You cursed your poor timekeeping skills as you tried to quietly sneak into the classroom full of students who were avidly listening to the professor talk. You couldn't count the number of times you had been late to class, and it was almost normal for you at this point. You never did it intentionally, you just always seemed to be running behind, just as you were this morning. Your eyes darted around the room, looking for somewhere to sit and your eyes catching a familiar head of pink hair. Spotting the empty seat she'd saved you, you quickly rushed to where she was sitting.
"Hey Is," You said, placing your bag down and taking a seat beside her. Iris, as was her full name, smiled at you before looking at her phone and showing you the time.
"You're late." She teased, not truly minding your inability to reach anywhere on time. She just hated being left alone in what she referred to as 'the most boring class she's ever had to take.' But, you couldn't blame her for that, after all, she was an art major who was only taking this criminal justice class, because you didn't want to take it alone.
"I'm sorry, I overslept." You said, getting out your books and resting them on the table so that it looked like you were attempting to pay attention.
"But you had time to get coffee?" She pointed at the coffee cup in your hand with an eyebrow raised. You knew she wasn't mad, this was just her way of asking if she could have some. You pushed the cup over to her, turning to face your professor who was currently talking about something or another, you tried to pay attention but it was almost impossible.
"He looks good today." You whispered, gesturing towards the man pacing in front of you. Professor Reid, or Dr Spencer Reid as he'd introduced himself on the first day of class, was spewing out endless information about, from what you'd been able to gather, statistics and their importance during an investigation. But, honestly, all your focus was on the way his dark red cardigan fit just right on him and the way his pants made his ass look incredible, not to mention how his hair fell across his face perfectly, not the words that were coming out of his mouth.
"Oh yeah...the things I would let that man do to me." She replied with complete seriousness but the wink she sent you to let you know she was just teasing.
It wasn't that funny, in all honesty she was entirely right. But for some reason, you laughed, much louder than you had meant to, and it unintentionally captured Spencer's attention. He quickly turned to see where the noise had come from, his eyes scanning the classroom until they landed on you, giggling to yourself. He watched as you turned your attention to your notebook, seemingly beginning to doodle on the page, and his momentary pause made the room fall silent. The rest of the class followed his gaze, which sat intently on you, and when you eventually glanced up from your page, wondering what had caused the silence, you found yourself locking eyes with him.
"Is something funny Miss Y/L/N?" He asked; his tone laced with exasperation, and the way he was looking at you was so intense you swore he could see into your soul. Your mouth gaped open for several moments as you tried to find the words to explain yourself.
"N..No, Professor Reid... I'm sorry." You stuttered out, and you could feel your face heating up, praying he would move his attention away from you quickly. Truthfully he had never gotten truly angry at anyone before; he was more passive, simply requesting them to stop disrupting so he could continue. But something about the way he was looking at you seemed unfamiliar, like he was agitated at the fact that you had interrupted his class. However, he didn't say anything, he nodded in acknowledgement of your apology and continued with the class, and as confused as you felt, you were grateful for that.
The rest of the class was simultaneously a blur and also the longest 30 minutes of your life. You hadn't wanted to risk anything else, so you sat there in silence, ignoring the several nudges and whispers Iris sent you. You usually wouldn't have cared about being yelled at by a teacher, aside from the apparent humiliation that would come with it. But something about angering Dr Reid made you... well, it was just something you didn't want to experience. You were ready to leave the classroom when you felt a tap on your shoulder. You sharply turned around to find him standing behind you, "Miss Y/LN, I'd like to see you in my office later. 5PM, don't be late." He said before walking away without giving you a chance to reply. Oh fuck.
5 PM came around much quicker than you'd have liked, and you found yourself standing in the hallway where Spencer's office was. Your hand rested against his office door as you wondered if you should knock or just turn around and walk away. You had been thinking about what would happen once you walked into his office. Was he going to yell at you or even kick you out of the class? The door swinging open alongside a slight, awkward cough startled you from your thoughts, and you looked up to see Spencer staring down at you, "Come in." is all he said before he walked back into the room, and you followed him obediently.
Your eyes moved across the quaint office earnestly, wanting to take in every little detail that you could. It was decorated with more books than your average library, with stacks of them littered all over the ground due to the overloaded bookshelves. An array of awards and accolades hung from the walls, and though it seemed wrong to do so, you made a small mental note of the lack of personal pictures. The only images that you could see were of Spencer, and two small boys and another with a radiant woman dressed like a rainbow had thrown up all over her. You couldn't help it, against your own better judgement, you began wondering who they were... if those were his kids and who the woman was, the thoughts filled you with a feeling you couldn't quite put your finger on. The room smelt faintly of coffee and the cologne he wore. The combination made your head dizzy, so you were grateful when he held his hand out towards the chair that sat adjacent to him and gestured for you to take a seat.
You tried to distract yourself from staring at him and analysing his facial expressions as he peered through the mystery paper in his hand. You were sure your lips were red from how you were nervously chewing at them, and your fingers were sore from the way you were anxiously picking at them. You subconsciously began squirming in your seat as he continued to read through the paper he held; his eyebrows furrowed in what you could only assume was a mixture of confusion and disappointment. It was stupid, but you felt an overwhelming sense of sadness wash over you, you had wanted him to like you. He was intelligent and attractive, his credentials were incredible, and it would be an honour to be respected by someone like him.
Spencer noticed you had fallen into your thoughts again and attempted to snap you out of them by placing the paper back on his desk. He bit back a smile at the way you jumped out of your trance. His hands came to clasp together, leaning forward as his eyes met yours, "Miss Y/L/N..." He started, and before you could stop yourself, you interrupted him.
"Y/N is fine... or Miss Y/L/N, whatever you prefer sir." You mumbled, shrinking back into your chair as the embarrassment of your sudden interruption overtook you.
Spencer raised his eyebrow in amusement, his lip turning up into a slight smirk at the honorific, a smirk you would've missed if you hadn't been staring intently at his face,
"Very well Y/N, I assume you know why I called you into my office?" He asked, and you couldn't tell if the question was rhetorical, so you decided to answer just in case.
"If this is about earlier in class, then I truly am sorry." You replied, watching as he shook his head.
"It's not and I apologise if I seemed harsh today but I hope, after I show you this, you will understand why." He gave you a small smile and handed you the paper he'd been looking through, the letter D circled multiple times in red at the top of it made your stomach sink. He'd handed you your midterm. You knew you hadn't done well, but you hadn't expected it to be wrong, especially not a D.
"Y/N, I know you're smart and more than capable of doing better than this. Now, I'm aware there have been some problems but I like to believe I was understanding of your situation and I had hoped you'd feel comfortable to talk to me if you were facing any more issues." He said; a look of concern filled his eyes as he leaned back in his chair, a subtle way of telling you this was an opportunity to explain.
You felt bad, you knew you should've talked to him, and you thought back to the last time you'd had a conversation with him, It was three weeks into the semester, and you were yet to hand in any of the assignments he'd set, he was rightfully concerned. Hence, he asked you to stay after class for the two of you to discuss the issues you were having. When you told him you had to sacrifice classwork to work and put yourself through school, he was more than understanding. He granted you an extension and told you to come to him if you had any more issues. You had hugged him as a form of gratitude, you knew it was inappropriate, but at the time, you didn't care, especially not when he hugged you back for a few seconds. Then he'd pulled away from you, told you were free to leave, and that was the end of that.
"Professor Reid, I'm so sorry. My laptop broke and I couldn't afford to repair it and then
there was a leak in my apartment and the stupid landlord wouldn't fix it so I had to work more than usual and I didnt have time to study for the midterm and I-"
"Breathe Y/N, it's okay I'm not mad." He spoke calmly as he got up from his chair and walked around to lean on the desk in front of you. You were more than confused by this and even more so by the words that followed. "Actually...I might have a solution to your problems."
He paused for a moment as though he was contemplating even continuing, and your head began racing with what he could potentially say. "I'm not sure where you're going with this sir." You told him, once again not missing the way his face twitched when you tacked on the title at the end of your sentence. You weren't sure if you imagined these reactions or if they were indeed happening. Either way, it confused the hell out of you.
"I would like to help you out..." He said hesitantly, watching as you raised your eyebrows expectantly. "...financially." You couldn't stop your jaw from dropping at his words. You were sure you were dreaming, that was it... you'd fallen asleep during class, and this was just some weird, wacky dream. You brought two fingers to your thigh, pinching yourself to test out your theory and wincing as the pain took over the spot. Nope, this was real. Completely insane but definitely real.
"I'm sorry, what do you mean financially?" You questioned, now you weren't stupid, you could attempt to deduce what he was proposing to you, but you needed to hear it one more time to ensure you hadn't made it up in your head.
"Well I'd help you pay for whatever you needed, that way you wouldn't have to worry about anything but your education." Spencer stated cooly, as though his tone would make it sound like what was offered was glaringly obvious and completely normal even if both of you knew deep down that this whole situation was most definitely far from ordinary.
You fell silent for a moment, your eyebrows furrowing in confusion as you tried to understand the offer he had just put on the table, "So let me get this straight...you would give me money...?" You looked up at him for confirmation, and when he nodded, you continued your query, "and in return all I'd have to do is focus more on school?"
"That's correct. I understand this offer may sound strange, and you probably have a lot of questions, but know that I see a lot of potential in you Y/N. I know you could do much better if you were able to focus solely on your work, and as your professor all I want is to see you succeed." You were shocked by how calm he was. Perhaps if you hadn't been so stunned by what was happening, you would've noticed the way his fingers were dribbling against the wooden desk or how he kept biting at his lip nervously, both giving away his facade.
You, on the other hand, were a wreck. You didn't trust yourself to speak when you were nervous; you always seemed to lose your filter and didn't want to risk saying anything inappropriate, especially not right now. But the silence in the air was full of expectancy, and you knew you had to say something eventually, so, once again, before you could stop the words from tumbling out of your mouth, you said, "So, you'd kind of be like my sugar daddy huh?" It was supposed to be a joke, something to break the air of subtle awkwardness that surrounded the both of you, but it turned out to be the catalyst that threw you both down a rabbit hole.
His face flushed red, and he let out a short amused laugh, "Not quite Y/N, I want to reiterate that I expect nothing in return, other than you getting better grades in my class. This is simply my way of helping you out." He flashed you a toothy grin which caused your heart to flutter and made you feel safe, you could feel the stiffness, perpetuated by the unknown situation, leaving your body, your shoulders visibly relaxing.
You weren't sure what happened, where the rush of confidence that overtook you came from, maybe it was the way he looked at you when he thought you wouldn't notice or the way your name seemed to roll off his tongue perfectly, or maybe it's the way you'd caught him staring at you when he should've been paying attention to his class... multiple times. Whatever it was that fueled it, you found yourself leaning forward, propping up your elbow on your knee and resting your chin on your hand. You were completely aware of the way your chest was pronounced in this position, and you didn't miss the way his eyes momentarily glanced down to your chest. "What if I wanted to give you something else in return?" You teased, reaching your hand up to touch him briefly. You didn't know why but you had this sudden overwhelming need for physical contact with him, and the slightest brush of your skin against his made you feel content, even if it was short-lived. He pulled his hand away from your touch, bringing back to rest in front of him out of your reach.
"I'd be careful of what you're implying Y/N." He muttered quietly, subtly biting down hard on his lip, almost as though he was trying to contain the groan of frustration that was tunnelling its way to his throat. You followed the movements of his body intently, watching as he moved his hand away from your reach and began fiddling with the ring that adorned his pinky finger. You had always thought his hands were incredibly sexy, often daydreaming about those long slender fingers, inside you, around your neck or even innocently holding your hand.
"I'm not implying anything sir," You still weren't entirely sure where this newfound confidence had come from. Still, it was only propelled further by the way he had scanned up and down your bare legs multiple times during the conversation and the way he couldn't stop himself from continuously focusing on your chest. You were not naive; you could sense the tension in the air. "I'm simply asking a question."
The next few seconds were a blur. Spencer wasn't sure what came over him, it was something he couldn't quite control. All he knew was his hand came down to grasp your cheeks between his thumb and index finger. His eyes stared intently into yours as he got lost in the innocence that hid behind the mischief in your eyes. The short gasp that left your pouted mouth quickly brought him back to reality, his hand pulled off of you as if the touch of your skin burned him, and though you tried to reach out and pull him back to you, he was already removing himself from the desk and stumbling his way back to his chair.
"That's enough Y/N, take a few days to consider my proposal and get back to me whenever you can" He wasn't angry; he just felt stupid. He knew deep down that this whole situation was wrong, but he couldn't help himself. From the moment you'd stepped into his classroom, he had been completely enamoured by you, the way you held your books close to your chest, the way your hair was always slightly unkempt, the outfits you wore that he swore you chose just for him, he felt dirty for the thoughts that rushed through his head when he saw you, especially when you looked at him as you were now, all doe-eyed and innocent.
He'd been reckless, and it scared him, it was so unlike him to lose control, especially to a girl who was first and foremost his student, but something told him this was just the start. There was no doubt in his mind that the young girl was going to wreak havoc in his life, whether it was intentional or not. His mind was going a million miles a minute, but he was trying his best to keep a calm exterior, not wanting to worry you further; he pulled a stack of papers towards him and began pretending to read the page, trying his best to avoid glancing back at him you.
You, however, were stunned into a short-lived silence, finally speaking up after a few moments. "Professor Reid I-'' You started, pausing to ponder on what exactly it was that you wanted to say, did you want an explanation or perhaps the chance to tell him you didn't mind what he'd done; that you'd liked it. You looked at him, concentrating on the way his facial expressions contorted to try and conceal the thoughts that were rushing through his head, and all you wanted was to put his mind at ease. However, you didn't get the chance because he spoke up before you could finish your sentence.
"Miss Y/L/N, please leave my office now." He said abruptly, his focus remaining on the papers in front of him. You felt ridiculous, but it hurt you to see him suddenly acting so cold, so different from the sweet man you saw moments ago, and you couldn't help but blame yourself for pushing him too far, you hadn't established any boundaries, and these were the consequences. All he had done was offer you something unique, an opportunity that you knew would help you immensely, and you just had to go and push his buttons.
You picked up your bag off the floor and quickly readjusting your skirt, which had gotten all messed up from the number of times you'd nervously shifted in your chair. The movements caught Spencer's eyes, his eyes trained at the unrestricted view of your legs, and he had to physically force himself to look away as you began making your way towards his office door. You stopped and turned around momentarily, debating if you should say something before you left, an apology perhaps. Still, after seeing his cold exterior, you decided against it, not wanting to upset him further.
The second you were back in the large hallway, you released a breath you didn't know you had been holding. You took out your phone to check the time and saw a dozen text messages from your friend asking what Spencer had wanted to talk to you about and why you had been in there for over an hour; you sighed as you scanned your brain for some believable explanation for your unexpected meeting with your professor. You typed back a quick reply telling her that he'd just had some book recommendations to offer and you'd gotten caught up discussing them, you hated lying to your friends, but you didn't want to tell anyone about what he'd offered; you weren't sure if they would understand, hell you didn't even know if you fully understood what was happening. But all you knew is that you had to make a decision and make it fast.