I scrubbed as hard as I could to get rid of the tea stain that had been left behind by the crazy old lady from across the road. People were so rude nowadays, I mean I knew she had a mental condition but would it kill people to clean up after themselves?

The bell on top of the door went ping distracting me from my thoughts. It was a man. He was wearing one of those really posh long coats that cost a fortune to buy. Even though he hadn't said anything I could feel a mysterious dangerous aura around him.

Without saying a word I scurried behind the cash register and waited patiently for him to order something. The man walked slowly and purposely as he made his way towards me. The first thing that struck me as odd was the fact that he had two different coloured eyes, they were so beautiful yet so cold, as if he had seen things, things he wasn't meant to see at such a young age.

Looking away from him,

“What would you like to order?” I asked briskly

The man put his finger on his chin deftly and thought about it

“Could you scoop 4 spoonfuls of Nutella in a cup and a cappuccino with no sugar?” He replied in a surprisingly sweet smooth voice.

“Excuse me, did you just say Nutella?” I furrowed my eyebrows puzzled

Who eats Nutella straight out of it's jar? And a cappuccino with no sugar? Who is this stranger?

“Yes I did, Is it a problem?” he cocked his head to the side smirking slightly

“No, no not at all” I replied professionally trying my hardest not to gag

Finding what I was looking for, I scooped 4 spoonfuls of Nutella into our best mugs and waited as the milk frothed for his sugarless cappuccino.

The strange man had chosen to sit right at the back of the empty coffee shop. Without knowing why, I began to feel uneasy. As if the air had gone colder since he came in.

Weird.

I walked towards the man with his order in my hands, I set it down carefully without spilling his broth. He glanced up at me and was yet again sucked into those beautiful cold , cold eyes. Surprisingly he smiled at me and gestured for me to sit down.

Not knowing how to decline without seeming rude, I sat down on the ripped up chair.

“So, what's your name?” he asked looking at me

“Teagen,” I said looking down at my knees what the heck was I doing? I'd just told my name to a complete stranger. He could be a serial killer for all I knew

“Teagen,” He repeated “That's an Irish name isn't it?”

My brain was telling me to get up and get away from this beautiful stranger, but my legs refused to obey and my big mouth opened itself again

“Yes” I said surprised “You know , you're one of the very few people that have guessed that. Most people mistake it for a Dutch name.”

“I can't figure out why,” he murmured “It's a beautiful name for a beautiful girl”

Blushing furiously I started stuttering

“Er-oh- I mean than-thank yo-you”

Man, what is wrong with me? The moment a hot guy tells me that I’m beautiful I start stuttering, Smart move Teagen, smart move

The strange man chuckled looking amused “You haven't been told that a lot have you?”

“No”

“Now I wonder why,” He held his finger to his chin again

“Do you go to the library a lot?”

“Yes”

“Do you go out a lot?”

“No”

“Have you got a lot of friends?”

That question was something I found just a teensy weensy personal, but I answered him anyway

“No”

“Are you a nerd?”

“Hey, there's nothing wrong with being a nerd” I said offensively

“I didn't say there was,” he pointed out “You didn't answer my question, Are you a nerd?”

“Yes” I let out a sigh of defeat

“I rest my case” he smirked leaning back on his chair and spooning a mouthful of Nutella in his mouth.

He let out a moan of pleasure, and I was trying my hardest not to gag in front of him

“So what, what's wrong with being a nerd? I like being one, it gives me a sense of originality when I’m surrounded by all those idiotic morons” I said lifting my nose up in the air slightly trying to swallow back my bile

“I didn't say there was anything wrong with it,”

“Yes you did”

“No, I never,” he said sternly “Now tell me about your life”he demanded. It was almost like I couldn't say to this strange man.

I felt like I'd known this stranger all my life as we talked way past closing time. He told me that he came from a large wealthy family and was supposed to be the heir to Lindsay's Enterprises, but he wanted to become something that he actually wanted and not something he was being pressured into becoming.

I told him that I was the youngest of three, I flinched slightly when I told him that I came from one of the poorest parts of west Birmingham. But he didn't acknowledge my flinch and if he did he pretended not to notice and I was grateful to him for that.

After glancing at my watch. I blinked and then looked again. Nope, my eyes weren’t deceiving me. I let out a yelp of shock. How could of let valuable studying time go to waste? I should have been home hours ago.

“Get up,” I told the man snappily “I should of closed up hours ago, what am I going to tell my Mum?” I wailed “Oh god, she'll be so disappointed in me”

“Oh yeah,” he said like it was something that happened everyday “ I forgot you were only a high schooler”

He got up and stretched his arms, I couldn't help but notice how buff his arms were.

“Yes, now how will I get home? The bus left ages ago and there aren’t any going now, so I guess I'll have to walk home but then I'll be home at around one o'clock but that's okay isn't it? I asked the man looking desperate

“Woah, woah, easy there Teagen tiger, calm down” he put his arms up as if surrendering.

“Did you just call me Tiger?” I asked incredulously

“Yes”, He said in monotone “I'm driving you home” he informed me

“You can drive” I said stupidly

“'Course I can” he said looking offended. The man fished his keys out of his pocked and with it he gave me a wrapped up cloth

He looked at me seriously.

“Keep this safe Tiger” The man said using my new apparent nickname

“Yea, sure,” I smiled brightly

I took the cloth from him and skipped to the where the staff had their uniforms , lockers and stuff. Standing in front of my locker, I type in the combination and yanked out my backpack and right at the back of my locker was the weirdest but most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. It was a bright blue sapphire ring. Staring at it curiously, I shoved it into my bag without thinking it over.

Locking up behind me, I scanned the car park for the strange man but couldn't find him, in fact there were no cars in sight.

My heart fell at my feet. I can't believe he just left me, I thought disappointedly

I turned around and began trudge the long way home. I thought me and the strange man understood each other.

Hearing a revving sound from behind me, I swung my head back so fast I was surprised I didn't get a crick in my neck.

“You didn't think I’d leave you to walk alone did you?” I head the familiar voice of the stranger.

“No, I didn't” I lied smiling back at him gratefully

“No, why Teagen? How can you think so badly of me?” he said looking mock hurt

“I didn't, know can you stop pretending to be a drama king and get me home?” I said not in the mood for his chivalry excuses

Walking towards him I couldn't help but smile when I saw how hurt the man looked.

I swung my legs over his bike and then we were off. What kind of a gentlemen was he? Letting me get on his bike without giving me a helmet to wear, now my hair was whipping all over the placed blinding me. I leaned in closer and held the man's waist tightly inhaling his manly smell.

We were pulling up into my shambled household in no time. I got of his bike, my head filled with adrenaline.

“That was the best ride I have ever had in my entire life” I told him breathlessly

“Why, thank you I live to impress” he replied modestly.

I hadn't said another word before my mother opened the door looking furiously scary in her nightgown. My mother might be shorter than me but don't let that fool you. She had a deviously, surprisingly scary attire hidden under all that shortness.

“And who is this nice gentlemen?” she asked me sharply not acknowledging the man at all

“Er...I met him at work and he kindly agreed to drive me home” I said glancing back at the man to notice that he was shivering. I don't know why, it was a pretty warm night.

“On that death machine” she stated viciously

“Erm...Yes mother” I said now noticing truly how cold it was and started to shiver myself

“You young man, get out of my sight before I slice you open and chop you up like a cucumber and send you via airmail to my ex-husbands dinner party” she said sweetly

You couldn't have told him to disappear fast enough. He left so fast the litter on the streets were swirling around in the air like they do in cartoons

I turned back to my mother terrified of what I might see but was thankful when I saw her usual smiley bubbly mood back

Letting out a sigh of relief I walked back into the house. I hadn’t locked the latch on the door before my mother pounced on me. And I mean literally pounced. She dragged me into the box sized living room and shoved me into the ripped up sofa.

I sat up straight and waited for the lecture to begin

“Mother, can you start the lecture because the sooner you being the sooner I can get my homework done” I said impatiently

Instead of getting a lecture mother started weeping and let out strangled sobs.

“Mum, are you okay?” I asked tentatively getting up and getting to her side

“No, I'm not,” she flinched away from me “My daughter, my baby girl, I can't believe it she's got you too” she carried on weeping.

“Okay, I'm officially confused now, what are you talking about?” I took a step away from her

“You mean you don't know who that boy was?”she asked incredulously wiping her tears

“No, Mum I don't know who that man was”

“He's not a man” Mother fiercely “Well, I guess he fooled you too”

“Huh?” I said stupidly not knowing where any of this was going.

“That was Lindsay's son” She said looking disgusted “He's nowhere near being a man, he's way too immature and he's only seventeen anyway.”

“No,”I said disbelievingly “He looked like he was over nineteen, there's no way he's her son”

“Believe me Teag, it was him” she said calmly “Where his eyes two different colours?”

“Yes,” I whispered disgustedly “I can't believe Lindsay would stoop down so low, first she took him and as if that wasn't enough she wants to break up this family as well”

I didn't hear what she had to say to that because I knew she had started weeping again.

Running up to my room, my heart was clenched up in sadness, wherever I went people let me down, why couldn't the man that I didn't know the name of be one of the good guys? I threw myself on my bed and began to think of what I’d be saying to Mrs Dennis tomorrow

I opened my eyes at a sudden revelation,
I'd been talking with him for over three hours and I didn't know his name , how weird was that?

Grabbing my backpack, my hand came across a bundled up cloth. That was when I remembered Lindsay's son had given me a cloth and told me to keep it safe. I wonder what it was.


Unfolding the wrapped up cloth I was shocked to see what I found.

The mysterious man with no apparent name had left behind a wad load of cash wrapped around in a tea cloth. I stared in amazement not being able to believe my eyes. There had to be at least three thousand pounds in there, and nestling right in the middle of it was the most bizarre thing of all.

A remote controller.

Why would Lindsay send her son to give my family such money? I didn't know what her game was, but I wasn't going to lose my Mother the way I did my Dad.