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It was supposed to be a simple class. Baxter was a bioengineer, but he liked to branch out to other fields as well. Which is why he had asked to Sir Pentious to teach him the basics of working with machines.
The snake had been elated. It turned out he loved talking about his job, which wasn't all that surprising, since he was usually joyful talking to Baxter; probably because he was the only person he talked to. And while Baxter didn't talk to others because he did not see the point, Pentious didn't because he had a hard time with it. According to him, he had been like that in life too (Pentious didn't seem keen on talking too much about it, so he didn't press the issue further).
But as long it was only Baxter, Pentious was a chatterbox. He was a loud, abrasive person, which contrasted with Baxter's much more quiet personality. So it wasn't surprising that he was this fired up talking about his inventions. Baxter wrote notes furiously fast on his notebook, usually looking at it, with quick glances to the machinery Pentious was gesturing towards.
It was interesting, Baxter thought looking at Pentious for a moment, how enthusiastic he got about his job. Usually, Sir Pentious didn't have much confidence. Oh, he postured it, but it took nothing to reveal the emotional mess he truly was. With his machines, however...
Baxter observed his sharp, determined motions. He truly was in his element, and he clearly enjoyed having an audience. It was interesting to see him talking about something he clearly knew well, and did so with great enthusiasm. It really was nice to see him so self assured.
"Sorry, am I going too fast?" Pentious looked at Baxter curiously.
With an embarrassed startle, Baxter realized he had stopped taking notes awhile ago. He didn't remember what the snake had been saying, either.
"Uh..." What was wrong with him? He was trying to learn Pentious' side of technology, not to stare at him idiotically. How the hell was he going to explain himself?
"Um." Nothing. He had nothing to justify himself with, which was definitely one of his most shameful moments.
"Oh, did you get lost?" Pentious asked, saving him from further embarrassment.
"...Yes." He hated admitting that, but he had no other choice.
"That's alright!" Pentious tried in vain to reassure him. "Just tell me the last thing you wrote down, and I'll re explain from there."
Blushing despite himself, Baxter read aloud his last annotation.
"You didn't miss that much!" He tried to reassure him again. "Okay, beginning with..."
Baxter gripped his notebook with strength. He wasn't going to get distracted again. The strange hotness in his face would go ignored, as well as the odd feeling on his chest at seeing Pentious so happy.
This time, he was going to focus on what was truly important.