Coffee People - Pedro Pascal by Emma Star

Chapter three, His Eyes

I'm staring at the plate of food in front of me. I'm the first one here. I'm meeting Lydia and Jessie for lunch at the cafeteria. After finding out about professor Peña I haven't been able to think straight. No matter how attracted I might be to him, he's my professor. My fucking professor. Off limits. Of all the people he could have been what are the chances. I can't wrap my head around it. He was as shocked as I am by the looks of it. I tried to avoid looking at him during the lecture but that wasn't really possible seeing as he's my literal PROFESSOR. Mis eyes found mine more times than would be considered appropriate. Oh my god, how did I get in this situation.

'Mila!' Lydia practically screams.

I turn to her, confused.

'Why are you screaming?' I say.

'You're kidding right? I called your name three times already.' Lydia responds, sitting down.

Jessie arrives as well, with a tray of food in hand.

'What's going on?' She asks with a concerned look on her face.

I groan, covering my face with my hands.

'I fucked up big time.' I whisper.

I tell them everything. Lydia keeps whining, wanting to know every little detail. When I finish there is a beat of silence.

'That's so hot.' Lydia squeals.

'It's humiliating.' I retort.

Lydia and Jessie exchange a look I can't decipher.

'What?' I say, confused.

'Well,' Jessie starts, 'It's not exactly illegal though is it?'

I fake a laugh, 'You can't be serious. Didn't you hear me? He's my professor. What makes you even think he'd still want me.'

'Well, by the way he's looking at you right now I'd say he's considering making you his, right here in front of everyone.' Lydia says, grinning.

My eyes go wide. I've been talking about him while he's in the same room as me.

'Don't worry he hasn't heard a single thing, he's not within earshot.' Jessie says, as if reading my thoughts.

I try to resist the urge to follow their gazes to where I know he will be and I fail. I turn my head to the left and find his eyes locked on me with the same intensity they had that night in the club. After a moment (that was probably more like two whole minutes) I look away, unable to hold his gaze. I feel like I've just run a marathon. I'm hot all over, my heart is racing and sweat is pooling on my brows. I look up to find Jessie and Lydia grinning at me like two kids on Christmas. Words fail me. I wipe at my brows and try to compose myself. In an attempt to look unbothered I pick at my food.

'Could you please talk about something else so I can eat?' I ask.

Without missing a beat Jessie starts talking about the tour she got of the new marine biology labs. She's complaining about the annoying lab partner she's stuck with for the rest of the schoolyear. I try to focus on what she's saying, but I'm failing miserably. My appetite doesn't return but I do finish what's on my plate. I know if I don't eat now I'm going to be hangry all afternoon. Besides, who says no to free food?

After my third and final lecture of the day it's time to go home. Before leaving I put on my headphones, I turn on noise cancellation and put on the album Riot On An Empty Streat by Kings of Convenience. I make my way through the crowd of students who all just finished their lessons as well. Monday is my busiest day of the week and I already feel a headache coming on.

When I open the front door I'm greeted by Kiko. She meows at me. I laugh tiredly and follow her as she makes her way to the kitchen. I kneel down to refill her feeding bowl and she immediately starts munching on her food.

Before we got here Lydia lived here with two other girls, Mika and Evelyn. They graduated the year before Jessie and I started at Kalich University. Lydia was our guide when we first got here. She is a year older than us. She was looking for new roommates and after two days of touring campus she asked us to move in with her. She said she'd been looking for new roommates for forever and apparently nobody felt right until she met us. I accepted immediately, Jessie was more difficult to convince. I was still looking for housing, while Jessie on the other hand had already been assigned a dorm. Lydia invited us over for dinner that week, a month later Jessie and I were moving in. We were so different from each other but maybe that was why It worked so well. When I first came here I was lonely, confused and depressed, then I met Lydia and Jessie. I was still confused and occasionally depressed, but I had my girls and maybe that was enough.

I walk in to my room and assess the mess I made this morning. I am too overstimulated to tidy up the place, but the disarray my room is in makes my anxiety skyrocket. I have two choices. One, try and clean up anyway, or two, go shower to lower my anxiety levels. I decide on a shower first.

Lydia, Jessie and I share a bathroom. Our restroom is filled with all types of selfcare products. I lather up my sandalwood scented bodywash and start washing my body. My thoughts keep returning to Peña. I close my eyes, I'm lost in a fantasy. He caresses his hands up and down my legs, kneeling before me. His hair all wet and sticking to his forehead. He's kissing his way up my leg, whispering all sorts of beautiful words in to my skin. He stands, towering over me slightly. Our breaths mix. We're in that beautiful moment before a kiss. Strong hands pull me against him and I gasp. Not because of the feeling of him, no, but because Jessie is yelling at me from behind the bathroom door.

'Mila, dinner is almost ready. Are you finished?' She says.

Fuck. Me.

I flush a deep shade of red.

'I'll be right there!' I respond, my voice sounding strangled.

After turning off the shower I dry myself with my favorite microfiber towel. I quickly change in to one of my pretty boxershorts and my 'My personality is like pussy, you wouldn't get it' T-shirt I had laid out for myself and hurry out of the bathroom.

Later that evening we're all bundled up on the couch with facemasks on. Kiko is fast asleep in Jessie's lap. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men tell no tales is playing and Lydia keeps asking the dumbest questions. Half an hour in she asked how it was possible Salazar and his crew were both dead AND alive. Jessie and I don't mind, because her questions make us laugh so hard I'm pretty sure I peed a little. We've been forcing Lydia to watch all the POTC movies with us since she admitted she had never seen them during a heated debate between Jessie and me. We had been discussing who Elizabeth should have ended up with. I'm team Jack, safe to say Jessie doesn't agree.

I'm lying in bed with my laptop on my lap and a blank word document in front of me. I'm supposed to be working on my first draft, but every time I write something down I delete it again. I should start by building the main character. I've already decided that my main character is a woman, but what is it that makes her so flawed? My mind is full of ideas but none of them excite me enough to actually try turning them in to a story.

I open up my schedule on my laptop, cross out Professor Coal and put my new professors name underneath it.

I decide that cleaning my room is a battle for another day. I should get some sleep.

I'm sorry for the short chapters, I'm trying my best to lengthen them up a bit but it's a real challenge. I hope you enjoyed anyway!