MY DANGEROUS PROFESSOR

Chapter 2

I barely remembered walking the ten blocks from that apartment. I just kept going, desperate to get as far away from Logan and his boyfriend as possible. My feet hurt inside my cheap flats, and somewhere along the way I had lost one of them while running out of the house without even noticing. I was crying so hard now that I could barely see, and I just knew I couldn't be alone.

By the time I reached Ethan’s door, my legs were shaking so badly I couldn’t take another step. I collapsed onto the cold concrete floor outside Ethan’s apartment door. I pulled my legs up to my chest and finally broke down.

"Why does this always happen to me?" I sobbed. "Why does everyone leave me? First my parents died and left me alone, and now Logan, the one person I thought I could depend on, betrayed me too."

The door suddenly swung open. Ethan stepped out holding a black trash bag, looking half-asleep until his eyes landed on me.

"Aria?"

The bag dropped to the floor. Ethan quickly dropped to his knees beside me and pulled me into his arms. I buried my face against his chest. I didn't have to explain anything yet. He was there, and somehow that was enough.

Ethan, my cousin, had always been the person I went to when things fell apart and somehow, he always knew what to do even when I didn't.

"Hey, hey... what happened? Who did this to you?"

The concern in his voice quickly turned to anger. He pushed my hair away from my face, his expression tightening.

"Look at me, princess. Who the f**k hurt you? Give me his name!”

I couldn't form the words. My throat tightened, and I just buried my face deeper into his shirt, clutching his sleeves as tears soaked through the fabric.

"Okay. Okay, you don't have to talk right now," Ethan whispered. He held me tighter and didn't ask any more questions. He simply sat there with me on the cold hallway floor, pulling me into his lap and rubbing my back while I cried against his chest.

Logan's face. Julian's smug expression. The way Logan had told me to stop being dramatic as if I'd been the one who had done something wrong

I barely slept that night. I spent the entire night curled up on Ethan’s couch, staring blankly at the ceiling. Whenever I managed to close my eyes, the scene in that bedroom came rushing back. Logan's face, Julian's smug expression. The way Logan had told me to stop being dramatic as if I had been the one who had done something wrong

By morning, the tears had finally stopped. I was exhausted, I felt completely drained as I lay on the couch staring blankly at the ceiling. My phone buzzed continuously on the coffee table.

First were the calls from my manager at the diner. I had never missed a day of work, even when I was sick. I was always working because there was another problem for me to solve, another bill for me to cover. But this morning, I couldn't bring myself to answer.

Then came the flood of calls from my four best friends, Chloe, Maya, Sam, and Leo. Their names flashed across the screen one after another, but I couldn't bring myself to answer. How could I explain this humiliation out loud? So I let the phone keep ringing.

Ethan walked into the living room and placed a steaming mug of coffee on the table in front of me before sitting beside me.

“Your favorite coffee. I added extra creamer, just the way you like it,” he said, gently massaging my leg.

Dark circles showed under his eyes, and his jaw was clenched.

“He’s gay,” I said quietly.

Ethan immediately stopped massaging my leg. “What did you just say?”

“I said Logan is gay. I caught him in bed with a man.”

“That bastard!” Ethan shot to his feet. “I'm going to deal with him. I'm going to beat the s**t out of him and make sure he regrets what he did to you.”

He grabbed his shirt and started toward the door, but I stopped him.

“No, Ethan. Please don't go over there. His boyfriend is still in the house with him, and they might gang up on you. Just stay here with me. Please.” I reached for his hand.

“Fine. I will spare him today.” Ethan dropped back onto the couch. “But you are not going to shed another tear over that bastard. He doesn't deserve it.”

He shook his head. “I should have said something years ago,” Ethan muttered. “I watched you work yourself into the ground while that guy sat around doing nothing. I don't know how I let you convince me he was worth it.”

His jaw tightened. “I'm sorry, sis. I should have told you to leave him years ago.”

I gave him a small smile. “It's not your fault. It was my fault for putting up with him all these years. I should've known better.”

“You know what? I never trusted him,” Ethan muttered. “The first time you introduced us, he spent half the night staring at me like he wanted to eat me. And another time when I walked past him, he spanked my ass and later apologized that it was a mistake.”

I stared at him. “You never told me that.”

“I didn't want to upset you, and besides you were madly in love with him already.

I couldn't help it. I burst out laughing.

A text message from Logan lit up the screen.

Logan: Stop being so dramatic, Aria. You made a complete scene over nothing last night. Come back home right now so we can talk like adults. Julian and I are waiting for you.

I stared at the message. Even after everything he had done, he still thought I was the problem. Two minutes later, another message popped up.

[Logan]:By the way, rent is due tomorrow. Wire the money to my account before 5. So I can pay the landlord. And send extra. I want to take Julian out for breakfast since you are not here to cook for us.

Ethan glanced at the phone. His expression hardened, and his hands slowly curled into fists.

*Buzz.*

Logan: Aria, where the f**k are you? And why aren't you responding to my text? If you don't come back to the house in the next two hours, I'm breaking up with you. I won't put up with your childish tantrums anymore. You have had enough time to calm down.

I let out a bitter laugh. He was threatening to break up with me? After I caught him cheating on me with a man. Before I could even process it, my phone started ringing again. Logan's name flashed across the screen.

I flinched, but before I could reach for it, Ethan grabbed the phone and answered.

"Listen to me, Aria—" Logan's voice came through the speaker.

"Listen to me, you piece of s**t," Ethan cut him off.

"Who the hell is this?" Logan snapped. "Put Aria on the phone right now! Aria, you b***h! How dare you spend the night in another man's house? Have you been cheating on me all this time? Was that the reason you left the house last night so you could go to your boyfriend's house?"

"She can't spend the night in another man's house, but you can bring another man home and f**k him in the house she pays for?" Ethan shot back. "If you ever contact Aria again, or if you ever come within ten feet of her, I will personally break every bone in your f*****g body. You've been living off her while she works herself to death, and you still have the nerve to demand money from her after cheating on her? You are a disgusting, broke, spineless coward. Stay away from her."

Ethan ended the call and tossed the phone back onto the couch. “That son of a b***h,” he muttered.

He turned toward me and knelt in front of me, taking my hands in his.

“You are done with him, Aria. Do you hear me? You are never going back to that trash. I will go and get your stuff from the apartment later. For now, you are staying here with me.”

“There’s no need, the rent will be due tomorrow.” I said quietly.

“Aria, I just hope you are not planning to pay the rent for that bastard and his boyfriend? Before Ethan could say anything else, someone started pounding on the front door.

"Aria! Ethan! Open the damn door right now! We know she's in there!"

“Maya?” I stared at Ethan. “You told them?”

Before Ethan could answer, Chloe's voice came through the door next, followed by Maya, Sam, and Leo all talking at once.

My friends were here.