After her bath, Iris felt somewhat better. She was now ready to talk to Beau. She wrapped a towel around her body and wrapped her hair up into a towel. Iris then left her bathroom and went into her bedroom. She picked up the phone which was on the nightstand. Iris quickly dialed Beau's phone number.

He answered and she said a quick hello. Iris then informed him that she was coming over so they could talk. It was best to do it in person rather than over the phone. She then said bye and hung up. Iris went back into her bathroom to dry her hair.

After Iris got cleaned up and dressed, she left her apartment and headed over to Beau's apartment. Like Gabriel he didn't live too far away from her. In fact he wanted them to live together, but she told him no because she wanted a chance to live alone. When she got to his apartment, Iris knocked on the door,

Beau opened the door and let her in. He gave her a weak smile. "Hey."

"Hey," she said.

"Should we sit down?" He looked awkward about this whole thing.

Iris nodded her head. They then both walked over to the couch and sat down. Iris faced him and gave him a serious look. "What happened today was uncalled for."

He didn't say anything. Beau hung his shoulders low.

"I have every right to befriend Gabriel."

"I know," he finally said.

"You weren't like this in high school."

"That's because we had the same circle of friends. I can't help, but feel jealous of men I don't know. Especially since Gabriel is older than you."

Iris frowned. "What does his age have to do with anything?"

"Because women generally like older men."

He had a point. The older the man the more mature they acted. "Well I'm not interested in him romantically. I just want to be friends."

"But why? We have friends."

"I can have different friends. You hang out with people from your school which means I can hang out with people from my school."

"But he's your teacher!"

"So? Beau, I really want to be friends with someone who shares the same passion as me. And honestly I didn't go looking for a friendship. I just commissioned a dress from Gabriel because I like his designs and I wanted to wear something different. It just so happened we befriended each other."

He sighed. "Fine. Go for it.."

Iris smiled. "And next time you see Gabriel you need to apologize to him."

"What! Why?"

She frowned again. "For being rude to him."

"Fine," he said again, but this time in a slight whine.

Iris rolled her eyes. "Your behavior is the reason why women my age like older men."

"I can be mature."

"Then prove it," Iris said and smacked his arm gently with the couch pillow.

"Hey!"

Iris chuckled. "You're such a wimp."

"Hmph."

She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Well I need to go."

Beau looked upset. "What? Why?"

"I have homework."

"Oh, alright. Can we have dinner soon?"

"Sure. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Alright."

They both stood up and Beau saw her off. Iris walked down the hallway and down the stairs to the front doors of the apartment complex. She then walked out the doors and headed to her apartment. She was quite happy that their talk went okay. She hoped Beau would start acting more mature now. Maybe that was the reason why the spark was fading. She prayed that once he acted like an adult the spark would reignite.

Iris turned a corner. Then something hit her. She forgot to bring up him being controlling. Iris stopped and looked back. Should she bring it up the next time she talked to him? He was probably just acting that way because of jealousy. She nodded her head. Yes. Beau was not normally controlling. Iris then continued her way home.

Gabriel held a piece of fabric up to the mannequin that currently held the beginnings of Iris's dress, a needle carefully held in the side of his mouth alongside a few pins, as he lined it up the way he wanted. His perfectionist standards were too high for shoddy workmanship. Plus he wanted to impress Iris with his skills so that maybe she could help him with fashion connections.
 
"Tell me again why you called me over here, asked me to bring take out, and then decided this dress was more important than hanging out?" Nathalie asked, her voice pulling him out of his concentration. Somewhere along the line he had subconsciously told her to come in since the door wasn't locked and then forgot to stop what he was doing to greet her. 
 
He quickly took the pins and needle from his mouth and pushed the into the pin cushion nearby. "Sorry, Nathalie. You know how I get when I'm working..."
 
She eyed him with a frown that could not hide the subtle amusement in her eyes. "Of course. But if you're going to work tonight, why did you invite me over? Also, I want you to pay me back for the take out."
"I know. I'll bring it tomorrow," Gabriel answered as he stood and walked the short distance to the coffee table.  He cleared it off and then went to the kitchen to grab plates while Nathalie removed the food containers from the bag. She had chosen to get sandwiches from a cafe.  He set the plates down and reached for the sandwich she placed closer to him.
 
"Fine. But bring it before lunch. I'm low on cash this week."  She took a bite of her sandwich. Then she swallowed and looked at him. "So why did you ask me to come over?"
 
"Well... I wanted a second opinion on something.."
 
Nathalie raised an eyebrow, suddenly way more interested. "The great Gabriel Agreste wants a second opinion? That's new," she teased while her eyes still shone with interest.
 
Gabriel gave her an exasperated look. "Perhaps, I chose the wrong person to speak to," he said, his tone neutral.
 
"Don't be like that. You know I'm joking," Nathalie said, putting her sandwich down so she could cross her arms. Gabriel took another bite of his sandwich specifically to stall the conversation. Why had he thought this was a good idea?
 
"Hmph. Well, I was just wondering about something." He paused and she gave him a sharp stare as she waited for him to continue. "If I see a student who's making a bad life decision, how involved should I get? Should I even feel like I need to get involved?"
 
Nathalie stared at him, speechless. Not that he was surprised. He never cared about his students' personal lives. "What kind of decision is this student making?"
 
Gabriel pause, wondering if he really wanted to go down this rabbit hole. "Well... I think she's decided to marry someone that isn't going to be best for her.. She seems to think everything will be fine once they're married, but I know a bad relationship when I see one..."
 
Nathalie's eyes filled with suspicion. "So, you're worried because she's marrying a guy you don't think is right for her?"
 
"Well, yeah. That's what I said," Gabriel answered, not sure why she needed to clarify.
 
Nathalie took another bite of her sandwich, not taking her eyes off him. He could tell she was studying him. Finally, she smirked and answered his original question, “You really shouldn’t get involved. You’re an art professor, not a life coach; unless she’s being physically abused.” He frowned and opened his mouth to respond, but she held up a finger to keep him from talking while she continued, “However, wanting to get involved because you feel like this guy isn’t good for her tells me you two are close. The school year just started, and I don’t think you’ve ever become friends with anyone in such a short time. So, I need to ask. Do you have feelings for your student?”
 
“No. That’s preposterous. We became friends because I’ve been working with her for this dress. I’m just worried she’s going to make a choice she’ll regret…”
 
“Did you say anything to her about it?” Nathalie asked.
 
“Yes, but I’m not sure she understands how bad marrying this guy could be for her…”
 
Nathalie stared at him for a moment before giving him a sympathetic smile. “Unfortunately, that’s all you can do. She needs to make her own decisions and mistakes. Friends and professors can only give so much advice before they have to let a person deal with the consequences of their actions.”
 

Gabriel frowned. He didn’t like that answer.

Iris woke up the next morning (it's Monday) and got ready for the school day. After getting dress, Iris sat in her kitchen eating breakfast. Beside her on the table was her homework for Gabriel's class. She started to flip through it and wondered if it will please him.

The events from the weekend then came rushing through her mind. Iris let out a sigh and closed the sketchbook. What the hell was she doing? She really had no business befriending Gabriel. He was her teacher after all. It would be fine if he was a classmate. Iris stared at the kitchen wall. But she really wanted them to be friends. Iris finished her breakfast and cleaned up the kitchen. She then gather things and headed out the door.

Iris made her way to school. Once again she was going to be early for class. As she approached the school campus Iris noticed Gabriel in the distance. She picked up the pace and was able to catch up to him. "Good morning!" Iris couldn't help, but gave him a smile.

Gabriel looked in her direction, surprised. He hadn't expected to meet her this early. "Good morning." He wondered if he should ask her whether anything had changed with Beau. It had only been a night, but they could have spoken on the phone. He mentally decided to leave it. It wasn't any of his business. Like Nathalie said, he couldn't really do much about her decision. "How's it going?"

"Good," she replied and gave him another smile. "I have my homework ready to go!" Both of their pace slowed down as they were heading toward the school building. "I hope I get your seal of approval."

"I'm sure you will. You seem far more enthusiastic than most students," Gabriel answered. "I can't wait to see what you've come up with." They entered the doors of the building and headed toward the classroom.

Iris decided to mess with him. "Maybe they would be more enthusiastic if you were I don't know.." She tapped her finger on her chin. "More friendly?" She gave him a grin. They started to walk up some stairs.

He shrugged as they walked. "They're paying me to teach them, not to be their friend. If they want to be coddled, then they should choose a different major. I'm just happy I have one student who likes to be here," he said, giving her a small smile with his last comment.

They got up the stairs and headed in the direction toward the classroom. Iris returned his smile. She felt her heart leap for some reason. "You know, Gabriel you have a nice smile." She then quickly looked away out of embarrassment. Why did she say that? Iris could feel her cheeks turning red.

Gabriel's eyes widened as she looked away. Was she blushing? No. She couldn't be. That would be bad for multiple reasons, including the fact she was not only his student but she was also engaged. Why had he complimented her excitement for class in the first place? It was unnecessary and could give the wrong idea.

There was a moment where neither of them spoke before they finally made it to the door of the classroom. He bit his lip. "Well, we made it to class," he said, trying to not respond to the very obvious compliment.

She glanced at him. "Why yes we did." Iris went in first and took her seat. She placed her bag beside her desk and got out her homework. Iris then laid it out neatly. She glanced over at Gabriel and gave him a grin. "Want a sneak peak?"

Gabriel nodded and walked over to stand across from her and looked down at the homework on her desk. It looked good at first glance. "It looks good. Why don't you give me some details about the design and materials while we wait for the other students to arrive?"

Iris watched look over her homework. She felt drawn to him for some reason. Iris's gaze focused on his eyes. They were a lovely deep blue. She stared into to him and tuned out his question. Iris could stare into his eyes forever.

Gabriel coughed as he realized she was staring at him. The way she was staring into his eyes worried him; he thought he could see some kind of attraction in her gaze. And he thought he might just be feeling his cheeks flush a slight shade of pink.. Not good. She was engaged. "Iris... Did you hear my question?"

"Eh!" She snapped out her daze, when he coughed. Iris laughed sheepishly. "Uh no I didn't. Sorry I zone out for some reason." She avoided his gaze. Why did let herself be drawn him? She was engaged!? 

'An engagement you don't want,' her mind nagged her.

Iris pushed that thought away quickly. "So! Um what did you ask me?"