Page 47 of Brighter Shades of Light

“Not anymore.”

Fuck you and your stupid-ass smirk, Brandon.

“Oh, that’s too bad. Gotta admit, though, I’m happy I was wrong about you.”

“What do you mean?”

“With you being my competition in class,” he said, smug as ever. “First you failed the exam, and then you needed to be tutored. I hear a lot of your kind need help with their schoolwork, though. Too much time spent on building muscle and not enough on building intelligence.”

“Look, Brandon.” I scrubbed my hands over my face, doing all I could not to hit him. “I know you’ve convinced yourself there’s some kinda rivalry between us, but honestly, I don’t give a shit. I just want to pass my classes and graduate.”

“And suck up to Dr. Vale,” he said with a curled nose. “I know what game you’re playing, and it won’t work. He’s not impressed by your mediocre grades, so you can give up now.”

Sometimes, the best thing to do was nothing. Even if I wanted to squash Brandon like a bug.

I stood from the booth, grabbed my tray and dumped it in the trash, and left the dining hall. The run-in with Brandon pissed me off just enough that I wasn’t thinking clearly.

Or maybe I was thinking crystal clear.

I walked toward the math and science building across campus. On the way, I passed colorful trees and not even my shitty mood could keep me from taking the moment to appreciate them. The crisp October air was cool, but the sun was warm. I loved it.

Not as much as I would love some goddamn answers, though, so I kept walking.

Inside the building, I took the stairs up to the second floor and advanced down the hall. Dr. Vale’s office loomed closer and my feet carried me faster. I knew he was in there, and I wouldn’t leave until he talked to me.

As I reached the door, I raised a hand and knocked.

Then I realized how horribly this could go. He could get mad and kick me out of his class. I’d have to scramble around and figure out how to make up the course credit so I could still graduate next spring.

Too late now.

The door opened, and a disheveled Dr. Vale stood on the other side, his hair tousled and glasses slightly askew on his nose. God, he looked tired.

“Hey, can we talk?”

“Mr. Miller.” It took him a moment to focus on me. “What are you doing here? I thought I made it clear we weren’t meeting today.”

“Yeah? Well I’m un-making it clear.”

“What?” He blinked.

“Okay, that didn’t make sense, I know. But we need to talk.” I stepped closer and said just loud enough for him to hear, “Unless you want me to make a scene in the hall?”

He hesitated before opening the door wider. “Come in.”

Chapter 13

Sebastian

Out of respect for him as my student, and out of fear of the repercussions if something happened between us, I had pushed Cody away all week. Emotions were messy, much like relationships. Probably why I tended to avoid both.

As Cody stood in front of me, I knew I couldn’t avoid him any longer.

Although I had kept my inappropriate thoughts to myself over the weeks we spent together, my feelings must have come through anyway—the desire I had pushed back; the line I had refused to cross.

I didn’t have to cross it. Cody stepped over the line both literally—into my office—and metaphorically.

“Mr. Miller,” I said, once the door closed. Tearing my gaze from him, I turned toward the desk and fixed my crooked glasses. My mind felt fuzzy. I had accidentally fallen asleep and woke up when Cody came knocking. “Have a seat.”