"Teach"

16

Jinyoung exited the shower, throwing back on his T-shirt and sweats.

He took in a breath before stepping out of the bathroom, a part of him wondering if his guest was still here. He was both happy and slightly anxious when he found Jackson sat on the couch, now fully dressed with his laptop on his lap.

He quietly crept up behind the couch, peeking over his shoulder. "What are you doing?"

Jackson glanced back at him, his eyes lighting up upon seeing him. "I decided to work on your assignment. I mean, I can get your help while I'm here anyway."

The professor found himself smiling, he always enjoyed watching his students do their best, and seeing Jackson working on his assignment felt even better than usual. "Oh, that's a smart idea."

 The student patted the empty space on the couch beside him. "Sit. Read what I have so far."

Jinyoung did as he was told, joining the latter beside him. He leaned over to read the couple of paragraphs Jackson had drafted. It was again about fitness, but rather than the benefits, it focused on the harm of being misinformed about the proper strategies to stay healthy. Jinyoung could tell this was a topic Jackson was passionate about, and he wanted to give him the utmost attention to improve the student's writing skills.

He was about halfway through the introduction when he suddenly heard the latter's husky voice in his ear.

"You smell good."

Jinyoung jolted, his mind distracted by the compliment. His ears flushed red as he kept his focus on the screen, continuing to read. "Ah, um, it's just m-my new body wash..."

"You smelled good last night too..." Jackson mumbled, his hand sliding along Jinyoung's back as he leaned closer.

The latter's body heat made Jinyoung's heart throb. He slowly leaned away as he flustered, his eyes unable to meet Jackson's that bored holes into him. "J-Jackson, I can't focus if you're talking."

Jackson's brows knitted together, a soft sigh escaping him. He sat back and shut up, allowing Jinyoung to finish reading his draft.

"So far it's... okay." The professor muttered, rereading some lines in his head in evaluation. "You should tighten up the intro and just get straight to the point."

"If I tighten it up anymore it'll only be one sentence long." Jackson complained.

"You can do it, just erase irrelevant details and rephrase the remaining sentences. You'll still have a paragraph-length intro. It's best to get the reader's attention as soon as possible, then you can go into more information later."

Jackson groaned, slinging his head against the couch cushion. "Why is this so hard..."

"It's just technique. Practice really helps. You'll eventually find your own writing style and then just replicate it for each paper."

"Well this is really boring, so I don't think I'll be practicing often."

Jinyoung watched the student close his laptop in defeat for the day, placing it on the coffee table. "That's understandable. Writing can get tedious, even with things you want to write."

Jackson hummed, glancing at the other. "You make it more bearable, though. The way you teach makes sense."

Jinyoung smiled, flattered by his words. He lived to hear students tell him that he was able to impact their understanding of writing, it was his own passion that he wanted to help share. "I would hope it does. I want to help students, not confuse them."

"Well, you're great at helping, but you sure as hell confuse me a lot..."

"Which part? I can help shape up your paper and explain any confusions to you--"

Jackson suddenly gripped Jinyoung's chin, turning his head toward him. He pressed a kiss against his lips, shocking the latter who melted against him. Jinyoung always tried to keep himself together whenever he was around Jackson, but when they got to touching and kissing, all of his thoughts were whisked away by the softness of his skin and gentle gestures.

"I'm confused as to why you're avoiding me." Jackson confessed, gently pecking the professor's lips again.

Jinyoung faltered, his eyes drifting off elsewhere. "I-I'm not avoiding you..."

"You said you'd give me one night. I still don't have an answer."

"I-I need more time to decide-"

"How long will it take for you to realize that you're agonizing over bullshit?"

The professor blinked, frowning at the sudden tone shift. "It's not bullshit, it's my job..."

"Yet you've spent the past 24 hours cuddling, kissing, and drooling all over a student. Yeah sure, you're really concerned about your job..." Jackson folded his arms over his chest, huffing.

"I am. I gave you one night because that was the agreement, but that doesn't mean I'll risk everything for you so easily." Jinyoung retorted.

"What, am I not worth it?"

"No, that's not what I said-"

"Well, I had my one night. I'm assuming the answer is: you're too chicken to admit you like me." Jackson pushed himself off the couch, rising to his feet.

Jinyoung's gaze desperately followed. "That's not it-"

"Then what is it? Cuz I really like you! That has to be obvious by now!"

Jinyoung hesitated to answer. It wasn't that he didn't like Jackson, he just didn't like jeopardizing his career for the latter. And it was difficult to argue that point without being hypocritical, since he had spent quite a lot of time with Jackson doing things that he was worried about getting caught for in the first place.

 He felt his cheeks warming, his face was probably burning pink. His heart pounded as he tried to figure out how to properly express his worries, but he couldn't find the right words at the time. "I j-just need to think about it for a little longer..."

"If you have to think about whether or not you like me, then that should be your answer."  Jackson sighed, spinning on his heels and heading toward his bag. He grabbed his laptop, beginning to pack up his few belongings that littered the living room. "I've got an assignment to finish, I work better by myself."

"Jackson stop." Jinyoung mumbled, standing as well. He frowned as the latter continued to pack ignoring his words. He felt like he was losing something as Jackson wandered around collecting the things that Jinyoung had liked seeing around his apartment-- he liked the company. Even though it was just for a night, he's never thought waking up to someone's presence would feel so good, and now he was losing it. He couldn't let the latter leave so easily; as he headed for the door, he grabbed his wrist and pulled him back. "I said stop."

Jackson paused, his eyes still focused on the door. "Why won't you let me leave?"

"B-Because you can't... I don't want you to."

"The agreement was one night. I should be going now."

Jackson gently tried to pull his arm out of Jinyoung's grasp, continuing toward the door. Jinyoung grew frantic as his chest tightened seeing nothing but the latter's back moving away from him. He tightened his grip on the student, pulling him backward.

"Two-!" He exclaimed, clutching onto Jackson with all his desperation. He pressed his face into the latter's back, seeking his warmth. "I-I'm extending it to two nights... it's the weekend so i-it's okay, so please... don't go..."

Jackson fell quiet for a long moment. He looked as if he were contemplating what he wanted to do, giving Jinyoung false hope. He ended up tugging away from him, shaking his head. "...I won't stay."

Jinyoung's fingers felt cold immediately after losing grip on Jackson's arm. He felt frozen where he stood as he watched the latter reach for the doorknob. "...Why not?"

"Because, I still haven't heard what I wanted to hear." The latter replied, shooting one last glance in Jinyoung's direction. "It's just a few words."

The professor stood in the same spot, only flinching once the door had shut behind the student he didn't want to part from.