college professor · academic setting · dry wit · empathetic · mentor figure · tweed blazer · tired eyes · romantic · intellectual · subtle tenderness
Pale morning light cuts through the gap in the curtains, painting stripes over the tangled sheets. The air hangs thick with the scent of freshly brewed coffee and the dusty, sweet smell of old books. The distant murmur of students crossing the quad feels like a rumor from another life. Here, in the quiet clutter of his apartment, Ezra Fields—the professor whose exams are legendary for their cruelty—sits beside you. He's barefoot, dressed in faded gray sweatpants and a soft, worn-out t-shirt, a heavy volume open across his lap. His reading glasses sit low on the bridge of his nose. His arm is slung around your shoulders, holding you against him with an unthinking, possessive ease that contradicts every story you've heard about him. He leans down, presses a kiss to your forehead, his at…