Meet the plastics (Regina x fem reader)

15 - The tutor session

The end of the late-afternoon lecture is signified by the outpour of students filtering out of the room. Strangely, even though it's not actually strange at all, Regina waits for me. Her thousand dollar bag perched on her arm, she rests against the desk, watchful eyes on me as I try to quickly pack my things away.

I fumble, though, my attempt at a haste unsuccessful as all the speed does is has my elbow knocking one of my crutches over, which simultaneously creates a domino effect as the second follows after. In an attempt to save the falling crutches, my pen skids across the desk, and right into - oh.

"Need some help?" Regina asks, amused glint in her eyes. She's holding my black biro like it's a trophy between her manicured fingers. I silently hold out my hand for her to give it back, reigning back any sort of reaction from escaping me. That fucking pen - I swear it has a magnetic connection to her or something; it's the second time in two days she's given in back to me.

She doesn't hand me back the pen. Instead, she reaches across me, picks up my clear pencil case, places it inside, zips it up, and deposits it into my open backpack laid on the table. "I- uh thanks." I manage out in the lamest way possible, internally cringing at my lack of effort to engage in her seemingly playful manner. I'm somehow able to pull my useless self together enough to pack the rest of my things away. Regina gathering my crutches off the floor for me has my heart leaping.

Before I can grab my bag too, Regina snatches it. I watch in a silent panic as her eyes skim across the solo pin on my bag, a small pride pin. She doesn't react. In any way; good or bad. Her face remains nonchalant as I hold my breath for a few seconds.

Rather than handing it to me, or making a remark, which is what I'm expecting and waiting for, her designer bag takes my bag's place on the table. Then she's threading her arms through my own bag and swinging it onto her back, adjusting the straps, before picking up her handbag once more. I think back to the pride pin visible on the bag that she's now carrying, which could definitely start up some rumours around the college, even if her office is only down the hall.

Awe washes over me, lips parted, eyes wide yet confused. Trying to keep my visible panic to a minimum, I don't realise my mouth is gaping more than normal until Regina does.

She pushes my chin upward with her forefinger, closing my mouth. "Much better," she hums, "stop acting so surprised any time I do something nice, it's not a good look on you."

"I wasn't-"

She stops me, "come on."

We head to her office in a painfully awkward silence. The door is unlocked, Regina immediately entering and dropping her bag to the floor in a hectic way, then she carefully takes my bag from her back and places it on the desk. I watch from the doorway, until I'm quick to come back to the present moment and shut the door upon entering. I take a seat opposite her and manoeuvre my bag onto the floor.

"Lucky for you, I actually have lots of notes from the past few weeks." She reaches into a draw to the bottom right of the desk, placing down a stack of printed text between us. Without looking at her, I pull out my notebook and pens from my bag. Regina begins talking me through the first topic they covered just after my incident whilst I listen intently and take notes.

We're midway through the first topic when Regina's phone rings. I glance outside the window to see the sun low and glowing orange. "Sorry," she apologises with a frown, picking up her phone to her ear, "yes Karen, what do you want?" She snaps, and the contrast jumbles up my mind even more. "No, I'm busy right know, I-" she lets out an exasperated sigh, running a hand through her hair. My throat goes dry.

They're in a heated conversation that I tune out, reading through Regina's notes and keeping to my own business.

"Looks like we'll have to cut this short," her voice startles me, "Gretchen and Karen are stranded on a highway somewhere, broken down."