EIGHT. THE COLD PROFESSOR

“What was I thinking, huh?”

“Y-you heard me say something in front of the mirror?”

"What did you just say? I just got a call from Brenda. Mr. Angelo’s class is canceled today because Mr. Angelo is sick. We are free today because Mr. Angelo didn't give us a task. We're going to have fun, Shanon!” Sarah shook her shoulders hard and made Shanon even more nauseous.

Shanon then pushed Sarah away and tried to calm her heart, which was beating very fast in her chest cavity.

“O-oh, I'm sorry, Shanon. I was just too excited about the great news. Let's go to the cafeteria and get something for your stomach.”

"I didn't have breakfast this morning."

"You're vomiting because you haven't had breakfast. Come on, I'll take you to the cafeteria."

Sarah dragged her out of the bathroom excitedly. Shanon just resigned herself to following Sarah's very fast footsteps. They walked past the basketball court and saw the basketball club members practicing for a tournament. Sarah tried to attract the attention of one of the basketball players who she thought was attractive. The man responded to Sarah's naughty wink with a flying kiss.

Sarah was screaming excitedly beside Shanon, while she was focused on other things. Her eyes accidentally caught the figure of Anthony standing on the side of the basketball court with several campus officials. Anthony looked serious listening to his colleague speak, but suddenly Anthony raised his face and their gazes met. Shanon seemed to lose her orientation for a moment. She still couldn't believe that the figure on the other side, the number one person on her campus, was the man who married her at City Hall yesterday. That man was her husband!

Duagh!

Something hit Shanon's head hard. Her body swayed backwards before she fell to her knees on the hard floor of the court. People buzzed and shouted around her. Their screams were like thousands of hammers pounding on her head. Shanon groaned in pain.

“Oh my God, Shanon! Are you okay? Can you hear my voice?”

“Ughhh... My head...”

Shanon tried to focus on her blurred vision. A second ago, her view was only filled with Anthony standing across the court, and a second later, her entire view was filled with a crowd of people, most of whom were just curious about her condition, while some of them were trying to help her up.

“You need to go to the hospital to get a complete head scan.”

“I'm okay, Sarah. I'm just in shock. I must be daydreaming too much.”

“Hi, I'm sorry. It's all my fault.”

Shanon's gaze turned to a man who stood out among the students in basketball uniforms. The man was very tall, well-built, had blonde hair, and was sweating so much that the front of his hair stuck to his forehead. The man emerged from the crowd with a strong sense of guilt.

“Once again, I'm sorry. I will take you to the hospital.”

“No, thanks. I'm fine. I just need… Umm… a little room to breathe, a place to sit, and a glass of water.”

“Did you hear that? Move aside all of you. Give her a way. Please move aside.”

Sarah acted as a fierce bodyguard while hugging Shanon's shoulders tightly to take her to the cafeteria. She occasionally glanced at Shanon to make sure she was okay and able to walk to the cafeteria which was next to the basketball court.

“Hey, you're really lucky, you know?” Sarah whispered in her ear.

"Why?"

"You did not know? That guy, Jordyn! The very popular and handsome basketball captain at this university. Ugghh... I must be blessed because I have the opportunity to study in a place filled with handsome creatures.”

“Oh my gosh, Sarah. You're such a maniac. Get rid of that disgusting face.”

Shanon flinched in disgust when she saw Sarah start to smile strangely while cupping her flushed cheeks.

"My head hurts because of you."

“Why? I wasn't the one throwing the basketball at you.”

“But you dragged me to the basketball court, instead of walking straight to the cafeteria. If you hadn't stopped on the basketball court to wink flirtatiously at the basketball player, my head wouldn't have been hit by the ball.”

“Still, the incident brought you good luck. A few days ago you were also lucky because you could be alone with Anthony Bruce in his room."

Shanon snorted sarcastically. She felt unlucky at all. In fact, she got bad luck after bad luck because of dealing with Anthony.

“What an attention seeker.”

"What?"

Shanon looked back to find Anthony standing with his hands in his trouser pockets. Anthony gestured towards the crowd that had just dispersed.

“You created a scene less than three seconds after you walked onto the basketball court. Stop being careless, Ms. Wilson.”

Shanon gaped in disbelief at what she had just gotten. Anthony scolded her in front of Sarah like she was a stupid five year old girl.

“It wasn't my fault. The ball suddenly landed on my head.”

“Shanon, when did you become this brave?” Sarah whispered next to her in awe. “You confronted Anthony Bruce?”

“Everything was going normally before you came. Stay away from the crowd and act like a mature woman.”

“Hey, sorry to interrupt, but it's all my fault. I threw the ball too hard, and my friend couldn't catch it. Please don't blame her.”

The basketball captain suddenly appeared and defended Shanon to the hilt. Anthony just stared at Shanon intently for a few seconds before he turned to leave the basketball court.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry because I left for a moment to get my stuff. You're going to the cafeteria, right? I will take you there.”

Sarah clapped her hands excitedly beside Shanon. She whispered enthusiastically in Shanon's ear, congratulating her because two of the most handsome men on their campus had just spoken to her.

“Shut up, Sarah. My head is dizzy hearing you chatter around me."

“O-oh, she looks like she's going to faint. Can you hold her shoulders? Or maybe you could carry her to the cafeteria.”

“No, no, no, I'm fine. I can still walk on my own two feet.”

Shanon glared sharply at Sarah for dramatizing her situation. But the basketball captain seemed to take Sarah's words seriously. He swiftly put his arm around Shanon's tiny shoulder and led her slowly towards the cafeteria.

“Two streaks! Thank me later, baby," Sarah whispered cheerfully in her ear.