8:00PM.
Archie stared at the clock on the classroom wall as he watched the seconds tick by, every movement of the longer hand moving in short, painful beats, marking each moment of his time wasted, yet he continued to pointlessly distract himself from his work by watching, waiting for the hand to create a perfect circle until-
8:01PM. He sighed and rubbed his eyes.
The classroom was packed with computers lining along the sides of two of the room's walls, completely devoid of human interaction with the exception or Archie, who sat at the front of the room – the lecturer's desk, which sat before the start of a large window that took up half of the front wall, partly an architectural design, but mostly a convenience for those he helped to teach where sunlight wasn't a common occurrence to them.
He stayed behind to finish off some work that he had been tasked; Archie wasn't exactly new to the trade, but his employment as a junior tutor meant that he had to watch alongside one of the main lecturers who taught at the campus.
Back then, he was mistaken to be a student himself, and caught the attention of quite a few people as he walked through the corridors, but it seemed lately that people had just gotten used to his style – the bright hair and bright eyes; his way of talking and the style of his clothes, which usually consisted of a similarly bright shirt with a waistcoat, trousers and shoes to match. The 'big deal', one of the other part-timers noted during the early stages. But Archie thought little of it, more that it would make him stand out a little more in his work.
But of all the days – 'Michaela's birthday,' he thought – of all the days he had to be asked to stay behind and go through student coursework, the lecturer decided it had to be this one. Archie stared miserably at a pile of papers on the desk. It wasn't the fact that it was thin, or reasonably small, and could easily be dealt with – it was, simply, that it HAD been dealt with, and if he looked away he would be staring at the significantly bigger and thicker pile on his other side. He groaned every time he did, and leant back in his chair with a pathetic flail of his arms at either side, imitating some sort of sea-mammal stranded on the beach with no hope in sight unless it was thrown back.
He lay like that for a short while; staring up at the ceiling, he pondered how he ever got to be so lazy. Here was a chance for him to work his way up in the job he'd tried so hard for to begin with, and all he could think about was finding a way to get home – and with good reason, too, for he knew too well that Michaela would be upset with him even after he'd called her to let her know he wasn't coming home for the usual time. Her response showed great displeasure, and Archie sighed once more as he rattled his brain for ways to make it up to her.
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Then, from out of nowhere, there came a knocking. Archie bolted upright and looked towards the door at the back of the room – a girl stood there, a small smirk creeping across her face. 'Damnit, she must have thought I was asleep!' Archie pondered. He wasn't too shocked – in fact, he was actually quite pleased to see another human still in the building. But still, it perplexed him, for the girl at the door was in fact one of the students in the class he helped to teach. "You're here late, Erin."
"I was in the library," She replied. "But I was kind of hoping you or Mark would still be around."
Erin was roughly a few years younger than Archie, which meant that she had a more relaxed tone when the two of them spoke. Her face was slightly rounded, but she was very pretty, and her somewhat plump body complimented her equally so.
She was, however, one of the first whose eye Archie caught, though he hadn't realised it until a few months in; he noticed on a few occasions that she'd give him a quick glance, usually followed by a longer one if he noticed, her small mouth teasing a grin as he would quickly turn back to the rest of the class, trying to hide his embarrassment.
It was never just the two of them alone, however. Never was there an opportunity, nor a need for the two to be in each other's presence without the rest of the class and Mark, the main lecturer, being there also. Archie had to shift a little in his seat – he knew it would be dangerous if the young lady tried anything more than what, unfavourably, had worked before...but it also wasn't tactful to ask her to leave. He was looking to become a junior tutor, after all – it was only right that he help the students where he could.
"Well, you couldn't have timed it better I guess." Archie smiled politely. "I'll probably get more done this way than by staring at all of this coursework." Erin giggled, and Archie followed with a soft chuckle, feeling a little more comfortable as he rose from his chair. "Might as well come in, then – see what I can do."
"Yeah, that was the hope." She entered the classroom and closed the door behind her – her remark produced yet another smirk, and Archie continued to smile awkwardly. He wondered if the majority of her facial expressions consisted of smirking – that, and boredom whenever she was in class. He often wondered why she bothered to come in most days – she didn't normally seem the slightest bit interested in what Mark had to say when it came to the course.
Erin placed her bag onto one of the desk and turned, sitting against it with an innocent smile back to the unsure male, who remained in place until he shook himself free of the apparent hold she'd already started having on him. "S-So, uh, what do you need help with?"
