Forbidden Literature

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A L L I S O N

Once I got home from school and could properly think, I realized two things: being an assistant is fun, but being an assistant for Jasper is not fun. Not because he did anything wrong, but because the people around him get on my nerves. Too many students fawning over him for my taste.

After spending several classes with him I could weed out the ones I enjoy and which I didn't. Expository Writing was the first class as well as the most annoying. It was filled with freshmen who asked Jasper questions like "Are you married?" instead of useful things such as "What is an oxford comma?"

While he made his way around the classroom discussing aspects of writing a proper paper I sat in the front watching the students oggle at him. I couldn't blame them really, Jasper is an attractive man. However when the girls near the back kept asking him suggestive questions clearly unsuitable for class I felt heat run through my veins. When grading their quizzes I put a big red X on the questions they got wrong, which was half the time.

His Introduction to Shakespeare class was tolerable although it held a few people who thought they knew it all. They probably didn't realize how annoyed he really was when someone tried to correct him, but I knew him well. I knew that when he clenched his jaw or fiddled with his watch he was trying to hold back an ugly comment. A small part of me was proud that he refrained although one time he scoffed when someone said Shakespeare was gay.

Poetry Writing was unsurprisingly my favorite. Not only was the class interesting, but it was nice seeing Jasper in his prime. You could visibly see how relaxed he felt in the room as opposed to Expository Writing where he had to fend off hormonal girls. While he passed out the familiar leather journals for them to write in I was answering his emails. I was so busy in trying to explain to a student that Jasper didn't meet with students outside of class to just talk that I didn't hear call me.

It took me a moment to realize that he was looking at me expectantly. He said my name once more making me perk up from my little nook.

"Yes?" I answered.

He flashed a smile at me. "I said you can attest to how I run this class, right?"

"Oh! Yeah," I cleared my throat. "Impossible to pass. Get out while you still can."

This made the class snicker and Jasper roll his eyes. I flashed him a smug smile before turning back to his emails typing away like a good assistant.

After that I felt like maybe I could do this. Take away my romantic history with Jasper and anyone could see that we did get along very well. Our personalities bounced off each other making us a pretty good team. I thought about this the whole way home after saying my goodbyes promising to meet him in his office on Friday. I couldn't lie, I was really looking forward to it. Until then I had to busy myself with other tasks to forget how nice Jasper looks when he is reading sonnets out loud to the class.

Right when I turned on the oven to fix dinner I heard the front door slam shut along with the sound of someone groaning. I didn't have to look to see who it was.

"It's only the third day and I'm ready to give up," came the usually chirpy voice.

I poured water into a pot before setting it on an eye. "You have four more months to go. Pull it together, Sara."

"I don't wanna," she groaned throwing her arm over her face childishly. Her tiny body stayed like that draped over the couch before she huffed. "Crap, I just remembered I have to go to another tutor session tonight," she sat up.

"Will you stay for dinner?" I asked stirring noodles into the now boiling water.

"Maybe," she waltzed over from the couch before sitting down at the counter near me. "If not just put some aside for me and I'll eat it in the morning," she reached for the candy jar next to her hand pulling out a licorice stick. "Speaking of morning," half the stick disappeared in her mouth, "where did you go so early this morning? I know you only have classes on Tuesday and Thursday so I know it can't be that that."