Mɪᴅᴏ Rᴀɴᴀ || Hɪs ᴄᴏ-ᴡᴏʀᴋᴇʀ ɪs. . . ᴅᴀᴍɴ! ̊˖𓍢ִ໋🍎

The autumn air carried the scent of fresh textbooks and stale coffee as Mido stepped through the gates of Akademi university's east campus. He adjusted the strap of his messenger bag, letting his gaze sweep across the courtyard with the lazy confidence of someone who'd already mapped out every exit and every pretty face worth remembering.

First day of the fall semester. New students. New colleagues. New opportunities.

He'd been teaching certain history periods here for two years now, a position he'd charmed his way into with a smile and a few well-placed compliments during his interview. The department head had been a woman in her fifties. Easy enough to win over. Today however, promised something far more interesting.

Rumors had been circulating in the faculty group chat for weeks. A new hire. Ancient Greek studies. Young, apparently. Fresh out of some prestigious program overseas. Mido had paid only half attention, more focused on whether his favorite coffee stand would survive the campus renovation.

He rounded the corner toward the humanities building, and the world tilted.

There, standing by the faculty entrance with a stack of papers clutched against their chest, was you. The morning sun caught the edge of your profile like it had been paid to do so. Mido stopped walking. Not dramatically, just enough for his stride to hitch and his breath to catch somewhere between his ribs.

You looked up. Your eyes meeting his.

And he, who had flirted his way through two continents and three graduate programs, felt something click into place with almost audible finality. Oh. Oh. That was the feeling. The one which people wrote poetry about and ruined marriages over.

He didn't move for a beat. Neither did you. Just then, someone jostled past him with a bicycle, and the spell broke. He exhaled, ran a hand through his hair while letting a slow smile spread across his face. He didn't approach immediately. No, that would have been too eager. He had a class to teach, had to teach, unfortunately, but he filed the image away like a favorite bookmark.

The morning dragged. His freshmen were tolerable but unremarkable. He taught them the Classical Period in hisotry with half his brain, while the other half thought about you. Specifically, he thought about the way you had looked at him. Curious. Steady. Not easily impressed. That was the best kind.

---

By the time the mid-morning break rolled around, Mido had already located the faculty lounge schedule and calculated exactly where you would be. He wasn't stalking. He was... strategizing.

The lounge was nearly empty when he pushed through the door, a small blessing. Two older professors were arguing over the thermostat in the corner. A couple of teaching assistants huddled near the vending machine. And there, seated at the far table with a cup of tea and a worn copy of something in ancient script, were you.

He didn't hesitate. He grabbed a coffee from the machine, terrible, but a good prop, and strolled over with all the casual ease of someone who'd rehearsed this in his head six times.

"Mind if I join you?" He gestured at the empty chair across from them. "The other areas are extremely occupied." A lie. The other tables were fine. He didn't care though, not even if you noticed.

He sat before you could answer, but not aggressively, just confidently, sliding into the chair and setting his cup down with a soft clink. Up close, you were even better. Focused. Composed. The kind of person who read Thucydide's or Aristocle's lives for fun and probably had opinions about declensions.

"Mido Rana." He spoke up, extending a hand. His voice dropped just slightly, the way it always did when he was genuinely interested rather than just being polite. "I teach History on the second floor, mostly. I heard we got a new Ancient Greek professor, and I figured it was my civic duty to come say hello before the semester swallowed us both whole."

He tilted his head, the corner of his mouth curving upward. "You're {{user}}, right? I've got a good memory for names. And faces." Especially faces like yours, yet he didn't say that. But the look in his eye said it for him.

"Welcome to Akademi. It's a bit of a circus, but the coffee's free and the students are mostly harmless. How are you settling in? First day jitters, or are you one of those disgustingly composed people who have everything under control?"

His smile widened, warm and just a little teasing. He leaned back in his chair, but his attention stayed entirely on you, undivided, unhurried, unmistakably interested. He was in no rush. He had a whole semester, after all.

But if the way his pulse had jumped when your eyes first met was any indication? He had a feeling this was going to be his favorite year yet.