âFUN.â
I walk into the lecture theatre and a chill runs up my spine the moment I realise it's empty. The room's still and there isn't a single soul in the room except for one. "You made it."
"Was class cancelled?" I asked, eyes darting around the room as I took in just how alone I was with my professor.
"Nope and you're right on time." Archer walks towards the seats and away from his desk. He brushes by me, completely ignoring my state of confusion as he sat down next to my seat, taking Chadwick's seat.
"Then where is everyone?" I looked at him, face pressed into a frown. He opens up a book in front of him, barely meeting my gaze as he passed me a glance.
"Their class starts at 9, yours starts at 8. You looked lost yesterday. Thought I could help you." His eyes go back to the pages of the book. He taps onto the seat, willing me to go to him but I stay still.
"Archâ Mr Kane," I instantly catch myself as I cleared my throat, "I don't need extra helpâ"
"Just sit down, will you?" He cut me off with a groan, tilting his head to the side as he finally met my gaze. His brown eyes were dark, like coffee grains and there was a certain familiarity his gaze carried that I just couldn't put my finger on. It was welcoming.
I gulped onto the air unintentionally as my head dropped into a nervous nod. I made my way towards him and plopped myself onto the seat. I kept my eyes on the book before me and waited for him to begin, but he doesn't. Risking it all, I cock my head towards him and my eyes meet his. He's staring. Right. At. Me.
My heart picks up its pace as a nervous thrill rushes through me. From the close proximity of our faces, I'm able to distinguish the green in his eyes. His eyes were the faintest shade of hazel, the brown overpowering the green but it still stood out against his tan skin. his skin was tanned to honey and his features were chiselled to perfection.
Did I really just think perfection? I try to push that word out of my head but it's hard when his soft brown hair that was crashed over his eyes the first day we met is styled to the side, giving me a perfect view of his eyes. Golden flecks danced around his irises with the light's reflection and I don't realise I'm staring until he speaks.
"So," he leaned in, his eyes tearing away from me and onto the book. As he inches towards me, his scent embraces me and I'm back to being distracted. It was an oceanic scent that wasn't too overwhelming but strong enough to hold my attention.
As he reaches out to point at a certain word towards the book, his arm brushes against mine and I jolt with the sudden zap that surged through me.
"Is something wrong?" His brows furrowed, eyes studying me.
I swallow thick at the feel of his breath against my skin. Maybe rebounds are my thing and I just never had the chance to figure that out until now but damn, he's my professor.
Get yourself together, Elreda. This is the last thing you need.
I shake my head no, my voice trapped in my throat. I look back to the book, breaking the eye contact.
"As I was saying in class yesterday, Ark's portrayed as a man who's almost outside of timeâ" And I zoned out.
My eyes were fixated on his arms, his slender fingers brushing against the pages as he spoke. The smell of his cologne once again making its way to my nose when I breathed in.
It gave a masculine yet soft vibe which confused me because it was drawing me in. I tell myself the only reason why I'm taking notice is because I just broke up with Luca and was looking at anything that'll take my mind off of him. Or anyone that'll take my mind off of him.
Our break was inevitable ever since the accident. It took me a year to build up the courage to do it and now that I did do it, I was a little lost.
"Get it?" Archer asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. I had no how long he was speaking for but we're on a different page of the book.
I shook my head, eyelids fluttering as I blinked rapidly. "Yea, totally." I looked at him only to notice him shaking his head.
"I know when a student lies to me." He chuckled. "Don't worry though, you'll get this soon." He closed the book.
"It's important that you do." His hazel eyes trailed up from the book to meet mine.
My breath hitched as I looked at my professor in silence.
This is bad, very bad. Being attracted to your professor isn't a complication you need right now.
In the second that we stared into each other's eyes, his phone beeped and it sounded like an alarm. Archer got up as he made his way behind his desk.
"Try to catch up in this class." He gave me a warm smile before writing something on the board.
A swarm of students flooded into the room the next moment, filling the empty spaces and for some reason, I was finally able to breathe again.
"So class, can any of you name me one of the 13 instances where Ark was portrayed as a different version of himself," Archer asked as he looked around the auditorium.
I felt my hand spring up before I could come to a conclusive decision.
"Yes, Elreda," Archer nods towards my direction.
"Umâ" I brought my hand down as I looked around the room, everyone's eyes on me, except Chadwick. He just looked bored.
"When Ark built the cabin for his lover even before he met her," I said, shocking myself and Archer. I can tell he's shocked by the way his eyes widened a little and his lips parted.
I didn't know I had known the answer. Maybe I wasn't zoning out after all.
"Excellent." Archer pointed the chalk at me right before jotting it down on the board.
"Now, we know that Ark had started his own home builders company but he stopped working after that cabin. His priority was getting it done so that he could focus on the two things he really loved, his lover and his writing. We find out that he's an authorâ" He carried on with the lesson and I caught myself studying his littlest movements.
The way he would adjust his glasses every time he paused or the way he would lick the corner of his lips when waiting for an answer.
I was very aware of everything he was doing. Everything my professor was doing.
"Get your shit together, he's your teacher." I chastised myself mentally before focusing my attention on the book.
⢠⢠â¢
"Seriously?" Lina asked from the couch.
"I'm not kidding, our neighbour's my professor," I said, setting my keys on the coffee table as I settled down. Lina pauses for a second, looking at me with confusion.
"No, our neighbour's my professor." She emphasised as she looked at me, eyes narrowing.
"What? Mr Kane teaches Literature." I said and she frowned in response.
"Mr Kane? I was talking about Mr Parker." She shook her head slightly as she stared at me.
"Waitâ so you're telling me that our neighbours are our professors?" An incredulous look painted on my face as Lina burst out laughing.
"This year's going to be hella fun."
...
A/N: slut shaming is NOT TOLERATED. any derogatory comments will be deleted and I will mute the commenter.