57. Isaac
Chapter 57
Isaac
I adjust the collar of my crewneck before tucking the bottom hem into my dress pants. The energy on campus extends to every nook and cranny, including the men’s bathroom, where three of my first-year students chatter about their plans to drink heavily during the holiday break. I step out of the stall and clear my throat, garnering an immediate slew of apologies for their crudeness.
“Sorry, Dr. Britlyn, we didn’t realize you were in there.” Trey sounds sincere, but he smirks like he knows my holiday plans also include alcohol.
I wash my hands and pat them dry on a paper towel before leaving all three future doctors to continue their bone-headed discussion.
When I asked Jo about her plans for the break, she hesitated and stuttered, leaving me to wonder if the past few weeks have been less than impressive for her.
I pass another group of students congregating outside of Dr. Zin’s office. His voice echoes from inside.
“I cannot change your grade without approval from the course instructor,” he says.
Ah, the joys of finals week on campus.
I escape into the sanctity of my quiet office, hoping I’ve dodged any students upset with my exams. A knock on the office door elicits a grimace, but I fight the urge to pretend I’m not home and pull the door open.
Jo rushes in, closing the door behind her.
She leans dramatically against the closed door, brushing the back of her hand against her forehead and wiping off non-existent beads of sweat.
“Phew!” She exclaims, laughing at herself. “I swear they have a tracker on me.” I study her curiously. “A group of girls cornered me in the bathroom demanding I curve their exam.”
I shake my head and chuckle.
“I swear, they’re relentless!” I pull out a chair in front of my desk, gesturing for Jo to sit, but she hesitates, eyeing me.
“I’m not sure what our boundaries are yet,” I add, glancing out the small window overlooking the main quad. Students bundled in puffy winter coats rush anxiously to their next exam.
She takes a step closer to me, her eyes wide and curious.
“This is probably a very stupid question, and I know we’re on campus, but can I kiss you?”
She swallows hard and takes another step closer to me.
“Yes.” She uses her words like I’ve reiterated to her again and again.
I take one large step towards her and place both hands on the back of her neck, pulling her lips to mine.
Vanilla and coffee.
I pull back before I can let my needs and desires take control of my rational brain, but disappointment flashes over her face. That just won’t do.
“Close the blinds, Dr. Carello.”
Her cheeks flush and she obeys, hastily pulling the bottom of the plastic window coverings down and obscuring our view from anyone outside the window. Then my lips are on hers again, and I’m pushing her back towards my desk. We come to an abrupt halt when the backs of her legs hit the edge of the desk, the whole thing shaking like an aftershock of the earthquake happening in my heart.
I wrap my hands around her waist and hoist her up onto the wood surface, making quick work of exploring her mouth with my tongue. A crash interrupts my research, and our lips break apart with a smack.
“Son of bitch, we finally did it,” I say, laughing. The terracotta pot that held my vampire of a plant is shattered into a thousand pieces scattered in a giant pile of dirt and leaves on my office floor.
“Oh no!” Jo shoves me with the palms of her hands and rushes to the mess. “We killed her!”
I can’t help but laugh as she kneels down on the floor and attempts to sweep up some of the remnants with her hands.
“Wait.” She grabs the trash can and starts tossing pieces of the pot. I kneel down beside her and still her movement with a hand on her shoulder. “Did I give you this plant?”
She picks up the loose plant, examining it curiously. “Oh, I don’t know,” I reply.
Yes, I do.
And yes, she did.
“Liar.” She stands, root ball in hand, and looks around the room for temporary housing. “Here we go,” she asserts, grabbing my pen holder and dumping it out onto the desk. She plops the plant into the plastic container. “I know I have extra pots at home. I’ll bring you one.”
I nod and the room falls silent. The moment is gone.
“You know, I think we might need to talk to Dr. Zin about this,” I say after a few moments. “Us, I mean.”
Jo clears her throat. “Oh, he already knows.”
I furrow my brow. “He does? How?”
She leans her hip against my desk again. Loud voices outside the window divert my attention, and I notice movement on the other side of the blinds. The 3 p.m. finals must be over.
“Well, I had a meeting with him the other day about spring semester, and he asked, and I quote—” She makes air quotes with the hand not holding my plant. “—Are you and Dr. Britlyn dating yet?” I nearly choke. “I’m pretty sure I could’ve taken that to HR,” she adds, laughing quietly.
“He’s been a meddler since we started school here.” I’ve slowly closed the distance between us while she talked. I take the plant cup from her hand and set it on the desk before brushing a wisp of hair out of her face with my thumb.
A loud knock on the door has us recoiling. I glance at the clock.
“Shit. Office hours,” I whisper. Jo drops herself down into the chair adjacent to my desk and takes a breath, steadying herself. I approach the door and pull it open.
“Hey doc, you have a minute for some questions about the final?” A student enters the room before I even step back to let him in. “Oh, sorry, hope I’m not interrupting anything.” He timidly glances between us, and Jo stands, pushing the chair out of her way.
“Just some spring semester prep,” Jo adds before swapping places with me next to the door. “I’ll leave you two to it.”
“Dr. Carello, wait up.” I yell down the hall when she exits her office and heads towards the door. Finals are over and, despite the heavy snow falling from the sky, crowds of students gather in the quad to celebrate.
Jo pauses and turns, the bag on her shoulder hitting the wall and nearly knocking her off balance.
“I know we never solidified plans,” I hesitate. “ Be vulnerable ” is what Carmen said when I talked to her last night. Somehow our conversation about London and Liam turned into me panicking about Jo. “I would really love to spend Christmas with you.”
She smiles, and it’s as if the weight of the entire semester and all our work is lifted off her shoulders in one fell swoop.
“Yes,” she blurts immediately, and then takes a step back, both literally and figuratively. “Well, Mom and Chloe told me I can’t come home.”
I tilt my head in confusion.
“They’re forcing my hand.”
I laugh as she rolls her eyes.
“I definitely do not want to spend extra time with you at all.”
She turns around, and I follow her towards the exit.
“It’s only because I have nowhere else to go and nothing else to do.”
I do an absolutely geeky, totally nerdy happy dance inside my brain. Somehow, some way, this is working.