Work Text:
"I don't think he's that bad," Ella tries.
"Ella, get with the program," Maze says. "We're bashing on the new guy, not trying to forgive him."
"Thank you, Maze," Chloe says. "He's just so obnoxious. He's not just that way to me, right?"
"No," Linda says. "I don't mind him, but he's definitely not just that way with you."
The teacher's lounge is full of gossip pretty much every day anyway, but a new teacher is always room for more. She's pretty sure the other table is discussing Mr. Morningstar, too, though they seem taken with him, which is the polar opposite of how Chloe feels about him.
"I know the students think he's great," Chloe says. "But God, if I go the rest of my life without bumping into him, it'll still be too soon."
"Is his first name really Lucifer or was Dan still just annoyed?" Ella asks.
"Nah, that's real," Maze says. Maze teaches Health, but she's mostly there to coach as many sports teams as they can give her. She's single-handedly made them a force to be reckoned with, sports-wise, and has been trying to get an axe-throwing team approved for the entire time she's been here.
Ella, in chemistry, says, "Look, physics is not my thing, but he's really good with the students! They're like, not afraid to ask him questions or anything."
"That's worse, almost," Chloe grumbles. "I have to struggle to get my students to care about Shakespeare and he gets them interested about math? Math?"
"Physics isn't math," Linda says, just as Maze says, "I know, right?"
"Maze, you're only teaching so you can teach teenagers how to beat other teenagers at sports."
"Still," Maze says. "Principle of the thing."
It's fine. Tolerable. At least, it is until the school decides to remodel the science classrooms, and shoves every class but chemistry in Chloe's wing.
The hallways get even more crowded, the students even more easily distracted, and worst of all, Lucifer fucking Morningstar's classroom is right across from hers. It means seeing his downright-inappropriate grin every morning as she rushes to class with her coffee. It means students who have his class before hers talking about it as they walk over, and she knows she shouldn't be jealous her students are enjoying one of their classes, but--God, really, Morningstar?
Worst of all, it means that if she glances over when she's grading or lecturing, she can see him, teaching, and that's--bad. It's just bad.
He's not a bad teacher, she knows that, so she's not sure why it bugs her so much. It just bothers her.
She's in the middle of lecturing about the latest book on the syllabus, thankfully one of her favorites, even if it is cheesy, when Lucifer Morningstar interrupts her lecture for the first time. Even before he gets the first word out of her mouth, she knows it won't be the last.
"Decker," he says.
"I'm teaching, can it wait?" Chloe asks, trying to convey the full force of stop-talking with her glare.
"Not really," he says casually. "My tablet stopped working and I need to project my lecture, can I borrow yours?"
"No," Chloe says instinctually and immediately, even though she really has no reason to refuse. She's not using hers--prefers to just use the whiteboard. "Call IT? I'm in the middle of lecturing."
"Physics is important, Decker," Lucifer says, and the implication there makes Chloe stop.
"So," Chloe says. "I really don't want to interrupt my lecture, but you're so wrong I'm going to have to stop and explain why."
Her entire class starts oohing, one student saying, "Oh, Mr. Morningstar's fucked."
"Language," they both say, immediately, though Lucifer sounds more impressed than annoyed.
"It's not that physics isn't important," Chloe says. "But students aren't going to use it nearly as much as they're going to use what they learn here unless they go into, like, engineering or something--"
"Decker--"
"And understanding media, and the messages there, is important, okay? You need to know when someone is trying to manipulate you. Especially now, I mean, the media's not exactly the most honest it's ever been--"
"Decker," Lucifer says, glancing at the class, but she's too busy glaring at him to look at her students.
"So don't you dare imply--"
"I'm not, Decker," Lucifer says, finally managing to interrupt her. "I just would like to make sure I finish my lecture before my test tomorrow."
"Oh," Chloe says. She finally glances over to her class, and gets the sense they've been looking between the two teachers like they're watching a ping pong match. "Lead with that, next time?"
Lucifer smiles at her, finally, and it's an actually nice, genuine smile.
Shit.