Page 25 of Brighter Shades of Light
“So youdosmile,” Cody commented with an arched brow. “You should do it more often, Doctor. It suits you.”
He didn’t wait around for me to respond, not that I even knew how.
When it came to flirtation, I knew very little. However, it seemed as though hewasflirting. Or…he could’ve just been nice.
Cody Miller was a mystery.
Chapter 8
Cody
As I left thermodynamics, I had the biggest, goofiest smile on my face.
After three weeks of little communication, Dr. Vale had spoken to me. I had thought I’d done something to piss him off, because the few times I’d tried to make conversation, it seemed like he’d been eager to get away from me. I was glad to have been wrong.
I couldn’t even be embarrassed about my shameless flirting from moments ago.
My second class was a snooze, as usual. Professor Williams had taken a few personal days a few weeks ago, but she was back now. Her son had minor surgery after an accident and would be okay, so that was great. She was nice, but her monotone lecture made me want to curl up on my desk and take a nap.
Material of Mechanics was after that, and as I walked down the hall and up a flight of stairs, I decided to stop at a nearby soda machine and get some caffeine to try to wake myself up. Coffee would be better, but I only had ten minutes before class started, so a Pepsi would have to do.
Thankfully, I managed to stay awake through class.
When lunchtime came around, I went to the dining hall.
Unlike the campus cafeteria that was open to the public, the dining hall was for students and faculty only. I stood in line outside the entrance, pleased to see it was moving fairly quickly. The sun warmed my back but there was crispness in the air.
The first day of fall was this coming weekend, but it already felt like the season had changed.
After showing the person at the front counter my student ID card, I grabbed a plate and moved down the line. It was all-you-could-eat, with a selection of meats, vegetables, and other sides. A grill was on the other side of the room for if you wanted a burger and fries, and there was a salad station. The food was always high-quality, and I tended to eat way too much of it.
I piled steamed vegetables on my plate before requesting a burger from the grill-master, a.k.a. Gary. The man always cooked it to perfection, a mouthwatering medium-rare. I searched for a place to sit and froze when I recognized a certain blond chemist near the window.
Before I could stop myself, I walked over to him. He looked up when I was a few feet from his table.
“Afternoon, Dr. Vale.”
“Mr. Miller,” he said in greeting, pushing his glasses back. He’d been slumped over, reading a journal, with an untouched sandwich in front of him.
“Do you mind if I sit?” I asked, looking at the empty chair across from him. “The place is kinda full today.”
“Oh.” He gave me a blank stare and then shook his head, as if coming back from whatever reality he’d been in. He grabbed the textbook sprawled on the tabletop, making room for me. “Of course. Please excuse the mess.”
“I’m surprised to see you here.” I sat in the chair in front of him and placed my backpack in the one beside me.
I didn’t know him well, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Dr. Vale wasn’t exactly in his element around people.
“A renovation is being done in one of the rooms near my office, and it was distracting. Too loud.” He met my gaze briefly before dropping it back to the worn journal. “I forgot to eat breakfast this morning, so I needed food anyway.”
People talked around us. Some laughed. A constant murmuring of voices.
“I doubt this is much quieter than where you were,” I said.
“You’re correct. I don’t plan to stay long.” Dr. Vale looked at his plate, as if just realizing he hadn’t started eating yet, and he began to pick apart his sandwich.
The buffet had something for everyone—meat lovers and vegetarians, health nuts and people who didn’t give a fuck about diets. Plus, the amazing grill. But Dr. Vale had gone to the counters in the center of the room, where people could make salads and sandwiches, and grabbed one of those instead. And not even a proper sandwich, either. Just turkey and cheese. No lettuce, tomato, bacon, or anything that would make it taste good.
“So, we’ll be having a test soon?” I asked and took a drink of my soda.
