𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐏𝐄𝐓 (joel miller) ✔️

chapter twenty-five: december

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PEDRO <3

There's a time jump in this chapter. 
Hope that doesn't bother you. 
But I think its very realistic for this situation. 
Also, some time had to pass for the removal of Luna's cast and another new important plot ;)

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ

"Hi Joel. I can't ignore what I saw, sorry. Why was Millie in your room in the middle of the night?"

Steven was standing in Joel's office with a serious expression when he asked him about it.

Surprised and shocked, Joel put his phone down.

"What?"

"You already understood me"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Steven?"

Fuck. He knows it very well and he had no idea how to talk his way out of it.

"I think you know exactly what I'm talking about. I don't wanna judge you and won't do anything to get you both in trouble. But I think you can imagine how surprised I was when I saw a student sneaking into your room in the middle of the night." Joel remained silent and didn't answer, he didn't even know what to say to that anyway.

"I was about to go to Layla's room and then I saw Millie standing in the hallway. You know Joel, when I saw her standing there, she looked really happy. I know you're both adults, but she's so much younger than you. And I don't judge a big age difference as long as both are of legal age and it's done with consent from both sides. But she is your student"

„I know" Was all he answered. He had no idea how else to react.

⋆*･ﾟ1 month later:⋆*･ﾟ

Monday, December 6th.
Millie's alarm went off at 6:30. Tired, she looked for her phone to stop it. After a few seconds she got up and that's when she realized that she wasn't alone in her bed.

Andrew was lying in her bed. But she ignored that for now and looked for clothes for the day. Yesterday he had called her completely drunk and asked if he could sleep at her place. And one thing followed the other, he was already in her bed. But nothing happened. With her clothes in her hand, she went to the bathroom to take a shower and brush her teeth.

When she opened the bathroom door, she noticed that she wasn't alone in this room either. Linh hung over the toilet and threw up.

"Fuck Linh, is everything okay?" Millie asked concerned, putting her clothes on the washing machine and kneeling down next to her best friend.

"Does it look like it?" she replied with a chuckle and wiped her mouth with toilet paper.

"What happened?" Millie asked concerned again. 

"I saw you with Andrew and I threw up right away," she replied, grinning. Linh hates Andrew, always has.

"That's not funny Linh, did you eat something wrong or something?"

„Why Andrew? You guys don't match. And he's the biggest fucking asshole I know" Linh murmured and then threw up again in the toilet.

"Linh I swear, nothing happened, okay? But do you need help? A glass of water or tea? Medicine?"

"Kick Andrew out and I'm sure I'll be better in a minute"

"Linh be serious, I'm worried"

"I just ate something wrong, don't worry," she replied.

After Linh left the bathroom and Millie got ready for the day at university, she was able to persuade Andrew to drive her to NYU.

As Millie was about to get out of the car, she saw Joel standing in front of NYU's front door with his colleagues. And it only took a few seconds before he spotted Millie in the car by accident.

About a month ago they were in Boston. The day after, he texted her that he missed her. And since then he has ignored her.

What Millie didn't know however, was that Joel wasn't intentionally ignoring her. Millie didn't know that the two were being watched in the hotel, and she didn't know that Steven asked Joel about it either.

She didn't know that Joel only wanted to protect her.

Millie was kinda upset, maybe even a little hurt. She missed him. She missed talking to him and cuddling with him.

Whenever she spoke to him, he looked at her like she was the only thing in the world that interested him. And now he wasn't even paying attention to her.

In the first few days after Boston, she had sometimes called and texted him. But he never answered. Even during the lectures he no longer talked to her.

"Hey Millie, are you alright?" Andrew's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Yeah sorry" she murmured and looked away from Joel again. She knew he would be watching her though, so she kissed Andrew on the cheek before getting out of the car.

She zipped up her coat as she stood in the cold air and then put her hands in the coat pockets, which luckily she was able to do again as her cast was removed two weeks ago.

When she then walked past the history professors, she looked at Joel again and noticed that he was already watching her with a tense look.

"Good morning" Millie said politely and the three professors turned to her. Her gaze was briefly on Joel, but then she looked over at Layla. And she just ignored Ms. Connors.

"Ah Millie, do you have a moment? For registering for your semester abroad?" Layla then asked and Millie stopped for a second.

"Yeah sure"

"Well I think with your grades you can pick any university you want. But Montreal and London would definitely be good choices" explained Layla.

"Uh how exciting, you're going to change universities?" Ms. Connors chimed in.

"I wouldn't change. It would only be one semester, but I don't know yet, it was just a thought," Millie replied, annoyed by Ms. Connors.

Millie didn't notice Joel's skeptical look, though. He was quite surprised when he heard about her plan.

"We can talk about it again this afternoon if you want? Your lecture is about to begin," Layla said to Joel and Millie.

"Yeah sure, thank you" Millie replied and said goodbye to the others.

As Joel and Millie walked towards the lecture hall together, there was an awkward silence between them.

Both had not spoken a word to each other for a whole month. Millie thought about saying something as the two walked side by side, but she was damn nervous. She didn't know what to say or if Joel even wanted to talk to her.

But after just a few seconds, Millie's thoughts were interrupted.  "You're thinking about going to another university for a semester?"

Millie turned in surprise and looked into his dark eyes. She wouldn't admit it, but she missed him looking at her. And she was even more surprised when she saw that he was looking at her with hopeful eyes.

Doesn't he want her to go? Or is she just imagining it?

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ