My girlfriend has this peculiar keenness of choosing the most awkward and public places to get touchy-feely with me and to . Like right now, we’re sitting at the front of the class, with around 50 other students around us and the strictest teacher in school standing right in our faces. I usually don’t mind public displays of affection and would welcome any opportunity to get cozy with my girlfriend but she has told me that she wanted to keep us a secret, our little secret. Which may just be revealed soon with the way she sometimes acted. But nothing seem to scare Tiffany into behaving, not even my icy glare which would usually send any boy, jock and nerd alike, running away with their tails between their legs. Heck, of course nothing scared her when she knows she can charm her way into anything (like how she charmed her way into my skirt) with that pretty little eyesmile of hers. So here we are, me trying my best to not show anything on my face while she grins mischievously with her right hand mischievously placed on my thigh.

I try to focus on the words the teacher was writing on the white board, telling myself that it is important to copy down all the notes for the upcoming test. But how can I concentrate when there is something else demanding my attention, something more… enjoyable?

While casually leaning on the hand on her desk with a lazy smile, Tiffany walks her index and middle finger up and down the length of my thigh. She starts from the middle, walks up to the end of my uniform’s skirt, walks down to the tip of my knee, and then back up to the edge of the cotton fabric. Suddenly without warning, the hand slyly slips under my skirt, a perfectly manicured nail scratching my sensitive skin on the inside of my thigh lightly. I bite my bottom lip to keep in my small gasp of surprise. The gentle pressure of the fingertips on my skin leaves traces of their mischief, marks invisible to the eye but felt through the heat beginning to gather at the depths of my guts. I shiver, in anticipation and nervousness, palms fisted. Goosebumps sprout on my arms and blood rushes up to my cheeks and ears as I struggle to keep my cool and my poker face on. But it becomes harder when the finger slides down the slope of my thigh, more towards the inside and up higher. My mind panicked; there were people around!

I hastily slap her arm in warning but she just grins even wider. My breath gets caught in my throat when she scrapes a nail across the lace of my . Biting back a gasp, I purposefully drop my folder onto my lap to hide Tiffany’s movements as a finger hooks around the elastic band, underneath the thin lacy fabric. I can see her looking at me out of the corners of her twinkling eyes, her bottom lip held between her pearly whites in an attempt to control her growing naughty smile. Swallowing tightly, I clamp my free hand down firmly onto her wrist to prohibit her movements before she can touch me further. That usually would have stopped anyone from continuing in fear of angering me, but Tiffany isn’t anyone and she definitely knows that I could not stay mad at her for long.

“Why do you do that?” I sometimes ask her, but I always receive the same mysterious answer.

“Secret.”

Her hand easily slithers out of my grasp and covers over mine instead. Holding my fingers immobile, she continues with her business, now tracing a big girly heart over and over again on the roof of my hand.

Tearing my eyes away from the whiteboard, I imperceptibly turn to look at my girlfriend with narrowed eyes forming a glare. Tiffany also cheekily her head towards me when she feels my gaze. Her plump red lips tug up into a pretty smile and her eyes curve along into beautiful crescents. She stops playing with my hand and just holds it securely in hers. Her smile grows bigger as she mouths to me, “I love you”.

My glare fades to be replaced by a slight shy smile, as always, and I avert my eyes from her loving gaze to hide my blush.

“Only you, Jessi.” Her husky voice whispers next to me as her warm breath caresses the shell of my ear.

I involuntarily shiver with the quiver of excitement that she sends up my spine. But then there is a sudden change in atmosphere. I look up and meet the glaring eyes of our teacher staring down at the two of us.

“My students must pay attention solely to me when in class.” He sternly reminds me, his tone cold and reprimanding. “No funny business.”

I gulped. Tiffany caught my eyes… trust me.

“Don’t worry, Mr. C! I was just telling Jessi how matching your shirt and tie are today.” Tiffany intercepts chirpily before I can cower away in fear, away from her. Her eyes twinkles with the little extra thrill she is experiencing while my guts fill with dread.

Mr. C takes one look at Tiffany’s brightly smiling face and his glare also fades away. He turns back around briskly and continues with the lesson, placated by Tiffany’s compliment and smile. I frown at the frightening amount of influence my girlfriend could exert on people, including me. But with a tug on our entwined hands, Tiffany attracts my distracted attention again. A wink and an eyesmile, a wide happy grin and her lips forming the words “my secret”, and I know I would let her charm her way into my heart again.