“Moonlight drowns out all but the brightest stars.”
―J.R.R. Tolkien
…
(September 10)
Ever since Hiro had lost one of his classes to Megan, his office hours for that week had become vacant and he had dedicated himself to spend those hours working on some of his other paperwork until 5 pm.
He wouldn’t dare to admit it out loud though, especially with the rumors going on about him and Lunamor, spreading about like wildfire but it’s kind of too… quiet in here since he had grown quite used to having said person around for a discussion or debate about this or that and he doubted that Megan, despite being generally a nice woman, would be just as accommodating as him considering the stunt Lunamor had pulled on their first meeting.
First impressions are important.
Still, Hiro made it a point to show up for his office hours despite having no one, not even Lunamor to come… that is until the next day, Friday specifically.
Hiro had found himself beaming at spotting one of his former students waiting for him, already sitting outside by his office door–it was Rachelle Grace, one of the smartest student in his class and the one who normally sat in the front center of his class (…that is, until Lunamor decided to steal her seat for a day, Hiro pointedly ignored that little fact) and she was also pretty popular for her good-looks and playful demeanor, added with her fiery red hair and shining green eyes, Rachelle was easily considered as one of the prettiest girls in the academy. Not to mention, she was also ranked fourth in the academy’s entrance exams.
“Hi, Professor Hiro,” Rachelle greeted amicably, fiddling with a DSLR camera that seemed to be surgically attached to her hand.
Despite feeling a bit surprised to see her (Rachelle was very responsible and diligent, often taking notes and won’t let him leave the classroom until she had asked all of her questions), Hiro was still pleased to have someone to show up to office hours today. It would be also kind of nice to hear what Megan was teaching them now.
“Good afternoon, Ms. Grace. How’s your day?” Hiro greeted in return as he opened the door and let himself in, letting the door remain wide open as he gestured for her to come in.
“It’s been alright, Professor.” Grace answered as she sat down in front of his desk, “Aren’t you really going to be our professor again?”
Straight to the point–that’s why Hiro was fond of her. He chuckled, placing his stuff on his desk, “No, I’m afraid not, Ms. Grace. Why? Is there something wrong with your class?”
Rachelle worried at her bottom lip for a moment as she shifted in her seat uneasily, her gaze on her DLSR camera, “It was okay, I guess… but it’s just… well, I mean, I’m not the only one because there were some things we were confused about.”
“Really? Like what?”
“Terminologies… and uh…”
Hiro sighed and fixed his glasses for a moment as he leaned back on his swivel chair, considering just how confused and messed up his former students are under Megan. Because really, he couldn't say that one was unexpected.
As far as Hiro was concerned, Megan specializes in teaching civil engineering and programming though she is still capable of teaching general mathematics.
Obviously, she was unaccustomed to teaching students who weren't majors in the aforementioned courses and so, she had tended to use other terminologies or even analogies that some of his students might not have known, hence the confusion.
Hopefully, those students would either show up to his or Megan’s office hours for clarifications or ask Megan their questions during the next lectures to clear up the confusion.
“Right, fire away.”
Rachelle beamed, “Thanks, sir!”
It so happened that while Hiro was in the middle of discussing some of the terminologies and equations that Rachelle had fortunately jotted down in her notebook, Lunamor unexpectedly walked right into his office (the door had been left half-open) without even bothering to knock or announce her sudden presence which was fine with Hiro because he was used to it but Rachelle wasn’t–
Rachelle had looked up sharply at her classmate in confusion and alarm while said classmate froze on the spot. Lunamor was already three steps inside the office, looking both confused and almost… angry… if her furrowing eyebrows were anything to go by.
“What are you doing here?” Rachelle managed to ask, obviously startled by her classmate’s sudden (and rude) entrance.
Hiro frantically glanced at his cell phone–its only 4:19 pm what on earth is Lunamor doing here so early? “Ms. Lunamor, I’m sorry but can you please wait outside for a few moments–“
She snarled, “Get out.”
Rachelle’s brows pinched together, “Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
“Seriously, you’re the one who just barged in here–!”
“Are you deaf?” Lunamor snapped.
Hell no, not this again.
Hiro angrily rose from his seat to be on her eye-level, glowering at Lunamor… though his hands immediately shook when Lunamor’s piercing eyes of silver and dark gray instantly hardened into such a murderous look that instantly reminded him of lightning marking amongst the skies before they struck the earth. Or a polished blade prepared to strike.
It was frightening.
And Hiro determinedly planted his hands firmly on the table to keep them from shaking. Because he will not be bossed around by a student just because she’s rich–he didn’t care what the Dean says. He refused. He won’t back down from this without putting up a hell of a fight.
“Ms. Lunamor, you don't have an appointment for office hours so can you please wait for a few minutes outside?” he demanded, “Ms. Grace and I still have something important to discuss.”
The Dean may be scared shitless and under her family’s thumb and she may have already bossed and tossed some of the other professors around to the point that they voluntarily chose to quit (if those rumors were true) hell, Lunamor even insulted his boss and as a result, he lost one of his classes but still, Hiro liked to believe he wasn’t someone to be cowed down so easily no matter what.
He could only accommodate Lunamor to a certain degree because of the Dean’s wishes before it became ridiculous–who the fuck was he kidding? He had even gotten involved in a stupid rumor because of her damn it!
Still, while Hiro may no longer be her professor anymore, there was no way in hell that he would just sit here and let her to toss one of her classmates out of his own damn office.
Not on his watch.
But Lunamor remained unmoving by the doorway, her stony expression as still as a china doll but her eyes were narrowed, and her gloved hands were clenched into fists by her side, angrily. “…You know I don't have time to sit around and wait.”
She was obviously angry with him right now and while an angry Lunamor made him nervous (sure, she had been annoyed from time to time but he had never seen Lunamor’s temper snap for real), Hiro was still not about to let her boss him around–especially right in front of another student. She may be the vice president of a multi-billion-dollar company, but she is not his fucking boss here and this is not her office; THIS IS HIS, DAMN IT! Lunamor can’t just make someone leave, not when he’s standing right here!
Despite the growing urge to lose his temper there and then, Hiro managed to keep his face deliberately calm: “You do, starting now. Get out, Cassandra.”
Lunamor looked like she might have wanted to actually say something else to that, maybe to obviously protest but something in his expression might have changed her mind and immediately made her realize that he wasn’t going to budge to her selfish demands this time, unlike the others who’d follow her whims if she so much as hinted to want something to be done.
Or maybe it was because he said her name.
Before Hiro could dwell more on it, Lunamor suddenly focused the entirety of her glare to Rachelle’s direction for a moment, perhaps trying to mentally threaten her classmate into walking out of the office.
But Rachelle wasn’t like most of her other classmates or some of the professors who were obviously intimidated by her money either–because to Hiro’s astonishment (and satisfaction); Rachelle glared right back at Lunamor, the look on her pretty face obviously daring Lunamor to make her stand up and leave.
After a moment of tensed staring contest between two of the academy’s most intelligent students, Lunamor suddenly turned her eyes away from Rachelle’s to glare at him and hissed:
“Fine, later.”
Then, after one last scathing glare to Rachelle Grace (one that clearly promised divine retribution… Hiro suddenly felt very worried) Lunamor turned away, her fair hair whirling around her at the abrupt movement as she stalked right out of his office without another word, the door slamming loudly right behind her, making Hiro wince.
The moment he heard Lunamor’s footsteps fading away–Hiro, for a lack of a better word, all but sagged down to his swivel chair as he removed his glasses with a sigh, instantly feeling drained.
…Hiro was just here to teach.
He didn’t sign up for this!
And God, he so desperately needed a drink–and no shit, that scene was fucking scary as hell. Lunamor’s way younger than him and yet, like just about anybody, she scares the hell out of him sometimes–and it wasn’t because she has more than enough money to ask some professional hired killer to shoot him point-blank in broad daylight and no one will ask questions about it. No, Hiro had a strange feeling that if Lunamor actually feels like it, she can and will destroy just about anyone should she be provoked hard enough.
It wasn’t a good line of thinking nor was it a nice idea to entertain and Hiro hoped that it was just his imagination running wild again.
“Damn, I’ll slap that bitch if she wasn’t so scary!” Rachelle muttered angrily, her voice instantly reminding Hiro that he wasn’t alone in his office again, “Professor, how on earth do you even put up with her?”
“Well, she’s not usually like that all the time,” Hiro said… and almost wanted to smack himself for that because why on earth is he even defending her?
Rachelle gave him a look, “For real?”
“Oh, you know, Lunamor. She’s just...” temperamental, self-entitled, rude or insensitive? Hiro couldn’t find the right words to say. So he just shrugged, “Well, now that we’re that talking about her, did she do something in class? Oh, wait no. She didn’t start another debate, did she?!”
“Nah, she was absent for like, four days… I think,” Rachelle said, shrugging, not seemingly bothered by Lunamor’s sudden absence and if Hiro didn’t know any better, he’d guess that she probably preferred that.
“No wonder you seemed surprised to see her popping out of nowhere,” Hiro chuckled, fixing his glasses back into place.
“Yeah, well... I was caught off guard, okay?” Rachelle laughed. “Anyway, Professor Griffins also asked us about her. She was awfully curious as of why Lunamor suddenly decided to be one of the no-show students in class. Especially when she noted that Lunamor was very rarely absent.”
Hiro was… surprised to hear that.
He had seen Lunamor in the cafeteria from time to time, he had even confronted her about the rumors going on about them just a few days after all… and here was Rachelle telling him that Lunamor had been absent for four consecutive days straight.
That was ever since he had lost his class to Megan.
Does this mean Lunamor had actually skipped classes the other day too? (No wonder she was in no hurry to leave). But if that was the case, then why was she even still in school that time?
Still, Hiro was curious about what they told to Megan, what they thought of Lunamor. He had always known that they were kind of intimidated, probably even afraid… or annoyed, but they had never verbalized it.
Now they were given a chance to speak up without repercussions–because Lunamor wasn’t even there.
“What did you guys tell Megan?”
Rachelle frowned, “I mean, what’s there to talk about her? Lunamor doesn’t even speak up in class. She’s kind of a ghost that was just… there. It doesn’t really make a difference to us whether she’s absent or not.”
Despite himself, Hiro’s lips curved into a pleased smile which he expertly hid by pretending to read from Rachelle’s notebook. “Well… at least you guys were not wrong.”
“Yeah,” Rachelle scoffs, “She’s more of a cat.”
His gaze flattened, “A… cat.”
At the look on his face, Rachelle immediately spluttered in defense, looking mortified, “Y-you know what I mean, sir! Well, don’t get me wrong, she’s cute and all but like, seriously selfish and… and she comes and goes as she pleases without a care! See?!”
That’s… pretty on point.
Suddenly his head conjured up an image of Lunamor with cat ears and saying ‘meow’ in a completely monotone voice.
…Huh.
That looks promising.
Hiro grinned sheepishly, “I like cats though.”
“Seriously?! Why?! I don’t get it!” Rachelle groaned, pouting unhappily as she crossed her arms, “Dogs are definitely way much better!”
Hiro smiles in amusement.
At least Megan was already made aware that Lunamor doesn’t bully her classmates… except today (does it count?) because Hiro had absolutely no idea what set that girl off.