Hostile

My job as Sebastian's assistant consisted of me sitting in his class, recording what he said and making sure that all the students submitted their work on time. I had to say, Sebastian loved giving his students small projects and fieldworks that they needed to submit every other week. And he was efficient enough to check them and give them to me before class for me to distribute. Soon, I was looking at faces I knew from passing by in the university but had never spoken to. The pay was exquisite too. Sebastian told me that the university gave him enough research funds so that he could live comfortably, it didn't hurt that he came from a rich family and invested in shares on a regular basis.

On that particular day, I was sitting in the class of the first years, helping them get oriented with Sebastian, who was teaching them for the first time. He demanded a high standard from his students and had prepared a worksheet of the works they needed to complete ahead of time.

I stood in front of the class, way before time and stared as the class filled up. Most of the students who entered early were females who were full of giggles and whispers. I was sure that they had heard the rumors about Sebastian's good looks and taken this class to stare at him. They were not prepared for the torturous journey they would go through and the hard fight they would have to overcome to get good grades from this class.

I almost felt sorry for them.

"Good morning, class. I am Dr. Sebastian Butler's assistant and will be joining you for your classes throughout the semester. If you have any questions regarding the course structure or class-related material, you can contact me through my email or phone number. Please make sure to take a copy of the syllabus and works you are expected to submit this semester. I will be the one taking them." I looked around to see if there were any questions. The first time I had done it, I had myself been a bit embarrassed, but I had come to realize that my job as his assistant was important. That he needed someone who could monitor others and help him comb through the trivial matters in life so that he could concentrate on his research and solve crimes.

I saw one male student raise their hand.

"Yes?" I asked, hoping for a good question.

"What is your name?" I cringed.

"Evie Lewis. I look forward to working with all of you." I could see his shadow coming towards me. It was the last room on the corridor and I sensed him enter the class before the others.

The students stood up in unison, greeting Sebastian as he entered. I spotted a free chair at the back of the room and trotted towards it.

"Evie," he called. I turned to look over my shoulders.

He had a small smile on his face.

"Did you distribute the syllabus?" I shook my head. He nodded and went back to addressing the class. I took careful notes of every word he said, the student beside me peered at my laptop from time to time, copying from the running notes I was taking. I didn't bother shooing the boy away. Instead, I angled the screen towards him.

The boy muttered a low thank you and went back to copying.

I glanced at his face from time to time and looked at the definitely awestruck girls who had taken their seat at the front. I felt a wee bit irritated but kept it off my face.

No use showing my annoyance and making Sebastian biased against some poor students who had mistakenly stumbled upon his class.

Sebastian was talking about how childhood abuse could affect the brain and lead to antisocial behaviour in kids. He was emphasizing on how genetics had nothing to do with it, at least nothing of the sort had been scientifically proven. I took it as an important step towards the students in the class going into their field of study without bias or prejudice against the people who they were judging. It was important not to jump to conclusions under any circumstances, especially when you were handling something as fragile as the human mind at the palm of your hand.

They were the future generation who would decide how the public view law enforcement and the government. Empowering them with the proper tools to help them distinguish between good and bad was something that Sebastian was slowly teaching them. He was slowly teaching me, as well.

Just because I looked murderous didn't mean that I would kill. Just because something bad had happened to me didn't mean that I would inflict the same pain on others. Psychologically speaking, he had told me. Every person reacts differently to stimulus. I had grown stronger and groomed myself to become the best of my abilities. I was a force to be reckoned with, he had said, and the first time in forever, I started to believe that I was worth something more than I had imagined myself to be.

The class soon ended and I found myself taking the attendance and handing out information sheets to the students. I had to admit, I didn't quite like the hostile looks they gave me, but I was sure I could take them on in a fight.