I’m a good version of myself when I’m with her. She sees me, you know? I could tell her anything. I love that we can just sit and shoot the breeze for a whole afternoon and it’s like no time has passed. She inspires me and feels perfect in my arms—her sweet scent and candy lips…” His voice died off with a floaty whisper. The dreamy smile on Tristan’s lips lingered for a moment, until he caught Miss Warren’s delighted expression.

Jerking in his seat, he sat up and cleared his throat, his cheeks firing red. Miss Warren laughed softly, spinning the ring on her finger while he ducked his head and scratched the nonexistent itch between his eyebrows.

“You’ve got it pretty bad, I see.”

He shrugged.

“I can understand why this is tearing you apart.”

His lips pursed and he shook his head, his shoulders hitching again.

Miss Warren cleared her throat, the chair scraping on the floor as she stood. Her shoes clicked on the shiny surface as she walked around and took a seat at the desk beside him. “You know, Romeo and Juliet broke the rules to be together.”

Tristan scoffed. “And look what happened to them.”

“But look what they had before it fell apart.” Miss Warren smiled and then sighed. “I’m not trying to encourage you to break the rules and upset her mother, but sometimes we have to snatch whatever moments of happiness we can.” She rested her long fingers on her upper chest and gave it a little tap. “Just imagine if Juliet had locked herself away and ignored Romeo. She would have missed out on this pure, magical moment in her life—a sheer taste of happiness that was so compelling she just had to follow her heart.”

Tristan scratched his eyebrow, his lips dipping. “Sometimes I wonder if it’s best to not know what you’re missing.”

Miss Warren’s head tipped to the side, her fine sandy locks resting on her shoulder. “Do you really want to live your life that way, Tristan? Shuffling through it with blinders on, ignoring everything it has to offer?”

He shrugged, his lips pursing as he shook his head.

“Okay, let me put it this way.” She tapped her finger on the desk. “You are currently miserable and you need to do something to snap out of this stupor. If being with this girl makes you happy, which we both know it does, then you need to find a way to make that happen. Life is too short to waste on wishing. Sometimes you have to chase after what you want.”

He gave her a skeptical frown. “Even if it gets me in trouble?”

Miss Warren’s lips twitched. “Some things on this earth are worth fighting for, and I believe love is one of them. You’re not breaking any laws by pursuing this girl, are you?”

“Not unless her mother tries to get a restraining order against me.”

“Well, until she does, I suggest you make the most of it.” Miss Warren winked. “Be brave, Tristan. Go get your girl.” She nodded her chin towards the door. “And I’ll arrange for you to retake that test next week.”

With a slightly confused frown, he rose from his seat, shuffling out the door with a bemused grin.

Did that just happen?

He shook his head with a chuckle, his sneakers squeaking on the shiny floor as he made his way out past the last few stragglers and down the front steps of his school.