"Dammit." Miles breathed out as he caught his balance. He looked down to see that it was Gianna's foot that he'd tripped over. His mouth was slightly opened as his eyes traveled up to her face.
The dimples in her cheeks showed as she tucked her lips to keep her laugh from escaping. She didn't trip him intentionally, but after seeing Miles almost fall on his face, she wished that she'd done it on purpose.
Once her eyes met his, she couldn't help but to burst into laughter since he still had the spooked look on his face. Miles was trying not to laugh to keep up his serious act, but he chuckled a little bit. Her laugh was contagious.
"Did you do that on purpose?" He asked her and her laughing fit came to a close. They both had to put on the masks of the bogus dislike they had for one another.
"I wish." She rolled her eyes as she reinserted her airpods into her ears. Miles didn't say anything. He thanked Alex for the food and headed right back to Gianna's booth instead of walking out of the door.
As he sat across from her, Gianna's eyes lifted from her computer screen to see Miles taking his food out of the grease stained bag. "What are you doing?" She asked him while raising one of her eyebrows.
"Did you complete your assignment?" Miles questioned while rearranging the toppings on his burger to his liking.
"What?"
"Did. You. Complete. Your. Assignment?" He asked again but slowed down his words this time.
"No. I. Didn't." She spoke in the same cadence as he did.
"Why not? It's been two days."
"Well, you were kind enough to give me a partner who writes in the complete opposite genre of me, so excuse me for taking some days to adjust." Gianna sarcastically responded to him.
"You needed a challenge and it's due Tuesday so I suggest you don't take too long and write something. Of quality of course." Miles sipped on the sweet tea he ordered.
Gianna rolled her eyes again. He was actually getting on her nerves now. "I came here to do my work in peace and here you are interrupting me."
"How you gone do work if you watching a movie?" Gianna shook her head and started to gather her things.
"Because I needed a break okay? If you don't have any more questions, I'll be leaving." She gave a sarcastic smile as she stuffed her laptop in her purse.
"Wait." He held up his hand before she could stand up. She raised her eyebrows, waiting for him to say whatever it was that he has to say. "I read what you submitted for the program."
Her body stiffened because she knew exactly what he was talking about and why he brought it up. "You read all of your students' submissions or just mine?"
"I skimmed theirs, read yours. And I gotta say. It looked real familiar."
"Your point?" She folded her arms on the table, slightly leaning forward.
Miles shrugged his shoulders as he used a napkin to wipe some of the grease off of his mouth. "I just found it interesting. Why didn't you tell me you used it?"
"What? You wanted me to jump on you the first day you walked in class and express how much I liked your books and that I rewrote your short story for my ticket into the program you're teaching? Yeah, no thanks." Gianna chuckled. "People would think I'm the biggest ass kisser up in there."
To answer her question, yes. Miles would've loved it if she jumped on him the first day he walked in class. He chuckled to himself at the thought, annoying Gianna in the process.
"It don't matter what they think about you, Gianna." He became serious once he saw she wasn't feeling him.
"Well I don't think my teacher would like it either."
Miles shrugged again, "He might." Miles ate one of the few fries he had left before quickly following up on his last sentence. "I liked how you changed the point of view and finished the story. I would've never thought of it like that."
Gianna didn't have a response for two reasons. She forgot what they were talking about because she was still stuck on the last thing that Miles said. She kept going back and forth with the voice inside of her head, wondering if Miles was flirting with her or not.
"Thanks." She smiled before tapping her phone screen to see what time it was. "It's late. I'll see you Tuesday." She slid out of the booth with Miles following right behind her.
"Do you need a ride?" He asked, willing to give her one.
"No. I have my car." She responded and stood where she was. Neither of them moved or said anything. Almost like they had a whole lot to say, but weren't certain if they should. It was quiet, besides the pop instrumentals playing.
"We close in ten minutes." Alex announced from behind the counter.
"Okay well be safe." Miles finally broke their silence and stuffed his phone in his pocket.
"Bye." Gianna quickly walked out of the door, making the bell chime as she departed. "What the fuck was that?" She asked herself once she was in the sacred space of her car.
Contradictory to what she said, she did not want to see Miles on Tuesday.
_____________________
"So she kills herself at the end?" Gianna sat across from Brooke in the student union and had just finished reading the Brooke's half of her story. "After murdering her family members? That's dark as hell." She chuckled.
"I know girl. It was so hard for me to get out of my comfort zone. Miles know he dead wrong for pairing us together with these different ass stories."
You needed a challenge his words and voice echoed in her head. She thought it was wrong how he put Brooke through hell just to prove a point. "Not you calling him Miles." Gianna laughed lightly.
"That's my man in my head. He is too fine. Forreal." Brooke emphasized as she picked off the muffin she was eating. She smiled as Gianna laughed. "You don't think so?"
Gianna shrugged her shoulders. There was no doubt that Miles was a attractive man, it was just different to her. "He's not ugly."
"Damn right he ain't. God know he ain't right for making that man my teacher. Now I gotta wait all these extra years."
"You're funny." Gianna said as she pulled up her half of Brooke's story. "I think I fucked it up lowkey. Murder mysteries is something I've never done at all." She slid her laptop over to her. "I want to read your other stuff cause I was intrigued."
"Of course girl. We friends now." Brooke smiled as she took Gianna's laptop. The extension of the story that Gianna wrote exceeded Brooke's expectations. It was similar to what Brooke was thinking, so it was nice to know that their taste was sort of the same. "This is good! Professor Fine better give both of us an A."
Gianna covered her face as she laughed at Brooke. She didn't think "fine" was the word to describe Miles as a teacher. "Professor Dickhead" was more up her alley.
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what we think?
ngl i be forgetting abt this book 😭 hope y'all enjoyed 💞 & thx for readin
