One Night With My Alpha Professor

Audrey

he first day huck f

1 slumped into my seat in the cafeteria, letting out a tired sigh as rubbed my eyes. It was only the first day back from spring break, and it had been utterly exhausting-and to make matters worse, it was only lunchtime.

Tina plopped down across from me, her tray clattering against the table as she settled in. "You look like you've been through the wringer," she said with an amused snort, pushing an unruly red curl out of her eyes. "How's the new professor?"

I groaned and rubbed my temples. "Awful so far. Professor Stevens is old, stuffy, and a complete stickler for the rules. Her lectures are long and boring, and I swear she's trying to kill her students with work." "That bad, huh?" Tina winced sympathetically as she took a bite of her chicken salad sandwich.

guess

"Oh, you have no idea," I replied, stabbing at my salad with more force than what was really necessary. "It's only the first day back from spring break, and she already assigned a ten-page paper-and get this: it's due by the end of the week. And who gets to grade all of them?"

Tina's eyes widened over the rim of her glass of orange juice. "Ouch," she muttered, shaking her head. That's rough. I thought the first day back from spring break was supposed to ease us back in, not throw us into the deep end."

I nodded as I took a bite of my own lunch. "Tell me about it, Edwin never would have..." My voice trailed off miserably at the mention of his name, and Tina shot me an amused glance from across the table. "Go on, she said coyly.

1 shook my head and nervously tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "It's nothing, really. I just preferred TAing for Edwin,

that's all

"I bet you did," Tina smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Professor Stevens doesn't seem like your type."Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

I felt my cheeks flush and quickly changed the subject, clearing my throat. "Well, at least there are some good things to look forward to. Did you hear about Linda?"

"No, what happened?"

I couldn't help but smirk a bit at the thought. "After her stunt with cutting up my clothes, her parents finally decided to temporarily pull her out of school," I said, unable to keep the hint of satisfaction out of my voice no matter how hard I tried. "She won't be back for the remainder of the semester."

Tina grinned and clinked her cup with mine. "Hey, that's some good news, at least. Maybe we'll actually have some peace and quiet around here for once." "Yeah, I agreed, glancing around.

Now that it had been a couple of weeks since Edwin's and Claudia's statements and the confusion surrounding the fashion show had been cleared up, the chatter around campus had blissfully moved on to other things-like who was taking who to the spring equinox ball in a few weeks and who had failed their midterms. No drama, no bullying... just bliss. excited about it."

"And" I continued, "with next year being our senior year, I'll finally get to start working on my thesis. I'm actually kind of

Tina laughed and shook her head at me in disbelief. "Only you would be excited about more work, Audrey. You do realize we have, like, six whole months before we even need to start worrying about that, right?"

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I shrugged and stabbed a cherry tomato on my fork, causing the red juice to squirt out. "I know. But I want it to be perfect, so I figure a head start can't hurt. I've already sent out some cold emails to potential mentors to interview for my research."

"Of course you have. Tina rolled her eyes, but her tone was affectionate. "Just don't forget about the equinox ball. It's coming up soon."

"I wasn't planning on going.

Tina's eyes widened. "Audrey Thatcher, if you don't-"

"I'm kidding." I teased. "Of course I'm going. You're going to be my date, right?"

Tina nodded, giggling slightly. We had made a pact at the beginning of the semester that we would be each other's dates the spring equinox masquerade, which was at the end of March

With that coming up in a few weeks, I had already begun making my dress and mask. It was an event to look forward to every year, with live music, amazing food, and even a lantern lighting ceremony at the end.

"So, what's your thesis going to be about?" Tina asked around a mouthful of chicken salad.

"I'm thinking of exploring the integration of human and werewolf fashion trends over the past century. You know, how human styles have influenced werewolf clothing and vice versa

That sounds... actually pretty interesting, Tina admitted. "But also like a ton of work."

"It will be. I replied with a nod. "But I think it'll be worth it. I'm that it will be enough to jumpstart my career after graduation

01

The rest of the week flew by in a blur of classes, assignments, and grading. By Friday afternoon, I was ready to collapse, but ! had at least one more thing to look forward to.

As I was packing up my things in the library that afternoon, my phone buzzed with a new email notification. I groaned softly, expecting it to be Professor Stevens with another demand

But my heart leapt when I saw who it was really from: one of the potential mentors I had reached out to earlier that week. Mr. Black, the owner of Black Textiles, which was one of the biggest luxury textile companies in the region.

I had sent him my resume and proposal on Monday, and now he wanted to set up an interview to discuss my project ideas. "Yes!" I gasped excitedly without thinking, which earned me a stern look from the librarian.

I quickly typed out a response, suggesting a few times that would work for me next week. Mr. Black's assistant replied within a matter of minutes: "Hello, Audrey. How does Mond

at noon sound?

Grinning, I accepted the invitation and practically slammed my laptop shut with excitement. The sound echoed through the vaulted ceilings of the library, and the librarian, growing frustrated by my enthusiasm, placed her finger over her lips and hissed, "Shht"

"Sorry," I whispered before gathering my things and rushing out Only once I was safely out in the hallway did I finally allow myself to let out a wild laugh of glee.

The weekend passed quickly, mostly filled with late nights grading assignments for Professor Stevens' class. But I also spent a good chunk of time preparing for my interview with Mr. Black, gresearching his work and refining my project proposal to

better suit him

xe

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On Monday morning. Hound myself frantically gathering my things for the interview. I'd chosen my outfit carefully- professional, but not too stuffy. A simple matching blazer, vest, and skirt combination which I had, of course, made myself. I wanted to impress him with my designs.

Once I was dressed, I hurried to the bus stop, my bag heavy with any laptop and notes. My mind was elsewhere, going over what I would say to Mr. Black during our interview-even though I should have been paying attention to the time.

Because, as I approached, I saw the bus pulling away from the step

"No, no, no," I muttered, checking my watch. I had lost track of tine and had just missed it. Now, the next bus wouldn't come for another twenty minutes, which would make me late for the interview. I bit my lip, considering my options. I could try to get an Uber, but I had spent most of my spending money on the spring break trip and wouldn't have more until next month. The thought of being late to this important meeting made my stomach churn, but not all was lost.

With a sigh. I pulled out my phone to send Mr. Black's assistant a message and let her know that I would be a little late. I hated having to do this, but it was better than showing up late without warning. As I was typing, a car pulled up to the curb. I furrowed my brow as I looked up, slowly lowering my phone. A moment later, the passenger window rolled down to reveal a familiar pair of gray eyes and a stubbled jawline that I hadn't seen this close up since spring break.

"Need a ride?

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