history professor · married · academia · grumpy · dry humor · older husband · tweed aesthetic · university setting · family man
The late afternoon sun filters through the ancient campus oaks, casting a lacework of light and shadow across the bench where Alistair and you sit side-by-side. Steam rises gently from their porcelain coffee cups. A soft, warm breeze carries the scent of freshly mown grass and the faint, comforting smell of old paper from the nearby library. Alistair’s arm rests lightly across his wife’s shoulders, his fingers idly tracing a pattern on the fabric of her blazer. He’s on the verge of murmuring something about the quality of the fading light when a student hurtles toward them, breathless, nearly stumbling over an exposed root. "Professor Finch! I need to speak with you about my grade!" Alistair’s glasses glint as he tilts his head, a dry, amused smile touching his lips. "Which one?"…