MY PROFESSOR AND I

Professor Lex

Episode 7

Tia walked back to the table giggling and smiling to herself.

She couldn’t help it. The whole “spill” thing with JJ had been so embarrassing and so... nice.

Her friends noticed immediately.

Gloria narrowed her eyes. “Look at you. Glowing.”

Linda leaned forward. “Okay, spill. Do you have a crush on him?”

Tia sat down and grabbed her water bottle. “No,” she said quickly. Too quickly. “I only see him as a friend.”

“Suuuure,” Gloria sing-songed, poking her in the side. “‘Clothes Hero’ huh? That’s what friends call each other now?”

“Stop it,” Tia said, but she was laughing. “He was just being nice.”

“Nice boys don’t buy you hoodies,” Katie added with a grin, then ducked when Tia threw a napkin at her.

The teasing went on for a full five minutes until Katie finally clapped her hands.

“Okay, okay. Class in 15 minutes. 2PM. And you guys are NOT ready for this professor.”

Tia stopped laughing. “What professor?”

“Law of Torts,” Katie said, eyes sparkling. “And he’s new. Like, just finished his master’s new. And young. And —” she pulled out her phone “— handsome.”

She turned the screen around.

It was a photo from the TIU website. A man in a black suit, arms crossed, looking serious. Sharp jawline. Dark hair. Eyes that looked like they didn’t smile much.

Linda gasped. Gloria covered her mouth.

“Oh. My. Gosh,” Linda whispered.

Katie was practically vibrating. “His name is Professor Alex. But he told the seniors to call him Lex. LEX!”

Tia barely glanced at the photo. “Hm. He looks strict.”

She stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder. “Let’s go. I don’t care what he looks like.”

Katie followed her, still scrolling. “You’ll care in like ten minutes.”

---

The walk to Building D felt longer than usual.

When they reached the lecture hall for Law of Torts, Tia stopped in her tracks.

The hallway was packed.

But not with Law students.

With girls. From every faculty. Business, Arts, Engineering — all of them.

They were lined up at the door, some fixing their hair, some already saving seats in the front row.

It really did feel like walking into a female-only stadium.

“Is this the right room?” Tia asked, blinking.

“This is it,” Katie said, looking around. “Word got out fast.”

Tia grabbed Katie’s arm. “We’re not sitting in the front.”

She dragged her past the crowd of squealing girls and headed straight to the back. Where the few boys in the class were already sitting, slouched and unbothered.

Some girls turned and stared. Whispering started.

“Is she trying to show off?”

“Thinking she’s different?”

Tia ignored them. She found two seats in the last row and dropped into one. Katie sat diagonally from her, still looking around in awe.

“I feel like we’re at a concert,” Katie whispered.

Tia didn’t answer. She was pulling out her notebook, trying to focus.

Then the atmosphere changed.

The low buzz of gossip cut off.

Replaced by a wave of loud, collective squealing.

The door opened.

Professor Alex walked in.

He was wearing a black suit, just like in the photo. White shirt, no tie. A folder in one hand.

He looked even younger in person. Maybe late 20s. Tall. And yes — handsome. But in a cold, sharp way.

The room went crazy.

Girls in the front were whispering, taking pictures, trying to catch his eye.

Tia looked up for exactly one second.

Her brain short-circuited.

It was him.

The man from the hallway that morning. The one whose back she’d seen by the notice board.

The one who’d made her stomach drop.

But she didn’t let it show. Not one bit.

She kept her face neutral, pen in hand, eyes on her notebook.

Professor Alex walked to the front without looking at anyone. He set his folder down.

“Good afternoon,” he said. His voice was low, calm, and it cut through all the noise instantly.

The room went silent.

“I am Professor Alex,” he said. “You may call me Lex.”

More squealing. He didn’t react.

“I finished my master’s at Harvard last year. This is my first year teaching here. I do not tolerate lateness. I do not tolerate phones. I do not tolerate distractions.”

He turned and started writing on the board. His handwriting was neat and fast.

“Law of Torts. We begin with negligence.”

And just like that, he started teaching.

It was nothing like the Dean’s speech.

He didn’t read from slides. He told stories. Real cases. He asked questions and waited for answers. When someone got it wrong, he didn’t laugh — he corrected them and moved on.

His teaching was sharp, fast, and weirdly... interesting.

Tia found herself writing faster than she ever had. She raised her hand once. He called on her.

“Miss...?”

“Tia.”

“Miss Tia. Explain duty of care.”

She did. Her voice didn’t shake.

He nodded once. “Correct.”

And moved on like it was nothing.

45 minutes later, he closed his folder.

“That’s all for today. Read chapters 1 to 3 before next class.”

He walked out. No goodbye. No smile.

The second the door closed, the room exploded.

“HE’S SO HOT”

“DID YOU SEE HIS ARMS”

“LEX LEX LEX”

Tia packed her things slowly.

I was astonished by his teaching techniques, she thought. They were unique. Fast. No wasted words.

But she wasn’t going to think about that. Or about the way her heart had jumped when he looked up.

She stood up.

“Let’s go home,” she said to Katie.

As they walked out, she could still hear the girls behind her talking about Professor Lex.

Tia kept her eyes forward.

Just another professor.

Just another class.

Right?