Page 24 of Lunar Crest University

Seriously—even my footsteps feel heavy as I get off the bus and walk to the English Hall. My feet are dragging, or maybe I’m subconsciously stalling again.

I even hesitate outside the classroom door for a bit before I muster up the courage to whisk it open and walk inside, keeping my eyes on my shoes as I make my way up to my desk with a minute to spare. My curiosity peaks multiple times, coaxing me to peek at him, but I focus on the desk as I pull the chair out to sit. The magnetic pull to look up at him is intense.

Do not look at him.

“Finn?”

I twist my head to look over at Levi, who’s staring at me like I’ve got a third eye on my forehead or something. Clearing my throat, I say, “Hey, sorry.”

“Are you okay?” he questions softly. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but you look awful.”

“What other way should I be taking that, exactly?”

He deadpans. “No, you just look tir?—”

“Good morning, class,” Luca greets coolly, interrupting Levi as his deep voice echoes around the room. “Let’s knock this quiz out.”

Swallowing thickly, I pull out a notebook from my bag and start to doodle mindlessly on the blank page to avoid the gaze I can feel burning into me.

However, as a copy of the quiz lands on my crappy drawing of a sun hiding behind a cloud, I’m forced to reluctantly peek up as Luca passes a paper out to each student, one by one. His dark eyes linger on me for a moment as he gathers the next sheet between his fingers, and his eyebrows twitch faintly in question before he continues walking past my desk.

“Quiz is timed,” he states. “You have ten minutes. When you’re done, bring it to my desk.”

As if my Monday couldn’t get any more horrendous, now I only have a handful of minutes to get myself together enough to complete a quiz I’m not nearly in the right headspace for. My brain is already too full of problems, pushing everything quiz-related out. It goes against every bone in my perfectionist body. Perhaps I’m broken.

At my wit’s end, if anything. I’m only able to answer two questions in those ten minutes.

With a mortified expression, I rise from my desk to take my quiz down to the front. Hoping to toss it on the pile and dart away quickly, I groan inwardly as his eyes flicker down to it just as I place it on top of the stack. His eyebrows raise as I swallow the lump in my throat.

“Finley.”

“Yes, sir?”

“Is everything okay?” he asks lowly, just loud enough for my ears.

My jaw hangs open in disbelief just before I clamp it shut again as I step aside to let another student drop their quiz on his desk. When we’re alone again, I suck in a deep breath before glaring down at where he sits in his chair, looking annoyingly perfect. His black button-up is tucked into his khakis, andhis maroon-colored tie fits snugly to his neck. His glasses are perched on the bridge of his nose. He looks toofreshfor someone who left my house so early this morning. He doesn’t even look tired.

“Is everythingokay?” I hiss. “No, everything is not okay, Professor Serrano.”

He licks his lips. “See me after?—”

“Class,” I finish for him. “Yeah, I know.”

Turning away from him, I retreat to my desk. The rest of class passes in a blur, fleeting conversations about our next segment,Shakespeareand his sonnets, while Genevieve sucks up to Luca in a desperate attempt to grab his attention. For most of the sixty minutes, I zone out, staring aimlessly out of the glass windows of the classroom.

It’s crazy that a singular moment caused this. If I’d left work earlier that day like I was supposed to, none of this would’ve ever happened. I’d be a normal person in college, just like everyone else in this room.

It isn’t until students start filing out of the room that I snap out of my daze, shuffling to grab my things as I mosey down to the front to get the lecture I’m about to receive out of the way so I can go home.

But Levi stops me at the bottom step, gently grabbing my arm and turning me to face him. His hazel eyes are soft, which is the only reason I swallow down my attitude and sigh.

“Want me to come over tonight?” he asks. “We can watch a movie.”

I know he’s worried about me, but the last thing I want to do is entertain company.

“Not tonight, Levi,” I say, giving him a weak smile. “I’m fine.”

“Call me, at least?” He lets go of my arm before pulling me into a side hug. “Just so I know you’re okay. Please?”

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