The One Night Stand Turns Out To Be My Professor

103

103

Jacob’s POV

I leaned back against the cold stone wall of the balcony, the vampire realm’s crimson sky glowing faintly above. It was late, but I couldn’t sleep. Something had been eating at me for days now, and I had a feeling it wasn’t just my own nerves. Ian had been acting strange, more closed off than usual, even for him.

The phone buzzed in my pocket, and I smiled when I saw Jenny’s name flashing on the screen. The worry in my chest left me briefly. She had her way of making all my worries disappear.

“Hey, troublemaker,” I answered, my voice softer than usual.

“Troublemaker? Me?” she shot back, a teasing hint in her voice. “That’s rich coming from you, Mr. Mysterious. What’s going on? Why are you still awake?”

I sighed, rubbing my hand over my jaw. “I could ask you the same thing. Shouldn’t you be in bed?”

“Couldn’t sleep,” she said with a sigh. “Just… thinking. You?”

“Same.” I stepped away from the wall and walked to the railing, the vampire realm stretching out before me. “Actually, I’ve been thinking about Ian. Something’s off with him, Jen.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line, and when she spoke again, her voice was serious. “What do you mean? Is he okay?”

“I don’t know,” I admitted, frowning. “He’s been weird lately. More… distant. Not that Ian’s ever been Mr. Sunshine, but this feels different. I think something’s bothering him, but he won’t talk about it.”

Jenny was quiet for a moment, probably thinking it over. “You think it’s about Sophia? Maybe something’s happening with her?”

“That’s what I thought at first,” I said, tapping my fingers on the railing absentmindedly. “But he hasn’t said anything about her either. Not in the way he usually does. I don’t know, Jen. I feel like something bigger is going on.”

“Well, why don’t you ask him?” she suggested, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

I chuckled softly. “You don’t just ask Ian. You know how he is. He keeps things locked up tighter than a vault. But… maybe I will. I’m getting tired of the silence.”

Jenny’s laugh came through the phone, light and teasing. “There’s the Jacob I know. If anyone can get him to talk, it’s you. You’re probably the only person on this planet he’ll actually open up to.”

“Maybe,” I said, though I wasn’t as sure as she seemed to be. Ian and I had always been close, but that didn’t mean he shared everything with me. Especially when it came to things that troubled him deeply.

“Promise me you’ll check on him?” Jenny asked, her voice softer now. “I hate the idea of him going through something alone, even if he’s too stubborn to admit it.”

I smiled at her concern. “I’ll check on him. Don’t worry.”

After we hung up, I made my way through the stone corridors of the castle, the torches cresting a little light in the hallway. Ian’s room wasn’t far, and when I reached the tall wooden door, I hesitated for a moment before knocking.

“Come in,” Ian’s voice called from the other side.

I pushed the door open to find him sitting by the window, staring out into the night. His expression was unreadable, but there was a tension in his shoulders that made me certain I was right—something was bothering him.

“You busy?” I asked, stepping inside and closing the door behind me.

He glanced at me briefly before turning back to the window. “Not particularly. What’s on your mind?”