Velmora Academy: Falling for My Non-Human Professor

"Miss Elara, get out of my class." The icy command snapped Elara back to reality. She shot to her feet so fast her chair screeched against the floor, her heart hammering against her ribs. She blinked wildly at the imposing figure commanding the front of the room: Professor Adrian Kingsley. Confusion flared before anger could. Why was she being kicked out? She hadn't said a word! She had been sitting there perfectly quietly... Well, quietly sketching. Her gaze drifted down to the open notebook on her desk. Right in the center of the page was an incredibly detailed, charcoal rendition of the professor himself. She had captured the sharp jawline, the piercing eyes, and, for reasons she couldn't entirely justify…a set of ripped abs that definitely weren't visible beneath his tailored three-piece suit. ‘Oops.’ Heat rushed to her cheeks. Panicking, she leveled a fierce, righteous glare at him, trying to mask her guilt with pure audacity. But the emotionless ice statue didn't even blink. "Bag," he said coolly. "What?" "Take it and leave." Grinding her teeth, Elara aggressively shoved her notebook into her bag, silently vowing that this man would become the ultimate bane of her existence. She stomped down the steps, her posture rigid with fury. But just as she brushed past his podium, his deadly voice brushed against her ears. "And Miss Elara..." She paused, glaring. "If you're going to stare at your professor as though you'd like to strip him with your eyes," Adrian murmured, his gaze never leaving his lesson plans, "at least do it somewhere more discreet.” Elara's face erupted into a brilliant, mortified scarlet. "You—!" Choking on her own outrage and utterly devoid of a comeback, she flashed him a defiant middle finger, and stormed out, letting the heavy door slam behind her.