Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

“People say the mere flap of a butterfly’s wings can change the course of an entire story.”

MAX

—Wake up, bitch!

Whatever brief dream I’d been having, Safi made sure to drag me out of it using her favorite word.

When I half-opened one eye and looked at her irritably, she was already waiting for me with one of her mocking grins.

I curled back up in the passenger seat while the Corvette rolled into its parking spot at Caledon University.

That car was her greatest pride and joy. She loved showing it off everywhere she went, and she loved even more the fact that she’d gotten it from her mother through emotional blackmail after one hell of an argument.

—You’re gonna be late —Safi said accusingly.

I snorted with half a smile.

—Says the girl who’s been on a month-long sabbatical.

Sometimes I envied her so much. No matter what she did, her mother always ended up taking her back eventually.
What had their huge fight been about this time? I couldn’t even remember. All I knew was that Safi’s punishment for her mother this time had been disappearing for an entire month without showing up at home or in class.

That absence wasn’t going to hurt her in the slightest. Her mother was the university dean… and besides, Safi was brilliant. She’d have no problem catching up academically.
I envied her. A lot. She would always have a family to come back to, even if they spent half their time fighting.

At least she hadn’t been abandoned.

I sighed, a faint shadow darkening my eyes as I thought about my parents.

I couldn’t even remember their faces anymore.

—Max?

The sadness and jealousy vanished from my face the second I looked at Safi, automatically pulling a soft smile out of me.
I loved her. She was my best friend, she took care of me in her own way, and she made me laugh even when I didn’t want to — which was almost all the time.

—Maybe you should spray on some of my perfume before going in… y’know, so you don’t drag the Snapping Turtle smell around.

I waved dismissively with one hand while covering a yawn with the other.
Safi shut off the engine, sighing with a mix of pity and annoyance.

—Max, you can’t keep living like this forever. One day I’m gonna find you belly-up in that bar like a dead cockroach.

—First of all… gross, Safi.

I grimaced in disgust. My imagination was way too vivid not to immediately picture Cockroach Max twitching on her back.

—And second of all, I’m—
—Doing fucking terrible —she cut me off before I could say “fine.” —You look like a walking corpse. And not just today, you’ve looked like this for months. I get that your scholarship doesn’t cover everything, but…

She clicked her tongue and looked out the window.
I knew it drove Safi insane that I wouldn’t let her help me financially, but I couldn’t allow it.

She and her mother had already done more than enough getting me the scholarship that let me stay at Caledon, not to mention all the times she drove me to work, bought me food…

I reached out and gave her hand — resting on the gear shift — a gentle squeeze.

—I know you’re worried, seriously, but… it’s not that bad. I’m just a little tired.

She turned toward me with her eyes wide open, the perfect embodiment of Are you fucking kidding me?

I didn’t even know why I bothered trying. I knew it was a lie, and she… she knew me way too well.

—Not that bad? Every day it gets more embarrassing finding you asleep during your shift sprawled across some random table. I’m starting to lose social status just by hanging out with you.

I frowned with fake annoyance. Safi’s acidic comments were almost never serious… at least not toward me.

But a few seconds later, exhausted as I was, I reacted honestly to what she’d said.

—I do not do that! —I shouted, offended, lightly smacking her arm as my face turned slightly red.
—Bullshit you don’t! You’re a terrible employee. Amanda only keeps you around because she likes you.

Oh God, here we go again, I thought, rolling my eyes and sinking back into the seat.
I didn’t even bother listening to what was probably going to be the third lecture of the day about my sex life — or rather, my complete lack of one — which Safi absolutely loved discussing.

I reached for the door handle, but the lock immediately clicked down.

—Too slow, bitch —she said, wiggling her eyebrows playfully.

Obviously she knew me. And obviously she knew I was about to make a run for it.

—Can you stop screwing around and open the door? I’m gonna be late —I said, while Safi let out a small laugh.
—Oh, now you’re in a hurry? Not before you see something.

I groaned dramatically, throwing my head back while she dug through her purse.

—Since I’m afraid the whole “Why won’t you just sleep with that woman already?” debate is gonna fall on deaf ears yet again, I’ve decided to move on to visual aids.
—Oh my God! I do not—
—“Like Amanda, I’m not gay!” —she mocked with an eye roll. —Yeah, I know. You always say the same thing.
—Because it’s true! Besides, I— Wait, what do you mean by “visual aids”?

At that exact moment, she finally found what she was looking for and pulled out a Polaroid like the ones I used.
One of the few good things I’d rubbed off on Safi with: my love for photography and Polaroids.

I looked at the picture just as my friend leaned her head against my shoulder to inspect it with me.

—Behold the undeniable proof: you’re not gay, but you sure do gay shit —she said, pointing at my face in the photo.

In it, I was slumped over one of the bar tables looking half asleep while staring at Amanda, who was leaning over me with a sympathetic expression.
Her hands rested gently on my arms after waking me up.

—Luckily I got there just in time to witness her waking you up from one of your naps and you giving her that sad little puppy look. And I documented it for science. Purely so you could see for yourself how ridiculously gay you are.

I looked back and forth between Safi and the photo, unable to believe my best friend devoted this much time and effort to something so unbelievably stupid.
I rubbed my temples, trying to summon patience, but when that failed I leaned across her seat to unlock the doors, grabbed my messenger bag, and said:

—I’m going to class, and this…

I snatched the photo out of Safi’s hands.

—…I’m taking with me.

The second I took the photo from her, she instantly lost interest in the whole thing and shifted her attention back to her phone.
She was like a child with ADHD.

—Oh no, please, it’s my only copy… —she said lazily, dripping with sarcasm while

typing on her phone before sighing dramatically.

I could’ve asked if she seriously had more of those photos.
(She did.)
I could’ve told her I deeply hated her…
But either option would’ve been a pointless waste of time and energy.

So I left.

I quickened my pace as much as my low energy allowed and practically prayed I’d managed to ditch her, but almost immediately I heard her walking behind me, raising her voice louder than I would’ve liked.

—You’re almost twenty years old, for God’s sake. You spend half your life going to class surrounded by young people and the other half working at a college bar! It is physically impossible for nobody to spark even a little interest in you. In fact, I’m telling you, you’re damaging your body. Every second you repress your sexuality is another second that—

—For the love of God, Safi, I’m not interested in anyone and I AM NOT GAY!

I interrupted, raising my voice just like I hated when she did, spinning around sharply to face a completely uninterested Safi still typing away on her phone.

—I’m serious —she said, arching an eyebrow as she slowly lifted her gaze from the screen to me.—I genuinely hope someone accomplishes the titanic feat of finally getting you laid soon.

The moment she finished the sentence was when she actually looked at me.
Or at least I thought so, because too consumed by my own despair, I completely missed Safi widening her eyes dramatically and covering her mouth with one hand.
A few feet behind me, I heard a soft throat-clear followed by a muffled laugh, but I either didn’t catch it or was simply too tired to care.

Completely oblivious, I buried my face in my hands and rubbed it lightly, trying to gather the right words to make my best friend understand me — if such words even existed.

—Safi, you have to stop doing this! Or at least stop doing it in public! Don’t you think I have better things to worry about than—

—Jesus Christ, Max —Safi kept staring at something behind me, something walking away, paying absolutely no attention to me.—Tell me you saw that.

I slowly shook my head in disbelief. She wasn’t even listening.
She waved a hand with a smug grin.

—Jesus fucking Christ, you just missed the best ass in all of Vermont.

I rolled my eyes, grimaced at the sky, waved my hands around dramatically in frustration… I did a lot of things. None of them caught her attention.

—Great. That’s what I love most about you: how well you listen. Seriously, thank you so much.

I wasn’t exaggerating when I said she was a damn child with attention issues.
Clicking my tongue, fully aware there was no fixing this, I grabbed the bag I’d dropped during my nervous breakdown caused by my friend’s stupidity and turned around to continue toward the university parking lot exit.
I couldn’t wait to get to the main building.

Safi jogged until she caught up to me and linked her arm with mine as we walked.

—I’m serious, bitch, if you’d seen what I—

I opened my mouth to yell at her — I genuinely wanted to — but before I could, she smacked my arm accusingly after checking her watch.

—Holy shit, Max, you’re ridiculously late.

Maybe it was exhaustion.
Maybe it was the overwhelming urge to strangle her.
But at that moment I failed to notice the figure walking away in the distance.

A tall figure.

With vibrant electric-blue hair.

My desire to strangle Safi with my bare hands made the blue that would change my life forever go completely unnoticed in that parking lot.

…

I slowly chewed my food without much enthusiasm while returning a soft smile to the person sitting across from me.

Kate Marsh.

We shared almost every class together, but our favorite was photography.
Though honestly, the fact excited Kate far more than it excited me. Our professor was Mark Jefferson, a renowned photographer Caledon had somehow managed to hire two years earlier. His presence alone had significantly increased enrollment numbers, even among people who never actually attended his class.

I liked his class and the way he taught, but Kate outright admired the man.

As much as I hated it, I’d missed some of his classes that week — and other professors’ too — because exhaustion had pushed me to the point where I genuinely felt sick.

I didn’t tell anyone.
I didn’t want them pitying the poor scholarship girl killing herself just to stay afloat because her parents had never loved her enough not to abandon her after…

I don’t want to think about that right now. I never want to think about it.

It must’ve shown on my face — or maybe in the lost expression in my eyes — because I suddenly felt Kate’s soft hand resting on my forearm.
The cross hanging from the chain around her neck swayed gently, catching my attention for a second.

I hated the way people underestimated that girl and her genuinely incredible kindness just because of her beliefs.
Kate was often mocked for it, though she never seemed too bothered by it.
Or at least that’s what I thought.

—Are you okay, Max?
—Yeah, sorry, I was just… thinking about some stuff I need to deal with —I lied.—I think I missed a lot this week.
—It’s okay —she said with a sweet smile.—You’ll catch up. I can help you with whatever you need.

I smiled back, thinking about how unbelievably kind Kate was to everyone, when a male voice greeted us as it approached our table.

—Oh, look, here comes Warren.

Kate immediately put on one of her warm smiles again when Warren sat beside her, staring at me with a goofy expression.
I raised an eyebrow instinctively and smiled back politely, though somewhat awkwardly.

I’d only crossed paths with him a couple times since classes started. We didn’t share any classes — he studied physics — but he always seemed to pay me way too much attention.

Kate leaned forward to introduce us with an enthusiastic gesture.

—Warren, this is—
—Oh, I know her.

Yeah, sure you do, I thought.
Okay, I was incredibly absent-minded, but I definitely would’ve remembered meeting the guy who seemed to follow me around with his eyes everywhere.
Caught off guard by his comment, I could only look surprised.

—Oh, really? —Kate and I asked in unison.
—Of course. We used to swim naked in my pool together, remember?

I swear to God I almost choked on the bite I was chewing.
I felt the blush — the one that always betrayed how embarrassingly shy I was — rushing up my face.

I couldn’t help looking at a shocked Kate while firmly shaking my head.

—I swear I never—
—Yeah! How could you forget those summers? We were like six years old, right? —he asked with genuine innocence.—You’re Mary.

A wave of relief flooded through me.
For some reason, I desperately needed Kate to realize the misunderstanding.

—No, I’m Max. I think you’ve got the wrong person —I smiled, still awkward from embarrassment.
—Are you sure? —he asked, confused.

I was about to answer that I was pretty certain of my own name when Hurricane Safi stormed into our lives.

She slammed her folder onto the table obnoxiously loudly and dropped into the seat beside me, looking directly at me as if we were alone.

—I swear to God, I’m so sick of that bitch —she complained irritably.

The other two innocent witnesses immediately looked just as embarrassed as I felt.
Safi stared at me for a few seconds, raising an eyebrow.

—That bitch being my mother. Hello?

—Safi —I cleared my throat, trying to point out how rude she was being. Then I gestured toward my companions.—These are—

—Yeah, yeah, whatever —she said dismissively.—Kelly and Waldo.
—Kate and Warren!
—Same thing —she replied with a nod.

—Oh my God, could you for once behave like a human being and stop embarrassing me? —I asked, nearly choking for the third time in five minutes.

—Hey, hey! What’s your problem? Don’t be as bitchy as my bitch mother, okay?

—What do you mean what’s my—? —with my blush deepening… I was going to kill her. I really was.

Kate, visibly uncomfortable at Safi repeatedly using her favorite word, leaned forward slightly as if she were about to stand up before stopping herself.
That immediately caught my foul-mouthed friend’s attention.

—Oh, sorry, I forgot —she said, attempting to make the sign of the cross, which I intercepted before she could accidentally offend Kate.

Safi wasn’t the kind of person who tried to humiliate vulnerable people, she just…

—Please forgive my friend. She’s just an idiot. She can’t help it.
—It’s okay —Warren said, rubbing the back of his neck with his right hand before

Safi could start arguing with me again.—Besides, we should probably head to class soon anyway.

That immediately got Safi’s attention, and she glanced at her watch in confusion.

—Class? I thought we were done for the day.
—Oh, yeah. It’s an extracurricular painting class —Kate explained, pulling a flyer from her folder and placing it on the table. The title read Independent Art Study in a surprisingly eye-catching font.—We’ve only had a couple sessions so far, but it’s amazing. Plus, it helps you earn extra credits or…
—Strengthen a scholarship.

The words left my mouth without thinking, and I instantly regretted them.
All three pairs of eyes turned toward me, each for a completely different reason.

—So you’re coming today? I was really hoping you would —Kate said excitedly.
Warren looked equally enthusiastic.

—You’re taking that class? You never told me —Safi asked.
—Yeah, well… I still haven’t actually gone. This week’s been complicated and… honestly, I don’t even know if I will.
—Why not? You should. The teacher’s incredible.

Kate rolled her eyes slightly, like she’d already heard Warren talk about that particular reason for attending several times before.

—I completely agree, you should go —Safi noticed the hesitation on my face.—Come on, Max, I’m sure you’ll be good at it. And if you need help, you can always paint me instead —she bit her lip the way she always did before saying something unbelievably stupid.—But not naked. I’d rather you paint me like Napoleon.

While she dramatically posed according to her own suggestion, Warren and Kate stood up, barely holding back their laughter as they grabbed their things.

—You should come, Max. It’s great, we’ll have fun, and it’ll help your scholarship too.

That blonde girl was one of the few people I’d trusted enough to tell about my fragile situation.

Warren, meanwhile, looked like he was thinking about something entirely different, staring into space with a goofy smile.

—It’s absolutely incredible —he said, sounding like he wasn’t talking about painting at all.

Kate lightly elbowed him before saying goodbye and dragging him away with her.

I stayed alone with Safi, absentmindedly pushing around the remains of my food with my fork before realizing a few seconds later that she was staring at me expectantly.

—Well? You’re going, right?

I opened my mouth to answer, but she silenced me with a gesture of her hand.

—I don’t want to hear it, Max. No more insecurities. You’ll do great because you’re amazing and somehow good at everything… which is exactly why I hate you.

Wow, does she seriously think that about me? She’s completely wrong.

I blushed.

—And if you’re not good yet, then you’ll learn. That’s literally what classes are for. Let’s give your fucking scholarship the boost it needs.

Safi grabbed my arm, forcing me to abandon my tray and food behind despite my complaints.
She dragged me through the hallways, knowing the university far better than I ever could.

As much as my friend tried to crush my insecurities, they came flooding back anyway.
I wasn’t good at painting.
I wasn’t good enough to keep a scholarship.
I wasn’t good at socializing… Hell, what if I wasn’t even good at photography?
The only thing in the world that genuinely made me feel excited.

I’d failed at the most basic part of life:
I couldn’t even make my parents love me enough not to abandon me.
What kind of parents did that?

Had it been my fault?How was I supposed to make anyone else…?

I was so busy drowning in my own self-inflicted pain that I failed to notice the obvious truth standing right beside me:
Safi loved me.

Even her mother seemed to care about me.
They’d taken care of me ever since I escaped Seattle. They’d given me purpose, a place to belong, and the tools to survive.Why couldn’t I see that maybe I’d already achieved something much bigger — that people who barely knew me were willing to fight to protect me?

I sighed.

—Could we get one of those flyers? —Safi asked, her voice dripping with mockery.

By the time I realized what was happening, I was standing in the middle of the hallway in front of a booth staffed by a couple girls with a… very particular vibe.
Somehow, the flyer ended up in my hands, and by the time I read it, it was already too late:

Female Self-Discovery Workshop.

Oh God. No.

—And maybe a list of all the single women signed up too? My friend here —she said, pointing directly at me without a shred of shame.—already knows herself pretty well. She prefers getting to know other people instead.

My scream — specifically yelling Safi Llewellyn-Fayyad’s full name — echoed through the hallway, startling both the girls at the booth and several passing students.
I dropped the flyer, grabbed Safi by the arm, and dragged her away down the hall, dying of embarrassment.

—You have absolutely no idea how much I hate you. Seriously.

I practically snarled it, still bright red as I stormed down the hallway.

—Hey, I was just trying to help like always, you ungrateful asshole—

She stopped mid-sentence when she saw the murderous look I shot her, immediately raising her hands in surrender.

—Okay, okay… fine. Hey, that Waldo guy—
—Warren!
—Whatever. So can you sleep with him or not? Just asking. Since you’re not gay —she stretched out the last two words while making air quotes and rolling her eyes like the statement itself was ridiculous.

I gathered every ounce of patience I had left, exhaled slowly, and finally lost the blush.

—You are by far the most annoying, rude, and inappropriate human being I have ever met in my entire life. For some reason, you get immense pleasure out of embarrassing me in front of literally everyone — something I already do perfectly fine on my own without your help. You have absolutely no idea how hard it is for me just to survive around other people while trying to go unnoticed. No matter how hard I try, you’re always there to stop me, aren’t you?

Safi slowly nodded throughout my speech, staring at me with a strangely serious, distant expression, like she was genuinely reflecting on my words.
She even took a few extra seconds before answering.

—Max…

She paused dramatically, still looking deeply immersed in thought before finally snapping out of it and looking back at me.

—Do you think porn theaters sell popcorn?

That time, the silence came from me.

I stared at her, weighing every possible option in my head.

Do I ignore her? Murder her? What exactly am I supposed to do with this woman?

—Seriously? —was all I managed to whisper weakly.
—Yeah, I don’t know. The question just suddenly hit me.
—Do porn theaters even exis—?

I stopped myself mid-sentence, closed my eyes, and sighed deeply before continuing.

—Safi.
—Yeah?
—Go fuck yourself.

I said it while staring directly into her eyes.

—Wow —she murmured.

Unfortunately, Safi once again decided to defy every known law of common sense and logic by following me all the way to the classroom door.

The moment I hesitated in the doorway, she didn’t give me the chance to rethink it — she shoved me inside, sending me stumbling forward until my palms slammed against a desk.

Which, naturally, drew everyone’s attention.

—Did you seriously have to come all the way here? —I asked irritably.
—Obviously, bitch. I’m not risking you skipping class again.
—Oh, trust me, that wouldn’t happen. Right now there is literally nowhere on earth I’d rather be less than next to you.

The insult completely bounced off her — her response probably would’ve just been a smug grin anyway — because at that exact moment, the contradiction to my statement stood up from her desk, where she’d been sitting surrounded by her loyal entourage.

—Max Caulfield.

Everything that ever came out of Victoria Chase’s mouth somehow sounded condescending.
She slowly approached us with that trademark superior smile, arms crossed, dressed in something ridiculously expensive, obviously.

I take it back. There actually is one place I’d rather avoid more than being near Safi, and it’s being anywhere near Victoria.

I mentally cursed myself.

I’d completely forgotten she was in this class.

If I’d remembered, I probably would’ve—

—I was starting to think you’d never show up. Where’ve you been hiding? —I didn’t answer, but I felt Safi move beside me, stepping to my side and staring at Victoria with exactly the same energy Victoria stared at me.—Out looking for adventure? Or maybe searching for someone who actually gives a shit about you? —her smug smile widened, her tone turning even nastier.—Have you managed to get your first kiss yet? Just so you know, your mommy doesn’t count.

Her friends’ giggles echoed in the background while I sighed.

—Yeah, but yours does —Safi shot back sharply.

The laughter instantly grew louder before Victoria silenced everyone with a glare.

I smiled both internally and externally, even if I kept my head lowered.
At that moment, I remembered exactly why I loved Safi so much:
her ability to verbally humiliate people was unbelievably satisfying whenever the target wasn’t me — especially when it was someone like Victoria, whose cheeks had just flushed slightly pink.

—Victoria Chase: born evil, raised a slut —Safi announced, framing the phrase dramatically with her hands.—You should totally use that as your bio. Consider it my gift to you.

The snobby blonde could only clench her fists tightly at her sides in fury while muffled laughter once again escaped from Taylor and Courtney… even Nathan.

—I see you brought your bodyguard because you’re incapable of fighting your own battles. Doesn’t that embarrass you? —Victoria asked, turning her attention back to me.

Before I could respond, Safi stepped in front of me, leaned toward Victoria, and whispered seductively:

—You should be embarrassed by the things you do to me in my imagination, Chase.

Checkmate.

Victoria flushed bright red — whether from anger or embarrassment, I honestly couldn’t tell — muttered an insult under her breath, turned around, and stormed back toward her desk.

I looked at Safi and, despite how much confrontations stressed me out, I couldn’t stop myself from quietly laughing.

—You’re insane —I whispered gratefully.
—Nothing sends the queen of snobs into a panic like a subtle implication.
—Yeah, you’re very subtle. About as subtle as a bulldozer.

And then it happened.

She entered my life like an unstoppable storm, walking right past me.

I noticed her scent before I even properly saw her — something electric and intoxicating that I immediately knew I’d never fully get out of my head.

—Afternoon —she said hurriedly and without enthusiasm, not even bothering to look at her students.

The blue-haired woman was…

Wow.

At that moment, I finally understood Warren’s absurd descriptions. She appeared to be around twenty-eight years old. Her blue hair, ripped jeans, piercings, boots… the sleeveless tank top exposing tattooed arms.

She was the single most perfect definition of the word punk I had ever seen.

—You’re late, Price —Victoria said with a smug half-smirk, crossing her arms.

—Chase —the woman replied while dropping her folders onto the desk with one hand and casually flipping Victoria off with the other without even looking at her.

That laid-back, wildly unprofessional gesture made several students laugh — even Victoria herself smiled.

I suddenly felt Safi elbow me hard in the ribs.

—The best ass in Vermont…!

She tried whispering it, but judging by the muffled laughter and amused looks around the classroom, she clearly failed.

My heart nearly stopped when the blue-haired woman, still leaning over the desk with both palms resting against it, tilted her head back and looked directly at me.

For some reason, my pulse violently skipped when our eyes met — icy blue locking onto mine.

The only thing I managed to do was frantically shake my head and point at Safi, silently blaming her for the comment.

—You mine? —she asked, one eyebrow raised, face neutral, with the most dangerously provocative serious voice I’d ever heard in my life.

Provocative? What the hell?! Why did that sound provocative? Where did that even come from? Say something!

That single question made my heart skip another beat.
Pathetic.

But I genuinely didn’t understand what she meant.

Or maybe I understood too well.

—W…What? —I stammered.

The teacher stepped closer after arching her eyebrow even higher, a crooked half-smile forming on her lips.
She stopped directly in front of Safi and me, shielding us from the rest of the class with her back.

—I asked if you’re my student. I don’t recognize you.
—YES! —Safi interrupted for me.—We are absolutely your students now and forever.

Price’s smile widened into something openly amused.

Judging by the way she looked at Safi before shaking her head, she seemed very accustomed to causing exactly this effect on people.
Honestly, half the room had looked slightly stunned the second she walked in.

Including me.

—The hippie is your missing student who’s skipped every class so far. The other one’s just some random girl who likes sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong. But since she’s the dean’s daughter, I guess she gets away with it.

Price nodded slightly, still focused entirely on us while completely ignoring Victoria.

—Hippie, huh? —she smiled while slowly looking me up and down, clearly entertained.

I hated how much she seemed to enjoy that nickname.

—I’m not—

I stammered again.
Fantastic.
Now Victoria had somehow managed to make me self-conscious about my appearance too.

I lowered my gaze, blushing.
I couldn’t handle the intensity of Price’s stare analyzing me.

—So you’re the lost sheep. Guess my class didn’t convince you before. Can I ask what finally inspired you to bless us with your presence? —despite the sarcasm, I couldn’t detect any real annoyance in her voice.

I noticed her subtly shift position to block the rest of the classroom out even more, isolating the conversation.

—Oh, please, making a decision? —Safi laughed mockingly.—Max wouldn’t know how to make a decision even if the decision bit her ass.

—Really? —the blue-haired woman smiled again in that infuriatingly charming way while locking those icy blue eyes onto mine, making me even more nervous with her overwhelming confidence.—Do you need something attached to your ass before you know whether you like it?

I swear the air leaving my lungs could’ve been heard across the room.
That — and Safi smacking my already abused ribs in excitement once again.

Judging by her reaction, she’d interpreted Price’s words with exactly the same dangerously inappropriate meaning I had.

And honestly, Price’s playful tone didn’t help.

—W-What?! No! —The teacher slowly approached me, erasing the distance between us while I instinctively tried backing away, staring down at the floor.

Once she got close enough, I completely short-circuited trying to form basic words.

—I… no… I—

—Perfect then! —Her teasing tone instantly shifted into something openly amused as she pressed her hand flat against the center of my chest and shoved me backward, literally forcing the chair behind me into the back of my legs.—Now you’re in the perfect position to figure out what you think of my class.

Price snapped her fingers toward Safi without even looking at her, keeping her eyes fixed on me in a way that made me deeply uncomfortable.

—Dean’s daughter, out —she ordered.

—Out? Can I ask exactly why? —Safi asked, sounding genuinely disappointed.

The punk stretched out her arms dramatically, physically blocking Safi while walking toward her and forcing my friend backward toward the open door.

—You can ask vaguely or specifically, the answer’s still the same: you’re not enrolled in my class. And in my classroom, hierarchy doesn’t mean shit. So get out.

It was the first time I’d ever seen someone completely outplay Safi.

My friend had been so distracted by Price — and so thrown off by her audacity — that she actually allowed herself to be herded outside the doorway without being touched once.

Before she could even react, Price slammed the door in her face and gave her a mock military salute through the glass.

I heard the class laughing, but I barely registered it.

All I could do was stare at that unbelievably hypnotic woman leaning back against the door with her long legs stretched out in front of her.

Then she flashed the room a charmingly devilish grin and said:

—Welcome to my class, assholes.

The laughter exploded again, but to me, the entire world had already fallen silent the moment Chloe Price looked directly at me, stole my third heartbeat of the day, winked once… and pushed herself away from the door.

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