âINSANE.â
"Oh my God." I groaned as I let my head drop against the table. "I'm so tired," I whined to myself, hoping it'd take some of the pressure off me but it doesn't. Instead, I find myself wanting to yell louder.
"You need to shut up!" Lina yelled from her room. I hear her door open as she made her way towards my room, her feet dragging audibly on the ground.
"Why aren't you sleeping?" She asked, scratching her head which messed up her already ruffled up hair. It resembled a bird's nest.
"I have to finish this assignment." I pouted as I looked at her, hoping to gain sympathy but she rolls her eyes instead.
"Just finish it tomorrow. What time is it anyway?" She asked as she leaned against my door frame, a yawn breaking through her lips.
"It's 3:14 am, and I can't, I have to submit this before class." I glanced back at my laptop that only had 4 words typed onto it. The date and my name.
The break-in happened a few weeks ago, almost 2 months. In that period, it took us almost a week to get things back to normal, at least on the physical side. Reorganising the house, taking other things for repair and throwing things that were unsalvageable. Archer and Jace had helped the first two days but we managed to convince them to let us do the rest. Having our professors in our apartment for too long was overwhelming, even for Lina.
On the psychological side, Lina and I were still freaked. After talking about it, we decided not to call the police yet, We came here to finally be under the radar and having the local police in our business was the exact opposite.
But if Luca were to pull another stunt like this, we'd have no choice.
The time after fixing up the house was spent on catching up on my other classes and missed assignments in Archer's class. Who knew one week of work was close to impossible to make up on top of my normal classes.
Archer tried helping out by going through extra material with me in our one hour sessions but we stopped that after the first month because I didn't have time for it anymore. He didn't seem to mind, but I did. Weirdly enough, I enjoyed them.
It was the only time I had alone with him and we seemed to be growing comfortable with each other. Talking to him comfortably felt weird but at the same time, not since he was neighbour. Or at least that's what I repeated in my head to convince myself that our solo sessions weren't inappropriate.
But I guess trying to convince myself wouldn't be necessary anymore since we were back to only seeing each other for 2 hours during his class.
Now that I had a backlog of other assignments, I barely had time to work on his assignment and this was the assignment he expected me to get an A in. I really didn't want to disappoint him. Not after he invested so much time in trying to help me. But I was exhausted.
"Well then, all the best and shut up. I'm trying to sleep." She let out as she walked back into her room with tiny steps.
I stared at my laptop screen, that took $100 to repair. Alone. Just the stupid screen. I had a damaged motherboard and a new one was about $200 and that wasn't inclusive of getting them to fix it for me.
I'm starting to worry about my savings now too. But I don't have time for worrying. Or emotions of any kind because this stupid book is going to be the end of me.
My mind remained blank, no words coming to me. Vintage Love was such a hard book to decipher. There were so many hidden meanings that just didn't stand out to me. Every time I read it, my head hurt.
"How am I supposed to get an A?" I slumped against my chair, fingers running through my hair as I sat there frustrated.
"Screw this."
I plopped myself onto my bed and instantly dozed off.
⢠⢠â¢
I felt my head bobbing every five seconds, unable to support the weight of my head as I kept dozing off.
"Red." The deep voice called out and my head sprung up. Before I could utter a word, he sighed.
"Class ended over five minutes ago," he stated as he looked at me. I turn to my side and notice that Chadwick's seat is empty. He must've given up with waking me after class.
"Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"
"That's your main concern?" Archer chuckled slightly as he shook his head, his soft brown hair flowing with the movement. It wasn't styled to the side today and I wondered if it was because he was late. His hair was flopped over his forehead, partially obstructing his eyes.
What a shame. They were beautiful eyes.
"I'm sorry, you're right." I packed my table as I stood up to face him. Standing didn't help much since he still towered over me.
"It's okay. I know you've been having a hard time recently." I averted my gaze instantly, looking to the desk. He's been painfully understanding and a part of me felt bad.
"If you ever need help with your papers, I'm literally a door away." A warm smile graces his lips that causes a stir within me. He was the definition of a gentleman. Inside and out and after Luca trying to hurt me, all I craved was to feel safe with someone.
He's your teacher the voice at the back of my head shouts at me and I swallow down any attraction I have towards him. Expecting anything from him was like setting my heart out for heartache. He's my professor, he isn't allowed to date students. Even if he were, what makes me so sure he'd choose me?
"Also," he peeped as he stacked the papers on his table, "you got the position for the arts and literature event." He beamed.
"I got an A?" I gasped, shocked as to how the paper I rushed in an hour managed to be of high quality.
"Not even close." Archer's lips stretched into a wider smile as he laughed. His laughter reached his eyes and gave the coffee brown a glow.
"Then how-what-" I struggled to finish the sentence.
"I think it'll help you." He said as he nodded, as though trying to convince himself. His unstyled hair bouncing with the motion of his head.
"Butâ"
"You just can't let me do something nice for you, can you?" He groans as he tilted his head backwards, rolling his eyes back with agitation.
"Alright, fine. Thank you." I give a single nod of thanks, walking out of the lecture theatre.
I had no idea why Archer was being so nice to me. It doesn't help with trying to figure out how I feel about him. At first, I had assumed all I wanted was a distraction from Luca but now that I had been spending more time with him and witness glimpses of the real him and not the professor him, I can't help the growing warmth in my chest.
That's the problem though. I shouldn't be feeling anything for my professor. As the thoughts gnawed at my brain, I felt my phone buzz.
I walked down the school's campus as I fished out my phone, expecting to see a message from Lina. Instead, my screen's filled with texts from what felt like ghosts from the past.
What the hell? Call me. Now.
âRiley
My lips stretch in a smile. I had dropped him and Jax a text, giving him a brief rundown about what's been going on with Luca and school.
Please tell me this is some sick joke.
Riley and I will come over if you need us to.
âJackson
The messages from Jackson made my heart sink. I've barely stayed in touch with them over the past couple of years, yet they'd still drop everything to come see me.
I scroll down the notifications bar, thinking I'd see another text from Jax but I come to an abrupt stop, almost falling over my own feet when I see an unknown number.
We need to talk
An uneasiness brewed in my gut. Even though there was no indication, I knew who it was. Luca had tried calling me once but I had blocked his number immediately. I didn't have time to deal with him yet.
I see my car in the distance and I slip my phone back into my purse. As I dug around for my keys, a voice roared from behind.
"I said we need to talk." A hand grabbed my arm violently, yanking me towards his body.
A sharp sound, too soft to be a scream, escapes my lips as I feel my back slammed against something hard. I turned around only to be faced with Luca.
Dark circles under his red and puffy eyes, face skinny as though he was famished.
"Luca, what the hell are you doing?" I tried yanking my arm from his but he held on tighter. A piercing pain shoots down my arms as his fingers dig through my skin. I was afraid he'd draw blood with his grip. "Let go!"
"I'm not letting you walk away from me again." He let out darkly as he pulled me towards his car.
"What's gotten into you? Stop acting insane!" I yelled at him as I tried fighting his hold.
"Acting?!" He pushed my body away from his violently, causing me to stumble backward.
The thought of running entered my mind but for some reason, I stood rooted to the ground, staring my ex in the eyes. The same anger from the day of the break-in filled them, contorting any remanence of the old Luca I knew.
"I am insane. You caused this." He said as he pointed at himself, his eyes warped with a raging madness.
"You're going to understand how I felt. How it feels to be stabbed in the heart." His hand grabbed my arm once more but I managed to push him off.
He fell to the ground with a thud and I finally started running from where I came from, towards the lecture theatre. Tears of anxiousness blurred my vision as I ran and I bumped into someone harshly.
"Woah, hey." Archer held me, speaking in a soft voice like he's trying to calm down a rabid animal. He holds me at arm's length and finally takes in the tears that pooled around my eyelids. "Red, what's wrong?" His hold on me tightens by a fraction as worry rose in his voice.
I stood there, not being able to utter a word as I stared up at my professor. His hand ran up the sides of my arms as I trembled lightly.
"God, you're shaking. What's going on?" He asked as he looked at my eyes intently, as though trying to read them.
I turned around to see if Luca was tailing me but he's staring from afar, leaned against the side of his car. His eyes glued to Archer and his hold on me.
Archer follows my gaze and looks at Luca, then to me, to and fro and finally connects the dots. "Is that him? Is that the guy that broke in?" His jaw clenches as I nod.
He releases his grip on me and starts towards Luca, but with a final glare, Luca got into his car and drove off.
Archer cursed under his breath as he approached me again. His eyes scanned the length of my body, checking to see if I was okay.
"Did he do this?" He asked, his voice laced with anger as his fingers brushed over my arm gently. I looked down and spotted a faint bruise already forming on my skin, the same place Luca had gripped onto moments ago.
"Yeah. It's fine. I'm okay." I breathed out, staring at the angry red mark on my arm. He had never hurt me before, but was this intentional? He didn't set out to bruise me.
"That asshole." Archer spat, running his fingers through his hair out of frustration as he stared at the parking lot, where Luca was seconds ago.
His voice gets me to snap my gaze onto him. A muscle thrummed along his jaw, hands balled up in fists by his side.
The warm feeling in my chest intensified into a tiny spark.
"I won't let him hurt you further."
And a flame ignites.