Academia Cartoons 소설 & 이야기

“New paper due Friday.” I squint. Power Abuse in Academia. The title punches me in the gut. Mia chuckles. “Professor Grumpy likes boring articles.” Kiera joins in. “He should try something less him, I guess.” “Power,” I mutter under my breath. They don’t hear me. I’m glad. Seeing men like him lose their façade in front of me... Power. Whatever that meant. We keep walking, but I slow down as my phone dings. I pull it out.

“Let’s continue our discussion on… academic rigor.” His hand came down, a sharp, stinging slap against my left ass cheek. It wasn't truly painful, not in a damaging way, but it was firm, shocking. My breath hitched, a gasp escaping my lips. A thrill, dark and unexpected, shot through me. “Did that grab your attention, little bird?” he asked, his voice laced with amusement. Another slap, harder this time, on my right cheek. My ass burned, a delicious ache. “Y-yes, Professor,” I gasped, my voice shaky.

"I have a talent for creative insults." Shaking her head, Kayla put her phone away. "Well, they’re annoying, but they’re not worth our time." Veronica leaned back in her chair. "Fair enough. Still, if they keep bothering you, I wouldn’t mind swatting a few mosquitoes." Kayla chuckled. "That's why you are with me I guess." As the professor entered, the students quieted down, and class began. Kayla took notes while Veronica mostly observed, occasionally scribbling something in her notebook.

This professor has gone insane. Our classroom was filled with different noises after that. Most of us were confused. I raised my arm, she pointed at me, so I stood up and in just a second, their eyes were on me. "We know that you really love and are interested in mythical creatures, but don't you think making an 'academic' research paper about vampires which belongs to a fictional creatures–" "How sure are you that 'vampires' are only 'fictional' characters?" The arrow tattoo girl chimed in.

Clement says, and James looks at him. "Let him be, we need to find the other two as soon as possible." He reminded him. "What makes you sound so worried." Clement chuckles. "I'm the president, remember?" He replies. Clement smiled. "A confident president wouldn't sound so nervous when saying he wants to save his classmates." He continued, "Tell me, what thing do you fear might get them." He didn't respond. "He's right, you know," Theodore says. "After all, this is a weird school."

"Well, this is even sillier than the stuff with Sylvia. It was a cartoon – after I got back – in the student magazine. It really got to me. It let me see what I've turned into, I suppose. I've got a photocopy with me..." "Later. Just tell me about it. Describe it." "Well, it's me, looking really old and grumpy and defeated. The way my students must see me, I suppose. And there's another man with a big white beard and a smile – it could be Darwin or God, I often get those two mixed up – and he's shaking my hand and saying: 'Congratulations Dr. Hall, you get to write planet earth's suicide note'." "That's cruel."

Mateo and I approach his bedside. “I’m going to die soon,” he says matter-of-factly. “Days, maybe hours. So I’m going to tell you both the truth, and you are going to listen.” He looks at Mateo first. “You are not a monster but you are not innocent either. You have a weakness for complicated women in compromised positions. Maybe you don’t seek them out intentionally. Maybe you are just spectacularly bad at boundaries. Either way you need to stop teaching. Find another career because clearly academia brings out the worst in you.”