The Mate Who Couldn't Remember

Chapter 2

Maya’s POV

Professor Koa isn’t like other professors in this school, and not in a good way. The others pretend I don’t exist. But him? He’s worse.

Everyone in Graywood fears him. Students, lecturers…

His fame has travelled far in Graywood College for his stern and mean nature. Sometimes, I hear rumours floating around the walls about how he isn't human and has never been seen asleep before.

And still, half the girls in the school throw themselves at him because of how young and dangerously sexy he looks.

Fear grips me the closer I get to his class. I have never seen him before because I try as much as I can to avoid drama in Graywood College, even though most of the time, it ends up finding me.

Sighing about my shitty luck and taking the turn leading to his class, I almost bump into an approaching figures, the strange text on my mind. How did the person know…

“Watch where you are going, kid,” one of them sneers. Laughter explodes around me.

"It's Maya!" Another mock, making me stare at the ground, praying that they let me go on time. "We missed you in class today."

I grip my bag and try to walk around them. It is a big mistake, as in one second, I am pushed to the ground, my butt hitting the marble floor with a thud. Another laugh ripples through the small crowd.

“Did that hurt, Maya?” one leans closer, her flawless face inches from mine.

A thousand things claw at my throat.

I want to yell at them, to scream that they have no idea what pain truly feels like. It lives with me every minute of the day, the ceaseless migraines, the dizzy spells, the heartache that makes me double over from the pain, the emotional instability that makes me despair.

“Please, let me go!” I sob instead from the ground, feeling the throb in my butt. “I need to get to class.”

“Class? We don’t have any class right now,” another begins to say, tilting her head. And then, the smirk on her face grows wider. “Summer was right. You were at the course advisor’s office earlier.”

“Are you really going to leave us, Maya?”

I am already five minutes late to Professor Koa's class, and these girls are making it worse every second. Still, I shake my head, panic washing through me. "No…I didn't say that…."

“Stop making it seem like we are the ones holding you back, b***h!” Her legs collide with mine harshly, and I feel the sharp pain up my bones. “Is that what you told Mrs. Gray? That we give you a hard time?”

I shake my head at once, still sitting on the floor. “No! No! No! I didn’t tell her that, okay?”

“What did you tell her?”

"I told her that I wasn't a good martial arts person," I blurt out, the only lie that can save me today.

“At least, you are not wrong about that. Go.”

I get on my feet hastily and try to run past them, but one of them tosses a large book at my back, making me fall flat on my face. They laugh behind me, the sound floating in the air until it totally fades away.

Pulling myself off the ground, I push my scattered hair back and bring my bag to the front of my blouse to hide the stain on it. My leg hurts with every move I make, but I drag it along with me, wincing every second, until I reach Professor Koa’s class.

Maybe I should have turned around, because the second I open the door, a wild silence travels around the room.

And then, from both ends of the room, our eyes met.

Professor Koa.

Everything I have heard about him is true.

I feel every intensity of his gaze on me. Those green eyes rake through every part of me, and it feels like air has been knocked out of me. I find it hard to breathe, and my hands fly to my chest as a low ache starts.

Hurried breaths leave my lips as I try to concentrate on taking in air. I can feel the eyes of the whole class on me, standing awkwardly by the door.

“Yes?”

His voice, made out of steel, echoes through the walls. There is no hint of amusement in his gaze. Instead, he appears pissed that I have just disrupted his class.

“Erm…I….Good…”

"If you have nothing to say, get out. And be kind enough to close the door behind you."

I blink, just as a snicker runs through the class.

"I am supposed to be here," I blurt out, then realize it is the wrong thing to say when he angles his head, narrowing his eyes in my direction. The light air coming in from the windows teases the roots of his tousled silver hair, and at once, I take in a sharp breath.

Something sweet teases my nose, and I close my eyes involuntarily, allowing it to rake through me. It smells like the damp earth on a rainy day, raw and vulnerable. It tugs at me so hard that I find myself heading towards him.

Suddenly, a pair of legs jut out.

“Not again!” I mutter to myself as I land on the floor. Summer leans in from her seat.

“We meet again.”

And in front of the class, something flickers in his gaze. Professor Koa looks….angry.

Another message.

“We warned you.”