Five points
1993 Words
Myra turned around and looked at the students who had congregated in the hall leading to the theater.
“What did you just say?” She asked, her fist balling beside her.
“Not you, gorgeous.” The boy with the perfect teeth from earlier said. “The gremlin behind you.”
Myra turned behind to see Valentina Steels, the girl she had sat beside during class.
Valentina Steels was the last person that brought up s****l assault charges against Professor Cal, and one of Myra’s duties was to befriend her and get as much information as she could from her.
She watched the frightened girl as she squirmed under the gaze of everyone packed in the hallway.
This was a private college, an elite school only for the children of billionaires. And in colleges like these, it was like being back in high school.
The students were mostly immature brats and all the professors looked away to avoid offending powerful people.
A girl with several cosmetic face lifts at her young age walked towards Valentina Steels and threw yogurt down the front of her shirt.
“This is what happens when a prestigious school admits gutter rats like you.” She said, and all the students around laughed and hooted.
Valentina gasped, looking down horrified at her stained dress.
“I have said the scholarship program should be scrapped countless times, but no one listens.” The cosmetic-girl continued. “Now, look at Ms Gremlin here accusing Professor Cal of assault. Have you looked in the mirror?”
The people around laughed harder.
Myra had been determined to stay out of these petty student fights, since the Professor was her main focus.
But this was all getting out of hand.
“Is that c*m on her shirt?” A boy pointed at the white yogurt stains on Valentina’s ruined dress, and they all laughed harder.
Myra grabbed the frightened girl’s hand and began to march towards the restroom.
“Hey newbie.” The cosmetic-girl stepped in front of her. “What do you think you are doing?”
Myra stared her down.
She was not sure what the girl saw in her eyes, but she shrunk two sizes, and grudgingly strutted away.
Myra continued to the restroom, grabbed a paper napkin and gently pushed it in Valentina’s hand.
“Thank you.” The girl managed to say before she burst into tears.
Heart-wrenching sobs.
Myra looked away and inspected her nails awkwardly.
She did not know what to say to the girl. But soon the Professor would be brought to justice and everyone would know she had not lied.
“You should not let anyone bully you. They cannot hit you, because if you go to the media, it would be a wrap for their parents.” Myra said finally.
Valentina sniffed and looked up.
She looked like she was in a daze and could not hear her.
She walked to the sink and began to wash her face.
“Are you OK?” Myra turned to look at her.
Now that she was looking at her well, Valentina was not just shy, she looked like she was actually teetering on the edge.
Who wouldn’t though?
“Please excuse me.” Valentina said, startling her. “I have to take off my shirt and wash it.”
“Oh,” Myra said, and paused. “Will you be fine?”
The girl nodded silently.
Myra nodded once and walked out of the restroom.
She bent the corner, and began to take the stairs down, when she saw Professor Cal.
She froze.
What was he doing here?
She glanced back up and suddenly remembered these stairs also led towards the Library.
But it was still weird that he was here when Valentina was not far very away in the restroom.
She nodded in greeting as she continued walking down the stairs. He nodded back wordlessly.
When she got to the theater, everyone was already there and talking in low tones.
She saw the bullies glance at her, but when she glared at them, they hurriedly looked away.
“All paired up?” The Professor’s quiet, deep voice asked as he finally entered the theater hall.
“Yes.” The students chorused as they looked around to see who everyone had paired up with. Then their eyes fell on her.
“Ms..” Professor Cal said, covering the ground towards her.
“Shaw.” Myra said, turning to look up into his startling, seductive amber eyes.
“Ms Shaw. Why don’t you have a partner?”
“I did not know I needed to have one.” She said, holding the gaze he too was unwilling to break.
“Because again, you arrived late. If punctuality is a problem for you, I’m afraid you will be failing my class.” He said, staring down at her.
She said nothing for a while, just stared back at him.
The hall was suddenly quiet now.
“I could dance alone.” She said finally. “Or with her.” She turned to look at Valentina as she entered the theater hall.
“Valentina is with me.” A boy said, as he stretched his hand out to her.
Myra turned back to see Professor Cal was still watching her.
“I am afraid you cannot dance alone, Ms Shaw. How well you work with a partner is what this assessment is about.”
She wondered what he must have looked like as a young man.
Every single girl in this class had a big crush on the man. He was handsome in a way that was unnatural, and his dignified age seemed to make him even more desirable.
He was aware of his looks, that was why he probably seduced those students.
He was staring at her now, the way he had first looked at her when she walked into the auditorium this morning, with curiosity.
“You can dance with her, Prof.” A boy said from the back.
Myra turned in surprise to see everyone impatiently nodding in agreement, they all wanted to be done and get their marks.
Only one person was looking at her with venom, the cosmetic-girl, who she still did not know her name.
“Do you mind?” The Professor asked, his eyes still on her.
“Why would I?” She parted her lips to whisper.
The man’s eyebrows lifted, then he squinted at her.
He suddenly turned around, and walked away.
“Who is going first?” He asked as he took a seat and picked up his tablet.
The speakers came alive as the first pair climbed the stage, and called out their music number to the sound team in the gallery above.
Myra watched the pair gracefully float around the stage in perfect form and sync, as her mind took flight in thoughts again.
“Miss Shaw.”
She looked up and found herself staring into Professor Cal’s eyes.
Her breath caught at the intensity she saw there.
He straightened, and leaned back.
“It’s finally our turn, what do you want to do?” He asked, rolling his sleeve up.
His forearms were all muscles, veined and strong, and she knew he would have no problems lifting her off the floor as they danced.
She inhaled as her eyes traced the dark-inked tattoo on his left forearm, a broad and detailed feather of an eagle.
“Whatever you want.” She finally responded, and Professor Cal turned back to squint at her with interest again.
Myra tried to measure her breath as her heart began to beat faster and faster.
Everyone was looking at them now, waiting.
“Well, you don’t plan to dance on that seat, do you?”
“Huh?” her jaw fell.
“Come on. My students are impatient to see me dance after so long.” he flashed her a broad smile and her heart stopped.
This was the first time the man was smiling, and she was suddenly confused.
One of her special talents as a detective was her ability to read people.
But since she met this man, she had not seen even one hint to prove that he was that monster they had analyzed every day at the precinct, for the past few days.
She stood up.
In her experience, there were a few cases where looks could be deceiving.
She just had to make sure this was not one of those.
Till she found clear proof that he was innocent, he would always be a suspect in her eyes.
She walked behind him, and stood on the stage.
Professor Cal walked near the gallery and called out Ed Sheeran’s Shivers.
As the song started, he walked back and took a position behind her.
She felt his nose push her hair to the side as he leaned in.
“May I?” He asked softly, and she resisted closing her eyes as she nodded.
He placed his hands on her waist and she immediately felt the same zap of current she felt when he grabbed her hand earlier.
He felt it too because she heard him inhale sharply behind her, and quickly tried to mask it with a cough.
Heat from his chest burned into her skin, and she did not doubt she was now red all over.
She ignored her body betraying her, and leaned her back fully into his chest as his hands guided her waist, and they moved on the floor.
His hand traveled from her waist up to her shoulder, and then traced a line back down to her wrist, sending fresh shocks up every nerve in her body.
He grabbed her hand, and she artfully spiraled away from him, unfurling like a ribbon.
Then he yanked her back to himself, and she leaned her face against his as they swayed their hips for a few seconds to the rhythm of the music.
“OK for a lift?” He asked in a low voice.
“Yes.” she whispered, becoming breathless.
He looked strong enough to bench press her if he wanted, so she trusted him not to drop her.
She moved all her weight to her top half as she felt his hands slowly traveling down to her thighs, and suddenly she was in the air, spinning around.
He caught her easily as she fell back down and gracefully slid down the length of his body, their skin hot against each other, till she was bursting a split on the floor.
He pulled her up again, and she rose to her feet, closing her legs like a pair of scissors.
She placed her hand on his shoulder as they salsa’d to the left end of the stage, turning her neck to the audience, and then back at him, again and again.
She did not miss that everyone was watching with their jaws on the floor.
As they moved back to the right side of the stage, she kept her eyes just on him. He too, was staring at her intently.
He spun her around one last time, and then she lowered her top half backward till her body formed a partial upside down V, then slammed back up into his chest.
She found herself staring directly into his eyes as the music finally stopped, and applause erupted all over.
They were both breathing hard, still in each other's arms.
His eyes burned as he looked at her for one long second, swallowed, and finally let go.
They gave a polite bow to the students who were cheering.
Later, everyone was filling out of the theater room, when Professor Cal glanced back at her and said,
“You just got your five points back.”
Myra stopped, unsure what to say, when someone suddenly ran back into the theater room, wide-eyed.
“Valentina just jumped off the building.”
- Writer
