Try To Change Me

Chapter 21

Mr Irving pressed his foot down on the clutch, swiftly shifting up a gear. He could feel Ms Smith watching him, feel the silence weighing heavily on his shoulders, and he squirmed.

"Yes Ella?" Anthony snapped. Instantly he regretted it. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head, orange curls raining into her eyes, and looked away quickly. "Don't be. This is very... stressful for all of us."

Anthony frowned at her. His hand drifted from the wheel, catching hers lightly in his and gave it a soft squeeze. "That's no excuse."

A few rows behind them, leaning against the side of the van moodily, Carrissa made a gagging gesture. Angling her head away, she rolled her eyes.

Hazmat snorted at her, leaning into the aisle of the bus. "Are we there yet?"

"Obviously not," Mr Irving snapped, continuing under his breath, "You deranged half-wit."

with a light chuckle, Ms Smith glanced out her window

"Finnegan?" Coach asked as he stopped at a set of lights, "Where am i heading?"

The boy jerked upright. "Um, yeah. Just keep going straight and turn left at that big corporate building."

"Which one?"

Finn shrugged. "The one on the left."

Ms Smith gasped suddenly, her eyes fixing on the side of the road. Two black sedans were angled onto the footpath, motors running. and she jerked away from them.

"What's the matter?" Mr Irving asked, dropping her hand and raising his knuckles to her cheek. "Are you ok?"

Forcing a smile, Ella laid her hand over his. She spoke through her teeth; "Don't react. I think I can see suits."

Anthony stroked her cheek. "Are they watching?"

"i don't know, but they're facing this way," She reached into the back as if looking for her bag. Instead, she glared at the others. "Get down and stay down. As of now, you are not in this van."

Turning back to the road, she glanced briefly at the red light and then pulled a compact out of her pocket. she checked her makeup and settled back into her seat. Mr Irving clutched her hand again.

"If they connected Maggie to us, they might be looking for the van," he murmured, very deliberatly keeping his head angled away from the cars. Ella glanced at them again, carefully not focusing, but saw no movement.

"Do you think...?" She drifted off, meeting his eyes. They were intense, drilling into hers, and she gulped suddenly.

Mr Irving took a deep breath. "Go with me on this."

Leaning forward, he removed a hand from the steering wheel and slipped it behind Ella's neck, drawing her closer to him. a few centimetres from her lips, he hesitated, his eyes darting from her eyes to her lips. For a moment Anthony wondered what the hell he was doing, why he was in this position. Then Ella closed the gap, pressing her lips to his, and all his thoughts were forgotten. All he could feel was her lips on his, as his hand slid from her neck to her cheek, tangling in the hair beside her temple.

There was a loud honk, and Mr Irving jerked away, trying to look sheepish as he drove through the intersection. In truth, he was hiding a furious blush that was eating at his cheeks. He couldn't believe he just did that.

Carrissa coughed loudly and Ms Smith stared out the window, hiding her embarrassment by studying the passing trees. She fisted her hands in her lap just to stop them from drifting to her lips.