Note: My jobs have been busy this week, but luckily things should be dying down. I couldn't find a perfect song for this chapter so I quickly made a quote on spot.

And during the seven years of being together

How many times have we been honest

I can count on one hand 

-RJMidnight 

Looking down as he walked to his front door, Nine gnawed on his bottom lip. He started to feel guilty for what he had done. 

At that moment, everything felt so good, and he no longer thought of everything tearing him apart. But it was still wrong. 

He made his choice based on emotions instead of thinking things through. How many times has he made decisions due to his feelings? And Nine did not mean instincts; he meant silly emotions that start filling his mind. 

What are you doing, Nine? Why do I always make mistakes? 

Sighing, Nine looked up once he reached his house's door, only to see Quin. Quin glanced back as they stared at each other with lingering questions. "Why are you back so late?" They simultaneously spoke. 

It was 12 in the morning, almost reaching one, and they were returning home. 

Nine grabbed his neck, rubbing it as he bit his lip again. Looking at Quin face to face made his guilty feeling intensify. He swallowed, looking away from Quin to stare at the door, "You said you would be back late, but I didn't think it would be this late." 

"And I didn't expect to see you returning home at this time. I thought you would already be inside taking a nap." Quin responded, watching Nine, who would not stare at him. 

"I was busy." Nine quickly answered. 

"So was I." 

Silence filled the area for almost a minute before Nine finally faced Quin and laughed. "You know, if anyone heard our conversation, they would think we are doing something bad." After speaking those words, Nine wanted to hit his head. 

Now, he is letting his guilt slip to his lips. 

Quin stepped closer, grabbing Nine's hand that still rubbed his neck, causing Nine to flinch from the touch and proximity. "Quin." Nine startled. 

Ignoring Nine's earlier words, Quin asked, "Is something wrong with your neck? You keep rubbing it." 

Nine stepped back, pulling Quin's hand off him, breathing hard as his eyes frantically looked around, "I-It is nothing. I am tired; can we already go inside?" He rushed toward the door, pulling out his key as he shakily tried unlocking it. 

Quin raised an eyebrow at Nine's weird behavior, stepping behind him as he gripped the hand that tried to unlock the door. His lips rested near Nine's ear as he whispered, "What is wrong with you?" 

Feeling Quin behind him, Nine could not help leaning back against Quin with a sigh. It had been some time since he felt Quin pressed against him like this. He almost closed his eyes when Quin whispered his name, causing Nine to remember what he did before coming home. 

"Nine?" Quin whispered. 

But his mind instantly went toward: "Nine, don't stop moving your hips like that." 

Nine jolted awake, leaning forward, hitting against the door, "Quin, what are you doing?" 

"I should be asking you that. You are acting weird, Nine." Quin responded, glancing at Nine's face as something caught his attention. He grabbed Nine's chin, pulling Nine's head back, focusing on his lips, "And you need to stop biting your bottom lip. Look, it's swollen." 

Fuck me. Nine thought. Why is Quin doing this to me? Especially after I did something wrong. At least my boyfriend still attracts me after sleeping with someone else. God, that sounds bad in my head. 

Nine felt his mind going into hyperdrive, causing him to push Quin back. "I know, so give me space to open the door." 

Quin stepped back, giving Nine space as Nine unlocked the door and walked inside. 

Quickly taking off his shoes, Nine ran away, hastily speaking behind him, "I am tired and going to sleep." 

As he watched Nine run away, Quin sighed, running his hand through his hair, not understanding why Nine was acting crazy. 

Nine reached the bedroom door, closing it behind him while hitting the back of his head against it. "Nine, calm yourself. You made your decision; it is not something you can take back." He spoke out loud. 

During his mini-reassuring talk, Nine felt his phone vibrate. He pulled it out, seeing a text from Vee. 

Vee: Did you make it home safely? 

Nine squeezed his eyes shut, wanting to scream. He wondered if he should answer or ignore it. "This should only be once. I should cut off any more conversations with him. We only need to keep a student-professor relationship from now on." 

Even though he told himself that, his fingers moved on their own before he set his phone on the nightstand and went to take a shower. 

Nine: Yes, I did. 

Nine set down a plate on the table, grabbing his bag before walking toward the front door. He put his shoes on, getting ready to walk out when Quin appeared. 

"Hey," Nine greeted, "I made you breakfast; the plate is on the table." 

"Thanks." Quin hummed, scratching his stomach. 

"Are you off today?" Nine asked, seeing that Quin was still in pajamas instead of work clothes. Last night, they did not sleep in the same bed because Nine felt too guilty to sleep next to him. 

"I have work around three," Quin answered. 

"Oh." Nine grabbed Quin's hand, rubbing it, "Then, can we eat lunch together today?" 

Quin glanced at Nine's hand in his before peering at Nine's face, "If I don't get called in earlier, then we can." 

Nine broadly smiled, "Awesome." He quickly kissed Quin, leaving out the door. 

Hopefully, he and Quin could eat lunch together. 

Nine walked into the cafeteria, making his way over to his friends, that were already at their usual table. He set his bag on the table as he sat down. "Good morning." 

"Ugh, how is the morning good? My car broke down, and I had to get a ride with my sister. You know how disgusting it was to see her and Lee spreading PDA." Jon gagged. 

Cassy slapped her brother's head, "Shut up, idiot. You are the one who called for a ride." 

"That is because Nine lives further from me!" Jon tried to defend himself. "I rather bleach my precious eyes than let you be the first choice in anything." 

Lee laughed, "Brother-in-law, no need to speak such beautiful words." 

Jon slapped the table, pointing at Lee, "Brother-in-law, my ass! You better be lucky we are friends, Lee, because I swear." 

"You swear nothing." Cassy hit Jon again, causing Jon to glare at her. 

Nine laughed at them, enjoying the daily sibling fight. Jon and Cassy always put him in a good and light mood. "Did you two get your daily quota of fights in?" Nine jokingly asked. 

"No." Jon and Cassy simultaneously answered. 

They all laughed, stopping when Cassy pointed something out. "Oh look, those girls over there are going crazy because Professor Vee walked in." 

Jon, Lee, and Nine glanced over to where Cassy was pointing. Nine felt his heart dropping into his stomach from seeing Vee. And once he saw Vee smiling at the girls, he had to look down at the table. His hands gripped the table as he swallowed a lump in his throat. 

"Ah, look, he is already seducing the students. I knew his looks would be a problem. Yesterday, I knew that most of the class barely heard his words. Some of the people in the classroom looked lost on him." Jon commented. 

"You think everyone would fail this semester or pass?" Lee wondered.

"Does anyone pass that class with flying colors, even if someone else was the professor?" Cassy asked them. 

"Definitely not." Jon quickly responded, looking away to shake his head. "Calculus makes you want to tear your hair out." 

"Speak for yourself; Nine and I have no problems. Right, Nine?" Lee turned to look at Nine. 

Nine barely heard their conversation, staring at the table while biting his lip. His knuckles were turning white from his tight grip as he kept pushing away the images from last night. 

He thought he had a grip this morning until he saw Vee. He could feel his mind slipping again. 

"Nine?" Lee called, reaching over to shake Nine's shoulders. 

Nine jolted from the touch, "Huh?" 

"Are you listening?" Lee asked. 

"He is doing it again, ignoring us," Jon complained. 

Nine shook his head, "No, I am not; I am thinking about Professor Cora's quiz today." 

"There is a quiz today!" Jon groaned, hitting his head on the table. 

"Haha, you are such an idiot, brother." Cassy chuckled. 

Successfully changing the conversation, Nine finally looked back up, only to glance in Vee's direction. They locked eyes, causing Nine's heart to start beating hard. 

Vee smiled at him, mouthing words that had Nine over the edge last night. 

Nine quickly looked away, shaking his leg while remembering his words from last night when he went home. 

It is only one time Nine, and you will never do it again. We will only have a student-professor relationship. 

If only he could stick to his words.