by Ivy Smoak
"Excuse me, Professor Hunter?" I said nervously.
"How can I help you, Miss Taylor?" he asked and looked up from the pages.
"I didn't get a syllabus."
"Well here you go then," he said and handed me the one he was holding.
"Thank you."
"So a walk in the rain with a stranger was a highlight to your eventful evening, was it?"
"It was the only good thing about last night, actually."
"I had my suspicions after you referred to this class as a date."
I placed my hand over my eyes, and then slowly let it slide from my face. "I thought I had dreamt that." I was completely mortified.
"I didn't realize I had made an appearance in your dreams, Miss Taylor."
"That's not what I...I mean you didn't. Well I meant..."
Professor Hunter laughed his enticing laugh. "Have a good weekend, Miss Taylor. Maybe on Monday I'll ask everyone to share a memorable dream they had over the weekend."
I felt my jaw drop slightly. The door creaked open and students for the next class started walking in. "Professor Hunter," I said, and quickly turned and walked out of the classroom.
Chapter 6
Sunday
Despite Melissa's protests, I had spent the weekend in sweat pants, holed up in our dorm room with occasional trips to the dining hall. On Sunday night Melissa had practice with her a cappella group. I had just finished putting large curlers in my hair for volume. I could pretend it was for Tyler, or at least someone my own age, but that would be a lie. I was trying to look good for Professor Hunter. He made me feel unbelievably self-conscious. If he really did ask the class to share a memorable dream from this weekend I would die. The only dreams I seemed capable of having were of kissing him under that umbrella in the pouring rain. And him pressing my body against his with his strong hands. What is wrong with me?
I sighed, laid down in my bed, and turned on the T.V. Instead of looking at the screen, I grabbed my phone. I scrolled to the "T's" in my contact list. Tyler wasn't listed. I went down to the "Y's" in case he accidentally forgot the "T," but he wasn't listed there either. I slowly scrolled up through the list until I found him: "Apologetic Tyler."
I laughed out loud. He was near the top of my contacts list. That had to be on purpose. I clicked on his name and then on the message option. "Apologetic Tyler?" I typed. "That's a start." I added a smiley face emoji and pressed the send button.
It would be awhile before he texted me back. That was just how texting seemed to work. He'd see it right away, but he'd want to pretend he was busy doing something else and text me back in a bit. Or if he was like Austin, I'd never hear from him again. I put my phone down on my bed. I hated these games.
My eyes wandered to the T.V. screen, but I couldn't seem to absorb the funny scenes from America's Funniest Home Videos tonight. I picked up my phone right when I heard it buzz.
Tyler: "I'm hoping you'll eventually drop the 'apologetic' and I can be normal Tyler again. What is the lovely Penny up to tonight?"
I had just complained about games and I found myself putting the phone down. This is ridiculous! I picked it back up and wrote: "I'm trying to decide on a topic for my speech. Have you chosen yet?" My finger hovered over the send button for a second, but I pressed it.
He would most likely think I was pathetic for answering right away. When my phone didn't buzz after a minute, I knew it would be awhile. I put my phone down, hopped off my bed, and found the Comm syllabus on my desk. I looked down at my desk chair. I usually used my computer and did most of my homework in bed, so Professor Hunter's sweater was still folded on the chair. He said his syllabus had his office hours, so I'd go as soon as I could to return it. My heartbeat quickened with just the thought of being alone with him.
I sat back down on my bed and looked down at the first sheet of the syllabus. Professor James Hunter. James. Even his name was sexy. I found myself wondering if he went by Jim or Jimmy. I decided against it though. Professor Hunter seemed sophisticated, and James Hunter was a very sophisticated sounding name.
I read through the first page of the syllabus. It was the same as every other professor's, outlining expectations and grading policies. I flipped to the assignments and read about the first speech. Who am I going to talk about? I didn't want my speech to be boring. I wanted Professor Hunter to notice me. So far my answers to his questions seemed to make him want to talk to me. And our awkward conversations made me feel alive. My gut told me to talk about something safe. For some reason though, I found myself brainstorming about how I could twist the assignment into talking about the stranger in the coffee shop. It was bold, probably way too bold. But I began to wonder if he would like it. He seemed to enjoy my answers so far. I wanted him to stare at me intently again.
My phone buzzed and I picked it up.
Tyler: "Thought I'd do it about my grandfather just to piss off Hunter. I'll make it real funny though. After all, there's this girl in class that I really want to impress."
I smiled as I reread his text. He was bold. And if he was willing to push the limits, maybe I should too. I texted him back: "I'm looking forward to hearing what you come up with. See you tomorrow, Apologetic Tyler."
I skimmed through the rest of the syllabus to find Professor Hunter's office hours. When I found the page, it felt like my heart stopped.
"Penny, are you okay?"
I hadn't even noticed that Melissa had come back. She dropped her keys on her bureau, walked over to her bed, and sat down on it cross-legged.
"Yeah," I said quickly and closed the syllabus. I tossed it onto my desk. "Just looking through some notes."
"Well you'll never believe who I ran into," she said.
"Who?"
"You're supposed to guess, Penny!"
"I have no idea."
"Austin."
"Please tell me you just ignored him."
"No, I went over and talked to him."
My eyes bulged. "You're joking, right? Melissa please tell me you're joking?"
"I walked over to confront him about being a huge jerk. I was going to stick up for you! And you know the first thing he said to me?"
"I don't want to know."
"He asked for your number."
"Why would he ask for my number? He has it. And even if he did lose it, I've called him twice since I've been back and he's completely ignored me."
"Well, he said he got a new phone."
"And you believed him? When people get new phones they usually keep their old numbers." I rolled my eyes.
"Well I don't know, he seemed sincere about it. Anyway, I did stick up for you. I refused to give him your number."
"Thanks, Melissa."
"So he gave me his new number instead."
"He gave you his number? He's so full of himself."
"No, not like that. He gave it to me to give to you." She pulled a slip of paper out of her pocket and waved it in the air.
"I don't want it."
"Geez, aren't you even going to see if it's a new number?!"
"It doesn't matter. There are a million other ways he could have contacted me. If he really wanted to see me, he easily could have." I folded my arms across my chest.
"Fine," Melissa said. "Well I will just leave this here," she placed the paper on her nightstand, "in case you change your mind. You're welcome by the way. I'm going to go take a shower." She hopped off her bed, grabbed her shower caddy, and walked out of the room.
As soon as the door closed behind her, I jumped off the bed. Instead of grabbing the piece of paper like I know she wanted me to do, I picked up my syllabus and turned to the page that had Professor Hunter's office hours and read the note he had written in it:
Miss Taylor,
I hate to think that you make walking around in the middle of the night a habit. But if you find yourself alone in the rain again, please do not hesitate to call me if you feel you are in need of an escort.
- J. H.
152-726-0
133
After reading it for the fifth time, I pulled the paper to my chest. Oh my God! I grabbed my phone and quickly added his number. It took all my willpower to not text him. I flipped my syllabus back to the first page and placed it on my desk. It was hard to tell if he was being a responsible adult figure or completely flirting with me. I liked to think it was the latter. Part of me thought I had imagined the look in his eyes when he had walked me home. But maybe he was hungry...hungry for me. When I heard Melissa's hand on the doorknob, I quickly switched off the lights and pulled my sheet and comforter up over me and closed my eyes, pretending to be asleep. I hadn't told her about Professor Hunter walking me home on Thursday night. I wanted to keep just this one thing to myself and my fantasies.
I fell asleep thinking of Professor James Hunter kissing me under his umbrella.
Chapter 7
Monday
My alarm started beeping, disrupting the images of Professor Hunter that were swirling around in my head. I almost hit the snooze button, but then I remembered it was Monday. This morning I'd get to see the man himself. I turned off the alarm and slid out of bed.
Once I was done washing up in the bathroom I came back to my room and undid the rollers in my hair. The volume looked great. I pumped some mousse into my hands and tousled my hair slightly. Then I put on my makeup, which included some mascara and even a bit of eye shadow. After one glance in the mirror, I quickly wiped some away. I wanted to look sophisticated, not trashy. The look was surprisingly hard to accomplish. I pulled on a skirt that was short, but not inappropriate, and tucked my tank top into it. I grabbed a long necklace so that it would dangle between my breasts. Turning back to the mirror, I scrutinized my reflection. It was too much. I pulled on a jean jacket to make myself not look so provocative.
A quick glance at the time and I was out the door. I was relieved to see that it wasn't raining today. As I made my way to my seat, I noticed that Tyler was already sitting at the desk next to mine.
"Wow, you look great," he said as I sat down next to him.
I smiled and crossed my legs away from him. "How was your weekend?"
"Horrible."
I turned to him. "I'm sorry, Tyler, did something bad happen?"
"Oh, no. It was just horrible because you weren't a part of it." He shrugged.
He was trying hard. Too hard. I looked over at the door, but it was just a student that walked in. "What did you really do this weekend, Tyler?" I asked.
"Just hung out at the house. Actually your text was the highlight. Did it take you awhile to find my number?"
"I was definitely confused at first," I laughed. "Apologetic Tyler is right where you belonged though."
I turned away from Tyler as Professor Hunter walked into the room. He had ditched his glasses, and his hair was smooth again. He was wearing a dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and there were a few buttons undone at the top. His shirt was tucked into his khaki pants and he had a brown belt. I found myself wishing I could unhinge his belt.
"Today I thought it might be fun to talk about a recent dream we've had," Professor Hunter said as he put his satchel on the desk. He smiled to himself. "And I'll kick us off." He rubbed his hands together and bit his lower lip as he concentrated. "Ah, I remember one." He put his hands in his pockets. "Last night I dreamt that it was pouring outside. And I just had this feeling that I was waiting for something to happen. Something exciting." He leaned against his desk and looked down for a second, as if in retrospect. He slowly lifted his head and made eye contact with me.
I swallowed. When I did, my throat made a weird squeaking noise. It suddenly felt hot in the room. His eyes were smoldering. He turned his attention back to the rest of the class. No one seemed to notice that he had looked at me. Does he look at everyone that way and I just don't notice? I didn't think so. He was referring to the night we had spent together in the rain. He was referencing the note he had left me. It didn't seem like he had any intention of being a responsible adult. There was no denying that Professor Hunter was flirting with me now. I swallowed hard again.
My heart began racing, like it always did when I had to speak in class. He was already going through the names. A few people had funny dreams and I watched him laugh. His smile was intoxicating. I took a deep breath. I knew what I was going to say.
When he finally called my name, I quickly stood up. "I've actually been having the same dream now for several nights." I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "It's always raining, but there's a man there holding an umbrella above the two of us so that we don't get soaked." I stared into Professor Hunter's eyes. "And he kisses me." He lowered his eyebrows slightly as if what I said bothered him. Or was he giving me that hungry look again? Today I couldn't read him at all.
I heard someone in the room snicker.
I quickly sat back down.
Tyler leaned over and whispered in my ear: "You just can't stop dreaming about me, huh?"
I laughed quietly. Did I take it too far? My heart was racing. I didn't want Professor Hunter to think I was forward, because I wasn't. I was giving him the wrong idea. In my mind it was a game, but he wouldn't see it that way. I could feel my face turning scarlet. I did take it too far.
When Professor Hunter was done listening to the other students' dreams, he stood up and walked over to the board. He picked up a piece of chalk and wrote the word "emotion."
"The best advice I can give you is to make your speech personal. You want to draw emotion from your audience. You want to hook them." He made a fist when he said the last line.
He had me hooked. I listened intently to every world that escaped from his lips.
"That's why this first speech is easy. You're all writing about someone you admire, someone who has helped shape who you've become. It's personal. Make your classmates aware of that. Don't ever be afraid to show emotion."
He looked out at all of us. "Many psychologists will tell you that there are hidden meanings in your dreams, but I've never seen it that way. They're quite black and white. The first thing that comes to your mind when you think of your dream is what it truly means. And it's emotional. Fear," he looked at a boy on the other side of class. "Anger," he looked at the girl that had snickered at me. "Desire," he glanced briefly at me. "So when you think of who you're going to talk about, figure out the emotion that they make you feel." He glanced at the clock. "And I will see you all on Wednesday." He walked away from the board.
"Catch you later, Penny," Tyler said as he stood up.
A girl in the front row quickly got up from her desk and went up to speak to Professor Hunter. I delayed by rearranging things in my backpack for as long as possible, but the girl was still talking to him. She had long black hair and tan skin. She was wearing a shirt that revealed her stomach. Is that the kind of girl he thinks I am? I closed my eyes. That wasn't me. I looked down at the outfit I was wearing. Tyler was right, I was a tease. I was actually a good girl and Professor Hunter didn't even realize. I blew it. Besides, a girl like that had to be more his type. I didn't have that much to offer.
I had another class that I needed to get to. I got up and walked past his desk. I didn't want to look at him, but I couldn't resist glancing over. He tilted his head so he could see me over the girl's shoulder and we made eye contact for just a moment. He raised his left eyebrow as he watched me exit the room.
Chapter 8
Monday
I opened up my text book and pulled out my notes. Statistics was not going to be my forte. I was great at math in high school. Calculus had actually been one of my favorite subjects. But the foreign professor who was teaching Stat was hard to understand. I was going to have to teach it all to myself.
Melissa came into the room with a huge smile on her face. "You will not believe the day I had!"
"What happened?" I turned to face her, pulled the notes off my lap, and placed them on my bed. I leaned over and grabbed my soda from my desk and took a sip.
"You know that professo
r you have a huge crush on?"
I almost choked on my soda. "I don't really."
"Yes you do! Come on, Penny. I mean...you kept his sweater for God's sake."
"I'm going to return it later this week." I was planning on it. But I truly did want to keep it. "Did you find out something about him, or what?"
"Well first of all that he's gorgeous. This girl in one of my classes was talking about this hot professor she has, and it turns out it's the same guy. You didn't tell me that he's basically a model."
"He is really handsome."
"You mean smoking hot! Anyway, apparently he got fired from his last teaching job."
"Why?" I tried to ask it nonchalantly, but I felt like I was begging for the information.
"The girl didn't know. Weird though, right? I mean what does a professor have to do to get fired? Punch the dean or something?"
"You're just making things up." But I knew what a professor could get fired for: having sex with a student.
"Well yeah, it's probably just a rumor." Melissa shrugged. "Thought you'd find it interesting. Anyway, and then I met up with that cute guy, from the party we went to last Thursday, and we had dinner. He's such a gentleman. He even pulled my chair out for me."
"That's nice." My mind was no longer on the conversation. There was no reason to jump to conclusions about Professor Hunter. He may not have even been fired. He looked so young; this was probably his first job as a professor.
Maybe Professor Hunter didn't have the wrong idea about me. No, I wasn't a bad girl, but I wanted to be bad for him. Doesn't that make me bad? I wanted to do things with him that would surely get him fired. I looked down at my phone. I could text him right now. He gave me his number. He flirted with me every day in class. He even confessed that he dreamed about me too.
I clicked on his number and typed out: "I enjoyed our first date. But you stood me up today." I smiled to myself. Would he find it funny? It didn't matter. I wouldn't send it. He gave me his number because he was worried about my safety. I was a pathetic girl walking around in barely anything in the middle of the night. Any normal adult should be worried about me. I needed to delete his number before I made a terrible mistake.