Episode 12

I stared at my phone, the notification still glowing on the screen. Professor Sungit had actually accepted my friend request. I wasn’t sure whether to laugh at how ridiculous this was or to just sit there and think about the mess I had just gotten myself into. My fingers hovered over the screen, unsure of what my next move should be.

I could already imagine Jenna’s voice in my head, teasing me endlessly about this. Cruz, what were you thinking? I could already feel my face heating up at the thought of it.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart. This wasn’t the end of the world, right? It was just a friend request. She could ignore it or maybe even forget about it after a while. Maybe she didn’t even realize I clicked it by accident, I reasoned with myself. Yeah, that’s it. She probably doesn’t care.

But deep down, a small part of me couldn’t shake the feeling that this was different. Something about it felt like a step toward something I wasn’t quite ready for.

Should I message her? I thought. Maybe I shouldn't...

But, of course, I ended up messaging her anyway.

"Hi ma'am," I typed, my finger hovering over the send button as I stared at the simple message.

Okay, that’s it. No turning back now.

I pressed send, feeling a mix of nervousness and excitement. What was I even thinking? Why did I just do that?

I sat anxiously, my heart racing as I watched the little dots on my phone’s screen, indicating that she was typing. The wait felt like an eternity, each second ticking by slowly while my mind ran through a million different scenarios.

After what felt like an eternity, her reply finally appeared on my screen. “Hello.”

Just that one single word, but it sent my heart into overdrive. Why was I reacting like this? It was just a simple response, right?

I tried to compose myself as I typed back, “How are you?”

I stared at the message for a moment, my thumb hovering over the screen. How are you? It was such a basic question, yet it felt so loaded when I was talking to her. Why did it feel like this small exchange held so much weight?

After a few seconds of hesitation, I pressed send.

My phone buzzed with her reply almost immediately. "I’m fine. Thank you for asking."

That was it. No elaboration, no hint of emotion. Just a calm, composed response. I couldn’t tell if she was just being formal or if she was simply not as invested in this as I was. But part of me didn’t want to back out now.

I took a deep breath, typing again, trying to keep things light. “Glad to hear. Just wanted to make sure everything’s good with you.”

I hit send and immediately regretted it. Was I being too forward? Too obvious? My stomach twisted with nerves, and I almost wanted to throw my phone across the room.

I sat there waiting, the seconds feeling like they were stretching out into minutes.

Then, her reply came: "Everything is fine, Ms. Cruz. I’m handling things."

It was straightforward, and that was it. Nothing more. My heart sank a little. Was she really just being polite?

I sighed, trying to figure out how to end the conversation without it feeling awkward. My fingers hovered over the screen again, unsure of what to say next.

“Alright, ma’am. Thanks for replying,” I typed, hitting send before I could second-guess myself.

I watched as the message was delivered. The dots appeared on the screen, indicating she was typing.

When the message came through, I quickly read it, my breath catching in my throat. "Take care, Ms. Cruz."

Take care.

That was it. A simple closing, but somehow it felt like an opening, too. I had no idea if it was just being polite or something more. But for now, I decided to leave it at that.

I leaned back against my pillow, staring at the screen. What now? I thought.

---

The next day, I was finally in my car again. I didn’t have to commute anymore since my car was fixed. It wasn’t really that bad, just a little dramatic on my part. My parents had also warned me that if anything like that happened again, they wouldn’t let me use the car and would even take away my license. Great, just got that last year, I thought, shaking my head.

At least I could enjoy the convenience of driving again, but I was definitely more careful now.

As I sat in my car, I couldn’t keep my mind off of the conversation I had with Professor Sungit. It kept running through my mind, and I found myself rereading her messages over and over again, trying to decipher some deeper meaning behind them. But all I got was the same polite and distanced tone.

I leaned back in my seat, sighing as I gripped the steering wheel. What was I doing? Why was I obsessing over a simple exchange with her? It wasn’t like I had any real reason to feel this way. She was my professor, and I was just a student trying not to embarrass myself.

Yet, despite all the logic telling me to move on, my thoughts kept drifting back to her. Take care, Cruz. That simple phrase... Why did it make my heart race? It wasn’t like I hadn’t heard it before. It was just a polite way of ending a conversation, right?

But something about the way she said it made it feel... different. I couldn’t explain it.

I snapped myself out of it, focusing on the road as I drove to the campus. I needed to clear my head, maybe get some studying done or catch up on work. It was better than obsessing over something I couldn’t control.

When I finally parked and stepped out of my car, I found myself thinking of Professor Sungit again. She wasn’t the type to share personal details or show much vulnerability. So what did her words really mean? Was I reading too much into things? Probably. It was probably nothing.

:))

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