Next Semester

4. café

1525 words

When Tyler was finally done with classes for the day, he was starving. He still hadn't gotten the chance to eat, though, since he was too busy avoiding Jude.
He was currently pacing back and forth in the lobby of his dorm building waiting for Hayley to pick him up since she confirmed that his roommate had started his shift in the library (after he begged her to go check for him). His stomach was clenching and aching from how hungry he was. Come on Hayley...
Like she had read his mind, his phone buzzed with a text from her...except it was the exact opposite of what he wanted her to say:

Hayley: Hey TyTy gonna be a lot later than I thought. Finishing up my project w my advisor for a few hours but will still see you later xoxo

Tyler: You suck

Tyler glanced at the time: 4:58pm
The dining hall was closed until 6 for dinner, so he was shit out of luck in that department. He wracked his brain for a few minutes before remembering the café. It was a little ironic that he was going to go to the café for dinner after dodging having lunch with Jude there that same day, but it was his only option. He shoved his hands in his pockets as he began speedily walking down the sidewalk away from campus. The café was only a 5 minute walk from his dorm, so he got there pretty quickly. A small bell chimed above his head as he entered and the smell of coffee and food filled his nose. His stomach audibly growled as he glanced around for somewhere to sit. He decided to take the booth right next to the window and began flipping through the paper menu that had already been placed on the table.
A girl that he vaguely recognized from campus came over to him, the café's name and logo printed on her shirt. "Hey, my name's Alise, what can I get started for you?"

"Can I just get a lemon water and the grilled turkey panini?" Tyler asked, hoping she would very quickly put his order in. He was seriously about to die from starvation.

"Yeah! Anything else I can get you while you wait?" She asked kindly as she wrote his order down on her notepad. He shook his head quickly and he was left alone for her to put his order in.

He scrolled uninterestedly on his phone for a few minutes before the bell chimed above the door, announcing someone's arrival. Tyler glanced over his phone screen to see Professor Dun standing there, scanning the room for a table. Tyler's cheeks heated up as he stared hard at his phone, hoping that the man would sit somewhere where they couldn't see each other. A few moment's later, a person was standing next to his table as a sweet, dark chocolate voice spoke, "Tyler?"

Tyler took a breath before looking up, making eye contact with the beautiful man standing next to him, "O-Oh hi, Professor Dun."

"Josh," the man corrected with a small smile, "are you here alone?"

"Right, Josh. Uh... yeah I am." Tyler said, slightly insecure at the fact that he was here alone. Did that make him look weird? The man didn't say anything for a few moments, clearly debating something. Tyler shifted uncomfortably under his gaze and fought himself to keep eye contact with the man. Eventually, Josh asked, "May I join you, then?"

Tyler knew his eyes widened an embarrassing amount, but he couldn't help it. The most perfectly crafted human that has ever walked the Earth was asking to join him for dinner, "Yes! Yeah, o-of course," Tyler forced out, realizing he had not yet answered. Josh let out a small chuckle as he slid into the booth across from him, "Have you talked to Jude yet?"

"That's what you want to talk about?" Tyler deadpanned. He couldn't believe his dream guy was sitting across from him asking him about Jude. Josh laughed, "I was just curious. We don't have to talk about it, though. How was the rest of your day?"
Tyler blushed a little bit, feeling like this moment was way more intimate than he ever thought he'd be with the man, "Uh, it was fine. I'm supposed to be with my friend Hayley right now, but she's working on her senior project with her advisor, so I gotta wait until she's done." The waitress came back over, setting Tyler's water in front of him and greeting Josh, "Hello, I'm Alise. What can I get for you?"
Josh smiled politely, "Hi, could I have a water and just another minute to look at the menu?" She nodded and walked off and Josh turned his attention back to Tyler, "What's Hayley's senior project?"

"Oh, well...she's like, testing ways to make concrete fibers more sound with the most environmentally friendly materials she can use? I don't know, she doesn't talk about it a lot. She's a civil engineering major, so I don't think I'd understand even if she did talk about it." Tyler let out a breathy laugh, still nervous to be talking to Josh. Just be normal... why can't I just be normal.

"Wow, that's impressive. My brother, Jordan, is an architect and I feel so dumb when he talks to me about his work, so I completely understand." Josh chuckled, picking up the menu and glancing it over. Alise came back, Josh's water in hand as she asked, "Ready?"

Josh nodded, "Yeah, can I have the grilled turkey panini please?" Tyler smiled softly and looked at the table. He always thought Prof- Josh was hot, sure, but seeing him be so human was a whole different experience. Tyler liked him a dangerous amount, and knowing that he and Josh had the same order at the café wasn't helping.

Alise gave him a small smile and left them alone again. "I got the same thing." Tyler offered, a smile still playing on his lips. Josh shrugged, his own grin showcasing his perfectly white teeth, "You have good taste then."

"I like to think so." Tyler nodded, allowing his eyes to linger on Josh before taking a drink of his water. If the older had picked up on his little flirty comment, he didn't show it, "So, what're your plans with Hayley for the night?"

"Oh, probably nothing. We'll probably just go to her apartment and watch movies or something." Tyler shrugged, "How about you? What're you still doing here after 5 o'clock on a Friday?"

Josh sighed, "I'm actually going back to my office as soon as I'm done eating. I'm trying to get myself set up for success as much as possible before all this new work buries me."
Tyler frowned, "You're gonna spend your Friday night locked in your office doing work?"

The older shrugged, smiling a little, "It's no big deal. I don't know what else I'd be doing."
Tyler thought for a second... does that mean he has no one to go home to?
"Not hitting the frats, then?" Tyler joked. Josh laughed, eyes crinkling at the corners and melting Tyler's heart, "No, not this weekend." Soon, Alise was bringing both of their plates out and Tyler remembered how hungry he was. He instantly started eating and only slowed down when he noticed Josh watching him, that same amused smile on his lips. Tyler's cheeks grew hot as he finished his bite of food slowly and swallowed, "I haven't eaten all day... I'm kind of starving."

"If you would just talk to Jude you wouldn't have to avoid the dining hall." Josh repeated what he had said earlier. He knew he didn't have to say it, but he also knew the comment would annoy the boy and he couldn't help himself. Tyler knew he was right, but rolled his eyes, "You and Hayley should meet. You'd have a lot in common."

Dinner went on comfortably. The two exchanged conversation back and forth in between bouts of comfortable silence. It felt really natural for the two to sit down and spend time together. They just got along really well. At around 6 oclock, Tyler's phone chimed, "You're fucking kidding me."
Josh chuckled, a little surprised to hear the boy swear, "What's up?" Tyler sighed as he typed, "Hayley isn't going to be free until like 8:30 or 9. I have to figure out where I'm hiding for the next 2-3 hours because Jude is either in the library working or in our room and I'm afraid to accidentally bump into him."

"Come with me to my office." Josh shrugged. Tyler furrowed his eyebrows as he looked up from his phone, "What?"

"I mean, I could definitely use the help." Josh shrugged, "It's up to you, though."

Tyler had to stop himself from looking like he just won the lottery, "Okay, I can do that."

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a/n

hiii new update :)
fun fact: a lot of the small (FRIENDLY) interactions i wrote between josh & tyler are ones that ive had with my advisor lmao that man is my best friend fr
-mare