Addison's POV:
Walking up to the classroom, I feel somewhat energized after the two coffees I had. Ashton and I got in fairly late after the bars last night and it's fair to say I got drunker than I had planned. Ashton insisted on rounds and rounds on shots and I unfortunately am one not to turn that down.
But now I'm suffering with a beaming headache and a pain inside me that begs me to lay in bed and sleep. However, my Criminal Justice class is my only one of the day so I figured I could push myself through one class.
As I open the door to allow myself to step in, my eyes find Professor Hemmings at the front of the room as always. He holds a book in his hands and seems to read it over intently. It's clear just how much he loves to learn and retain new information.
I walk past his desk and take my new seat causing him to look up from his desk immediately. I shoot him a soft smile as I place my bag down beside me and pull out my usual notebook and pen.
Professor Hemmings returns the smile before going back to his book. I slide my phone in my backpack in order to stray away from any distractions. But of course this is short lived the second Bryant walks in with his friends behind him.
His eyes lock on me immediately and he hurries to me. I smile as he leans down and kisses me as he does everytime he sees me. I pull away, not allowing him to make it last longer than necessary.
"You look great," he says eyeing me head to toe.
I blush slightly as his friends hoot and holler before playfully rolling my eyes. I really hadn't put much thought into my outfit today. It consisted of a simple pair of leggings, cropped tank top, and sneakers. Considering the hour I was out until last night, I had little time to get ready.
"Still not sitting with you."
Bryant pouts at me, taking my hand that rests on my desk.
"Pretty please?" he pouts.
I retrieve my hand and say, "No B, you can last 50 minutes without me for once."
"If I die from loneliness it's on you," he says pointing a finger at me.
I can't help but laugh at this as I shake my head, "Okay, I can live with that."
Bryant jokingly stomps his foot so I just stick my tongue at him before he stomps off. His friends all laugh at the exchange but I just ignore it as I turn back to face the front of the room.
One day he's going to stop begging me to sit with him. One day.
"Good morning class," Professor Hemmings says closing his book as he places it to the side. I turn my full attention to the front and cross one leg over the other. "How's everyone today?"
"Shitty now," I hear the voice of one of Bryant's friends say causing them all to snicker.
I clench my jaw at the rude comment but hold back from turning around. Professor Hemmings seems just as surprised by it as he raises an eyebrow and clears his throat.
"I'm sorry to hear you're having a bad day," Professor Hemmings says respectfully.
"It was fine until you came along."
I can't hold back from turning around to see which one of the delinquents it is. I'm equally as disappointed when I see Bryant biting back a smile, clearly finding the situation humorous.
They all hold smug expressions at the dumb comment made, and I just turn around resisting the urge to snap. Professor Hemmings looks stunned by the comments but attempts to dismiss it.
"So today we're going to be talking about-"
"Can't we just leave? This class is dumb anyway," another one of them says really pissing me off.
Do they have any respect for their professor? The nerve they have to interrupt him mid lesson and taunt him. The rest of the class seems to be enjoying it as they all laugh quietly to themselves.
"You may leave once class is dismissed," Professor Hemmings says fixing his glasses on his nose as he seems to get nervous. Hell, I'd be nervous too if these people were interrupting me every other word. "But for now we will be talking about the prison system."
Luckily no one says anything making me practically sigh of relief. Professor Hemmings pulls out the textbook and flips open to a page as he leans his backside against the table at the front of the room. His fingers run along the pages carefully and I go into my textbook to do the same.
"If you wouldn't mind taking out your textbooks-"
"Why would we have ever bothered to get a textbook?" someone laughs.
I want to drag a hand through my hair in anger. Professor Hemmings needs to yell at them. But then again, something inside me tells me they'll just laugh if he does. Why can't they just shut up and look at their phone for the entirety of the class period?
"Find someone around you that has theirs then," Professor Hemmings says calmly which impresses me.
He really is good at remaining calm, whereas I'm on the verge of screaming at the top of my lungs. No professor deserves to be treated like this and obviously Professor Hemmings is too nervous to say anything.
"No one in this damn room has a textbook," the same person says.
Having had enough, I turn around to face Bryant and his friends once again. Bryant hasn't said anything but he also hasn't told his friends to shut up so I give him the dirtiest look I can muster.
"Will you give it up?" I snap making them all look at me in surprise. "Some of us are actually here to learn something and just because your brain can't process more than five words at a time, doesn't mean you can ruin it for the rest of us."
They seemed shocked by this as everyone laughs and ooo's. I turn around with a dramatic roll of my eyes to see Professor Hemmings just as surprised as the rest. He looks to me with gratitude in his eyes as I cross my arms over my chest and shake my head at what had just happened not even five minutes into the class. You'd really think at a school like University of North Carolina, people would actually care about learning.
"Thank you Ms. Sinclair," Professor Hemmings says clearing his throat once more and then going back to the lesson. Surprisingly, they shut up and don't say anything more as Professor Hemmings talks about the different types of prison systems.
I make sure to take all the notes down on the paper even though my brain is properly retaining it all. I've always loved taking down notes plus it helps me remember things better. Due to this, I've made sure to put a put a lot of effort into my notes and how I organize them.
Professor Hemmings walks around the front of the room and no one seems to be paying attention except the people in the front. However, Professor Hemmings doesn't say anything as he continues the lesson and I keep my eyes on him.
I can tell just by the way he talks that he's a smart guy. His posture and articulation is enough to tell that he knows what he's doing. He without a doubt is a lot better than the teacher we had previously for this course. I don't know why everyone likes to mess with him so much.
I can't help admire him as a teacher. He's smart and young. No wonder the university wanted to hire him. He clearly knows what he's talking about and if people actually listened to him maybe they wouldn't give him such a hard time. Of course no one will give him a chance though because they feel as if they can have an upper hand when it comes to him.
Unlike everyone else, I listen to him go on and on about why the prison systems are so corrupt, I wonder what has sparked a fire inside of him. Does he watch a lot of crime shows? Or maybe it's all the reading he does. Either way it seems to be a subject he's fairly passionate about. But I guess if you're going to teach Criminal Justice you have to be passionate about all things crime.
But Professor Hemmings is an educated guy and that's as clear as day. I'm sure he could stand here and lecture us about anything in the world. I have no doubt he has the ability to do so considering the vibe he gives off. But once again, that's probably due to how much he reads.
I hear Bryant's friends start talking amongst themselves once again which seems to throw off Professor Hemmings slightly. It seems to throw off Professor Hemmings slightly but not enough for him to stop his lecture. His words become a little more stuttery as their loudness distracts him making me grip my pen tightly. Some people truly don't ever grow up.
"And then uh if you'd flip to-"
Snort.
All the words I plan on saying to Bryant after class zoom through my head in anger. I don't care if he hasn't directly said anything but I'd sure he's back their snorting and making comments under his breath.
"And then you just-"
One of them laughs obnoxiously loud which makes Professor Hemmings look up subtly. Why won't he say anything? He's the literal professor.
Instead of saying anything, I watch as he sighs and closes his book he holds in his hands.
"Why don't we call it a day?" he asks rubbing the bridge of his nose. "It seems everyone's focus is on the weekend."
My mouth drops open as everyone doesn't taken another second to get up in celebration and hurry towards the front of the room. I can tell how disappointed Professor Hemmings looks but he turns his back to us all as he packs up his own stuff.
Sighing on Professor Hemmings' behalf, I pack up my own stuff and wait for everyone to leave the room so I can stay after and talk to him. I want him to know someone in this room cares about what he has to say.
As I put everything in my backpack, Bryant hurries to my side and says, "You coming back to mine babe?"
"No," is all I say, remaining short with him as I zipper up my backpack.
"Why? I thought we were doing dinner tonight?"
"You're an asshole," is all I say as I get up from my chair and place my backpack on my shoulder.
He furrows his eyebrows and takes a step back and asks, "Woah, what did I do?"
He seems almost insulted that I'm not giving him the time of day. Leave it to Bryant to play victim and truly have no idea why I'm upset when I snapped at all of his dimwit friends.
"I'm talking to Professor Hemmings," I say as most of the room has cleared out. "I'll see you later."
"Babe-"
"Go join your jackass friends," I say nodding to the crowd that waits for him at the door to the classroom. They raise their eyebrows at my comment but just laugh it off instead of taking it to heart. He seems to open his mouth to say something but I just give him a look of warning.
Luckily Bryant just puts his hands up in defense before walking off. He doesn't fight it further as his friends snicker and he looks clearly pissed and just storms out of the room. To be fair, his friends are mainly the reason I'm pissed off at him.
I wait until they're all out of the room before approaching Professor Hemmings' desk. He seems to fumble as he puts everything in his bag, making sure to fix his glasses that fall down his nose a few times.
"Hi," I say adjusting the strap on my shoulder as the room is empty now.
Professor Hemmings looks up, shocked by my presence as he steps aside from his bag in an attempt to pay attention to me.
"Hello Addison, can I help you?"
"Yeah I um-" I say trying to think of why I'm here exactly. I don't want to bring up the assholes who made him feel the need to cancel class but I also don't know what else I'm going to say. So instead, I go with the first thing that comes out of my mouth. "How'd the crossword go this morning?"
Professor Hemmings seems just as surprised by my question as he says, "Piece of cake, as you had said."
I smile genuinely and tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear, "I failed once again at progressing with the book. I swear Calum's determined to make sure I never read a book again for the rest of my life."
Professor Hemmings chuckles as he leans his backside against the table once again and crosses his arms over his chest. I can't help but notice just how tall he is, it seems to be something I've never caught onto before. His height is as clear as day and seems to tower over my own 5'7 height.
I'm so distracted observing his height I barely catch on as he asks, "You don't want to get your own copy?"
I shake my head, "I don't feel a need to go buy a copy if I can just go to the coffee shop to read it. It's not like anyone else is just as determined as myself to read it."
This makes Professor Hemmings laugh once again as he rubs his chin with his hand and says, "You are right about that Addison."
"Yeah..." I say trying to think about what else to say. The only things we've ever bonded over are this damn book I haven't had the chance to read and crossword puzzles. Do I bring up the fact that I feel partly responsible for Bryant and his delinquent animals?
"I appreciate you for speaking up today," Professor Hemmings says clearing his throat as he steps away from the table and walks back over to his bag. I practically sigh of relief that he had brought it up and I didn't need to. "I know your boyfriend must've not been too excited."
"Bryant? Oh no he's not my- we're just- yeah..." I say not knowing how to describe what Bryant is to my teacher.
I can't exactly tell my teacher that all Bryant is is my hook up partner. But I don't want him to think I'd date a guy like Bryant.
"He's just your...?" Professor Hemmings asks seeming confused by where I was going with that.
"Friend," I say trying to put the right words together. "With benefits?"
Professor Hemmings nods his head slowly and says, "Ah, I see."
"I couldn't date a guy like Bryant," I say looking up at the ceiling. "I mean he just really doesn't care about anything, and I mean anything. Plus he is in college and doesn't even want to learn, which I don't get at all. Then, he- wow why am I telling you all of this? I'm sorry."
Professor Hemmings laughs it off as he shakes his head and closes his bag up, "Don't be, I'm always happy to be a listening ear for you."
"I just, have higher standards I guess," I say not wanting to sound snobby.
"As you should," he says looking into my eyes. "You're an intelligent girl Addison, don't let a boy ever get in the way of that."
I smile and nod. I wouldn't ever let a guy get in the way of that and I think that's a big part of why I won't date Bryant. I don't want to feel locked down by someone who doesn't appreciate intelligence.
"You as well," I say making a move to walk towards the door. Professor Hemmings shoots up an eyebrow seeming to question what I mean by this. "Don't let those assholes get to you. They're not worth it."
Professor Hemmings seems to catch on as he nods his head firmly and says, "Thank you Addison."
"You're welcome," I say. "Will I see you tomorrow at the coffee shop?"
Considering it's the weekend, I'm not entirely sure if he will still go. However, I'll be there regardless considering it's in my routine now. I can't go a day without it.
"Bright and early," Professor Hemmings says with a smile.
I return the smile before heading towards the door.
"I'll see you then," I say before opening it. Professor Hemmings tells me he'll see me then as well so I slip out of the classroom. However, I'm surprised when I'm met by Bryant who stands there expectantly.
I don't stop though, instead I keep walking and try to get past him.
"Adds wait!"
"I'm not in the mood Bryant," I say, annoyance laced in my words as I pick up my pace.
"Are you even going to tell me what I did?" he asks throwing his arms up in exasperation.
"You were an asshole for no reason," I say as he finally catches up to me. Knowing there's no escaping him, I settle for reprimanding him and putting him in his place.
"Me? I didn't say anything!"
"Exactly," I say. "Tell your friends to shut up, they're so rude and disrespectful."
"How is that my fault? I didn't do anything!" Bryant says defensively.
I want to grab him and yell in his face that that's the reason it's his fault. He should've told his friends to be quiet and just listen to Professor Hemmings. He let them go about the whole class and be rude. Not even just that, but even after I said something they continued to be rude.
"Say something next time," I say to him making him scoff as if that's beyond him. "You guys look like idiots, it's not even funny."
"You want me to yell at my friends just for messing around?" Bryant asks as if it's the most ridiculous thing he's ever heard.
"I want you to not interrupt mine and other people's learning," I say to him as I finally stop to look in his eyes and deliver the message sincerely. "He's our teacher for the year, you need to learn to have respect. It looks bad on me when he sees you with me at the beginning of the class and then watches you act like a dick."
Bryant rolls his eyes dramatically and says, "Oh please, he wouldn't hate you even if you punched him in the face."
I give him a look as if to rethink his statement. We both know damn well that the more Bryant and his friends act up, the worse it looks on me. I'm not going to have that on my shoulders. I refuse to look bad because of someone I hang out with.
"Get it together or you can find another girl to ruin the reputation of," I say before once again walking off.
"You can't be serious," Bryant says dramatically. However, I'm 100% serious so I continue walking and don't wait for him for one second. He knows how seriously I take school and I didn't work my ass off all of these years just for him to act like an idiot and make a fool of me.
He calls for me once again but I continue the trek to my car and don't look back.
I don't have to put up with this and I won't.
a/n
poor luke man
im so ready for him to be sexy luke
these asshole boys are about to be snapt shut
but i also love lil innocent luke
im so glad i took this approach ive never done anything but asshole luke and i love doing an innocent luke. i cant wait for more character progression and to spice things up wow.
thank u so much for reading i love this book so much i hope u guys do too!!
lmk ur thoughts and any predictions. fun fact i hinted at a mAJOR plot twist to come later in the story. i wonder if anyone caught on?? lmk if u think u did??
im so ready for them to be together wow im so impatient
then the true fun will really begin
anyway i love u guys stay beautiful u are too amazing for me.
p.s. for those wondering i keep doing old nerdy pics of luke because i want to slowly transition to manly luke in the pics too. aka i wont show luke as he is now until hes real luke in the book so if ur like why is this a pic of 2013 luke thats why (-:
okay thank u again im done now