My Insensitive Professor

Chapter 1 "Don't be too long, sweetheart!" my mother shouts from the kitchen. "I'll be back in time for dinner!" I assure her. I pick up my bag and head to the bus stop in front of my house, where I wait for about ten minutes. As I get on, I pay the fare and stand due to the overcrowding. As soon as I'm near my destination, I press the button to stop at the next point, where the park I usually visit in my free time is. As I get off, I notice people running, walking, exercising, children being carried and in strollers. I look at a tree that offers good shade and head over to it, sitting on the grass. I take out my sketchbook and pencil case from my backpack and start looking around for a landscape or people to draw. My gaze falls on a very handsome man. No, not just handsome. In fact, a spectacular man, sitting on a bench wearing workout clothes while talking on the phone, obviously irritated with the person on the other end of the line. I squint to get a better look at him. He is very muscular, you can tell from afar. His lips are a reddish hue and his face is marked by hard and defined features, which are currently tense. I can't see his eyes, but what stands out is his black hair with brown tips. I immediately flip open my sketchbook to a blank page and start sketching him, as he might leave at any moment. I look up to capture his features, his expression lines, and what saves me is that he's still on the phone, giving me more time. I quickly sketch, and his face soon appears as if by magic. I start adding the final touches, making him look even more spectacular than he already is. I look up to find him one last time, but I can't see him, he probably left while I was adding the final details. I start to smudge the drawing lightly with my finger, but then a pair of sneakers stops right in front of me, forcing me to look up. "Hello." The same man who was on the phone extends his hand, smiling at me, and in a desperate act, I throw my sketchbook into my bag. His smile is so beautiful that I become hypnotized. I look at his hand, and he raises an eyebrow at me. God! He must think I'm an i***t or something! I extend my hand, thinking it would just be a handshake, but he pulls me up, making me stand, and I quickly withdraw my hand from his skin because of the shiver that runs through my body. "I'm Joshua," the handsome man says, and I stand mortified in my place, staring at him "And you are?" "Ah... Eve, Everly" My God! I can't believe I'm stammering! Unexpectedly, I feel my face getting very hot, and I try to look anywhere but at him. "I saw you drawing" He says. "Can I see?" "I'm not very good at drawing" I quickly say, trying to dodge his request "Let me be the judge" He smiles. I take my sketchbook out of the bag, praying to God that he only looks at the first pages. He starts flipping through it while I nervously twist my fingers. "You draw very well!" he comments, impressed. "Are you studying Arts in college?" "No," I reply nervously. I'm still at the beginning of my junior year in high school, but he doesn't need to know that, he'll just see me as a child when he finds out I'm not in college. "You should study Arts in college, you're very talented." Then he looks at me and gives a smile I can only describe as gigantic. He looks from me to the sketchbook several times. Oh, God! The ground beneath my feet, please swallow me! "Ah, I always come here," I say, and my heart starts beating faster "I draw people and landscapes," I say, because it's partly true. Darn, I'm sure my cheeks must be on fire! I feel hot, very hot. "I understand," he says, still smiling. "You're really talented." He hands me the notebook, and I quickly shove it into my bag, eager to get rid of it. "At least I'll have a place in your notebook," he says, and I give an awkward smile. "I'm sorry," I say, looking at him. Now I can see his eyes, they're honey-colored, but upon closer inspection, I notice small green specks. I had never seen that color in a person's eyes before. "Don't apologize, at least when you look at it, you'll remember me." Oh, my gosh! Why did he say that? I need to get out of here! "Uh, yeah," I blurt out, trying to escape this awkward moment. "I need to go." "Of course, I would offer you a ride if I weren't exercising." Which I definitely wouldn't accept since he's a complete stranger. "You're very kind. Thanks for letting me draw you without asking first." Then he does something I never expected. "Do you have a cell phone?" "Yes, why?" I ask, confused. "Get it out." Then he takes his out of his back pocket and touches it to mine, technology was definitely on my side, as just a touch of his phone to mine shared our contact info. "Now you have my number, and I have yours. If you want to draw me again, just call," I feel like my jaw might drop at the implications of his words. "Uh, yeah," I manage to say, thinking coherent words might not come out of my mouth. "It was a great pleasure to meet you, Everly." I nod frantically, probably looking like an i***t. Then he takes my hand and kisses it lightly. Does he even know what century this is? "See you later," he says with a strange smile, but I don't waste time trying to figure it out. I start walking more than hurriedly to the bus stop, and when I look back, he's still watching me.