Moore to Lose Read Online Free

She loved observing people and listening and definitely knew more about them than they knew about her. Not that anybody in the writing seminar had made any real effort to get to know her, but she could tell a lot about them through her observations.
    Tom Sheehan entered the classroom and put a stack of papers down on the desk at the front of the room. Mia was nervous about getting her poem back. She hoped he didn’t hate it. Hanging out with him on Saturday had been really fun – he was very cool, although a little intimidating, and she felt like a kid around him. Mia wondered if she would ever feel as sophisticated as some of the other girls in the class. They seemed so sure of themselves around him. Mia felt self-conscious.
    He started to walk around the room, returning the assignments by slapping them on people’s desks, face down. Uh-oh, he does not appear to be happy was her initial thought. When he got to her desk in the back, he smiled at her and gently laid the paper down. A look passed between them, but Mia wasn’t quite sure what he was trying to relay. It made her uncomfortable and she was pissed that she hadn’t worn sunglasses. She wanted to hide. And he was so damn cute. Not smart to have a prof crush on a twenty-seven year old single guy. Her prof crush on Rick Stevens was safe – he was older and married and definitely would not sleep with his students. Tom Sheehan, on the other hand, was a player. Smart, sexy, witty – but definitely a player.
    Mia took a deep breath and turned over the paper. She let out a little surprised “Huh” sound. Tom had given her an A+ and written on the paper was, “I’m so proud of you.” Mia looked up and Tom was looking at her, gauging her reaction. She beamed at him, surprised. His face remained neutral, but his eyes were sparkling. Mia smiled at him, a full devil grin and he returned her smile briefly. She looked back down at her paper, feeling very proud.
    She read over her poem and could feel the sting at the back of her eyes. Did you ever really love me, Schooner? Why the elaborate ruse? Flying high, a flirtation with the sun. She was Icarus. He was the sun. And that brief flirtation melted her wings. Who was she kidding? Her wings were the least of the damage. He had her heart. And she didn’t know if she’d ever get it back. She hated him for the betrayal and missed him and loved him and hated him. He and CJ probably had gotten a good laugh over it. Why had he betrayed her like that? She could feel her throat closing up.
    Tom was at the front of the class talking and she had not heard a word he had said. She focused in. Holy shit, he was ripping the class a new one, embarrassed for them that they would turn in what they turned in. Wow – only two people got a passing grade on the assignment. Was he serious? She wondered who the other person was with the passing grade.
    Tom sat on the edge of his desk. “What makes writing great?” Mia smiled to herself, but did not raise her hand. Clearly, he was trying to see if anyone else in the class could answer.
    Jacqueline’s hand was the first up, “Strong subject matter.”
    Tom nodded his head, “Ok. What else?”
    Chrissie raised her hand, “Descriptive writing. I mean, like heavy use of descriptions and imagery.”
    Tom nodded again and moved on. He pointed a finger at Matt, a thin, geeky kid. “Uh, the ability to get your point across clearly.”
    Tom didn’t even acknowledge Matt. “Mia, what makes writing great?”
    Mia locked eyes with Tom. “Honesty. Writing needs to be honest.”
    “Thank you. Writing needs to be honest to be great,” he sighed, punctuating each word while pacing to the front of the room. “How many of you feel that your work, the assignment that you just turned in, came from a place of complete honesty?”
    Hands shot up like flags in a stiff breeze. Mia gingerly raised hers to half-staff.
    Tom shook his head. “Seriously? You really think your writing was honest? Was it gut