EXTRA CREDIT

EXTRA CREDIT 0.5

ALINA’S POV

After the unfortunate encounter with Eric, I made my way over to the staff building, sipping on my empty cup of coffee.

You can't blame me, I was nervous.

I approached the door of the devil himself.

I stood outside for what felt like hours—

it was less than thirty minutes though. I checked.

My hand hovered over the door.

Knock.

Don’t knock.

Knock—

I chickened out.

Turning to leave, I decided I’d just tell him tomorrow.

Oh well, I knocked yesterday but no one was there…

Or—

Oh well, I was seriously sick yesterday…

Pinching my arm slightly, I groaned. Even I didn’t believe my own excuses.

And that’s when it happened.

My head had a meet-and-greet with something solid, and I got launched backwards—

only for a pair of big, warm hands to wrap around my waist, steadying me.

Warm. Firm. Real.

I looked up.

Of course.

The devil himself—Professor Adrian Hayes.

Dun. Dun. Dun.

…Okay, that sounded way more dramatic in my head.

“Falling for me already?” he asked, a small smirk playing on his lips.

Oh God.

The stupid cliché line. The deep voice. That smirk.

My heart fluttered. My cheeks flushed.

Straight out of a f*****g K-drama.

“No—” I cursed under my breath, my brain completely glitching at one of the most important moments of my life.

Smooth, Alina. Very smooth.

“Well then…”

His smirk turned cold.

And just like that, the warmth around my waist disappeared.

My butt met the floor.

Again.

I swear, the floor is my real enemy today.

Perfectly polished black shoes passed me by as I rubbed my ass—discreetly, of course—and that’s when I saw it.

A flash of red beneath his shoes.

Of course.

Christian Louboutin.

Because apparently even his shoes needed attitude.

I rolled my eyes and got up, following after him.

“You see, Professor, I did knock, but you weren’t in,” I said, in a tone that would’ve been more convincing if I wasn’t squeezing the life out of my coffee cup.

“You okay there?” His deep voice almost serenaded me.

Almost.

I refuse to fall victim to that insufferable man-child.

“Why wouldn’t I be, sir?” I threw away my temporary stress ball— the empty cup— and looked up.

And gosh darn it… my cheeks flushed again.

At this point, I could swear he was trying to seduce me.

His dark, almost silk-like hair was messy but in a combed-back way. The first three buttons of his black shirt were undone, revealing olive-toned skin and that darn hickey I wanted to claw out. Sleeves rolled up. Careless smirk.

I swear he was mocking me. Or seducing me.

I’d prefer the seducing, honestly.

I shook my head to clear the thought, and he chuckled.

“Piccola volpe dispettosa,” he murmured, amused

.

(Translation: mischievous little fox.)

So he’s bilingual… hmm.

I looked down and pinched myself. We cannot have feelings for the enemy.

When I looked back up, his expression had already shifted—cold, unreadable, Insufferable.

“Yesterday I informed you you would be working on an extra credit assignment, no?”

Okay, now his voice was just annoying.

“Yeah.”

“Not only are you an hour and thirty minutes late, but I checked your GPA. Apparently, you failed last semester.”

I almost punched him in the face.

…Still, he was somewhat right. It wasn’t my fault though. Last year just wasn’t my year, and I’ve been working hard this semester to make up for it.

He opened a drawer beneath his desk and pulled out a pair of glasses before slipping them on.

I am a hundred percent certain this man is trying to seduce me.

My heart literally stopped at the view.

Please don’t ruin this scene by opening your mouth.

“Since you seem to struggle with simple instructions,” he said calmly, flipping through a file,

“you’ll be assisting me with the department archives. Sorting. Organizing. Nothing complicated. For extra credit.”

No. No. No. No.

I must be hallucinating… or still asleep.

“You’ll report to my office after lectures.”

I wanted to scream at him.

I forced a smile and nodded.

“I’ll be right on time.”

Then I spun on my heels and walked out, slamming the door behind me.

Seriously… who does he think he is?

I groaned, dug my nails into my arm, and pulled out my phone.

I really need a drink