Cherry

The sound of the classroom door shutting behind the professor made Rory jump slightly and she lifted her head from the notebook laid open on the desk in front of her. He didn't look old, not even slightly, but the graying ponytail falling between his shoulders and the striped, Baja hoodie didn't help.

Everything about his appearance reminded her of the stereotypical hippie character, from the beaded necklace hanging down his chest to his flip-flops.

He picked up a marker from the desk and took the cap off with a pop that echoed through the quiet of the room before writing across the board. His letters were large and all caps and Rory hurried to grab her pen to jot down what he was writing.

INTRODUCTION TO CREATIVE WRITING

“It’s always so quiet the first day,” he paused and turned to glance over his shoulder to the small class, a lopsided grin tilting his lips. “Don’t be afraid to talk now. It’s going to be hard to get through the semester if you stay quiet as church mice.”

A round of soft, nervous laughter flittered through the class but Rory remained quiet. She scribbled the words he wrote in her notebook and hoped by picking a seat in the back, she could fly under his radar for the semester.

It wasn’t like this was a class she needed or truly cared about. She had picked it at random, needing an extra three hours to make a full schedule. If her rapid flip through the course list ended with her taking a class that pushed her out of her comfort zone, she might as well drop it right now.

All she was looking for was an easy A.

“Welcome to Creative Writing.” The professor slid a stool out from under his desk and took a seat, propping the soles of his sandals on the rungs. “I know this class is to fill a slot for the majority of the people who come through, so I like to make it interesting if I can. My name’s Tobias, and I’d prefer if you didn’t refer to me as Professor Campbell. Makes me feel old. Office hours are posted outside my door which is right across the hall.”

Rory followed where he pointed toward the door and sank a little lower in her seat when he swept his gaze over her. It didn’t linger on hers for long, moving on to get a proper gauge of the rest of the class but she still had for force herself to relax.

“Who all here is taking this class because you want a career out of writing?”

Only a few lifted their hands and Tobias chuckled with a nod.

“Figured as much. Well, I should hope that most of you want to get something out of this class. I hope you’ll find ways to improve your writing, or even open yourself up to new literary interests. For the rest of you, well—” He scratched his eyebrow with another lopsided grin. “I hope you have fun and want to work for your grade.”

He lifted off the stool and slid a stack of papers from the corner of his desk, holding them in the air so the class could see them.

“Here’s your assignment list. Everything you’re going to turn in for a grade is on this sheet. You can rush through them and hand them in the next two weeks if you want but I can’t guarantee you’ll pass doing it that way. Now—” He clapped his hands right when the assignment list was passed back and hit Rory’s desk. “Your first assignment is one of my favorites, which is why I like to start the semester off with it.”

Her eyes lifted back to the top and narrowed on the due date. They were supposed to turn their first assignment in next week? That didn’t give them enough time to even learn anything!

Yeah, it was official.

She was going to drop this class and try to register late for a different one; something easier.

“I know what you’re thinking. It’s a bit too early to be assigning something worth ten percent of your grade, but I have good reasons. Don’t worry about your techniques or prose. I just want to get a feel for your written voice and I want you to write a two-page short story.” His words faded from her head as she thought to herself.

If she got to the registrar early, maybe they could help her find a class to earn an easy A. Asking her advisor was out of the question. She was the one that assured Rory this class could be good for her, not just academically but as a person as well.

Whatever that meant.

After a collective sigh from the class, Tobias found his seat on the stool once more and chuckled. “It’s not as bad as you’re all thinking it is. I just want you to write something out of your comfort zone. If you like rainbows and butterflies, maybe find something a bit darker to write about and vice versa.”

The sound of a soft knock at the door turned everyone’s attention away from the professor. “Ah, what a nice surprise!”

Tobias stood from the chair and opened the door, standing back to let a younger man inside. He was handsome—extremely so—and Rory, as well as most of the class, watched him as he strolled lazily to the opposite side of the room. He leaned against the windowsill and crossed his legs at the ankle as Tobias shut the door and returned to the center of the room.

“Most of my classes never get a real glimpse of my elusive teaching assistant, so consider yourselves lucky. This is Callum Harris and he’ll be reading the majority of your assignments this semester.”

The younger man gave a quick nod of his head in a simple, apathetic gesture before pulling a cellphone out of his pocket. Rory pursed her lips and ducked her head, staring at the three words she had written at the top of her notebook page to keep her attention away from him.

While Tobias continued on, giving ideas for what to possibly write about, she doodled in the top corner of her assignment list.

A few people raised their hands to ask questions and Rory knew she should have been paying attention. Even if she was going to drop this class, it was rude not to give the professor her focus. It wasn’t like he was a bad teacher. He seemed pretty excited for the semester and their assignments and probably loved his job.

Rory just wasn’t a creative person. Her mind was structured and focused, methodical and precise. She had a doctor’s mind, though she didn’t even know if that’s what she wanted for herself anymore. It had been her goal since she was twelve and now that she was where she needed to be to make that dream a reality, she was at a loss.

Which is why she had so much trouble deciding what to take this semester. Last year, she had been on a path written in stone, taking her swiftly to the top of her graduating class to secure her a residency at the most exclusive hospitals. It was what she had planned for her entire teenage life and in less than a year, she had burnt out completely and was left feeling empty and lost.

Tobias clapped his hands and Rory jumped once more, blinking herself out of her thoughts. Around her, people were packing up and she quickly closed her notebook. “Don’t forget, I expect those assignments on my desk by Wednesday.”

Rory stood and draped her purse strap over her shoulder before scooping her notebook and textbook into her arms. She let the others file out of the class ahead of her and as she made her way down the aisle, her eyes moved to where the teaching assistant still leaned against the window sill.

He swiped his thumb up the phone screen but paused, raising his stare to her. Their eyes met and Rory quickly looked away before her face could burn under his scrutiny.

How had he caught her so quickly? She had barely gotten a chance to take a proper look at him, though it didn’t take long to see how good looking he was. Dark hair falling over his brows and even darker eyes that feel as sharp as blades.

A dangerous combination.

Risking a second glance back to confirm her previous thought, she found his gaze still on her and she quickened her pace toward the door. Even as she slipped out into the hallway, leaving the classroom behind her, she couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched.

She checked the time on her phone and cursed to herself. She didn’t have time to make a pit stop by the registrar’s office before her next class. But at least in Sociology, she’d be with her friends.