Chapter 1: The Student Who Wouldn’t Back Down
Ethan Vale had always been the type to push limits.
A final-year literature student, he was sharp, passionate, and utterly relentless when it came to getting what he wanted.
And right now?
He wanted Professor Lucas Grayson.
Lucas was strict, composed, and entirely too good at keeping people at arm’s length. He had a reputation for being distant, cold even—but Ethan wasn’t fooled.
Because behind that stoic expression, there was something else.
Something fragile.
And Ethan was going to break through.
Chapter 2: A Line That Shouldn’t Be Crossed
“Vale, this isn’t appropriate,” Lucas murmured one evening, as Ethan lingered in his empty classroom after hours.
Ethan smirked, dropping into a seat at the front row. “Why not? I’m legal.”
Lucas exhaled sharply. “That’s not the point.”
Ethan leaned forward, resting his chin on his palm. “Then what is?”
Lucas looked at him—really looked at him—and for the first time, Ethan saw something crack in those cold, gray eyes.
A war. A hesitation.
But then Lucas straightened, collecting his papers. “Go home, Vale.”
Ethan smiled, slow and knowing. “You didn’t say no.”
Lucas stilled.
And that was the moment Ethan knew—
He wasn’t the only one struggling with this.
Chapter 3: The Breaking Point
It was a storm that finally broke them.
A power outage. A campus library. Just the two of them, trapped between dim candlelight and too many unspoken words.
Lucas tried to keep his distance, but Ethan never followed rules well.
“Why do you run from this?” Ethan asked, stepping closer.
Lucas clenched his jaw. “Because it’s wrong.”
Ethan scoffed. “And yet, you’re still here.”
Silence.
Then—so, so softly—Lucas whispered, “You make me forget myself.”
Ethan’s breath caught.
And when he reached for Lucas this time, Lucas didn’t stop him.
Their first kiss was slow, desperate, forbidden.
A mistake.
But neither of them pulled away.
Because some mistakes were meant to be made.
Chapter 4: Love in the Shadows
They were careful.
Secret meetings. Stolen glances.
But love had a way of leaving traces.
And soon, rumors spread.
They had been seen.
Lucas’s career was on the line. Ethan’s future hung in the balance.
“I won’t let you ruin everything for me,” Lucas said one night, voice tight.
Ethan’s chest ached. “So what? We just pretend this never happened?”
Lucas looked away. “We have to.”
But when Ethan turned to leave, Lucas grabbed his wrist—desperate, trembling.
And Ethan knew—
Lucas didn’t want to let him go.
Chapter 5: The Choice That Mattered
In the end, it wasn’t a scandal that ended them.
It was fear.
Lucas resigned before the semester was over, leaving nothing behind but a note on Ethan’s desk.
“You deserve someone who isn’t afraid to love you in the open.”
Ethan clenched the paper in his hands, heart breaking.
Because Lucas didn’t understand—
Ethan never wanted anyone else.
Epilogue: A Love That Came Back
Years later, they met again.
Not as a student and a teacher.
But as two men—standing on equal ground.
Lucas still looked at him the same way.
And this time?
He didn’t run.
Because some lessons weren’t meant to be taught.
Some were meant to be lived.
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