Chapter Two: Eyes, Books and You

 Just keep walking and don't look up.
 
  Baekhyun told himself as he made his way over to class.
  In all his nineteen years of life, the short raven haired male had never faced a greater fear than having to walk through a crowd full of people.
  It was a challenge for him, both physically and emotionally.
  For one, he was short, and that proved to be a problem because here in college, students in their sophomore years tend to be quite lanky in height. That makes it hard for him to see where he's going, and most of the time people get rather grumpy when you bump into them, even if it's unintentional.

  With that in mind, the small male bowed apologetically when a girl scrowled at him for knocking into her back with his large books.

  Secondly, it gets very noisy when people crowd together, and Baekhyun finds it awkward. He's definitely not one who likes to hold eye contact with others, and a large crowd of students surely doesn't help with that.

  "I'm sorry... Pardon me, please..." he repeated the same old sentence as if it were a mantra as he headed east towards the classrooms, making a mental note to leave home earlier if he could the next morning.

  Nudging the heavy wooden door open with his shoulder, the young teen sighed in relief. Finally, there was peace, away from the people, away from all the nasty crowds.
  The latter stumbled his way to the back of the classroom, taking his usual seat near the windows before setting his textbooks down onto the desk.

 Now that's better.

  "Hey guys! Have you heard about the new professor?"

  Startled, the short boy looked up with widened eyes, his large rounded spectacles highlighting his cute puppy eyes as a girl burst through the doors.
  A few handful of students in the room started crowding around her, waiting with impatient murmurs as she caught her own breath.
  "They say he's teaching Literature, and that he's quite young too!" She continued once she had enough air in her lungs. "One of the girls from the other class even said he looks incredibly handsome!"
  "Really? Oh my gosh which class is he teaching?" Another girl grabbed her hands excitedly, eyes sparkling with curiosity.
  "No idea... But I guess he'll be taking sophomores." The first girl shrugged her shoulders. "Rumour has it that he used to be a student here, and a year after graduation he's back as a teacher."
 
  Little by little, more whispers and occasional shrieks of excitement started to fill the room as students tried to decipher the professor's name, age, and which class he'll be taking over.

 
   "Oh please let it be our class!"

   "I wonder what he looks like..."

   "Is he single or taken?"

  Baekhyun leaned his head gently on the table, closing his eyes to block out all their voices.
  Of course he was also curious about the new professor, but he wondered why they were making such a huge fuss about it.
  After all, it was just another professor, wasn't it? He might be a little more handsome and charming, but that's that, nothing more, nothing less, right? At least, for Baekhyun it was.
  Tired, he continued to rest his sore eyes until the door creaked open once again, and surprised gasps echoed across the now silent classroom.

   What now?

  Stretching, the young boy bit back a yawn as he straightened his back, cracking his eyes open to see what on earth was going on.

  But nothing could've prepared him for what he saw next—A familair pair of deep brown eyes.




























  "It's wonderful to have you back agian, Chanyeol." The principal smiled as he shook the said male's hand warmly. "As a student, you were hardworking and kind to your peers. I'm sure you'll do well as a teacher here in Havords."

  "Thank you for taking me in, Mr Kim." The giant bowed politely. "I'll do my best."

   Havord College

  It's where Chanyeol will be working for the next couple of years.

  "Then good luck on your first day of teaching, Mr Park." The older male gave him one last pat on the shoulder before ushering him out of the office. "Do your best, and should you have any problems, contact Mrs Lincole."

"Head east and walk straight. Your class should be the last one to your right."

  Chanyeol recalls as he picked up his speed.

  Lessons were starting in five minutes time and he had to be there on time. After all, a good teacher sets an example for his students, doesn't he?

  The tall male shuddered unconsciously as he remembered the flirtatious wink the woman–no– Mrs Lincole, had sent him earlier on while informing him of his schedule and giving him directions to his first class.

  She had later on made an attempt to link her arms around his, in the pretext of showing him to his class, only to be declined politely by the lanky male.

  In all honesty, Chanyeol had never quite met anyone like the short and tubby lady. He didn't consider himself an attractive man, and certainly not a handsome one who had girls wrapped around his fingers. Rather, he thought of himself as an average male, one who delighted himself in the simple pleasures of the world. Therefore, he found himself startled when the woman had literally thrown herself at him.
  Well, if only Chanyeol had bothered to leave the house more often for reasons other than work or food, he would've understood that he'd underestimated his own looks.

  As he neared the end of the corridors, the tall male could hear squeals of excitement coming from the other end of a painted door.   He readjusted his suit for the last time before taking in a deep breath, pushing the stiff wood open.

  Scanning his eyes through the bunch of students, Chanyeol took his time to observe their stunned expressions, noting the spreading blush on some of the girls' cheeks. He silently wondered what on earth had happened before he entered the class, clearing his throat awkwardly before smiling at them.

  His actions seem to have earned him multiple coos from his students, but Chanyeol couldn't care less about the weird noises they made.

 For sitting in the shadows, at the back of the classroom, was the petite waiter boy he'd seen the day before.

  The small male was staring back at him in surprise, eyes widened beneath those cute round spectacles he was wearing. Heavens, Chanyeol felt like squishing his adorable cheeks that very moment, but he caught himself in time, shaking away those absurd thoughts swimming in his mind.

  Turning his head stiffly to the side, the lanky male made a beeline for the teacher's desk, swiftly setting up his laptop while the students shuffled back to their seats obediently. As if they were trained puppies. The proffessor then distracted himself for a moment with his slides, unconsciously trying to calm down his beating heart.

  It's just you being worried about your first time meeting with your students, Park.  He reassured himself. You can do this.

Chanyeol was totally not trying to see if the silent waiter boy was looking at him like all the students in the class were.

  "Well then, goodmorning class." He turned to face the room full of sophomores with a convincing grin. "I'm Mr Park, your new Literature teacher for this semester."