JUST LIKE HER (ANDY BARBER)

1. DON'T LOOK AT ME

Day 1:

Coming to law school was your dream. Well, it was your father's dream. He had wanted a son to follow in his footsteps, to go to an Ivy League (preferably his alma mater, Brown), to go to law school, to join him at his firm and later take control when he would retire. And when your mother was only able to give him a baby girl, all of those hopes and dreams shifted onto you. You were never able to catch a break. Every slip up, every time you earned an A instead of an A+, you were reminded of how hard your father had worked to make sure you would never have to struggle like he did.

He came from a poor family. He had to fight and struggle and persevere to even graduate high school, much less manage to land a spot at Brown. Between working his ass off as a cook at a mom and pop diner and studying til he got nosebleeds from the stress of it all, he didn't have the luxury of taking even a second off, for his game to slip even just a bit. And it all worked out for him in the end. He was able to graduate with his bachelors, go to a top notch law school, marry the woman of his dreams, and have a family all of his own.

It was only right that you bust your own ass to show him how grateful you were for it all. And you did. You graduated Brown with your bachelors and enrolled at the very same law school your father had gone to. Your entire life was laid out for you, and you weren't about to do anything that could mess it all up. Not when everything you worked for, everything your father had worked for, was so close to coming to fruition.

It was the first week of law school. Well, sort of. The first week for 1Ls was an orientation week of sorts that took place a week before the actual first week of classes. It was designed to cover the basics of the legal system, how to read and brief cases, how to synthesize rules, and just to orient 1Ls with campus. The first day began with a breakfast provided by the law school alongside a presentation by the dean before the class was divided into two sections to begin the actual orientation part of the day.

"This seat taken?"

After the professor in charge of your section had introduced herself and everyone had gone around the room introducing themselves, she broke all of you into randomly assigned pairs to take a quiz over the reading you were supposed to complete.

You looked up, your eyes meeting the most beautiful set of blue eyes you'd ever seen in your life. They were attached to face that had to have been sculpted out of the finest marble with cheekbones chiseled by the gods. And if it wasn't enough he looked so handsome, he had a damn good sense of style. Everyone had been told that dressing professionally wasn't necessary, but he still managed to look like he'd stepped straight out of a catalogue.

"Uh, no, go for it," you finally managed to say when you realized you'd been staring. "I'm Y/N."

"Andy Barber," he said. "It's nice to meet you."

"You too."

The professor came around, handing Andy two copies of the quiz. He passed the second copy to you, his hand brushing against yours. Your breath hitched, but you tried to play it off as a cough. You weren't sure how well it worked, noting his not-so-subtle smirk.

"You know, Y/N," he said, glancing over the questions, "I think we're going to get along just great."

And you meant it when you smiled at him, saying, "I hope so."

Day 2:

"So, we have all the same classes, right?" Andy asked.

It was the second day of orientation, and for your lunch break, Andy asked if he could join you. After you each had gotten your food, you sat at a table tucked away in the corner, away from the other 1Ls.