Chapter 12

CANDACE

By the time I reached the lecture building, I was halfway through my fourth cup of coffee.

The first three had done nothing except make my hands shake harder. This one wasn’t doing much better.

I stood a few feet from the entrance, holding the warm paper cup between both hands as students walked past me. Some walked in alone, others in groups.

I stared at the glass doors.

I could still leave.

No one had seen me.

I could turn around, head back to my apartment, crawl into bed, and convince myself I’d come next week instead.

Next week sounded easier.

I took a step backwards.

Then another.

A tap landed lightly on my shoulder.

I nearly dropped my coffee.

Spinning around, I found Bridgette watching me with her eyebrows raised.

“I knew I’d find you.”

“You scared me.”

“You were trying to escape.”

“I was considering my options.”

She laughed.

“Right. That’s why I checked every coffee shop on my way here.”

I blinked.

“You… what?”

“I know you.” She shrugged. “I figured there was at least a fifty-fifty chance you’d be hiding in one of them, pretending to study while convincing yourself not to come.”

A reluctant smile tugged at my lips.

She pointed at the cup in my hands.

“And judging by the fact that you’re on your fourth or fifth coffee, I’m guessing this has been a rough morning.”

“My fourth,” I admitted.

“I could tell.”

“My hands are shaking that much?”

“They’re vibrating.”

I looked down.

She wasn’t exaggerating.

The paper cup trembled so much that coffee rippled against the lid.

“I can’t do this,” I whispered.

Bridgette’s expression softened. “Yes, you can.”

“No, I really can’t.”

“You really can.”

I looked back at the lecture hall doors.

“What if everyone stares?”

“They won’t.”She squeezed my arm gently.

I let out a slow breath.

Every instinct told me to leave. Instead, I nodded.

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay.”

She smiled.

“Come on.”

Together, we walked through the doors of the building.

We made it to the classroom earlier than most students, just like I’d hoped.

Only a handful of people were already inside.

I stepped through the doorway.

He was already there.

Standing at the front of the room with his back to us, arranging a stack of papers.

For a second, I thought maybe I could slip into my seat unnoticed.

Then he turned.

Our eyes met.

For one suspended moment, neither of us moved but I looked away first.

Heat crawled up my neck as I hurried toward my usual seat.

Every movement suddenly felt awkward.

My backpack sounded too loud when I set it down.

The scrape of my chair echoed through the room.

I focused on taking out my notebook, refusing to look up again.

Students continued filing into the classroom until every conversation blended into one steady hum.

When class officially began, Professor Elias welcomed everyone with the same calm professionalism he always carried.

No awkwardness or lingering glance in my direction.

His voice remained steady as he explained the day’s topic, moving through the lecture with practised confidence.

He asked questions.

Students answered.

A few people laughed when he made a dry joke about historians arguing over dates.

Everything felt painfully… normal.

Except me.

I couldn’t focus.

I copied notes automatically, only to realise minutes later I hadn’t absorbed a single sentence.

Every time he crossed the front of the room, I noticed.

Every time he paused beside the projector, I noticed.

Every time his voice shifted slightly while explaining something complicated, I noticed.

I hated that I noticed.

I told myself to pay attention and forced my eyes onto my notebook.

Five seconds later, it was impossible. The worst part wasn’t that he ignored me.

It was how effortlessly he did it.

He treated me exactly like everyone else.

Carefully distant.

By the time class ended, my head was pounding.

Girls immediately gathered around the front of the room with what I assumed were questions about assignments but they were only flirting with him.

I packed my bag as quickly as I could.

Leave.

Just leave.

Stopping in my tracks, I remembered the extra credit assignment.

My hand tightened around the strap of my backpack.

I could email him.

No.

He’d probably tell me to ask after class.

Everyone else was already ahead of me, forming a loose line near his desk.

So I waited.

I stood near the back of the classroom, pretending to scroll through my phone while my heart beat harder with every student who walked away.

Eventually there was only one person left.

Then none.

The room fell quiet.

Professor Elias looked up.

“Ms Winters.”

His voice was calm but his throat bobbed.

I walked toward the front.

“I wanted to ask about the extra credit assignment.”

“Of course.”

He picked up a printed sheet from his desk and handed it to me.

“The assignment is optional. You’ll choose one historical event from the approved list and submit a five-page analysis comparing two primary sources.”

I looked down at the paper.

“There are formatting requirements on the second page,” he continued. “Everything you’ll need is outlined there.”

“Okay.”

“If you have questions after you’ve looked through it, you can email me.”

“I will.”

Silence settled between us. “I shouldn’t have missed so many classes right? I’m sorry for that.” I was bouncing on my feet and smiling weirdly.

Elias raised a brow. “You don’t owe me one.”

I nodded slowly.

“Still… thank you. For the…” my fingers tapped the paper.

He gave a small, almost imperceptible nod.

“You’re welcome.”

There wasn’t anything else to say so I turned and walked toward the door.

The hallway felt strangely cooler than the classroom and I breathed in the change of air greedily.

“Candace!”

I turned as Bridgette hurried toward me from farther down the hall. Am

“How’d it go?”

I let out a slow breath.

“I survived.”

A smile spread across her face.

“Good.”

I managed a small one back. “I’ve this great spa…” Bridgette trailed off as she looked past me.

“Uh…Candace.”

“What?”

Her eyes stayed fixed somewhere over my shoulder.

“Your professor…”

Every muscle in my body went rigid.

“…he’s coming this way.”

I turned.