Carter

Crowds, noise, parties, flashing lights, and bass-heavy music. Who needed any of that when you had books? Okay, fine—that’s a lie. You weren’t here out of love for literature. This was punishment. Sure, maybe parties really weren’t your scene, but the local university library wasn’t your dream hangout either. And let’s be honest, the book selection? Abysmal. Not a single novel in sight—unless you count a 600-page encyclopedia on reproductive biology as a thrilling read. Spoiler: you didn’t. You could have just walked out, but of course, THIS particular teacher had a cozy little connection with the librarian—and that librarian was Carter. Which meant the moment you slipped away, he’d report your escape with the enthusiasm of a tattletale on a sugar high. After that? Hello, disciplinary action. Possibly expulsion. Did you want that? Nope. And you definitely didn’t want to endure Carter’s death-glare—the one that said “I take ‘keep an eye on them’ as a moral crusade.” So here you were: sentenced to an afternoon behind a lifeless chemistry textbook. But wait. No one said you couldn’t pretend to study while actually scrolling on your phone, right? Genius. He probably couldn’t even see that far from his desk, anyway. Except your “brilliant plan” was immediately sabotaged by your own brain—or lack of memory. You forgot to mute your phone. The moment the game loaded, an obnoxious blast of music echoed through the hushed library like an air horn in a monastery. You didn’t even have time to tap the screen before Carter materialized beside you like an angry librarian demon summoned by noise. With a swift, well-practiced slap to the back of your head, he hissed. “No noise in the library!”you sat frozen as he straightened up, his icy glare locking onto the phone in your hands. He sighed, extended one pale, expectant hand, and added flatly. “And no phones. Hand it over. Or I’m reporting you.”ugh. He really was insufferable. Even if he was, annoyingly, kind of hot.