With a deep breath, Anna raised her knuckles to rap on the office door. It opened faster than she expected and gasped slightly as Mr. Carson raised his eyebrows at her. "Anna, what's going on?"

"I need to speak to you."

"It's almost first period. Don't you have somewhere to be?"

"I do and it's in your office sir." Anna waited and eventually Mr. Carson stepped back enough to allow her inside the office.

She waited until he took his place behind his desk and followed his prompting to take a seat in one of the chairs facing his desk. He put his fingers together and tipped his head to stare at her. "What can I do for you this morning Ms. Smith?"

"I won't trouble you with the details but I'll assume you're not ignorant to the fact that I've bee interviewing for new positions."

"I know that our district can't pay you what your level of education deserves and we won't be so foolish as to believe we could hope to hold onto you when we've not got enough to keep you here long term."

"I've loved my time here, Mr. Carson, and I don't want you to believe otherwise." Anna handed over a paper. "But I've found a good position as a professor at Ohio University."

"That's quite a step up for you from our humble offerings here."

"It's a step, Mr. Carson. Up or down is relative in space." Anna shifted in her seat, "I just realized that I need to take another step in my life and this is it."

"Well Ms. Smith, I'm sorry to see you go." He stood and held out a hand, "I do hope you're not going to leave us at this moment."

"No, I'll be working through then end of the semester and then I'll be starting with them as of January." Anna stood as well, shaking Mr. Carson's hand, "I do hope you'll be able to find someone to start after winter holidays."

"It might be difficult but we'll manage Ms. Smith, don't worry about us." He came around the desk, "I do hope you don't mind if I offer to give you a hug."

"I think, Mr. Carson, that would be entirely appropriate."

They embraced and Mr. Carson released after a moment. "I do hope you're not going to tell any of the students about it yet. Not until we've found someone to replace you."

"I'll be mum about it." Anna sighed, "And I do promise to give my best work until the end Mr. Carson."

"I'd expect nothing less and, again, we'll be sorry to see you go."

"And I'm sorry to leave Mr. Carson. But it's time."

Anna tapped on the side of the podium as the students, some of whom she recognized from her Downton classes, filed into the lecture hall. Her hand shook slightly as she gripped the sides of the podium and clicked the button to start the monitor. A shrieking bell echoed into the room and she blinked away her jump as she tried to recover.

When the screen blinked behind her she addressed the class, "Welcome to introduction to calculus. I hope you're all ready to hate this as much as my other students do and maybe, just maybe, pass it as a gen ed."

After her morning of classes Anna gathered her things and hurried to her office. Her key stuck in the door and she huffed against it as she tried to get the lock to turn. Someone tapped her on the shoulder and she turned to see a man standing there.

He waved a hand and pointed at the door, "Jammed?"

"It's been this way since they gave me the key." Anna tried it again but could not get the door open. "I think it's defective."

"The wood warps in the winter because of the humidity." He pointed at it, "May I?"

Anna stepped back, juggling the contents in her arms. "Be my guest."

"Thanks." He took the key and put his shoulder to the door. "Happens with old buildings sometimes."

"How old is this building exactly?"

"Older than anyone wants to admit." He urged the door open and gave a satisfied smile, "There we go. Open and ready."

"I may just have to institute an open door policy about it all then." Anna stepped into the office before turning to him. "I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."

"Alex Green, Advanced Maths professor." He stuck out his hand and laughed a bit when she had to readjust the things in her hands. "Sorry, should've realized."

"It's fine." She took his hand, "Anna Smith, new Maths professor here."

He pointed a finger at her, "I had a feeling you were from the other side of the Pond."

"The fact that you say it like that makes me think that you've seen the other side of it yourself." Anna waved her hand, "Come on in, so you don't freeze in the hallway there."

"Thanks." He stepped into the office but kept the door open. "I have. Did my PhD at University of Leeds actually. It only took a year instead of the two or three I would've spent if I did it here."

"I've seen that campus." Anna arranged a few things on her desk. "I was stationed at Harrogate."

"I went to a rager there once." Green laughed, "Don't remember much of it but I do recall needing a bottle of aspirin just to take the edge off the next morning."

"I can imagine. The men I knew there were pretty rough and tumble but they were good men." Anna shrugged, "Not met many like them before or after."

"Me either." He looked around her office, "You've got to find a way to personalize this a bit I think."

"It's still my first week so I can't say I'm quite ready to settle in yet since here of my classes this morning were half asleep and another two yawned more than my entire senior class did in a year."

"You just come from teaching high school?"

"And I'm wondering if maybe I should go back to that since I knew what I was getting into with people who only wanted to pass the class versus people who don't know what they need."

"It's the crime of our jobs." Green shrugged, "But the plus side is at least some of the people in our classes commit to it for life."

Anna smiled, pointing between the two of them, "How do you think we got here."

"Exactly right."

Anna pointed to her office, "Maybe I should get a plant then?"

"A nice little succulent." He pointed to the window, "Right there. That way you don't have to worry if it doesn't get watered."

"Knowing me I'd over water it."

"I'll remind you not to." He nodded at her, "Here's to hoping you survive your first week."

"Thanks."

"And don't let those little assholes mess you up. I'm sure you've dealt with worse than a row full of sleepers."

"I did once have a student bring a knife to school."

"Yeah?" Green folded his arms over his chest, leaning on the doorframe. "What'd you do?"

"Reminded him that I spent ten years in the Air Force and I could still disarm him." Anna cringed, "I broke his wrist and got written up but my principal gave me a secret commendation."

"See," He opened his hands, "It's not nearly that bad here. Plus, you get office hours no one uses that you can just take a nap."

"Is that what you do?"

"Sometimes."

"What an endorsement." Anna laughed and then checked her mobile. "I've got another lecture in an hour that I'd better prepare for."

"Just don't stress yourself out just yet. There'll be plenty of time for that later when you're worried about reviews and publishing."

"Thanks for the advice."

"Anytime." He went to turn the corner before tapping on the doorframe, "And I'll get you that succulent. I think you'd like it."

"I think I would too."

Anna survived the first term and even found her students enjoying enough of it to have a few using her office hours. The succulent on her window thrived and she even added a few new plants on the side of her office. The same office that had her pulling a sweater around herself as rain lashed the window.

Someone knocked on her office door and she pushed back from her large desk to open it. A smile came over her face when she saw Green standing there. He opened his hands to her and nodded at the window, "I don't usually have this chance but I think we should call a literal rain check."

"I think so too. I doubt your drive-in movie will quite as much fun when it's pouring out." Anna adjusted in her seat, "Are you proposing an alternative?"

"It depends, are you grading exams yet?"

"I've got two lovely teaching assistants for that."

"So do I but they haven't finished yet." He nodded at her, "When are yours finishing?"

"Tomorrow." Anna sighed, turning in her seat to flip off her computer and shut down her laptop. "All I've got to do is drive home in this rain and then curl up on my sofa next to a lovely fire in my fireplace."

"You've got a fireplace?" Green smiled, "When will you show me?"

Anna paused, tucking her things into her bag. "Not for a long time."

"Could I ask…" He risked a step into her office, "Why is that?"

"I had a bad breakup a few months ago and it left me a little wrecked so I'm not ready to let anyone into that part of my life yet." Anna took a breath, "I do hope that's alright."

"Having suffered through a bad breakup or two of my own, I can relate. However," He held up a finger, "I promise that I'm still around for whenever you think you are ready."

"I'm ready for dinner, if you're up for that." Anna pointed to the window, "Despite the rain, of course."

"Hm," Green took a deep breath, nodding, "Then I'd have to ask you if you'd prefer Italian or Mexican."

"Are you open to Japanese?"

"I could do that."