Toni smiled. “You’ve been the best you could. And now that you know all this, I know you’ll be better.” She rolled her eyes, “Deja’s in her office. She grades and does class prep when she’s stressed. She needs hobbies.”

“She’s just upstairs?” Alejandro asked, jumping up from the chair. The information felt like a bolt of lightning striking his body.

“Sadly,” Toni said, turning back to the essay on her desk.

“Thanks,” Alejandro said.

Toni looked at him again. “I like you two together,” she said with a shrug. “It almost makes me believe in romance again. Almost. But then I remember the world is a hellscape, and Tinder was a sign of the apocalypse. Now, go. Leave me alone. This essay won’t grade itself.”

Deja’s eyes were going a bit blurry, and her back was stiff.

She’d been at her desk grading for nearly three hours. It had been a productive time, at least. She’d caught up on the weekly quizzes from her Intro to Sociology course and had updated attendance grades in all her classes. She’d graded all the essays for her Sociology of the Black Family course and was halfway through the essay drafts for her Social Movements class. She looked at the clock on her laptop and decided that she could leave in a couple of hours and finish the rest of the drafts on Monday to hand them back on Tuesday.

It was sad to realize how easily work could distract her from her own emotions. Well, some kinds of work. Not writing or her own research. That kind of work was like a shortcut to triggering her insecurities, and that explained why it was so easy for her to avoid it. Even just thinking about it made her anxious, and she turned back to the stack of essays in front of her when a knock sounded at the door.

She thought about ignoring it and hoping the person on the other side went away. It was a possibility since she wasn’t teaching or holding office hours today. Technically, she didn’t need to be on campus, so if she didn’t answer, there was no proof that she was even around.

“Deja,” a voice called from the hallway. “Are you in there?”

The sound of Alejandro’s voice made her heart clench like she knew it would, that was why she’d been avoiding his calls. Still, she did seriously consider ignoring him until she heard his soft sigh through the door. Fuck, she definitely did not deserve this man.

She rushed from her desk and pulled the door open just enough to reach out, grab Alejandro’s hand, and pull him into her office.

“Deja?” he asked in shock.

“Shhh,” she hissed. “I don’t… I don’t want anyone to know I’m here.”

“Including me,” he said.