24

Tom caught a glimpse of Adrian as he passed in the hall, smiling under a waterfall of dark hair. He still couldn't believe that this guy was his hero. Deep down he'd known King Cold wasn't a girl. He didn't speak in a feminine manner or act like a girl. Pretending he thought the streamer was a girl was a ploy to stop his mates from calling him gay.

'As if they don't hero-worship big sweaty men on the football field,' Tom thought.

He wasn't trying to act like a creepy stalker when he wandered over to Adrian's locker and stood, staring like a lunatic as the lad piled books into the shelf and slammed the door.

Adrian looked at him and frowned.

"Can I... help... you?" Adrian asked and pushed his lips out to the side. He waved his hand in Tom's face. "Hello?"

"Sorry, I... erm, I just, erm," Tom stuttered as Adrian continued to give him the confused stare.

"We're having this party on Friday if you want to come?" Tom offered. He wanted Adrian to hang out with him but wasn't sure how to ask without it sounding creepy and weird.

"Are you asking me out as a date?" Adrian asked with a hint of a smile.

"No." Tom said too fast and shook his head, feeling stupid. "I just want to... erm..."

"You want me to teach you how to be a better frost mage?" Adrian asked, his smile growing. "Or maybe you want to be my friend because you worship me?"

Tom sucked in his breath, feeling his face turn crimson. He turned away, focusing on the floor and letting his hair fall across his face to hide his embarrassment.

"I'm sorry." Adrian laughed. "That was petty and mean."

Tom looked up and smiled, trying to figure out if he was a nice guy or a dick.

"I'll help you get past platinum, that's what you want, right?" Adrian said.

"A-are you... are you serious?" Tom asked. The idea of being boosted by the best player in the EU made his heart race. Playing with this guy would be better than anything he could imagine. Better than sex.

"Yeah, sure, I'll do that for you. Question is, what are you going to do for me?" Adrian said.

Tom made a scoffing sound as he realised Adrian was definitely teasing him. He couldn't really blame the guy.

'I was a dick to him until I knew who he was,' Tom thought. 'Why shouldn't he do the same to me?'

"Well?" Adrian asked, pushing his neck out. He appeared to genuinely be expecting an answer.

"Erm... what do you want me to do?" Tom asked, just to see what he would say.

As Adrian began to walk toward the classroom, he followed, waiting on tenterhooks.

"Will you do anything I want?" Adrian asked at last as he scanned the crowd.

"Erm—" Tom was unsure how to respond. What could he possibly mean by that? The more he thought about it, the more he realised he probably would do anything, not just for Adrian's help, but for his approval.

"Yeah. I'll do anything."

"Great," Adrian cried, throwing an arm around his back. "I can't wait."

Tom let out a nervous laugh as the pair made their way down the corridor, wondering what he was going to have to do for his hero.

###

Emily Walters arrived early, finishing the last sips of her coffee as she sat to finish marking yesterday's test papers. She figured she had at least ten minutes before students began to pile in, but there was always one early bird.

Today it was Damien—probably her least favourite student. The kid was crazy smart—genius level smart—but so sly and cruel. She figured she was going to read the news one day and find out he's killed a bunch of people.

"So I searched that name Adrian mentioned on only fans and didn't find anything," Damien said in a conversational tone. "I figure it is either something else or you changed your name, so I'll keep looking."

As the guy used his index finger to scroll through his phone, Emily scowled at him.

"Stop searching for me. I don't have an only fans account. I can promise you that," she said. “But only because I’m not attractive enough to make decent money. Trust me, if I could make money selling pictures, I’d be at home writing—”

She trailed off, realising she was about to give herself away. Her brows creased into a frown as she wondered what had possessed her to give away personal details to a student.

‘Am I losing my mind?’

"I'm wondering what other type of account would make you turn so pale and call Adrian back after class," Damien said.

When Emily decided to ignore the question, he went on, "Did he blackmail you? What did he ask for?"

With a sigh, Emily continued marking the papers, trying her best not to let him get under her skin. Damien was famous in the staffroom for his lowkey psychological torture methods.

"I can just ask him instead," he said at last. "He'll probably tell me anyway. We are getting pretty close."

"Ugh." Emily fianlly broke. "He didn't blackmail me, okay? There's nothing to tell so please..."

Damien laughed. "A little piece of advice... never say that word to him."

"Which word?" Emily frowned.

"Please," Damien confirmed. "The guy's a sadist. Pleading or begging him to stop hurting will only it more enjoyable for him and spur him on."

Emily stopped writing, pen hovering above the paper. Thinking about it, he was probably right. But why was he giving out advice to help her?

She looked up at Damien, tapping her pen on the table. He was the smartest kid she'd ever taught. Probably the most intelligent person she'd ever met, aside from a couple of the professors at her university. Maybe he could actually help her.

"What do you suggest I do?" she asked, keeping her voice as neutral as she could.

"Tell me what he's got on you and I'll see if I can help," he offered.

"Nice try," Emily scoffed as other students began to enter, Adrian among them. He flashed her a knowing smile as he took his seat.

As she went over the lesson plan, Emily tried to push it out of her mind, but his words kept replaying in her memory on repeat.

"I'm not going to blackmail you, I just want you to know I know, and I could reveal what I know at any time I chose."

He had smirked when she'd asked why.

"Because it turns me on to see you sweat," he'd explained.

'Of course he's a complete sadist,' Emily thought. 'Damien is right. If I cease to be interesting, he might get bored of toying with me.'

It was worth a try.