My nerves kick into overdrive as I exit my last class at 11:50. I bite my lip as I make my way across campus to Elvis' office. I really wasn't sure what I was going to find when I got there, but I was really hoping that my gut feeling was wrong about why he was acting strange. A few minutes later, I arrive on the second floor of the faculty building, my stomach tied into knots as I make my way towards the end of the hall. I stop near his door, seeing that it's closed. That meant that he was either alone, or had a student in there. If he had a student, his door shouldn't be closed, that was against the rules. Granted, he'd shut the door when I was in there, but I was considered his assisstant and it was acceptable for him to shut the door with me in there. Sure. Keep telling yourself that 'Ris.
I step up to the door and press my ear against it, straining to listen. I hear the soft giggle of a female student, "You're such a great kisser! I can't believe we're actually doing this." I shut my eyes, disappointment washing over me. I knew it.
"Honey, you gotta keep your voice down. Nobody can know you're in here with the door shut. I could get into some real trouble!" Elvis says. I take a deep breath, pause for a moment, then knock lightly on the door. I hear him hush her, "Just a moment!" I step away from the door, trying to calculate what I would say. Should I even mention it? Or play dumb for now? I hear the lock on the door click and the door opens slowly. Elvis pokes his head out, "Sorry I was havin' a meetin' with a student, and I-." He trails off when he sees that its me, "I thought your class got over at one?"
I shake my head, trying my best to keep a solid face, "Did I say one? I meant noon." I clear my throat and look into his guilt-ridden eyes, "If this isn't a good time, I can always come back later, professor." I emphasize my last word, staring hard into his eyes.
Slowly he pulls the door open more for me to step in, "No, come on in. I was just finishin' up with a student." I step into the room and lock eyes with the curvy blonde sitting at his desk. A mix of anger and jealousy washes over her face. Elvis walks past me and sits at his desk, "This is my assisstant, Marissa. She's helpin' me out with lesson plans and gradin', since she was Mann's best student." The girl nods, her eyes staying trained on me. I keep a cool face as Elvis shifts uncomfortably, "Anna, I'm sorry to cut our meetin' short, but I really should get to work."
The girl stands up, fixing her messily buttoned sweater as she leaves the room. I walk behind her, shutting the door once she's gone. I keep my back turned to Elvis, tears springing to my eyes. I flick the lock on the door and turn towards him, "I just want you to know that I heard what was going on in here." I watch his face flush as he rises from his desk. "You lied to me, Elvis. You told me you weren't going to hurt me, two days ago. But here we are." Tears spill from my eyes as I look to the floor, "I trusted you! Is this how you treat every girl?" He opens his mouth to say something, but I cut him off. "I don't want to hear it. I'm going home. I think we're finished here." I flick the lock again, pull the door open, and make my way down the hall. I can't believe I let him use me like that.
I hear him step out into the hallway, "Marissa, wait!" I tighten the straps on my backpack and begin to walk faster as I hear him coming down the hall after me. "Please!"
I shake my head and clear my throat, wiping tears as they spill down my cheeks, "Email me if you need to get ahold of me."
Just as I step through the door of the stairwell, he grabs my arm and pushes me against the now closed door. He presses his lips against mine and kisses me desperately. I push him off of me and slap his face as hard as I can. "Leave me alone, Elvis. This won't work on me." I look into his pleading eyes and shake my head, "You're a cheater and that's not going to work for me. I will be your assistant for the remainder of the semester, but nothing more. Please email me a time to meet with you, but otherwise, leave me be."
I push away again and make my way down the stairs to the first floor. I shut my eyes for a moment and take a deep breath before stepping out into the sunshine. My phone dings several times while I make my way to my car. I figured it was Elvis. I sink down into my car and drive in silence back to my apartment.
I get back to my apartment and find Sarah's car in the driveway. "Why is she here?" I mutter to myself as I climb out of the car. She knew I was supposed to have class until later on, even though I was no longer going. I knew she had a key, but it was still odd for her to be here in the middle of the day. I trudge myself inside and slip my shoes off at the door. I walk into the living room to find Sarah guiltily stuffing an Oreo into her mouth. She looks up at me and gives a half-hearted smile. I tilt my head at her and sigh, "How come you're here?"
She closes the package and shakes her head. "Brittany kicked everyone out again. You know how she is. Boy troubles." I laugh at the irony of her statement, causing her to pull a face, "What's that for?"
I walk over and sink down beside her, "I've got some boy troubles of my own, actually."
She tilts her head, turning towards me on the couch and tucking her legs under her, "What happened with Elvis?" As if on cue, my phone dings again. Sarah grabs my phone and unlocks it with her thumb, going through the messages he sent me since I left his office in tears. She looks up at me, anger on her face. She repeats her question, more forcefully, "What happened with Elvis?"
I sigh, take my phone and scroll through his messages.
Professor Hottie (12:10 PM): Marissa, I'm sorry. Please talk to me.
Professor Hottie (12:11 PM): Please, I'll change, I promise.
Professor Hottie (12:15 PM): I made a mistake, I shouldn't have done this to you, please...
Professor Hottie (12:30 PM): Please, I'm sorry I hurt you!
I roll my eyes as I look up at Sarah and sigh. "I noticed he was acting weird, so I went to his office when he said he had a meeting with another student and told him I was going to come at a different time, so I could catch him. When I got there, I stood near the door and heard a girl giggling. I knocked and it took him awhile to get the door open. The girl's sweater was buttoned crooked and his clothes were all messed up, including his hair." I bite my lip, "His door was closed. I'm pretty sure they were screwing around."
Sarah's arms open and she pulls me in for a hug. She wraps her arms tight around me, cradling my head with one of them, "Ris I'm so sorry! I'm going to kill him!" Before I can react, she takes my phone and goes into another room. All I can hear is the sound of her typing away at the keyboard, her nails making rhythmic sounds from the kitchen. She comes back a moment later and throws my phone at me. She sinks down on the couch and smiles, "There, that ought to do it." I unlock my phone and find no sent message. I tilt my head at her and she smirks, "I deleted it. It's for your own good that you don't read it."
I nod, "Oh. Okay." I curl up with a blanket on the couch. Sarah tucks the blanket in around me, turns on The Office and settles in beside me. My phone dings at some point, but I don't pick it up to read what it says. Sarah's phone buzzes shortly after mine and she picks it up to read what it says. She laughs lightly and I look up at her.
She shakes her head, "Britt texted the group chat to let all is girls know she wasn't letting anyone back for awhile. She apparently decided to do some renovating in the apartment." She looks at me as I laugh, "She busted a whole wall..."
I giggle softly and shake my head at her, "Well you know the couch pulls out, or there's the guest bedroom. You can take whichever you'd like."
Sarah grins, "I'd rather snuggle with you!" She busts out laughing and I hit her with a pillow.
I pick up my phone, deciding to see what Elvis said in response to Sarah's threat text.
Professor Hottie (1:03 PM): You can threaten me all you want, it's not going to scare me off. I feel awful for what I've done to her and I want a chance to explain what happened. I screwed up and I'm ready to change. I shouldn't have let anything happen. I've been sitting in my office hating myself since she left. I'm an idiot. Marissa, if you're reading this, I'm sorry. I know this doesn't make up for anything, but I'll make it up to you, I swear. I want to be a better man. I'll do whatever it takes, whatever you want.
I shake my head and clear my throat. I start to craft a text back to him.
You (2:00 PM): Elvis, I feel completely betrayed by what you've done. You promised me at the beginning that you weren't going to hurt me. And you turned around and did just that. That's unfair to me. There is nothing you could do that would ever make that up to me. I want nothing to do with you anymore. As I said earlier, I will be your assistant and nothing more. At the end of the semester, we are finished. I hope you have a good weekend screwing that slut...
I press send and sit back on the couch, pull my blanket up, and settle in next to Sarah.