Texting My Brothers Cold Blooded Professor

My younger brother, Cooper, had finally reached his breaking point with his dissertation advisor.

He came to my apartment, practically vibrating with tectonic levels of stress. Natalie, you dont understand, he groaned, burying his face in his hands. The man doesnt just give feedback. He uses his words like biological weapons.

I didnt understand. Honestly, I couldn't.

My life had always been a series of paved roads and open doors. I was the girl who cruised through life on a wave of gold stars and "well dones." Even my romantic life was effortless; I was currently deep in a digital romance with a man Id met online who was the personification of a warm blanket. He had a voice like velvet, a soul that seemed perpetually anchored, and a way of saying exactly what I needed to hear to make my heart do that embarrassing little skip-beat.

But for the sake of Coopers failing mental health, I decided to intervene. I would meet this "monster" of a professor and have a civilized, stern talk about the boundaries of constructive criticism.

Then I saw him.

The cold, sharp-tongued Dr. Adrian Thorne looked exactly like the man Id been falling for behind a screen for the last year.

To test my theory, I hovered outside his office door, heart hammering against my ribs, and sent a text to my mystery man: Im having a moment. I need you to comfort me. Right now.

Inside the room, the young, formidable professor glanced at his phone. He stood up abruptly and walked toward the balcony.

Cooper looked like he was facing a firing squad. "Great. Hes probably going to yell at someone else now. Were just collateral damage."

But I didn't hear Cooper. I was too busy staring at my phone, frozen, as a voice memo popped up.

The day after Cooper submitted his first draft, he looked like a ghost of himself.

When I asked what was wrong, a single, tragic tear escaped the corner of his eye. He didn't speak. He just turned his laptop screen toward me so I could read the "notes" his advisor had left on his manuscript.

I read them, and for the first time in my life, I was speechless.

Ive read historical fiction before, but this is the first time Ive read a historical pile of garbage.

Come to my office tomorrow. I need to see if youve been possessed by a malevolent spirit or if this is genuinely your best work.

Are you so in love with this university that youve decided never to graduate?

Thankfully, only the two of us have read this. Lets keep it that way.

Keep writing. Once youre finished, we can finally start the rewrite.

Your narrative structure is more chaotic than the Fall of Rome.

The final blow came in the acknowledgments section. The professor had left one blistering remark:

I appreciate the sentiment, but if you truly want to thank me, leave my name out of this.

I glanced at the top of the syllabus. Dr. Adrian Thorne.

A sophisticated name for a man with a mouth like a serrated blade.

Cooper was at the point where the mere sound of a laptop opening gave him palpitations. "Hes a demon, Nat," he whispered, his voice trembling. "Do you have any idea what its like to live in fear like this?"

I didn't.

Compared to my poor brother, I was the universes favorite child. As the only girl in my generation of the family, Id been pampered since the cradle. School, career, social lifeit had all been a green light.

And then there was my guy. My digital sanctuary. His voice was steady, his temperament was a calm sea, and he spent his evenings making me feel like the most important woman in the world.

So, no, I couldn't relate to Cooper's trauma.

Cooper yanked at his hair. "Im never going to graduate. Every time my phone pings with an email notification, I think my heart is going to stop. Hes terrifying. Maybe I should just drop out."

"Drop out?" I panicked. "Absolutely not. You worked your tail off for this. You stayed up through the heat of summer and the dead of winter in that library. Cooper, you aren't quitting."

If he dropped out, he wouldn't get his Masters. If he didn't get his Masters, his job search would double in length. Which meant hed be living on my couch, eating my groceries, and draining my sanity for the foreseeable future.

Cooper looked moved by my sudden "support."

I doubled down. "Look, your paper probably isn't even that bad. Your advisor is just being a pedantic jerk. Hes nitpicking."

Cooper blinked. "You really think so?"

I nodded firmly. "Im sure of it."

Cooper mentioned that his advisor was only three years older than mejust hitting twenty-nine.

It caught me off guard. Dr. Thorne was the same age as my online boyfriend.

Yet they were polar opposites. One was a poet of affirmation; the other was a walking hazard.

Determined to save Coopers degree, I decided to take the professor out for a "diplomatic" lunch. It wasn't about getting Cooper a free pass. It was about humanizing the target. I figured if the professor had someone else to vent his frustrations onnamely memaybe hed dial back the cruelty on my brother.

Before heading to the campus, I sent a text to my guy.

Going to handle a major life crisis for my brother. Wish me luck.

The reply was almost instant.

No matter what happens, youre incredible for doing this. Youve got this, baby.

He was always like that. Constant validation, even when he didn't have the full story.

I smiled and gave him a few more details. He typed back: Ive always believed in positive reinforcement. Pushing students too hard usually backfires. You're doing the right thing.

See? My man and I were on the same wavelength. Soulmates.

I was grinning at my phone when Cooper, sitting in the passenger seat, turned a sickly shade of gray. "Nat, maybe we should just call it off?"

I put my phone away. "We can't call it off. I'm getting you across that finish line if it kills me."

Standing outside the faculty office in the Science Building, I looked through the glass partition and then slowly pulled back.

My face went blank. "Cooper? Change of plan. Let's go."

"Wait, why?"

"Just... stick it out for a few more months. You can do it."

"Nat, what are you talking about?"

I wanted to know too. I wanted to know why Dr. Adrian Thorne, the academic butcher of dreams, looked identical to the man Id been e-dating for a year.

I thought maybe I was hallucinating. I peeked again. Nope. The jawline, the way his glasses sat on the bridge of his noseit was him.

We had never met in person. Wed met in a rescue dog forum a couple of years ago. I was on a business trip in a different city when I saw a shivering puppy on the side of a highway. I was already on the ramp and couldn't stop safely, so I posted an SOS in the local rescue group.

A user named "Lavender" replied an hour later. He asked for the exact coordinates.

The next message I got was a photo of the pup. Dont worry. Ive got him. Hes safe, a bit shaken, but the vet says hes okay.

I felt a massive wave of relief. I tried to Venmo him a few hundred dollars for the vet bills, but he wouldn't accept it. Later, I saw him posting updates about the dog. He had been in that city for work too, but he ended up adopting the pup and taking him back to his home city.

My heart melted. I added him on social media just to see more of the dog.

Eventually, the pet updates turned into daily "good mornings." We shared our lives, our hobbies, our secrets. We were in sync. In the digital world, we were everything to each other.

Then, he became my boyfriend.

Once, he sent a video of the dog playing, and for a split second, he passed a mirror. I saw himhalf-rimmed glasses, sharp features, handsome in a way that felt both intellectual and rugged, wearing a charcoal sweater. He looked like a dream.

I hadnt slept for half the night after seeing that.

Now, standing outside that office, my mind was racing. The world couldn't be this small. Besides, Adrian Thorne was a cold-blooded critic. My guy was a sweetheart. They couldn't be the same person.

But I had to be sure. I pulled out my phone. Hey baby, what are you up to?

He replied in seconds. Just at work. Why, you okay?

I looked into the office. Adrian Thorne was typing furiously at his desk, his expression stern. It was impossible to tell.

I decided to be a little high-maintenance. Im in a bad mood. I need you to comfort me. Right now.

Cooper caught a glimpse of my screen and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Natalie! Are you serious? You're flirting with some guy while my future is at stake?"

I pushed him aside, my eyes glued to the man in the office.

Adrians hands stopped. He picked up his phone. Two seconds later, he stood up and walked out to the balcony.

Bzzzt.

A voice memo.

I stepped into a quiet corner, my fingers trembling as I tapped play.

"Can you talk? Tell me what's wrong. Im here. Im always here for you."

His voice was low, melodic, and devastatingly tender.

My heart didn't just skip; it did a full gymnastic routine. But not because of the romance. It was because in the background of that voice memo, I heard a faint, rhythmic cheering.

I looked out the hallway window at the small courtyard next to the building. A group of college guys were playing basketball. Every time someone scored, a cheer erupted.

The cheers in the courtyard matched the background of the voice memo perfectly.

Adrian Thorne was my boyfriend.

Before I could process the cosmic irony, the phone started ringing. An audio call.

I panicked and hit decline. I typed back: It's okay now. I just can't talk at the moment.

I shoved the phone into my bag and turned to Cooper. "I have to go. You're on your own with the professor."

There was no way in hell I was "meeting" my boyfriend like this. I turned to bolt.

Cooper sighed. "You're right. It was a bad idea." He kicked a loose tile on the floor. "It wouldn't look good for you to have lunch with him alone anyway. If his wife found out, she'd probably lose it."

I froze. My neck felt like it was made of rusted iron as I slowly turned back. "His... wife?"

The words felt like they were being squeezed out of my lungs.

Cooper didn't notice my meltdown. "Yeah. I mean, Ive never seen her, but the upperclassmen say hes married. Apparently, shes got a hell of a temper."

Right. Perfect.

Suddenly, it all made sense. The stable personality, the smooth-talking, the "perfect" emotional supporthed had plenty of practice with a wife at home.

And why was he a monster at school? Because he was venting all the frustration he couldn't show his "fierce" wife.

And I... I was the "other woman." The digital mistress.

I almost laughed. It was either that or screaming. I had to restrain myself from storming into that office and tearing him apart.

"Cooper?"

A deep, baritone voice echoed from the doorway.

I stiffened. Adrian Thorne was standing there, watching us. There were barely six feet between us. His eyes locked onto mine. After two seconds of intense scrutiny, I was the one who looked away.

This was a university. I wouldn't make a scene. Not with Coopers future on the line.

I forced a brittle, fake smile. "Hello, Professor. Im Coopers sister, Natalie."

Adrian continued to stare at me. He looked... dazed.

Even Cooper noticed the weird vibe. "Professor?"

Adrian snapped out of it, but his voice sounded uncharacteristically strained. "Hello."

I nodded, wanting to be anywhere else. "I just wanted to ask you to look out for my brother. Id love to take you to lunch to discuss his progress, but if youre too busy, we can just rain-check..."

I expected a rejection. I was counting on it. I wanted to run.

But the man had nerves of steel.

"I have time," he said.

Cooper looked at his advisor like hed just grown a second head. I was equally stunned.

A second later, I looked down at my carefully curated outfita silk blouse and tailored trousersand it hit me.

The bastard isn't just a cheater. Hes a predator.

Id spent my whole life winning, and here I was, failing spectacularly at a digital relationship.

An hour later.

At the restaurant, the three of us sat in a silence so thick you could cut it with a dull steak knife. Cooper nudged me under the table.

"Nat, why did you pick this place? The food here is notoriously terrible."

That was the point.

I wasn't going to give a man like Adrian a five-star meal.

The service was fast, unfortunately. I gestured toward the plates with fake enthusiasm. "Please, Dr. Thorne, try the steak. It's supposed to be... memorable."

Adrian smileda small, enigmatic thingand cut into his steak. He took a bite, chewed, and then paused.

Cooper looked pained. "Professor, if you don't like it, you don't have to force it. We can go somewhere"

"It's actually quite good," Adrian said, his expression remaining perfectly polite and warm. "I like it."

I gripped my fork so hard my knuckles turned white. Looking at his hypocritical face, I felt my composure slipping. The lunch was agonizing. I exchanged a few stiff pleasantries about Coopers academics, and then we lapsed back into silence.

Halfway through, I excused myself to pay the bill. The hostess stopped me. "The gentleman already took care of it."

It wasn't my cheapskate brother.

"When?" I asked, stunned.

"A few minutes ago."

Adrian had used the bathroom as an excuse to settle the check.

I felt a surge of complicated annoyance. I felt like I owed him something now, which I hated. Especially because the food sucked.

I walked back to the table and watched him finish the last of his steak. He seemed to be enjoying it.

Is he for real?

I took a bite of my own steak. I chewed. And chewed. And chewed.

It was like trying to eat a Goodyear tire.

I swallowed hard, nearly choking, and reached frantically for my water. Before I could grab it, a glass was placed in my hand.

Long, elegant fingers. Well-manicured. Nothing like my brothers stubby hands.

I looked up. Adrian was watching me, a hint of a smile playing in his eyes.

I looked down, my heart sinking. He was flirting. He was actually trying to charm me.

And the worst part?

Thump-thump. Thump-thump.

My heart was actually racing.

It was a workday, and everyone had things to do. We parted ways quickly after lunch.

I drove Cooper to a local diner to get some actual food. As we sat down, I got a message from "Lavender."

Did you get home safe?

Baby, are you free? Can I call you?

God, hes a master of time management, I thought bitterly.

I stared at the messages. Thinking about him as a married man made my skin crawl. Without another thought, I typed back: Weve been doing this a long time, but I dont think were right for each other. Its over. Don't contact me again.

Send. Block. Delete.

I leaned back in the booth and closed my eyes. Adrian Thorne was exactly my type physically, but I couldn't do the "other woman" thing. It made me furious.

If he wasn't Coopers advisor, I would have burned his life down today. But for my brother's sake, I had to swallow the bitter pill.

Two months, I told myself. Just wait until he graduates.

I glared at Cooper. "You better work on that paper!"

Cooper jumped. "Okay, okay! I got it!"

He finished eating quickly and started scrolling through his phone. Suddenly, he let out a loud laugh. "Oh man, this poor guy."

He showed me his screen. "I just found a post on a forum. This guy says he went on a first date with his long-term online girlfriend today, and she blocked him right after lunch. He thinks it's because he ate too much. Ha!"

I wanted to laugh, but I couldn't. I was a casualty of the same war.

I spent the rest of the afternoon in a funk, thinking I was finally done with Adrian Thorne.

I was wrong. We met again that very night.