Page 8 of Emily: Hello Kitten

My jaw tenses, my hand balls into a fist, but my words don’t come as I hear the sound of heels coming closer.

“I hope you two are getting along,” Dr. Spence says.

“I was giving Emily her paper back a day early. I hope you don’t mind. Apparently, she doesn’t believe in her own work,” Dr. Hayes says, completely unbothered. “But my grades are final. The second it’s committed to red ink, it’s done.”

“We’re done,” I say to Adrian before smiling at Dr. Spence. “Put me to work.”

“Don’t I always?” she says brightly. “Adrian, if you’re sure you don’t want to stay …”

“I have a class of my own, but I’m definitely eager to sit in one day,” he says politely.

He heads out, leaving Dr. Spence glowing from his interest in her class while I’m still trying to read into everything he said.

five

Icover my face with a pillow and scream into it as I know how fucked I am.

Beth sighs. “Just transfer out of the class.”

“I need it to graduate. I checked,” I mumble against the pillow. “If I want to follow my plan, I need a certain set of classes to graduate. With one of them, I can only enterifI finish ng Narrative 102withDr. Hayes.”

She watches me for a long moment, and I can see the gears turning in her head as her jaw ticks. “What?”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Okay, then forget it ever happened.”

“Yeah, easier said than done when I have to see him three times a week. Maybe it will magically get less awkward. If he keeps being the cool professor, I’ll forget how he held me against his wall,” I grumble.

She rubs the back of her neck and sets her strawberry blonde hair free. “I mean, go out. Get laid. Clean your palate or something. Come on, it’s Friday.”

That’s not the worst idea. It’s been five days since I first saw Dr. Hayes, three awkward classes where I barely managed to slip away before he tried tokeepme and talk to me. I can’t keep living like a fugitive for three hours a week.

“You want to go out again? After what happened last time?” I ask.

“Well… one, it’s a Friday, not a Sunday, so we’ll probably see some people our own age,” she hints.

I huff and sit up.

“Not your cup of tea, but it might clear him from your mind. You’re the one who says getting under someone else will change your mind on someone from your past. Put that idea to work,” Beth says as if it’s obvious.

It’s not the worst idea. “So, just get all dressed up, go out, drink, and fuck someone else?”

“Someone who doesn’t go to our school, ideally,” she jokes.

I roll my eyes, not even wanting to get into someone else’s bed. “Fine. Are you letting Danielle know?” I sigh and get up to search my closet for something to wear.

“I’ll text her,” Beth says as my fingers glide over the dresses and linger on a cute pink one.

Peeling it from the hanger, I change out of my jeans and simple top and slide into the dress as Beth brushes through her hair and wiggles into cut-off denim shorts and a tube top.

With that, we go to a local college bar. We start with drinking, since that’s clearly the first solution, then we move to dancing. I giggle as we show off our worst moves, then our best. I grind against my best friend, then Danielle joins us, rubbing against me and Beth until Beth is stolen away by a guy.

She giggles and happily grinds on him. I get another drink, wait for someone to approach, then go dance with the first guy who does, even though he’s not close to being my type. He’s got long hair, glasses, a good body, and confidence, but I just don’t feel it.

Then again, I wouldn’t be out here, trying every mixed drink I think I can tolerate, if I hadn’t slept with a professor.

My phone vibrates in my back pocket and I pull it out. The screen lights up and a text fromStallionfills my screen.

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