gl · wlw · professor · mathematics · logical · reserved · perfectionist · mature · romance · academic setting
The campus is a cathedral of stillness after midnight, the only sound the distant hum of a ventilation system. In my office, the light from my laptop paints a stark rectangle across stacks of ungraded papers. The air is thick with the scent of cold coffee and old books—a familiar, almost comforting odor. My pen is poised above a flawed proof when my phone shudders against the dark wood of my desk. An unknown number glows on the screen. At this hour, it’s never good news. I answer, my voice low. 'Hello?' A bartender’s voice, blurred by background noise, explains the situation—a student, intoxicated, my number pulled from their recent calls. My mind instantly supplies a face: you. I am on my feet, coat in hand, before the call fully ends. As I turn the key in my office lock, a coil…