Title: ME-120
Author: SunflowersAndHoney
Summary: The one where Dom is failing at almost everything.
A/N: Based on a prompt from flowerchyld over on tumblr... love the name, babe!
prompt: can you write one where Dom is failing at something and the only way to get Letty is to succeed at it?
Honestly, he blamed his parents. He'd told them over and over that higher education just wasn't for him. All he wanted to do was get his engineering degree and get the hell out. He could've done that at a vocational school. Yet, here he was in his senior year at Stanford University, the second best engineering school in the United States, and he was literally failing almost every class. Luckily, he still had a month and a half left of the first semester to pull it together. It just all seemed so pointless. He was working his ass off, on almost an hour of sleep every night, for what? A piece of paper that said "Dominic Toretto" and a handshake? This was utter bullshit.
Now, he had another class to add to his schedule, thanks to his unhelpful counselor. Dr. Hobbs wasn't exactly known for his speaking abilities, mostly bad teacher puns and a chuckle at his own jokes. But, he meant well. He wanted to see Dom succeed, or so he was always telling the pupil.
So, there Dom sat in a lecture hall, waiting for some boring British dude to tell him all about the joys of-.
"Welcome to ME-120: Advanced Engineering Design. As you can tell, I am not Professor Owen Shaw. He was met with an unfortunate accident and will be taking a sabbatical this semester."
Dom's jaw dropped. He heard his father's voice in his head telling him to 'close your mouth before you catch flies'. So, he slammed his mouth shut and swallowed hard, trying to gain some semblance of moisture back.
His professor was… smokin' hot. The feminine husk of her voice mixed with the loose, waves of her hair and eyes like untainted coffee was almost too much for him to comprehend. He didn't even want to think about the pantsuit that was tailored especially for her perfect, petite body. The dark gray slacks were cuffed at the ankles to show off the thin strap of her black, four-inch heels. Complete with a crisp, white button up shirt and a vibrant, mustard blazer that buttoned just under her ample breasts, the woman was definitely a sight to behold as she turned to write her name on the white board.
"I am Dr. Leticia Ortiz. You can call me Dr. Ortiz, or Letty." She sat the dry erase marker back on its ledge and turned to her students. "Any questions?"
"Yeah," a kid whispered behind Dom to his friend, "where the fuck do I sign up for extra credit?"
Dom snorted his laughter, catching Dr. Ortiz's attention. Her brown eyes shot to his face and a stunned expression flashed across her features before her mask of indifference was back into place.
"Something amusing to share?" She asked. "I'm always up for a good joke."
"No, ma'am."
Arching a perfect eyebrows, she crossed her hands under her breasts. "Pity," she remarked before crossing the small distance from the dry-erase board to her desk, "I could've used a good laugh."
Now, Dom was wishing he'd remembered all of those godforsaken knock, knock jokes that his sister used to tell him when they were younger. Hell, he wished he could remember any joke at that moment. But, for the life of him, his brain just wouldn't work.
"Okay, if you'll look at the first page in your syllabus, you'll see a break down of how I grade my classes. Attendance and participation are forty-percent of your grade. Come to class, be on time, and speak up." She picked up a blank sheet of paper. "When you leave here today, and at the end of every class, you will sign this sheet."
Oh, Dom would surely be on time to every class. He'd say whatever she wanted him to say and whenever she wanted him to say it. He was more than willing to sign away his soul to her. Hell, if the woman wanted him to bark like a dog, he would.
His mind began to wander shamelessly with visions of Dr. Ortiz spread wide on her desk, her body writhing under his. Dom wondered what kind of lover she would like. Fast, hard and rough? Or did she like a man to make love to her? Someone who would take his time and worship her body.
No, he thought, taking another assessment of how she carried herself, no, she was the type of woman to take control. She'd definitely be on top. The woman had probably tamed every man who was lucky enough to spend the night in her bed.
"And finally, there will be extra credit opportunities for those who show promise in my class." Clasping her hands together, Letty smiled a genuine smile that reached her eyes. "So, today, I'll take it easy on you guys." Dr. Ortiz said. Dom snapped out of his fantasy and tore his eyes away from her body until they reached her face. He was shocked to see that she had her gaze set directly on his, an amused smirk on her face. She looked at him for a moment longer before turning back to the entire lecture hall, pacing back and forth. "Anyone know a good icebreaker?"
A hand shot up in the back of the hall. When Dr. Ortiz pointed to whomever it was, everyone turned to look.
"Picnic game?"
"What's your name?"
"Ramsey."
"Ramsey, tell me the rules."
For the next hour and forty minutes, they went up and down the rows learning each other's names by attempting to memorize the food that the person before them were "bringing to the picnic". The class of sixty-seven engineering students laughed at how much harder the game was than it should have been.
At the front of the class, Dr. Ortiz laughed; a sound that was pure sex to Dom's ears. "Come on, you all are engineers and remembering sixty-plus names are hard?" She teased.
"Let's see you do it, Dr. Ortiz." A blue-eyed, blonde-haired guy named Brian called out.
Letty stepped forward, feet shoulder-width apart and placed her hands on her hips. She raised her head and Dom concluded that she was the most regal looking woman he'd ever seen.
"You are Brian and you are bringing bolognese; my personal favorite." With barely a flourish, and only a smirk on her face, Dr. Leticia Ortiz went through every single person and their dishes ending with a glance at Dom, her eyes burning with... something. "And you are Dominic and you are bringing dulce de leche, another of my favorites."
The entire class sat in silence, mouths open, in complete awe of the woman in front of them.
"I could do it in Spanish if you'd all like." She smiled, her pearly whites gleaming. She spoke fluent Spanish, too? Dom was liable to come in his pants right then.
"How the hell did you do that?" A girl by the name of Ramsey asked.
"Eidetic memory," shrugged Letty. "I can retain enormous amounts of information and all I have to do is hear it once. Meanwhile I've heard you all repeat it nearly seventy times, so it's in my vault now." She tapped a slender finger against her temple and winked at Ramsey. Glancing at her watch, Dr. Ortiz's eyes widened. "Well, I guess that's all the time we have for today. Your homework is to look over the syllabus and get an idea of what we'll be working on this year. You're dismissed."
In a fury of backpacks zipping, laptops shutting, and feet shuffling, the lecture hall cleared out fairly quickly. Dom slipped his notebook and new syllabus into his backpack and swung it over his shoulder. He watched Dr. Ortiz put away her belongings as he walked towards her.
"Dr. Ortiz, I'm-."
"Dominic Toretto. Two-point-one GPA which is a miracle because you're failing Fluid Mechanics, Engineering Thermodynamics, Manufacturing and Design and Advanced Thermal Systems." She finished packing her things and crossed her arms again, looking directly into his eyes.
"Hard classes."
"This is Stanford. Every class is hard beginning with Intro to Solid Mechanics in freshman year. Let me ask you something Dom Toretto," she pushed her hair off of one shoulder, "how do you expect to keep your scholarships if you continue to bring in grades like that?"
"It's only the beginning of the year, I've got time."
"You don't. Believe me, I told myself that very same lie when I was here."
"You went to Stanford?"
"Cardinal pride, man." She confirmed. "But that was a long time ago."
"You say that as if you're old."
"I am." She laughed.
"But you're so beautiful." He blurted out, immediately kicking himself. Her eyebrows raised.
"Thank you. That's sweet, but a little inappropriate."
"I'm sorry. I don't know why I said that."
"Look, Dominic, unlike most of the professors here, I really am committed to the success of each and every one of my students. I want to see you all do amazing things and then come back to give enormous checks to your alma mater."
They shared a laugh.
"So," she playfully pushed his shoulder and pointed at him, "get it together, Dominic. I'm going to be checking in with Dr. Hobbs from time to time. And until you bring your grades up, I'd like you in my office every Friday after your classes are finished.
"Yes, ma'am." Dom grinned.
Picking up her bag and travel mug of tea, Dom deduced from the tea string dangling along the side, Dr. Ortiz started towards the door. "Don't you have a syllabus to read?"
"Yes, ma'am." Still, he remained glued to his spot, a notebook covering his painful erection.
She glanced at him over her shoulder, a sultry look in her eyes. "If you're a good boy, maybe I'll give you a little extra credit."
And that was it. She left Dominic Toretto standing there, his manhood at attention and his jaw on the floor.