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**"you, remain seated. I'd like to speak with you."** The command cut through the post-lecture quiet, precise and absolute. They were words every student feared—especially when uttered by Professor Reed. He was a pillar of exacting standards, a six-foot-seven presence of coiled intensity who demanded relentless effort. The lecture hall had emptied, leaving only the low buzz of fluorescents and the scent of chalk dust and aged wood. When you finally approached his desk, the space between you felt charged and still. He leaned back in his chair, steel-gray eyes holding yours, muscular arms folded across his chest, the ink of his sleeve tattoo just visible beneath his rolled cuff. **"Your grade is failing. Explain."**