to the stars through difficulties • s.r.

• chapter two •

A/N: IM SO SORRY I HAVEN'T POSTED i totally blanked on what to write and i wrote something but then it got deleted :-( so i struggled with rewriting it, but here you go!

CW: kissing, choking, sorta dom/sub? not really tho

I took a deep breath to compose myself, swallowing the butterflies that were swirling throughout my body and walking out of my office. I closed and locked the door on the way out, turning down the hallway to head to the lecture hall.

I saw Spencer's tall figure ahead of me, his hands shoved in his pockets as he walked towards the lecture hall. He reached the door before me, pulling it open and waiting for me before going inside. I muttered a small "thank you," and met his eyes for a second, the eye contact all but shocking me. It felt like little lightning bolts had traveled throughout my body.

Was eye contact supposed to do that?

The door closed with a loud click, and I went down the steps towards the stage. I set my stuff down on the desk and pulled out my laptop, finding the cord to connect it to the TV and plugging it in.

I saw Spencer's figure approach in my peripheral, and I looked up. His hands were still in his pockets,
and he looked almost... embarrassed? I couldn't really place his expression.

"So, where should I go?"

"Oh, you can sit here," I muttered as I gestured to the chair next me. "I typically stand for my lessons anyway."

He nodded his thanks, a small smile forming on his lips as he approached the chair. He pulled it away from the desk slightly and sat down, immediately spinning. He pushed off the ground every once in awhile to keep the momentum going, and it made me laugh.

I checked my watch and saw that it was 8 already, and I turned around to look at who was here. There were students scattered all across the lecture hall, the light noise of conversation filling the room as they waited for me to start.

"Alright, good morning everyone! I am Professor d'Amore, but please, call me Claire. Professor makes me feel old." The students laughed at my remark, and I felt myself relax a little. "I will be your English Lit and Comp professor this semester. Since this class is only a semester long course it will be very intense from the get-go. Today we won't do much, just go over a couple of basic things in the course. Things really start next week, just to help you get used to things. Before I forget, we have a special guest sitting in today. This is Dr. Spencer Reid, our new Criminology and Human Behavior professor. He's just sitting in today, just to see how things run here at Georgetown."

I looked back at him and saw him waving awkwardly, a crooked half smile on his face. He looked completely different compared to the man I was just with in my office.

"Alright. First things first: I won't baby you in this class. I will always be here if you need help, but I'm not here to guide you. You're paying to be here, so I expect you to take some initiative with it comes to this class. That being said, if you do need help, my door is always open, no matter what. I may not baby you, but I want you to succeed. If you need help, ask me. If you need something outside of office hours, feel free to email me. I tend to respond relatively quickly. Now, did everyone get my email with the syllabus attachment?"

I saw the students nod before I turned and walked to my laptop, bending down to reach the keys. I typed my website into the search bar, pulling up the website I had for this class and clicking on the syllabus. I turned to Spencer, motioning him over.

"Do you think you could scroll for me?"

He nodded, moving closer. "How will I know?"

"I'll look at you or something. Thank you."