The Learning Curve - Jim Hopper x Reader

ii. Lecture

The notebook that she brought with her remained shut tightly throughout the duration of the lecture, her light pink gel pin remaining capped as she drummed it lightly against the top of the book. In a different situation, she could easily picture his voice lulling her to sleep as he whispered gently in her ear. Her thoughts became free agents, no amount of control reining them in as she began to think about what that voice would sound like in close quarters. Her cheeks began to beat red at the idea of his voice dropping an octave, growling and groaning as he held her in his arms-

Get your mind out of the fucking gutter, DelMonica!

On occasion, Hopper's smile would grow wider as he looked at her, his eyes forgetting to look away and to give the same amount of attention to the other students. It made her feel warm inside, like she was the only woman in the room...like she was the only woman in the world.

Hopper sighed heavily, looking down at his leather-bound wristwatch after he completed his final slide.

"Well, I guess I could let you guys go a little early," he drawled with a smile, exiting out of the webpage. "I'll be uploading a PDF later on today. It's only about fifteen pages, so please make sure to read it before next class."

Holly remained unmoved, her eyes glazed over as a hint of drool threatened to escape her mouth. Steve nudged her shoulder as other students began to file out of the classroom, Hopper beginning to gather his belongings as Holly came to.

"Where'd you go off to?" Steve chuckled, throwing his bag over his shoulder as Holly shook her head.

"N-No where," she stuttered, a small smile appearing as she wiped the corners of her mouth.

She stood up quickly, blood rushing from her head as she began to gather her tote bag in her arms. She looked over at Hopper's figure before turning to Steve with a whisper, "Can you wait for me for, like, five minutes?"

Steve narrowed his eyes, his gaze shifting between Holly and Hopper with suspicion before shrugging his shoulders, "Five minutes. After that, I'm getting lunch with or without you."

"Deal," she chuckled, fiddling with the straps of her tote as he walked into the hallway.

She turned around, her eyes roaming the room to make sure everyone had left before approaching Hopper at his podium.

"That was a really good lecture, Hop," she smiled, licking her lips as she stopped a few feet away from him.

"Oh, yeah?" he teased, raising an eyebrow as he slid his planner into his bag. "What was your favorite part?"

Holly paused, her mouth going dry as her lips parted briefly, her mind going blank. She had absolutely no idea what he talked about today, but, damn, if she didn't enjoy watching him talk about it.

Hopper laughed, shaking his head, "It's okay. I appreciate the compliment even if you were daydreaming most of the time."

Holly grimaced, her cheeks ruddy as she looked down at her shoes, "I'm sorry...I guess...I was just more focused on the person giving the lecture than the lecture itself."

"Oh," he gasped with a smile.

It was now his turn to grow bashful, chuckling nervously as he rubbed a hand over his face. He grabbed his bag, adjusting the strap over his shoulder as he cleared his throat, "So, Miss DelMonica, how have the rest of your classes been?"

"This was actually my first one," she smiled, moving out of the way to allow him to walk before her.

"So, I guess I set the bar pretty high, huh?" he asked smugly, turning into the hallway before she began to walk beside him.