Johanna sighed and propped her head up on her hands.

"And the relationship between Akhenaten and his client-kings was one that benefitted Egypt immensely. Most of our information on the Empire to the South and relations between Egypt and the northern lands comes from a collection of clay tablets, now known as the Amarna letters."

Her eyes followed the progress of Mr Magwin as he paced the floor with chalk in hand, lecturing them enthusiastically. It was Johanna's fourth period Ancient History class, and her love of Egypt was only added to by her fervant love of the history teacher.

Mr Magwin was not what society would call "a good catch". With chiselled features, and a limp that he attained whilst fighting on the Vietnam war, there was no possible reason that an attractive high school student in her final year would seek to pursue a relationship with, or even be attracted to, a middle aged man like him. Menacing, looming and often quite terrifying when encountered in places such as darkened, enclosed bookrooms, Johanna was hopelessly in love with him, despite all the circumstances that should encourage her to feel the exact opposite like so many of her fellow students.

He moved slightly to the left, giving Johanna the opportunity to gaze longingly at his chocolate eyes. Brown pools of unknown depth, Johanna loved them when they sparkled when he was jovial and the way they flamed when he raised his voice in anger. "The eyes are the windows to the soul" said the old proverb and Johanna knew, by personal experience, that the saying was very true.

What the average person didn't know, however, was that Mr Magwin was her mother's boyfriend...

Truly, it wasn't Johanna's fault. It wasn't as if he was her stepfather, it wasn't even as if she could help it. She had loved him for years, and it was pure bad luck that Mr Magwin had met her young and single mother at a parent teacher night. Even worse luck that they had, much to Johanna's horror, started dating. Johanna didn't even live with her mother anymore, she had moved out last year. Curse the gods who had allowed her, so young and soft and beautiful, to lose the man she loved...to her mother.

Jonathon Magwin stared silently over his desk at Johanna. The Johanna that haunted is dreams, the Johanna that left him a whimpering shadow of himself, half starved by frustrated lust with no outlet that could satisfy him. He was so desperate to have Johanna, to be near her, possess her, made her his own, forever, that he had started dating her mother. He didn't enjoy it, but the reward of being close to the family, in the house that Johanna had grown up in that made it worth it.

He had a plan, desperate and dangerous as it may be. To stay with the mother until Johanna finished school, then he'd tell her the truth. Sure, it would hurt Johanna's mother, Evelyn, but it was well worth it to be near Johanna. Oh, the sweet, sharp pangs of lust.

Johanna laughed and looked down at the keyboard. Quickly, she typed in her reply.

BriarRose: I'm laughing. So wherebouts are you from?

Almost immediately, Johanna got a reply.

HumbertHumbert: New South Wales

BriarRose: Same here. Whereabouts?

There was a slight pause until Johanna received his reply.

HumbertHumbert: Newcastle

BriarRose: I'm from the Central Coast.

Not so very far away from Johanna's apartment, certainly not so far away as Newcastle, Mr Magwin sat at his computer, smiling. He was perfectly aware of what was doing, he didn't like lying to Johanna but it gave him a much relished chance to talk to her, not as a teacher, but under the guise of a stranger, a real flesh and blood man able to express his thoughts and fears and feelings.

BriarRose: Are you still there?

HumbertHumbert: Yes

BriarRose: What's your first name? I gather that it's not Humbert.

HumbertHumbert: It's Jonathon.

BriarRose: That's a very nice name. I'm Johanna.

BriarRose: I'm sorry, Jonathon, but I have to get offline.

HumbertHumbert: Oh? Why?

BriarRose: I have to revise some schoolwork...some maths and history.

HumbertHumbert: Do you like those subjects?

BriarRose: Maths, not really, but I'm quite good at it.

HumbertHumbert: And history?

BriarRose: Ooh, I love history! At the moment, we're doing Akhenaten, and it's so fascinating!

BriarRose: You do know who Akhenaten was, don't you?

HumbertHumbert: Yes, I do.

The irony was all too clear.

As the months progressed, so did the online friendship between Johanna and, to her own ignorance, Mr Magwin.

Oh, how he savoured those hours, Johanna, naïve, beautiful, innocent, virginal Johanna, how he wanted her! He wished that he could tell her exactly who he was, but it never seemed like the right time until that one, fateful afternoon.

BriarRose: Hi Jonathon

HumbertHumbert: Afternoon, Johanna.

BriarRose: Just got home from school. What have you been doing this afternoon?

Jonathon smiled. He'd been teaching her history for all of last period, but he couldn't tell her that.

HumbertHumbert: Working.

BriarRose: Figured. Did you get much writing done?

HumbertHumbert: A bit.

BriarRose: I had history last period...

HumbertHumbert: Oh?

BriarRose: Can I tell you something?

HumbertHumbert: Anything.

BriarRose: It's about my history teacher, Mr Magwin...

Jonathon nearly fell off his chair.

HumbertHumbert: Yes?

BriarRose: You're a man..do you think that a thirty-five year age gap is too much?

HumbertHumbert: You fancy this man?

BriarRose: Ooh, yes.

HumbertHumbert: Oh, Johanna.

BriarRose: What?

HumbertHumbert: My sweet Nefertiti

BriarRose: What?

HumbertHumbert: It's me, Mr Magwin.

BriarRose: That's not funny, Jonathon.

HumbertHumbert: I'm perfectly serious. Go on, I'll prove it, ask me something, something that happened today, that only I could know.

BriarRose: What color pants were you wearing?

Even Jonathon had to think for a moment.

HumbertHumbert: Blue.

BriarRose: Lucky guess.

HumbertHumbert: Alright, ask me something else. Something harder.

BriarRose: What's you middle name?

HumbertHumbert: How would you know that in the first place?

Briarrose: I do. Don't know?

HumbertHumbert: It's Sidney.

BriarRose: Oh god, it is you!

HumbertHumbert: I love you, Johanna.

BriarRose: Why didn't you tell me it was you? Why didn't you tell me that you loved me? Why were you dating my mother, for Christ's sake?

HumbertHumbert: I'm sorry, forgive me, darling.

BriarRose: No, I'm not talking to you-again.

--Connection was terminated at 4:45 PM--

Jonathon smiled. He knew that she'd come around.