Chapter 1 - Poppy
“For everyone who hasn’t handed over the final assignment, don’t forget you have until Christmas Eve to do so. However, I’d like to remind you again that procrastinating until the end is not a useful skill to have in life. And it’s best not to start now when you're this young.”
He looks straight into my eyes while he scolds the class. There. His whole attention on me. Exactly how I planned.
There’s not a lot a woman can do to make a professor fifteen years her senior look at you. Believe me, I’ve tried. We’re in his class, but I’m sure he wouldn’t recognize any of us outside of it.
Well, he recognizes me.
Because I’ve handed every single assignment in at the last possible minute, allowing me to show up after hours at his office just to have the chance to see him without anyone else around.
Not that he cares, I’m sure he finds it infuriating by the way he’s looking at me. But I can’t help it.
To be honest, this is the only class I don’t excel in. I keep getting distracted by how he looks in those tight shirts, how those vintage vests cling to his frame in all the right places, and how he walks in those perfectly polished boots. Obviously, it's not his attire that's the cause of my distraction: it’s the manwho’s wearing it. There’s an intensity in him that turns my insides into dust. I want to touch that beard so much that I keep dreaming about it. Nothing about this man screams professor. In fact, I’d say he looks more like a lumberjack.
And every single person in this class agrees with me.
No, not just this class.
The entire community college of Hope Peak agrees with me if the gossip about the relationship status of Professor Blake Whittaker is anything to go by.
I’m not proud of the person I’ve become: using ruses for extra time with a man who'd never glance my way it's truly pathetic. So I’ve decided. I’m going to forget about this impossible crush and move on.
But I’ll give myself one tiny indulgence: deliver my last assignment on Christmas Eve so I can say goodbye to him without anyone around.
“By lunch. I’ve got more important things to do than to wait around for your assignments.”
That look could kill.
I gulp, feeling strangely excited by his terse remark. Everything he does or says lingers on my body. I’m sure if he really did touch me I’d break. And yet, I want him to.
I sigh. I need to let go, it’s not like he’ll ever look at me that way. He’s all sophistication and muscles, and I’m all chaos and curves.
Professor Blake dismisses the class, and I’m quick to leave. There’s a lot of stuff I need to tackle with Christmas around the corner.
Christmas is my favorite time of the year. On the 1st of December, my tiny apartment transformed into a fully-fledged Christmas village. I'm one of those people who counts the days of November so I can finally decorate without looking weird. But it's not just my apartment that gets decorated, Hope Peak loves Christmas, and every single shop and street is filled with lights and ornaments, there's a magical feeling that coats our small town when Christmas arrives. It's also the busiest time of my year, which also means I've a smaller amount of time than I'd like to fully enjoy Christmas.
But honestly? It's a good sign. Five years ago, I wouldn't be this busy. I'd have been counting every single one of my pennies. I pull my suitcase up, and it slides slightly more to the right, hitting Professor Blake's knee.
He winces, massaging it right away.
"I'm so sorry, Professor Blake."
"It's fine, Miss Poppy. I have another class now, please leave," he rasps.
I bow slightly before rolling my suitcase full of cards down the hallway, delighted he actually knows my name, and then head out into the cold.
It’s freezing, and everything is already covered in snow in Hope Peak. Not the most convenient time to drag a suitcase around. Luckily, the town square is right around the corner. I start with Book Peak, my favorite bookstore, which was also the first business that took a chance on me.
A few years ago, when I was working a number of odd jobs to keep myself afloat, I had worked for a small grocery store just outside of town where people kept stopping by in hopes to find postcards, usually during the summer and greeting cards close to Christmas. I used to draw in my spare time and thoughtmaybe I could try to draw some cute cards to make some extra money.
So I kept creating illustrations until I was happy with the final result and I pitched them to Book Peak. By that time, the grocery store had closed and I no longer had the opportunity to pitch to them. At Book Peak I showcased my small card collection, focused on Christmas illustrations with some hints of Hope Peak in between hoping that they'd sell the cards at their store. Not only did they agree, but they were over the moon, telling me I needed to pitch to other stores as well. So I did.
Most small businesses in Hope Peak carry my cards now, and with everyone buying their Christmas presents, I’ve had a lot of requests for restocks. I greet the owner and get to work, completely forgetting about my grumpy forbidden crush.
***
Christmas Eve. I have to hand in my final assignment. Between restocking some of my cards, creating invoices and everything else I've been doing for the Christmas Parade, I did need the extra time to work on my assignment.
