Chapter Twenty-Four
TWENTY-FOUR
Aidan
Micah aims her death glare at me after the last student leaves my classroom. She stands up from where she was sitting at the far end of the lecture hall and makes her way over to me.
All the muscles in my torso tense in anticipation of whatever verbal ass-kicking she’s about to unleash on me. I take a long sip of coffee from my O happy dagger thermos to buy myself another moment of peace before she lays into me.
Ever since we argued in the hallway after she overheard me bad-mouthing her to Dr. Wauncho, she’s been her usual biting, no-nonsense self. If we pass each other in the hallway, she doesn’t even say hi. She just glowers at me. We hardly ever talk to each other. When we do, it’s strictly work, mostly her offering up criticism about whatever I did wrong after observing me in class or analyzing whatever statistics she’s gathered about me and my work.
She stops just a few feet in front of me, notebook in hand. “I don’t think we need to bother with a verbal wrap-up of your class today. I’ll just type up my observations to you and email them to you later.”
I try and fail to hold back a scoff. “That’s fine.”
Her glare on me sharpens. “It sounds like you have more you’d like to say.”
I turn away and start to gather my things from my desk. “You wouldn’t like what I have to say, Micah.”
When I turn back to her, I see that her mouth is parted open and her brow is lifted, like she can’t believe what I just said. Satisfaction swells inside of me. It feels really, really good to piss her off a little.
I frown at her. “Don’t act so surprised. You really think I’d have anything positive to say to you? Your job is to figure out how to get me fired.”
She presses her eyes shut for a second, her shoulders rising and falling with the breath she takes. “That’s not what I’m trying to do. Like I’ve said before, the purpose of my job is to make observations and recommendations. It’s up to the university what they do with that information. It’s not my job to get you fired. I resent how you keep saying that.”
“Cut the crap, Micah. Of course that’s your job. So fine, type up whatever you want in your little report and send it to me. But I’m not going to change how I teach or how I conduct myself as a professor.”
She purses her lips like she’s tasted something bitter. I’m sure she’s about to go off on me. Before she can utter a word, I stomp out of the lecture hall and head up the stairs to my office and shut the door behind me. I drop all my crap onto my desk and plop down into my chair, then grab a stack of essays I need to grade along with a pen. I turn off the notifications on my phone and close my email.
That was my last class of the day, so I could just head home and work, but I don’t want to run into Micah in the hall or at the building entrance. Better to just hide out in my office until she hopefully heads home and I don’t have to see her again for the rest of the day.
For the next few hours, I block out the world as I read and grade. My neck starts to ache from hunching over my desk for so long. I groan as I lean back and stretch my neck out. Movement out of the corner of my eye catches my attention.
When I turn and look out the window, all I see is white.
“What the…”
I stand up and step over to the window to get a better look at the snow falling outside. All of the trees are covered in white. I can’t even see the pavement. It’s all snow.
I grab my phone and turn the notifications back on. I see a campus-wide alert from hours ago canceling all late-afternoon and evening classes due to snow in the forecast. I must have missed it because I was holed up in my office.
A second later, my phone is beeping with texts from both Jason and Kendall. I tap on our group chat.
Kendall: Snow day! Can you believe it? Woo-hoo!
Jason: I know! We were only supposed to get rain today.
Kendall: See you guys later!
Jason: Be careful when you’re driving, it won’t take long before the roads get bad. And you know how people in Nashville drive whenever we get even a dusting of snow.
Kendall: Okay, just got home, it’s an ice rink out there. You guys make it home okay?
Jason: Yeah. I slid down the street in front of my house, but luckily I didn’t hit anything
Kendall: Phew!
Kendall: Aidan, you alive? You haven’t answered in hours.
I quickly text them back.
Aidan: Yeah, I’m okay. Still on campus though
Kendall: Shit, really?
Kendall: Yikes. Are you gonna be able to get home? It’s getting dark. I’m watching the local news and there are accidents all over the city.
I huff out a heavy breath and gaze out the window at the snow dumping out of the sky. No way am I going to attempt driving in this.
Aidan: I think I’m stuck here. I’ll just hunker down here overnight and wait it out.
Kendall: :( The snow is only supposed to fall for another couple of hours. Then in the morning it’s supposed to be like forty degrees and sunny, so it’ll start melting.
Aidan: Okay yeah, I guess I won’t try going home until then
Kendall: Be safe. And if you get hungry, feel free to head to my office and break into my snack stash.
Aidan: I just might. Thanks.
Jason: Just now seeing your messages, damn Aidan, sorry you’re stuck.
Jason: If you need liquor to help you power through, you know where I keep my stash. You’re welcome to it.
I text him thanks, set my phone on my desk, and rest my hands on my hips with a sigh. I guess I’m stuck here for the night. I’m tempted to grab some snacks and liquor and settle in, but I should probably see if anyone else is in the building.
I open my office door and step out. “Hello?” I holler.
No answer. Well, at least I have the place to myself for the night.
I start to turn around, but then I hear the squeak of a door down the hall. When I step back out to see what that sound was, disappointment slashes through me.
There’s Micah standing a few doors down from me.
She frowns. “What are you shouting for?”
“Did you know it’s snowing?”
“No. I don’t have any windows in my workspace. How could I have known?”
I sigh at how annoyed she sounds.
“It’s snowing pretty bad right now,” I say. “The university cancelled all classes a few hours ago, but I had my notifications on my phone and computer turned off while I was working, so I didn’t find out until just a few minutes ago. Jason and Kendall texted me to say that the roads are pretty bad. I don’t think I can get home tonight.”
Micah walks over to me, then darts into my office and heads straight for the window.
I roll my eyes. “Sure, come on in.”
Her eyes are wide as she gawks out the window. “Why did no one tell me? I would have left hours ago.”
I cross my arms over my chest and shrug. “Maybe because you’re working to put us out of a job, so there’s really no incentive to help you out.”
She glowers at me.
“They sent out a campus-wide alert via email,” I say.
“I don’t get the university emails, remember? Someone should have told me.”
I shrug. “They probably forgot.
“Right. Kind of how you forgot to tell me when there was only decaf coffee in the break room.”
I can’t help but smile at her frustration. “Pretty much.”
She glowers at me. “You think this is funny?”
“A little.”
She scoffs and pulls out her phone, checking the weather. She turns back to the window.
“Staring at the snow isn’t going to make it stop,” I mutter as I check the weather report on my phone.
“Shut up,” she bites.
I let out a breath. Tonight is gonna suck.