University hadn’t been treating you gently lately. You loved being there and were more than grateful for the opportunity—you loved to learn—but the pressure could be a bit too much sometimes.

You were a great student, one of the best in your classes. But you feared waking up one day and suddenly not being as good as always, of forgetting your why and not being able to earn the degree you had worked so hard for.

But those thoughts weren’t rational. They were nothing more than fear. And you would never let that distract you from giving your all at every chance you had.

You were tired, though.

Andy knew that all too well. An internship a semester earlier had brought you two together, soon developing into something far deeper than professionalism.

Thinking about it, you’d always had a thing for older men. He was caring, respectful—the kind of man you had always longed to have by your side. He often encouraged you with your studies. A former lawyer and now a college professor, he knew exactly what he was talking about.

You could easily open up to him about your thoughts and feelings; he was a great listener, and talking to him was something you looked forward to every day.

Earlier, while texting, you had mentioned how the thought of an upcoming exam was eating you alive.

Now, at six in the evening, right from work, he was at your door, holding a bouquet of your favorite flowers and a box of the same chocolates he often gifted you, the ones he always claimed were 'good for your hormones and that pretty brain of yours.'

“Order for, uh…” He frowned playfully as you opened the door—his signature smirk under that beard you couldn’t help but love so much. His blue eyes skimmed a nonexistent note on the box he held. “The smartest girl in the world?”