The Tremendous Turmoil of Indigo

Chapter 17

Saying Tate was nervous was an understatement. His clammy hands were tucked in the pockets of his navy chinos as he followed the twenty-somethings quick stride through the travertine hallway of the academic building. A few students were meandering around the quiet, brightly lit building with their earbuds in or their nose in a book as they leaned against one of the walls that didn't have artwork or quotes from a classic literary work.

"Dr. Reynolds left all the talking points for every lecture until the end of the semester." She glanced over her shoulder at him then back to the keyring in her hand. "They're writing short stories now. Constructing their own plots, characters, and dialogue. Don't expect too much, they're still freshmen so expect grammatical errors."

Tate exhaled an anxiety-riddled huff, "The rules of the comma still baffle me."

The brunette's stride stopped in front of a black door as humor spilled on her flawless, makeup-free face. "Comma splices." She groaned with great disdain throwing her head back as her loose curls cascaded down her slim back. "Will be the death of my thesis. I just know it." She rattled the doorknob before sliding the key in and popping the lock.

A slight smile slid up his face as she swung the door open, "I know someone that's wicked with a red pen if you need help." He followed her into the small but modern office with its dark walls and dual office desk facing each other.

"I'd love that." She gushed; a hue of red burned her caramel skin. "Most renowned authors don't freely give out their services."

Tate shook his head as he moved in front of the built-in bookshelf jammed with novels. "Oh, no." He slid his finger down the spine of an edition of the Canterbury Tales. "Not me. My wife. She's good at editing and feels no remorse. She almost killed me after making a murder scene out of my first book." He chuckled at the memory then sauntered over to the desk.

"No!" She abruptly grabbed his forearm like a parent stopping a child from walking into oncoming traffic. "Um." She let his arm go as his confused eyes bore into her. "That's my d-desk." She quickly stammered out scooting behind the black chair. She gestured to the navy chair on the other side of the desk. "That's yours."

The lines in Tate's forehead evened out, "The TA with their own workspace." He nodded as he let the strap of his leather messenger bag slid off his shoulder. "Dr. Reynolds is leaps and bounds ahead of other professors." He slithered his gaze over the professor's immaculate and organized desk; pens were in their own brass cup next to the pencils, the laptop sat in the middle of the desk and a stack of papers was next to it in need of grading.

"I do most of the grading and uploading of those grades," She tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear showing off a gold flower stud as her eyes glittered with pride in her work. "And it helps to have someplace to get all that done before I go home."

Tate nodded, sliding his finger along the desk to see everything was as clean as it appeared. He looked at his fingertip and indeed it was dust-free. "So, we'll be working together." He let out another breath as she nodded and verbalized her yes. "At least that's a plus. I don't do so well in front of crowds." He wasn't the 'outgoing, strike up a conversation' type of person. He was more of the 'hang in the back and wait for someone to come to him' type of lad; unless he was with a social butterfly like Indigo, Xavier, Harrison or Hazel to pull him out of his introverted shell.

"Don't worry." She shook her head while sitting her hands on the yoga-pant covered waist, bunching up her loose chambray shirt. "The second-year creative writing course isn't as congested as you might think." She giggled as a ray of sun flooding in the one window that gave a view of the quad. "It's a normal classroom...very intimate."

"Small." He could feel the strained muscles of his back lax as he rubbed the side of his stubble face, "That I can do." He was a rock-star in small crowds, remembering those quaint book signings he did as early on in his career.

"You got this...um..." She stopped, thinking as she joined him by his desk. "Do you want to be called Mr. Larsen or Professor Larsen?"

"Mr." Tate let his hand fall from his face as he smiled at the girl. "But, I kind of forgot your name." He was never good with names. "Sorry."

"Don't be." She nonchalantly patted his shoulder, "It's Hadley...Hadley Stowe." She held out her hand.

"Stowe." Tate shook her hand energetically. "Like Harriet Beecher Stowe." She laughed letting the sun illuminate her youthful, supple features. "I'll remember it now," He said, releasing her hand.

"Good." She placed the hand he had in his grasp against her stomach, "We should be going." She glanced at the analog clock on the wall behind him. "Class is about to start."

"Cool." He fitted his bag strap back on his shoulder just as his phone started to ring. "Let me get this first." He dug into his bag and pulled out his cell. Indigo's name and picture lit up on the screen.

"Time is money, Mr. Larsen." Hadley held open the door with her body, "Hungry minds are waiting."

"Yeah." Tate gritted his teeth as he slid the phone into the back pocket of his pants. There wasn't anything going on. The kids were at school and Indigo was setting up the new store. He figured she was just calling him to see how things were going. "After you." He gestured for her to lead the way.

She nodded and pranced into the hallway, "You might want to turn that off." She held out her phone. "We have three classes back to back and It'll only be a distraction. Trust me."

"I have kids. And my sister in law..." Tate shook his head, she didn't need to know all his business. "I can't be out of touch."

She nodded, "Then at least put it on silent." She picked up her gait. "Room 313 is this way." She pointed down the hall.

Tate caught up with her after silencing his ringtone and replied to Indigo's text.

How do you like the new 'temporary' teaching job? Will it be a good career for him if his writing doesn't come back full throttle? Or will it clash with his life and family duties? 

How do you think Indigo will reply?

How do you like 'Hadley Stowe'?