Novel Full Chapter 352: A New Morning
Chapter 352: A New Morning
“Stop laughing, you arrogant bastard!” Tisha hissed, her hand coming down on Alex’s shoulder with a sharp smack.
The blow didn’t do much to dampen Alex’s amusement; if anything, his shoulders shook harder.
”I can’t help it,” Alex managed, his voice thick with a low, vibrating chuckle. “You were the one who told me not to hold back, Professor. I believe the exact words were ’Show me what you’re capable of’.”
Tisha shot him a look that was meant to be withered but was betrayed by the deep, lingering flush on her neck. “I was being provocative, not issuing a death wish! There’s a difference between passion and… whatever animalistic endurance test you put me through last night.”
She shifted in the leather seat, wincing as a sharp line of pain radiated through her thighs. Her brow furrowed, and she let out a muffled groan that was half-frustration and half-genuine distress.
”I’m serious, Alex,” she said, her voice dropping into a desperate whisper. “I have a lecture in twenty minutes. Twenty minutes! And right now, I’m walking like a newborn fawn. How am I supposed to maintain even an ounce of authority when my legs are literally trembling? I can’t stand up straight, let alone command a room.”
Alex finally leaned over, his gaze softening as he took in the sight of her. She looked disheveled in the most beautiful way… her eyes bright, her skin glowing, and her composure utterly shattered.
“Consider it a lesson in overconfidence,” he murmured, leaning closer until he could smell the faint scent of her perfume mixed with the shared heat of the car. “You shouldn’t have challenged me. I don’t like losing, especially when the stakes are that… enjoyable.”
Tisha let out a shaky breath, her gaze trapped by his for a long beat before she finally looked away, a small, defeated huff escaping her lips.
“I’m realizing that,” she muttered, her voice thick with the remnants of the night’s exhaustion.
She leaned her head back against the headrest, closing her eyes as if trying to summon the strength to exist in the professional world again. “I’m going to have to stay pinned behind my desk for the entire hour. If any student asks me to stand up and write on the board, I’m failing them on the spot.”
“Just tell them you had a very ’intense’ workout,” Alex suggested, his smirk widening as he reached over to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “Technically, it wouldn’t be a lie.”
“Shut up,” she breathed, a small, helpless smile finally breaking through her pout.
The sleek car glided through the parking lot, the engine humming as it approached the entrance to the main quad.
Tisha’s eyes flickered toward the windshield, and for a second, her breath hitched. Standing near the shaded pillar of the entrance were Danny, Sarah, and Mike.
“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” Tisha hissed, her hand white-knuckling the door handle. Her professional mask, already cracked, shattered completely. “Alex, tell me you didn’t. Tell me you didn’t call them.”
Alex didn’t look bothered. If anything, his smirk widened as he caught Danny’s eyes across the distance. “I might have mentioned I was coming in today. They were worried about my attendance too.”
“Worried about your…” Tisha turned to him, her face a storm of panicked crimson. “You… you invited them to watch me stumble out of your car?”
“Relax, Tisha,” Alex said, his voice dropping into that calm, grounded register that usually acted as an anchor for her. He pulled into a spot just a few yards away from where the trio was waiting. “It’s not like they don’t know.”
“I know they know,” Tisha whispered, her voice tightening as the reality of the situation set in. “But it doesn’t make it any less embarrassing, Alex.”
She checked her reflection in the visor mirror one last time, trying to smooth away the evidence of their frantic night before her professional mask slipped completely.
”They’re my people,” Alex murmured, killing the engine. The sudden silence in the car was heavy, filled only with the lingering heat of her panic. He turned to her, his gaze steady and grounding. “Trust me. They know how to keep a secret. Besides, you’re just overthinking it. No one is going to notice a thing unless you give them a reason to.”
Tisha took a jagged breath, her heart hammering against her ribs as she smoothed her blazer. “I hate that you’re always so calm. If I trip, Alex, I am never speaking to you again.”
”You won’t trip,” he teased, reaching over to give her hand a final, firm squeeze. “Just follow my lead. And remember… keep the groaning to a minimum.”
”Alex!”
But he was already out, the door closing with a thud that announced his arrival to the entire quad. He moved with a predatory grace that hadn’t been there a week ago, drawing the eyes of his friends like a magnet.
Behind the tinted glass, Tisha spent a few more seconds summoning every ounce of ’Professor Wells’ she had left. When she finally pushed the door open and stepped out, her feet hit the pavement with a slight wobble.
She stood tall, her chin tilted at its usual authoritative angle, but as she began to follow Alex toward the group, she had to focus every bit of her willpower on not letting her legs buckle in front of the ’audience’ waiting just yards away.
***
“Alex! Man, you finally came!” Danny shouted, his voice echoing across the quiet morning air of the quad. “We thought you were going to blow us off today too.”
As Alex stepped closer, the group’s eyes naturally drifted to the passenger side. Tisha was stepping out, moving with a careful, measured deliberation that made her look like she was walking on a bed of needles.
Danny’s grin widened , he let out a short, knowing laugh. “Oh… I see. Looks like it was Professor Wells who had to forcefully drag you here today.”
Tisha managed a stiff, professional smile, though the effort of staying upright made her muscles twitch. She walked up to the group, her posture rigid as she tried to ignore the way her thighs felt like jelly.
”Good morning, everyone,” Tisha greeted, her voice remarkably steady despite the internal chaos. She shot Alex a playful, yet pointed look. “And you’re right, Danny. It took more than a bit of effort. I practically had to throw a few punches and issue a formal ultimatum just to get this one into the car. If he misses another lecture, I’m making it my personal mission to see him fail.”
”See?” Sarah chimed in, leaning against a pillar with a smirk. “Even the faculty is tired of your disappearing acts, Alex.”
”I told you I’d be here,” Alex said, his tone casual, though his eyes lingered on Tisha for a split second too long… a silent, private acknowledgment of the ’effort’ she had just described.
Tisha adjusted her bag, her knuckles whitening as she gripped the strap. The proximity to the group was dangerous; she could feel Sarah’s observant gaze and Mike’s silent, heavy presence taking in every detail of her ’stiff’ arrival.
”Well, now that he’s successfully delivered,” Tisha said, her words clipped as she began to back away toward the main hall, “I really must get to my lecture. I have a lot of material to cover, and I’m already behind schedule.”
”Have a good one, Professor,” Danny called out, waving a hand.
”Try not to be too hard on him today!” Sarah added with a laugh.
Tisha offered one last, strained nod before turning. She walked toward the building, her gait slow and rhythmic, every step a battle of willpower.
The moment she was safely through the heavy oak doors and out of sight, Danny turned back to Alex, his eyebrows practically reaching his hairline. “Forcefully brought you here, huh? Man, whatever she did to you, you look way too smug for a guy who just got ’dragged’ to school.”
“How are you guys feeling? Honestly.” Alex said, his voice dropping into a lower, more serious register.
The change in his energy was instantaneous. The playful student was gone, replaced by the man who had stared down a Sovereign and won.
In a strange, eerie sync, all three of them smiled. It wasn’t just a normal grin of greeting; it was a look of deep, primal satisfaction, as if a physical weight they didn’t know they were carrying had been lifted.
”I don’t even know how to describe it, man,” Danny said, rubbing the back of his neck, his eyes brighter than Alex had ever seen them. “I feel… sharp. Like the world finally stopped being blurry.”
”I feel amazing,” Sarah added, her voice humming with a newfound clarity. She looked down at her hands as if she expected them to be glowing. “I woke up today and felt like I could run a marathon. It’s like every cell in my body is finally awake.”
But it was Mike who drew the most attention. The big man was practically vibrating, his massive chest heaving with deep, slow breaths. He was clenching and unclenching his fists, his knuckles popping like small gunshots in the quiet air of the quad.
”It’s too much,” Mike rumbled, his voice sounding like grinding stone. He looked at Alex, his eyes wide with a mix of awe and raw, unbridled energy.
“I’m too excited, Alex. I feel so much power surging through my body right now that I can’t keep still. My skin feels tight. My muscles feel like they’re made of coiled springs.”