It was Wednesday and Dan arrived early to class as he was unsure where Chris and PJ had gone after their previous class.
Perhaps they had found a supply closet to have a quick shag.
He cringed. Why do you do this shit to yourself, Dan?
He found his usual seat in the back of the classroom and tried to calm his nerves. Students began to file in one by one or two by two over the next few minutes.
Their professor arrived shortly, taking long strides into the room.
"Good morning, guys." He took his over-the-shoulder bag off and put it on the desk at the front of the room.
He seemed tired, Dan thought.
"I hope you've all at least got started on your next paper," he looked around the room, earning a few shamed faces from the other students and grinned.
His eyes paused as they landed on Dan and he couldn't help but let a small smile tug on his lips. He had finished the paper, but he doubted anyone realized.
Their professor began his lecture for the day, and luckily, Dan was not asked any questions about any play or novel.
Yet, he seemed to lose himself in the way Mr. Lester moved about the front of the room, talking with his hands. He had his button up shirt sleeves rolled up to the elbows, and damn did it cling to his chest and shoulders so perfectly.
His dark slacks looked fantastic over his long legs as well and it wasn't long before Dan had to shift in his chair painfully.
Dazedly, he found himself the last student in the classroom again when the lecture ended and he hurriedly gathered up his books. He stood and began to head for the exit.
"I trust that you've begun your paper, Dan," his professor said, stopping him in his tracks.
If it weren't for the respect he had for him, Dan would have pretended he didn't hear the question and continued out into the hall.
"Er, yes, sir," He said, and he began to blush furiously at his choice of words.
It was far too pornographically cheesy, but perhaps he was the only one that thought so.
Get your head out of the gutters, Dan.
"It is coming along well?"
"It's fine, thanks." Now can I please leave before my heart explodes?
"Alright… Er, have a nice afternoon then, Dan."
"Thanks, professor." Dan propelled himself forward, towards the corridor, then at the last minute he turned and said, "You too."
That afternoon, Dan couldn't find Chris or PJ, and he didn't want to wait for them before he bought his own lunch, ate, and left for the library.
He ate quickly, letting his eyes scan the room for them, but they never showed. Within ten minutes he was dumping his trash into a bin and leaving the cafeteria again, heading towards the other side of campus.
He walked quickly, eager to get out of the sun and when he stepped inside the quiet building he breathed a sigh of relief.
The library wasn't always very busy, but it seemed like most of the tables were taken up today. He dropped his books into the book return chute and made his way towards the isles of books.
Fiction was his genre of choice, and he read nearly every sub-genre.
He found two books he figured he'd be able to complete in three weeks and checked them out.
Heading towards the back of the library, he noticed that most of the tables were still being taken up by other students. The last one left available was a larger, rectangular table. He sat down at one end, laying his bag across the table, and opened up one of his books.
He tuned in easily, the words filling his head and transporting him to another world.
He forgot about the sounds of the other students or campus employees. He didn't hear the sound of quiet chatting, or books being stacked or slid back into or out of place, or the sound of the computers that the librarians were working on.
"Dan?"
He nearly jolted in his seat at the sound of his professor's voice. He looked up and into the hesitant light-colored eyes of Mr. Lester.
"Professor," he replied, looking at him expectantly and was proud that his voice sounded even for once.
"Is it alright if I sit at this table? All the other tables are taken."
Dan glanced around. All of the other tables were indeed full still. He looked back at his professor, determined to keep a straight face. "Sure. I don't care." Do you realize what you do to me?
Mr. Lester chose a spot at the other end of the table to boot up his laptop and Dan attempted to zone back into his book.
Unfortunately, he was agonizingly aware that his professor was sat there, clicking away on his keyboard.
He eventually gave up and shut his book. He reached into his jacket pocket and got out his phone. He found that he had a couple of texts from Chris.
Hey Dan
The second message read,
Won't be back at the flat tonight. Gonna stay with PJ
Dan sighed, and shoved his phone back into his pocket. He put his books into his bag and stood, leaving the desk and walking out of the library.
It was about time that he caught the bus to get home anyway.
Dan was unaware of the way his professor looked over at him in concern, noticing the tension in his jaw and the force of his movements.
What on earth was frustrating this boy so much?
Phil noticed that he had read something off of his phone and sighed audibly.
He watched him go, curious and concerned.
Now, as a teacher, it was natural for him to be worried about a student, but… this was bordering on a more intimate concern for Dan's wellbeing and it was troubling him.
After Phil had graded the online assignments his students had submitted he bagged up his laptop and made his own way of the library.
In the parking lot he found his car and climbed in, desperate to get out of the sun. He put his bag in the passenger seat and turned on the AC when he started the engine.
He drove away from the campus and out of the busy downtown streets towards his quiet neighborhood.
He currently rented a small, but modern townhouse. He was glad it was small; otherwise a bigger place would have seemed much emptier.
He lived alone, and he was painfully aware of it as his keys echoed when he laid them on the granite counter in his kitchen, and when he reheated leftovers for dinner.
Phil had found himself in the habit of re-reading Dan's papers before he handed them back to the class. He was still going through a free write prompt he had assigned the class.
It was a strange thing, he knew, but he imagined Dan sitting across from him, reciting the words on the paper and that he didn't have to eat dinner alone.
For me, reading has always been a chance to escape. My life has always been so ordinary and boring. It's why I love fiction so much. I can go to another world so much more interesting than my own. I can step into the shoes of a character much more courageous or interesting than myself.
I can kind of forget about everything for a couple of hours and live another life. I can forget about waking up at six AM and serving coffee to grumpy middle-aged business men and teenage girls with way too long, loud nails. I can forget that it feels like my best friend hardly lives me with anymore. I can forget that I'm a socially awkward, unaccomplished, lonely 23 year old.
For me, reading lets me forget.
Dan.
If only he could see how truly brilliant and interesting he was. Phil sort of wanted to take this piece of paper and wave it in his face and say, "You brilliant idiot!"
He wrote a little note on the corner, which was something he generally did for all of his students, that read: You're not boring or uninteresting. Life can still be significant. Great response as always
He went through the last of the papers, glad that he'd be able to hand them back on Monday and collect the next set of papers from them as well. Well, mostly he was interested in what Dan was writing.
He sighed heavily and cleared his place at the dining table, insisting to himself that he definitely was not lonely. And he definitely did not have a crush on his student.
No, he didn't have a crush.
The next morning Phil found this little coffee shop near the school campus. He normally did not drink coffee, but on this particular morning he was really feeling the consequences of staying up until 2 AM thinking about a certain student.
He stepped into the small shop, the little bell by the door jingled. He could smell rich coffee beans and hear blenders whirring as the employees quickly fixed things for the customers.
The line was moving along a bit quickly. He had no idea what to choose from the menu.
Once he reached the beginning of the line, the cashier stood taller after emptying some change into the drawer.
Phil found himself staring unapologetically into Dan's soft, brown eyes. He blinked, disbelieving.
"Er, good morning sir. What can we get you?" Dan asked, a hint of embarrassment slipping through his voice when he realized his well dressed, probably nice-car-owning professor was standing on the other side of the counter.
"Dan?"
"Sir," he replied.
"I'm sorry, I didn't recognize you at first in your uniform."
"No worries. What would you like this morning?"
"Well, I'm not sure. What do you recommend?"
Dan's eyes lit up, and Phil's heart thudded unevenly in his chest. "I've got just the thing. You'll love it. On me, okay?"
Despite that Dan's knees began to wobble, he felt a bit more at ease where he worked. He had been here so long that all of steps to run the register had become second nature. He was confident behind the register.
"No, Dan. I doubt you could hardly- I mean, it's not necessary." Phil began to refuse but Dan waved him off.
"Nonsense. I'll fix you something good, alright?"
"Er, alright. Thanks, Dan."
"Your welcome, professor. What name should I write on the cup when it's done?"
"Oh, er, Phil." He said to Dan. "Yeah, it'd be sort of weird if you wrote professor on my coffee cup, huh?"
Dan smiled widely at him, a full blown dimpled smile and damn, does this young man know what he could get himself with a smile like that.
Phil stood over to one side of the small shop, waiting for his drink to come up at the counter. It was a short wait and Dan called, "Phil," in a voice louder than he had ever heard him speak before.
"It's kind of hot so be careful and have a nice day." He told Phil when he approached the counter.
"Thanks. You too, Dan." As Dan turned away Phil slipped a five pound note into the tip jar without him noticing.
As he exited the building, Phil noticed that Dan, aside from his name, had written on the cardboard cup:
Enjoy your caramel cappuccino and be careful its hot – Dan
Dan even added a little smiley face at the end in his quick scrawl. He couldn't help but grin widely as he made his way back to his car and then to the campus.
No. It certainly wasn't a crush.
please review! thank you for reading *heart emojis*
also i am on tumblr at yesiwritefanfics . tumblr . com
thanks again
have an awesome day