LeilaI scanned the chairs, not really looking at the faces of the students I would have in class the next few weeks. I was focusing on the chairs themselves and the fact there were a lot of butts in the chairs with very few empty ones. It was damn near full. I wasn’t expecting that. I was actually thinking I would skate by with a light class roster which would mean there would be fewer papers to grade. That wasn’t the case at all.“I guess you all had Enders as an advisor?” I quipped. “He likes to stuff as many people into my class as he can. I suppose he gave each of you the speech about my class either being a great way to pick up a couple of fun credits or to determine whether you are really serious about whatever major you are going into.”There were some laughs, telling me that was exactly what had happened. I smiled, appreciating Gerald’s support. He was a nice man and was convinced that without him I would lose my job due to a lack of interest in the old Greek stuff as he call

ChristopherI had nothing waiting for me at home and figured I could check out the huge cafeteria on campus. I wanted to do a little people watching, even if the campus was a bit like a ghost town. I didn’t mind eating alone. Hell, I’d been basically eating alone for the last year. Olin rarely liked to be in the same room with me, let alone share an entire meal together.I did a quick walk around the huge buffet line to see what was being offered. It actually looked good and unlike any cafeteria I had ever gotten to eat in during my college years. I headed back towards the front of the line, although there were only a few people grabbing a bite to eat.I picked up a tray and began to slide it down the stainless-steel counter, reaching for some sliced fruit. It smelled amazing in the commons area. College students today had no idea how good they had it. I made my way around the counter, adding a slice of pepperoni pizza to the tray as well. It all looked so good.“Hey! You sure were in

LeilaI got to class early, kind of excited about the day. I had really enjoyed talking with Christopher after class. He had an intelligent look in his eyes. He was smart, good looking, and charming. His quirky smile was warm and made me feel like he was a humble man despite his wealth.I wasn’t sure if he was necessarily wealthy, but he was comfortable. He was the kind of guy that had enough money to buy Gucci’s and wear them to class because that was what he was used to wearing. The casual confidence he had was also very attractive.It wasn’t often I got to have a conversation with a man who was of equal or higher intelligence than myself. I didn’t think I was a snob, but dumbing down to have a conversation with a man was getting old. I didn’t want to pretend to be ditzy. I was a blonde, but I hated the stereotype.When I was younger, I had played it up. Until I hit puberty, I had always been the fat girl in school. Adding smart to the label just made things worse. I had been teased

ChristopherI arrived to class about ten minutes early, confident I had finally gotten the routine down. I saw Leila, Professor Bell, sitting at her desk. I smiled, looking forward to another interesting class. I figured I would make a little small talk with the class relatively empty.I stepped inside, walking towards her desk. “Good morning,” I greeted.“Hi,” she said with a bright smile. “You’re early.”“I am. I think I have the route down.”“Good. How was your drive?”“Easy. The traffic isn’t too bad.”“Where do you drive in from?” she asked.“Lake Conroe,” I told her.Her expression changed. “That’s a very nice area to live.”I was about to answer her when my phone started to ring. “Sorry,” I mumbled and rushed into the hall to silence my phone. Then I saw the number. “Shit,” I muttered, a feeling of dread filling me as I answered the damn call.“Mr. Evans, this is Mr. Hollister at the high school, we need to talk.”I inwardly groaned. The words I hoped I would never have to hear

LeilaIt was another successful class and the end of a great week. I had one more class for the day and then I was free for the weekend. I was enjoying the students in the class. At least half of them seem interested in the material. That was always my goal—half.“Does anybody have any questions?” I asked the class.There was a lot of head shaking followed by murmurs of nos.“Have a great weekend and please read the material. It makes class better for all of us.”Everyone seemed to rise at once, suddenly in a hurry to get out of the room as if they were afraid I would give them a horrible homework assignment. What they failed to realize was the fact I wasn’t exactly keen on the extra work it took to grade heavy assignments. I was not a glutton for punishment.Christopher was in his usual front seat and gathering his things. I had tried hard not to focus my lecture on him alone, but it was hard not to. He always looked so involved. It felt like only me and him in the room and he was gi