Too Close

Chapter Four

"Your first assignment is to use one of these types of dictions and start a short story. You need at least a thousand words, a main character, and plot. You have today and until the end of tomorrow's class to finish." Miles concluded his first lecture and was feeling good about it and himself.

"I'll see you all tomorrow." He opened the door to see Gianna still writing notes on the lined paper. She didn't look up at him but she felt him staring at the back of her neck.

Gianna meant to be gone just before class was over, so she didn't have to see Miles again until tomorrow. She'd rather save herself the embarrassment.

Scribbling out whatever she had left to write, she quickly packed up her stuff. She looked Miles' way through her peripheral vision and saw that he wasn't looking at her anymore, so she took this opportunity to get away.

Miles turned his attention away from Gianna, not wanting to be obvious. He watched as the rest of his students pack up their things. "Come here." He told her in an authoritative tone. Gianna stopped in her tracks as she heard the whisper that was only intended for her ears. Miles had slipped inside of the classroom while the rest of the students exited, then Gianna joined him in there.

Here she was, standing in his classroom alone with him. Something she said she wouldn't do anymore, not even thirty minutes ago.

Miles sat on the edge of the desk, in front of her, while she waited to see what he had to say. "I told you I have zero tolerance for tardiness and the program doesn't accept more than three unexcused absences." Miles took a sip from his bottle of water.

"Well, I wouldn't consider myself late. I was practically on time, but you closed the door in my face. It was just three minutes like, you really was doing too much." She pressed her lips together to stop herself from talking. The persuading she'd done to herself clearly didn't work as she was still upset.

"Well, Miss Graye, this is my class, so whatever I say goes. So what you think doesn't matter. Everybody else was here on time, except for you." Miles was taken back a bit at her response. Gianna didn't look like the type to catch an attitude. He thought that she was a nice and sweet girl.

Gianna didn't say anything, since she was repressing the urge to roll her eyes. "Is that all?"

"Why were you late?" The question was odd to her since most professors didn't care why you were late, but she figured if she came up with something tragic enough he wouldn't mark her absence as unexcused.

But Miles wasn't going to mark her absent at all. He didn't have the heart to do it, especially since he saw that she sat outside during the lecture. Miles admired her dedication, so he was simply just being nosey and wanted to know why she was late. 

"My grandpa died last night and I had to drive all the way to Timber Land and back late last night, so I slept in a little bit this morning." Gianna had quickly made up the story. She knew Miles wasn't from Washington, so she hoped that he wasn't familiar with the area to know that Timber Land didn't exist since it was based on the producer.

Her grandfather also was six feet under at a graveyard in North Carolina where her family is originally from. She hoped that her Grandpa James wasn't rolling in his grave right now.

"Oh. I'm sorry about that." Miles felt bad that he'd even asked since Gianna started to display a saddened look on her face to sell her story even more. She even sniffled a couple of times too. "Did you uh get all the notes? You know what the assignment is?"

She had to hold her laugh back, "No, I got it."

"Do you have an idea for your story yet?"

Her eyebrows knitted together, "Uh, no not yet." She was confused on why he kept trying to start a conversation with her.