14. Reign
CHAPTER 14
Reign
S he was late.
Every fucking class that week, she scurried in more than halfway through the lecture. Sometimes barely making it in before everyone left. And if she did manage to be there for most of the class, she was the first one leaving before the final assignments even left my lips.
A week had passed since I tasted her. My skin itched with desire. I needed her, and I needed her soon.
Friday had rolled around again, leaving me irritated and unsatisfied. I graded papers harshly, taking off points for incorrect calculations of molar mass and fucking up the elements, among a litany of other mistakes. I mean, how hard was it to remember that a substance releases heat when it changes from liquid to solid? Child's play.
I was failing students left and right to no avail.
Anna’s assignment was the last one in my pile.
I slid my glasses off my face, squeezing the inner corners of my eyes until spots swam. She answered not a single question. My lips twitched at the corners when I noticed she’d only written her name, beautifully scripted in purple pen, and a frowny face emoji. She didn’t even try.
I gave her full credit and crossed out the frowny face.
Anna happened to have the highest grade in my class despite the lowest fucking attendance I’d ever witnessed.
I lifted the paper to my face, inhaling deeply, hoping I could catch a whiff of her. I imagined the pained look in her eyes when she told me the work was too hard. I gave a sideways glance at the many failed papers I’d shoved in my briefcase. My hand twitched towards it. For a fleeting moment, I considered changing the grades, but I chased that thought away.
I wouldn’t let her make me fucking soft.
She was the only gentle thing about me.