Professor: A First Time Novel(39)

And there’s the hammer coming down.





The scene goes quiet, and the cops and the few older students who didn’t feel are all slowly turning to stare at Ellie and I. It’s literally everything I never wanted to happen; it’s the nightmare of being found out like this, and it’s happening right here in front of my face.





“Now, hang on,” I say gruffly, holding my hands up.





The cop shines his flashlight into my face, cutting me off as he turns to Ellie. “Miss, do you go to school here?”





Her face is white, but her lips are pressed together, not saying a damn thing.





“Miss?”





“She does!” Ken spits out. He sneers at me. “She’s a freshman.”





The cops turn back to me, looking even more somber, when one of the backup guys steps forward, and I groan as I realize I recognize him from late-night patrols around the english department.





“Yeah, chief, I know this guy. He’s that writer; the english professor.”





The guy in charge suddenly looks at me with recognition, and he narrows his eyes at me as he suddenly reaches for the taser on his belt. “Step away from the girl, Mr. Martin.”





But I’m not letting go, and neither is she. I can feel her pulse racing where our hands are clasped, and I can feel her fingers squeezing hard.





“Step away, sir,” The cop says again, and the group of them start to move towards us.





“Fuck off,” I growl.





Which is really the last thing you should say to a group of cops.





I can hear Ellie screaming as they yank her away when they tackle me, and it only fuels my fury as I try and shake them off and get back to her. But there are three of them holding me down, and all I can do is strain against them and roar as a female officer drags Ellie away to one of the cars.





And then she’s gone, and I’m still raging to get free, still roaring at them to fuck off and let me be when they slap the cuffs on and drag me away.





But the worse part is, I don’t get to say it. The worse part is, the words that’ve been bubbling to the surface for weeks now - the words I’ve never said to anyone - are right there.





Only now it’s too late.





Chapter 25

Ellie





And then it’s over, just like that.





At the police station, there are a million questions, and then even one of the junior Deans of the college asking me over and over if I want to press charges.





What? No.





No, I just want them to let me go and let me get back to the man that I lo-





It’s that thought that eventually has me breaking down into tears, because right then I know it’s true, and I know it’s been true.





I love him, and I’m getting that now that the whole thing is blowing up in my face.





The police and the Dean want me to sign this absurd statement about Liam pressuring me and being “professionally irresponsible”, but I refuse, again and again. Eventually, they try and call my parents, which is mortifying, until I hear my dad threatening a lawsuit over the phone if they don’t let me walk out of there right then.





The let me go five minutes later, and I collapse into Ally’s waiting arms as the tears finally come.





*****





Originally, after that horrible night, the school had wanted to kick me out after I refused to sign anything, until my parents showed up the next day with a lawyer and litigation paperwork. When I’d gone to meet them outside my dorm when they arrived, I’d held my breath, feeling my cheeks burn and waiting for the “this was so irresponsible” talk.





But it never came, because as it turns out, my parents were actually really cool about it. My mom hugged me and stroked my back when I started to cry, telling me it was going to be okay. And my dad just wanted to make Liam hadn’t hurt me, and once he saw how opposite the situation was, I think he knew.





I think they both could see it on my face that this wasn’t some sordid affair, or a mistake, or some sort of experimentation.





It was real, right there on my face, and they knew it.





And here we are a week later, and it’s like the sun’s gone away.





A week later, and everything’s changed. Liam’s gone, and I’ve been told part of his pending charges from the college involve him not being in contact with me; phones, email, all of it. Plus he’s been barred from campus. And that’s the worst part, not knowing where he is or what’s going on.





I should feel scandalized - and believe me, there’s plenty of scandal surrounding it - just from walking around campus, but I just don’t care.