7. Evelyn
EVELYN
M onday morning rolled around, and I was a nervous wreck on my way to Professor West’s class. I knew I should just be happy that I was still there, but it felt like I was waiting for the rug to be pulled out from under me.
In a way, it was worse than the week before.
At least then, I knew that I’d be kicked off campus if I didn’t have my paper because I had no money to pay the school to reimburse them for the class.
I didn’t know when the bomb was going to drop.
I didn’t know if my paper had been graded yet, or if it had even been read.
I hoped that Professor West had a busy weekend and that he didn’t have time to look at it.
But putting off the inevitable wasn’t any better.
Eventually, I’d get a paper back, and I’d either pass or fail. I just didn’t know which to expect.
As I moved down the hallway, I saw Chase standing by the door.
He was holding his books against his hip, and he was shifting his weight from foot to foot like he was nervously waiting for something.
Then he looked up, and our eyes locked. We didn’t talk much at the party that Madison dragged me to, but I did catch him watching me many times.
In a way, it felt like something was just beginning.
I came to a stop outside the classroom and offered him a small smile. “Hey. How are you?”
He gave me a grin. “I’m good. How are you?”
I nodded as butterflies filled my stomach. “I’m good.”
“Good.” He was still smiling, still watching, yet he wasn’t moving or saying anything.
“I should probably get inside before I’m late.” I lifted my foot to take a step, but I put it down again when he sidestepped to stay directly in front of me.
“Actually, I was standing out here to wait for you.”
“You were?” I lifted my brows in surprise.
He let out a nervous chuckle. “Yeah, I was kind of hoping that maybe you’d go out to dinner with me sometime?”
“Oh,” I said, not even knowing how to answer. I was surprised he wanted to go out with me.
“I mean, if you want to. I don’t want to make you or anything. I just…” He shrugged. “I don’t know. I like you, and I’d really like to get to know you.”
I couldn’t help but smile at that. How could I turn that down?
“If you need to think about it?—”
“I don’t,” I blurted out. “Need to think about it, I mean. I, uh, yes. I would love to go to dinner with you.”
His blue eyes lit up, and he smiled so wide that those adorable dimples formed in his cheeks. “Really?”
I laughed and nodded.
“Great, how about?—”
“Are you two coming in anytime soon, or should we all expect invitations to your wedding by the end of class today?”
I turned my head to find Professor West standing near the door, glaring at me. Thanks to him, we had the rest of the class’s attention, too. Chase and I exchanged a look that said we’d pick up our conversation after class, and he followed me in.
“I’m sorry if we interrupted your proposal, Mr. James,” Professor West said as we both moved toward our seats.
“No apologies necessary, Professor,” Chase said, earning a few chuckles from our classmates.
I slid into my seat, and my attention went to the front of the class.
Elliot was clutching the edge of his wooden podium, causing his knuckles to turn white.
His eyes were narrowed and trained on mine, and his jaw was set in anger.
I diverted my eyes to the top of my desk so I didn’t have to see the disdain he had for me.
He was silent for several long seconds. Finally, he turned his attention to the class.
“I have everyone’s papers here graded and ready to return,” he said, stepping away from his podium as he picked up the stack of papers.
He moved to the far side of the room to start passing them out.
“It seems the subject matter was a little too challenging for some of you.” He dropped a paper on someone’s desk. I saw the way her eyes doubled in size.
God, please don’t let me fail this…
“I considered dropping this assignment from the syllabus, but then I realized how unfair that would be to all of my students who came before you and all that come after you.” He dropped another paper and moved up to the next desk in line.
“I also thought about making this an extra credit assignment, but I thought better on that as well. You people are adults. You have to take responsibility for your own actions. If I were to turn this around for you, none of you would learn a lesson, and we’d be right back here next week.
” He dropped another and another, slowly making his way toward me, one student at a time.
I watched him draw closer while glancing at the faces of every student who had gotten their paper back. Some looked relieved, as if they had expected worse, but there were many more who looked upset or angry over the grade they received.
Then Professor West put my paper on my desk. My heart pounded as I stared at the big, red F that was written on the front of my title page. A handwritten note read was written right below the letter.
Sign up for a meeting on your way out of class today.
I looked up to meet his gaze, but his steely eyes didn’t calm me. They only made me more panicked.
He turned and made his way back to the podium.
“There will be a signup sheet posted outside the door by the time you all leave class today. If you got a note to sign up for office hours, I suggest you do it on your way out. If you didn’t get a note, congratulations.
You’re now one of the top in the class. Everyone else, I suggest you put in more effort on your next assignment.
It’s a fine line you’re walking. I’d hate for you to fall behind, because it means you’ll spend the rest of the semester trying to play catch up, and that’s a slippery slope.
” He looked directly at me, causing me to sink a little lower into my seat.
I knew my paper was good. It was way too good to get an F.
That meant he knew that the paper wasn’t mine.
The question was, what did he plan on doing about it?
Was he going to turn me in to the dean, or was he going to give me another chance to write it?
If he wanted me out of his class, why didn’t he just turn me in immediately? Why drag it out?
That’s when I realized that it wasn’t just about getting rid of me.
It was about humiliating me in the process.
He wanted to play with me, have a little fun before ruining my life.
And for what? All over something my brother did, how many years ago?
I hoped that Gabe really enjoyed whatever it was that pissed Elliot off so much because I was the one he was taking it out on, and something told me that he wasn’t going to take it easy either.
He was going to bend me until I snapped.
How could a person change so much in such a short time?
There wasn’t even a shadow of the guy I once knew.
Elliot and Professor West were like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
He was once sweet, kind, and caring, but that version of him was gone.
He’d been replaced with the angry and bitter professor who was determined to destroy me.
When class was dismissed, I gathered my things and made a break for it, my heart in my throat.
Sitting by the windows was my safe space, but it also meant I was the furthest from the door. By the time I got to the sign-up sheet, the only time slot left was the one at the end of the day. I scribbled my name on the list and left without a backward glance, my pulse thudding in my ears.
I spent the day battling anxiety as the clock ticked down the seconds until I had to meet with him.
I tried not to think about what was going to happen, and I was contemplating just running.
I forced myself to stick it through, whispering soft prayers every few minutes that this wouldn’t end with me completely screwed.
It was getting dark by the time I walked back into the Murphy Building, where Professor West’s class was located.
The hallways were dimly lit and quiet as I walked to Elliot’s office, which was located down the hall from his classroom.
Every door I passed had been closed up for the night, but his office door was standing wide open.
I stopped in the doorway and found him sitting behind his desk.
He must have felt my presence because he looked over at me.
His chest rose when he took a deep breath, but then he let it out quickly as he waved me forward.
“Come in and close the door behind you.”
I reached behind me and grabbed the knob, tugging the door shut as I moved into the room. I felt like the lamb walking into the lion’s den. I tried to keep my shaking to a minimum, but I really thought I might throw up from nerves.
“Have a seat,” he said, motioning toward the chairs that sat across from his desk.
I walked closer, trying to appear calmer than I was. He watched every step I took until I was sitting across from him.
He shifted forward in his seat, leaning forward on his desk. “Do you know why I gave you the grade I did?”
I licked my lips and swallowed my fear. “No,” I lied softly.
He arched one brow, but he didn’t speak.
I took a deep breath. “Was the paper not what you were expecting?”
He cocked his head slightly.
“Did I not do what you asked for? Was it poorly written? What?” I asked, holding my hand up and letting it fall back into my lap. There was no hiding how shaky my voice was.
He leaned forward. “It’s not your work, Evelyn.”
My heart froze in my chest as the world stopped spinning. The surge hit me hard after a moment.
Suddenly, everything was moving in fast forward, even my racing heart.
“What?” I stammered, becoming breathless from the anxiety pulsing through my veins.
I’m done. God, I messed up! Please… I can’t lose this scholarship!
Gabe would be so disappointed. My parents…damnit! I promised my dad. I swore I’d make it.
“I know that you didn’t write this paper. Do you know how many students of mine have turned in this exact paper over the years?”
I shook my head in confusion. I was foolish for thinking I was buying an original paper. Of course, some asshole wrote the paper and then continued to sell it to dumb ass college students just like me. Tears filled my eyes, but I didn’t speak. I couldn’t.
What was going to happen? Please…
“I probably don’t have to tell you, but we have a zero tolerance policy for cheating. Just once is enough to have you expelled. Did you know that?”
I felt a tear roll down my cheek. I used the back of my hand to wipe it away as I nodded, unable to look him in the eye.
“Then why did you do it?”
“I didn’t have a choice,” I whispered, my voice wobbling.
“You always have a choice.”
I snorted and rolled my eyes before looking at him. When I did, I found him holding out a box of tissues.
I snagged one from the box. “I wouldn’t expect you to understand.”
“Try me.”
I wiped my tears, but more came. “I was going to fail. I had to do something. I work a lot. I-I kept picking up shifts, trying to pay rent. I-I studied hard. I’m taking extra credits this semester. I-I’m doing so much to try to graduate faster.”
He didn’t speak. He just sat there, watching me while I continued.
“I wrote the paper. It was nowhere near as good as this one. It was bad, and I knew it was. I fought with myself over turning it in, but I have to pass,” I whispered. “I have to.”
“Do you have the paper you wrote?”
It felt like a trap, but I pulled the paper out of the notebook I had resting on my lap.
He took it when I held it out and then proceeded to read it in front of me. After several long minutes, he said, “It definitely wouldn’t have been an A, but it would’ve been better than the zero you’re getting for the paper you turned in.”
The tears started falling all over again. “Please, El—Professor West… I just need another chance. If I fail this class, I’m out. If you report me, I’ll not be able to get into another school. Please.”
He just sat there, staring at me like he couldn’t care less.
I wiped my eyes. “Of course you don’t care. This is what you’ve wanted all along. ” I stood and started toward the door.
“Sit down,” he demanded from behind me.
I stopped and turned to look at him. “What?”
“I said sit down.” When I didn’t move, he added on, “Now.”
A sigh slipped from my lips as I turned to take my seat and wiped at my eyes again.
“I gave everyone else with a failing grade a chance to make it up. It wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t give you the same chance.”
Hope swirled inside of me. I sat forward in my seat. “Really?”
A slow smile spread across his face. He rose to his feet and moved to stand in front of me.
“Your offer will be a little different,” he said in a dangerous voice.