Suspicious New Professor

Shadows of Suspicion

10

The CGR classroom buzzed with the subdued chatter of students flipping through notes and preparing for the lecture. Jenissa slipped into her usual seat, her eyes scanning the room as she waited for Professor Noir to arrive. Despite the ordinary hustle and bustle, the tension hung heavily in the air. After her unsettling hallway encounter with Elias, she couldn’t shake the feeling that every moment in his class was part of a twisted game she was forced to play.

Emile settled in next to her, his expression thoughtful as he scribbled something in the margins of his notebook. Jenissa had confided in him last night about the strange things she’d uncovered regarding Elias’s previous positions, including the abrupt departure and the whispers of impropriety that always seemed to follow him. Emile hadn’t been surprised—he’d suspected something strange was afoot for weeks now, though he’d always tried to keep her from diving too deep.

“Any new discoveries?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Jenissa shook her head, glancing toward the door to make sure Elias hadn’t entered yet. “Not yet, but it feels like something’s just... waiting to be uncovered. Every time I look at him, I feel like he’s hiding a thousand secrets behind that charming smile.”

Emile leaned closer, his gaze serious. “Then keep watching him, Jen. Don’t let your guard down, especially not in CGR. If you notice anything off, anything at all, trust that feeling. I’ll be here if you need backup.”

Before she could respond, the door swung open, and Professor Noir strode in, a casual smile pasted onto his face as he set his materials on the desk. Despite his seemingly friendly demeanor, there was a stiffness in his posture, a coldness in his gaze that unsettled her. Today, he appeared particularly confident, as if aware of the silent tension filling the room. He scanned the students, his eyes lingering on Jenissa just long enough to send a chill down her spine.

“Good morning, everyone,” Elias began, his voice smooth, almost charismatic. “Today, we’ll continue our discussion on advanced rendering techniques.” He flipped open a file and scribbled some notes on the board. As he wrote, his gaze occasionally drifted over his shoulder, landing on Jenissa with a look she couldn’t quite decipher.

She forced herself to focus, diligently taking notes as he launched into a detailed explanation of lighting algorithms and shaders. But as the lecture continued, she noticed something odd: Elias’s choice of words seemed… deliberate. Every so often, he’d drop a phrase that felt loaded with meaning, as if hinting at something just beneath the surface. His eyes would flicker briefly toward her whenever he said something particularly cryptic, his smile lingering just a little too long.

“As you know, rendering can be a complicated process,” he said, his gaze sweeping the room before landing on Jenissa. “One small miscalculation can ruin the entire outcome. Even the slightest mistake... can lead to unintended consequences.”

The words echoed through the room, striking Jenissa like a silent warning. She swallowed, trying to appear unfazed, though her hands trembled slightly as she gripped her pen. It felt as if he was speaking directly to her, using the lecture as a mask for a private threat. She glanced at Emile, whose expression mirrored her unease. He gave a barely perceptible nod, a subtle reassurance that he was with her.

Elias continued, pacing the front of the room with a measured stride. “And just like with rendering, in life, sometimes it’s best not to dig too deep, to leave things in the shadows where they belong. After all, too much exposure can… ruin the illusion.”

The class shifted uncomfortably, and Jenissa could feel the weight of his words settling over her like a shroud. Was he daring her to keep pursuing her suspicions? Testing her resolve to confront him?