Page 96 of A Lab Rat's Guide to Fated Love
Goat-Nori bleated again, and he stroked her tiny forehead as he recalled the day he’d first met her as a sickly little kid roughly a year ago. His landlord had found her as an abandoned baby goat nearby, drenched from the rain and deathly frail.
She’d refused any food offered to her before sniffing out the guava in Vir’s trash that he was on his way to discard. He’d offered her the seedless slices, and she’d devoured them all within seconds, making him laugh and call her goat-Nori in response. The name had stuck. She was goat-Nori.
Not that human-Nori was ever going to appear there, demanding her name back.
At least she’s happy.He pushed himself to his feet.That’s enough.
Alright then,” Vir dismissed his lastclass for the day, “enjoy your weekend. And don’t forget, the report’s due next week.”
While the students slowly filed out of the lecture hall, some pausing briefly to wish him a good weekend on their way out, he returned to his desk to gather his things. He’d planned on spending the evening at the library, preparing material for the next week’s lectures so he wouldn’t have time to mope around and wallow in self-pity for a few more hours.
But now he just wanted to head back home. And maybe have a drink or two.
Though alcohol wouldn’t fix his feelings—or lack thereof—it might knock him out for a bit. Otherwise, looking at the dark clouds looming outside, he knew he had another sleepless night waiting for him ahead.
Vir couldn’t recall the last time he’d felt something. He was still highly sensitive to others’ emotions. Nothing had changed in that regard. But no matter how intense an emotion he picked from others; it still wasn’t his own.
A permanent layer of apathy coated his insides, allowing him to feel everything, yet be indifferent to it all. Whether this was some leftover side-effect from the experiment or something else entirely, Vir didn’t know. But he also didn’t care. To him, it was neither a good thing nor bad. Just a twisted shade of a perpetual gray that seemed to have enveloped him at some point, and refused to let go.
He wasn’t bothered about color, anyway. Because what was the point?
Picking his stack of books with his tablet balanced on top, he started towards the door when a lone remaining student still seated at the back of the hall caught his eye. He glanced in her direction and staggered to a halt, nearly dropping the stack as heat flooded his chest.
No. Fuck, NO.
At long last, after years of tending to his very fragile sanity, he’d finally lost his mind.
And how did he know that? Well, because Nori was somewhere in Canada right now. Atherown wedding.Shecouldn’t be in two places at once. Andhecertainly wasn’t dreaming.
Vir wanted to bark out a laugh. One that perfectly matched his current state of mental decline, but he couldn’t even open his mouth. He watched, frozen, as the woman rose from her seat and slowly made her way down the amphitheater steps.
“Hello professor.” She extended a small hand towards him. “I’m Dr. Nori Arya. Have we met before?”
A painful lump rose in his throat at the sound of her voice. The way her mouth moved to form each syllable made his chest constrict, threatening to squeeze the life out of him right where he stood.
His vision blurred, and he blinked before something hot and wet rolled down his face. So, his tear ducts were still functional, after all.
With a sharp exhale, he turned on his heels and marched out of the classroom.
Twenty Six
The Hot Kitten-Eyed Professor
January 2023:
Shoja, Himachal Pradesh
Nori
Nori dragged her feet through thecorridor, craving a strong cup of masala chai and bored out of her mind. She slowed as she neared a trio of chattering students. They’d know where the cafeteria was.
“Did you hear?” A dark-haired girl in a cropped top and ripped jeans nudged the lanky guy beside her. “He was a medical doctor before he got into this.”
“You sure about that?” another girl with curly bangs quipped. “I bet he was a Valentino model. Have you seen him walk? And that jawline?”
“Yeah, swoon.” The lanky guy rolled his eyes. “Stop ogling at the teacher, Ri. You have a handsome AF boyfriend right here beside you.”
“I don’t ogle.” Curly-bangs girl shrugged. “Though there’s nothing wrong with admiringfineart. I heard that girl Simi from first year asked him out last week.”
