Hannah sat in her college English class, valiantly trying to concentrate on the teacher’s lecture. Yet failing. Why had Hobi chosen today of all days to sit in the seat directly in front of her? They were reviewing for the final exam next week, and she really needed to bring her struggling B- up to a bona fide B before the end of the semester.
Her eyes should be constantly focused on her teacher’s chicken scratch that was scrawled all over the white board at the front of the room. Really? This lady was an English major? Hannah thought the woman had missed her calling; with penmanship that bad, she should have been a doctor.
Hannah had allowed her mind to wander. Her attention should have been drawn to her teacher’s strident tones, but instead it was captured by Hobi’s skin tone. She was studying the subtle shade of the skin on the nape of his neck. Which, of course, led to her perusal of his glorious, dark hair. It was gleaming under the classroom’s overhead lights, sending dark blue streaks throughout his jet black locks. Along the sides and in the back, his hair had been shaped into an undercut. She loved the way the layers of his hair hugged his head. She longed to reach out and run her fingers through those waves. She was sure they would feel soft and silky sliding through her fingertips.
It wasn’t just his beauty that was distracting her. He also kept clicking his mechanical pencil. Hannah could tell time by the rhythm of his clicking. One, two, three, click…one, two, three, click. Repeat. He’d been continually performing this action for ten solid minutes. If she hadn’t had a crush on him, she would have throttled him by now. As it was, the noise was really beginning to bother her. It was getting inside her head and messing her up.
Finally, she could take no more, so she bent forward and lightly tapped him on the shoulder. Hoseok turned around, and his innocent face lit up when he saw her. His dark hair was flowing over his forehead like a curtain, obscuring everything above his eyes from view. Once again, she had to fight the impulse to reach out and ruffle his hair. His almond-shaped eyes were a deep chocolate brown. As he gazed at her, she saw a smile hidden in them. She gave him an answering smile with her lips as her eyes continued to travel down his face. The slope of Hobi’s nose was more interesting than a simple straight line. It curved outward before rounding the tip to meet the space above his upper lip. She stared at the narrow divot for a moment before her eyes perused his lips. They were a beautiful rosy shade, the top lip thinner than the fuller bottom one. They were stretched into a sweet smile right now. All her ire faded in the dream glow of that smile.
“Hobi, can you please stop clicking your pencil? I’m sorry, but for some reason the noise is messing with my concentration.” She smiled as sweetly as possible at him.
He frowned slightly and whispered his reply, “Sorry, Hannah. Didn’t mean to bug you. I’m just nervous about this test. I need to pull out a good grade, and English isn’t my best subject. I mean, I’m ok at it, but extra help would be appreciated.”
That’s when Hannah got her brilliant idea. “Hobi, would you like to study with me to prepare for the final next week?”
Hobi’s eyes lit up once more, and he beamed at her. “Yes!” His eyebrows shot up, though Hannah couldn’t tell since they were already hidden under his dark bangs.
“Do you have any free time after this class?” she asked him.
He nodded. “I have the remainder of the day free.”
“How about we grab some dinner and spend the evening studying then?”
“Sounds good to me.” He turned away from her with a look of immense relief saturating his features. Hannah smiled inwardly. She felt like hugging herself. She was going to get to study for several hours with Hobi!
