40. Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty
Margot
“I want to be a journalist for the New York Times .”
Even after these weeks in class and our podcast, I still wasn’t fully comfortable in front of an audience. It was getting easier though, especially with Alex in my corner. Like now, it was only when Alex placed a firm but reassuring hand on my thigh that I was able to calm down.
I try as best as I can to not read from the cards but I found that looking into the crowd was a much scarier feat.
“There’s a contest to win an internship. My goal is to win that contest so that I can fulfill my aspiration of being a full-time reporter. I want to chase the story. I want to break the news. I want a front page headline that reads: History Was Made written by Margot Davis.”
I emphasize each word of the by-line with my palms out flat in the air. When I glance over toward Alex, he is beaming from ear to ear. The sight causes me to smile as I continue.
“When I was young, my father instilled in me the principles of hardwork and patience. He said, ‘it’s not the work that’s hard, it’s the time spent waiting for the results’. I take those principles with me to class each day. I take them to the newsroom. I take them to the recording studio.” Alex winks and I try my hardest to hold in my blush.
“ When I win this contest, it’ll be because I worked hard and I had patience. And when I am successful, I will know that it’s because of what I do best. My best.”
A loud whoop comes from the center of the room and I see Alex standing up from his seat. I can’t control the redness that burns my cheeks as I leave the stage and take my seat again.
“Sit your ass down,” I whisper, loudly, pulling his arm down by the sleeve. Alex kisses my cheek as he takes his seat again.
“You crushed it, sunshine!” He whisper-shouts into my ear as I slide even farther down into my seat. I’m glad to be done with it but I’m starting to feel the residual embarrassment. Alex is still beaming as he turns his attention to the next few presenters. I’m just glad to be finished so I can focus on this last podcast taping.
Since we already planned our last podcast recording over the weekend, I use that time to pop into the newsroom and see if there’s an article Jessy wants me to work on.
When I enter the chaotic environment, I take a deep sigh in, readying myself for the noise and confusion. I see Sydney at her desk, hard at work on something on her computer screen so I chose not to disturb her, heading toward my editor’s desk instead.
“Hey, Jess. Have a good weekend?”
She continues to type on her computer, not giving me a glance. Damn, she must be working on something important. I guess I’ll go look at the announcement board and see if anything catches my eye. As I turn to walk away, Jessy’s voice stops me.
“How’s that article about students staying on campus coming along?”
Immediately, I pinch my eyes shut. I totally and completely forgot about that. Damnit. But there’s no way that Jessy wouldn’t know that I didn’t stay on campus this weekend. Unless she…
Jessy holds up her phone, showing Alex’s instagram picture of me on the beach. “Great pic. Doesn’t really look like it was taken on campus, though.”
“I’m so so sorry, Jessy. I completely dropped the ball on that one. I’ll make it up to you. Give me any story. I’ll work on it right now.”
Jessy shook her head, standing from her desk to grab some papers from the printer. “You know, Margot, I’m really happy for you that you’re doing well on this podcast but I didn’t know that that success would come at the expense of your attention to the paper. This is your job, too. I know you get work-study to be on the paper, that’s why I try to give you as many bylines as I can.”
“I know,” I reply softly.
Jessy takes the paper and lets it drop to her side. “More than that, you’re a good writer. I’ve missed your insightful voice this semester. You’ve just been… I don’t know…distracted.”
I know she wants to blame Alex for this. Hell, I want to blame Alex for this. But there’s no one to blame but myself. I dropped the ball. I need to be the one to pick it up.
“I won’t let you down again, I swear, Jess. Please…give me any story. I’ll start right away.”
Jessy softens a bit. She knows this is out of character for me. I’m usually incredibly meticulous about all of my work, especially the paper because I love it so much. These past few weeks, my attention has been elsewhere, but that’s not going to happen anymore.
“There’s nothing really going on right now but I could use some help looking over the articles that were written over the weekend. I got a little behind while I was home.”
“Say no more,” I reply immediately, already making my way over toward my desk. “Send them over, boss.”
Jessy lets out a chuckle and some tension releases from my chest. “Will do,” she says as she makes her way back to her own desk. As I sit, my phone vibrates with an incoming text.
Lunch?
Can't. Working at the paper
I feel the vibration of another text but I put my phone face down before reading it. It’s time to concentrate. Focus. Get back to the reason I’m really here. And I’m going to show Jessy that she can rely on me. Even if I have to prove it to myself first.
“Delivery.”
A brown bag drops down on my desk, startling me. When I look at the delivery man, I’m shocked to see Alex standing over me, a dazzling smile on his face. I chance a quick look in Jessy’s direction before grabbing Alex’s arm and pulling him out into the hallway.
“What are you doing here?”
Alex looks confused and slightly hurt. “Figured since you can’t come to lunch, I’d bring lunch to you.”
“You can’t just show up here whenever you want. I’m working. I need to focus.”
Alex squints his eyes. “I didn’t mean to distract you, I just thought I’d help…”
“Alex, this is important to me.”
Alex’s voice is quiet, hurt apparent on his face. “I didn’t realize I was pulling you away from what matters.”
I sigh, placing my hands on either side of my face. I squeeze my eyes shut. “You’re not pulling me away. It’s just, this time we’ve been spending together, while it’s amazing, it has been very distracting for me.”
Alex grips my hands, pulling my palms away from my face. “I get it. Sorry, I’ve just…never had a girlfriend before. This is all new to me.”
“It’s new to me too.” A small smile greets me when I look up at him. He kisses me briefly on the nose before dropping my arms and stepping back.
“We’ll figure this whole relationship thing out,” he says assuredly. I nod. “In the meantime, get back in there. Get the scoop. Follow the lead. And all that other stuff.”
I huff out a laugh and Alex’s face lights up. Reaching on my toes to kiss his lips, I linger for longer than I should to savor him before turning on my heels and heading back to my desk. While I’m almost done with the articles that Jessy asked for help with, I still have to start my final paper for my Investigative Journalism class. And then I need to get my head in the game for this internship contest. The deadline is close and Alex needs to move to the back of my mind so I can shift my priorities to the front.