People called me Miss Noisy. I talked a lot; and I meant a lot. The later the day got, the more talkative I became. It ran in the family and I was pretty proud of it because it would never be boring at home. It was always lively as if in a night market.

For that reason, it was easy for me to hang out with everyone. But honestly, I would prefer active ones because then it wouldn’t be awkward if I was the only one talking. Being the only animated one was fine for me, but listening to people was more fun because I could get to know more about the others.

I used to think like that until I met Professor Zhang Yixing, a music lecturer in my university. He was the opposite of me: very calm and collected. When he first came to teach our class, we couldn’t keep his eyes off of him (everyone I came across told me this fact). He was stunning, to say the least. What made me attracted to him especially was his dimple that emerged even more when he smiled.

I was the type of person to confess straight up without delaying any time because I wouldn’t want to be a step behind. I knew a lot of girls had a crush on him; people had been talking. And come on, who wouldn’t have a crush on a guy as good-looking as him? You would be insane for not at least having a tiny reaction when he looked at you even just for a millisecond.

And so one day, I decided to stay back longer than usual after our class with him was over. He was swarmed with students in both genders afterwards and all he did was smile as he listened to them talking and talking like there’s no tomorrow. That was a normal scene. On the first day though, he looked rather overwhelmed but now he was used to the racket.

The volume died down eventually as they exited the auditorium and it was time for me to approach him. He was still packing his bag, a routine every time after we surrounded his desk to talk to him. It was now common that he remained there until we all went away. I sometimes pitied him because he looked like he wanted to leave immediately, but I still wanted to see that dimple. I didn’t think we could get enough of it.

“Professor,” I began once I was within earshot, “I like you.”

Usually people would be flustered at blunt confessions like that. They would blush like a cooked crab. They would stutter their words as if their tongues weren’t working properly at the moment. But apparently, my lecturer was not like any other people. He instead smiled, causing his dimple to come out of its hiding.

“Thank you,” he replied, “I’m glad that you like my classes.”

If he wasn’t so cute, I would have stared at him with my brows furrowed and left him there without saying another word. But this was Professor Zhang, my new crush of the semester. “No, professor. I meant I have a crush on you.”

His mouth formed an adorable ‘o’.

“And I’d like to go out with you.”

His eyebrows rose up almost to his hairline and his eyes increased in size. It took him awhile to overcome his shock. “Oh, thank you, uhm, what’s your name?” Once he got his answer, he repeated his thanks now complete with my name, which caused butterflies to make an uninvited visit to my stomach. “But I already have someone.”

My shoulders sagged down a few inches. But I couldn’t give up just yet. Just because he’s in a relationship, it didn’t mean that I couldn’t be close to him. I wouldn’t take him away from the girlfriend, though. That would be wrong and unacceptable in anyone’s dictionary. I wouldn’t want to be murdered and left to drown in the river. That would be the very last thing on my mind.

So I decided to accompany him (and sometimes help him with his belongings, if any) back to his office room after his classes. This way, I got to know him better. But he always avoided any questions about his girlfriend and answered with that dimpled smile of his. All I knew was that she existed, because one day I overheard him talking on the phone with her and his face turned even brighter. Who could separate the couple when he sounded so in love with her?

It wasn’t until the mid-year exam period when I finally saw the mysterious girlfriend of Professor Zhang. It was just like any other day; I stayed back in class so I could talk to him for a while until he had to go. But before anyone could get to him, he was already out the door. People were calling his name but he just turned around to say that he was in a hurry and he would see us next Monday.

Questions were running around in my mind, wondering what made him dash like there’s a fire somewhere in this faculty. So I took off after him, a couple of books in hand because I didn’t have time to store them inside my bag. It didn’t take long to find him, fortunately; he wasn’t that far off. He was currently looking up and down several times, seemingly busy tapping his thumb on his phone and avoiding people and things at the same time. Maybe he’s late to something?

Sometime later, I found myself walking towards the parking lot. There weren’t that many people around so if the professor looked back, he would find out that I’d been stalking him. I had to be careful not to step into something that could reveal my current position.

Suddenly, he ran to one car a few metres ahead. I was torn between following him up close and hiding somewhere nearby. If I was too near, he would know of my presence. If I was too far, I wouldn’t know of his. I was about to run after him when he stopped in front of another man who was looking down at his phone. I had to conceal myself from being seen by any of them.

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” Professor Zhang said, causing the man to look up and place his device inside the pocket of his trousers. “We’ve still got time, right?”

The shorter man smiled very handsomely. “Yupp, let’s go.”

Even from the distance, I could see how my lecturer’s face had turned brighter. His smile was so wide that it looked like it could split his face into two. When they finally entered the car, the smile was still evident.

It didn’t have to take a genius to know that they’re dating.

TO BE CONTINUED