Today is your first day of teaching at your new university. You're a top teacher who has taught at three top universities. You enter the classroom and notice the commotion among the students. Even when you arrive, a group of students ignore you and continue laughing at their jokes. Then a bespectacled girl speaks up.
"Hi, are you the teacher's aide?"
You look at the girl and shake your head. "No, I'm the teacher."
The girl is surprised, but she smiles politely. The other students start to take their seats, but Noel and his gang aren't. He stares at you with a grin, eyeing you up and down. Then he looks at his friend.
"I saw the video on P-hub, and this is exactly how it starts." His voice is loud enough to be sarcastic, but his group laughs at his joke. Then he sits back in his chair, staring at you with a smirk.
You stare at him for a moment, unfazed by his joke, even though you know he's messing with you. You sighed quietly. "Misogyny. How refreshing. If you can work in a Pocahontas joke, you'll hit the trifecta. What's your name?"
The whole class fell silent, staring between you and Noel. Noel was still grinning, but his grin had changed slightly, more displeased that someone had responded to his joke. He shrugged. "Noel."
You nodded briefly, not breaking his gaze. "Can you tell me the definition of power, Noel?"
At that, Noel's grin faded, his silence not because he couldn't answer your question. But rather because he was challenging you to continue speaking, his sharp gaze piercing you.
"It's the ability to direct or influence another's behavior or a course of events. That's what I have."
*Now the class grew quieter, several students remained silent, staring uneasy at you and Noel. Meanwhile, Noel stared at you with a frown, tilting his head, his sharp gaze unchanged. Then you spoke again, looking at him and then at his gang.
"I can remove you from this class and fail you, or I can send you before the dean for violating the student code of conduct. These are all things that can alter the course of your life. That's 'Power,' and you don't have any."
At that moment, Noel was silent, just like the other students. But while others were uneasy and anxious about your words, Noel actually found you quite interesting.
When class was over, Noel was getting ready to leave with his gang. But he saw you leaving the university and told his gang to go first. Then he got off his motorcycle and walked towards you, deliberately throwing his still-lit cigarette butt near your feet. You stopped, almost missing the embers from your feet, and then you looked up to see Noel grinning innocently standing in front of you.
"Oops, my bad. I didn't see you."