Page 37 of Robbin’ the Rich

“I bet the kids like having a teacher like you. I know I would have paid better attention in science if you were my teacher.” Robin smiled at me before shyly looking down at her burger. That expression pulled at something inside of me. I had yet to see her soft expression. And I should tell her the truth about my family, and I would tell her the truth. Just not right now. Not when she’s looking at me like that.

So, we finished our dinner. We found lighter topics and the conversation slowed as easy as it had before. It flowed easier than it had any right to. By the time we left the restaurant, my cheeks hurt from smiling. Which felt weirdly miraculous considering thirty minutes earlier I’d nearly detonated my own life in the middle of a burger place.

But Robin had smiled at my student and let the conversation shift naturally afterward. And somehow, the moment passed without exposing the giant terrifying truth sitting in the middle of the table between us.

Even if guilt still sat heavy beneath my ribs the entire drive afterward.

Robin gazed out the window while I drove. “You know,” she said casually, “I still think Star Wars would absolutely destroy Star Trek in a fight.”

“That is objectively incorrect.”

“You literally have one spaceship and optimism.”

“We have diplomacy.”

“You have feelings.”

“Wow. Says the woman attached to a franchise where every solution is ‘laser sword.’”

“It’s a very effective laser sword.”

I laughed helplessly while she smirked out the passenger window like she’d won something. God. Being around her felt easy in a way I hadn’t experienced in a long time.

“You know what?” I said finally. “No. I refuse to let you continue slandering Star Trek without proper education.”

Robin looked over suspiciously. “Are you about to assign me homework?”

“Yes.”

“That’s incredibly unattractive teacher behavior.”

“I’m willing to risk it.”

She laughed softly. “Okay then, Professor. What’s the plan?”

I glanced over at her. “Let’s go back to your place. I’ll show you the perfect episode.”

Robin narrowed her eyes immediately. “This feels like there might be an alternative motive.”

“It’s more of a dual motive.”

“Hm.”

“You’ll like it.”

“That confidence is concerning.”

“You already slept with me. Your judgment is clearly compromised.”

Robin barked out a laugh so sudden it startled both of us.

Back at her apartment, she changed into soft pajama shorts and an oversized hoodie while I commandeered her couch and judged her streaming services.

“How many horror shows do you watch?” I asked, horrified.

“Enough to know how to dispose of a body.”

“And I’m supposedly the one with serial killer behavior.”