The commute to St. Lucia that morning was a complete and utter mess. Accidents, spilled coffee and seemingly endless traffic weighed heavily on her psyche, even as she trudged up the front steps of St. Agnus and entered the building. Just beyond the heavy, steel, double doors, was a small reception are. For once, the secretary who’s name she always managed to forget had beat her there and sat smiling behind the counter. 

    “Good morning Professor Lanh. Before you head to your office, Dean Hughes sent a message stating that he wants to see you first thing,” she said and Claire froze, nearly spilling her coffee for the second time. First thing? As in, immediately after she got there? She wasn’t mentally prepared to deal with him so early! “He’s waiting for you in his office. Do you remember how to get there?”

    “Uh, yes, I do. Lord knows I’ve been there enough times. Thanks for the message,” she said. Claire hurried into her office to drop off her things before heading towards the main building. It didn’t take her but a few minutes to to get there, even though her feet were freezing and her yellow blouse was stained brown with Columbian dark roast. By the time she made it through the doors, morning students and faculty were already pouring into the halls. Familiar faces smiled at her as she passed, despite the permanent grimace that must have been attached to her own. When she finally came to stand outside of Hughes office she’d already played out every terrible scenario she could imagine inside her head. But, what she hadn’t been prepared for, was the door opening and Lauren Webb nearly running into her. Her eyes were wide when she realized who she was. 

    “Ms. Lanh?” she asked then looked contrite. “I’m sorry,” she said. Before Claire could open to ask her what she meant, she took off past her, clutching her books to her chest as she kept her eyes on the ground. 

    “Come in, Professor Lanh,” Hughes said gruffly. She looked up at him, her hands trembling at the angry look on his face. Claire slipped into the room, pushing the door closed behind her and taking a seat in front of his desk. 

    “You needed to see me, Dean?” she asked. He remained silent for several long, drawn out, seconds, his hand busy as he scribbled something in a notebook. When he spoke again, her entire body shook with anxiety.

    “I recently obtained some rather…disparaging news, Ms. Lanh. A student, who I won’t name, just informed me that they witnessed what appeared to me you kissing yet another student. Daniel Kang.”

    “E-Excuse me?” she sputtered, her cheeks growing hot as her heart jumped in her chest. Lauren! That ! Who else could it have been? Daniel himself wouldn’t have said anything and no one else had any idea what was going on between them. But Lauren…she’d been there when he’d almost kissed her in class. She watched her run away after she’d witnessed them kissing in front of the school. So that’s what her lame sorry had been for just a few moments ago. Sorry, my ! But why would she go out of her way to hurt her? Was it because she’d taken Daniel from her? Because he’d chosen his Professor over his classmate? The absolute nerve of that woman! “I don’t know why she would say anything like that.”

    “She?” he asked and her eyes widened when he finally looked up at her. “I don’t remember mentioning a specific gender, Ms. Lanh. Is it possible that you know what’s going on and the reason behind these allegations being brought up against you?” Of course she did, but she couldn’t really tell him that, now could she? 

    “No, I don’t. But I can assume.”

    “And just what are you assuming?”

    “That there is a student of mine who’s upset because her ex-boyfriend has grown close to his Professor. She feels threatened.”

    “And should she?”

    “No!” she exclaimed. “Daniel and I are just friends. Nothing more.”

    “I never claimed otherwise. You’re sounding awfully defensive right now.” That shut her up. Claire’s mouth snapped shut as she leaned back in her seat. Nerves caused her knee to jump, bouncing uncontrollably beneath her hand. She sounded guilty, and there was no doubt in her mind that the astute Dean Hughes picked up on that. And just why did she sound guilty? Because she was. Everything he’d accused her of without even opening his mouth was true. Not only was she dating Daniel, as of last night, she was sleeping with him. She’d broken one of the biggest rules of working at St. Lucia and now she was going to be punished for it. Hughes sighed, placing his expensive pen back in its case before sitting back and giving her an even look. “I don’t know what’s going on, Professor. All I know is that, with the recent example of your poor work ethic and inability to handle even the simplest tasks given to you, you couldn’t possibly be stupid enough to start a relationship with a student on top of everything else. I take it that you value your job.”

    “I do. I’ve wanted this more than anything else in my life,” she said. He steepled his fingers in front of him, giving her a disbelieving look.

    “Which is why I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt. Before you start ranting and pointing the blame, Ms. Lanh, perhaps you should’ve first listened to what I had to say. While these are very serious allegations she’s brought up against you, everything at St. Lucia is handled in due process. Pending an investigation, you are hereby placed on administrative leave. You are to leave campus until further notice. And, I must warn you, if I find that there is any truth to what this student told me, you will be immediately terminated. And to be quite honest you’ll probably never work in academics again, especially if you’re counting on a reference from me,” he said. She could feel tears welling up before she even realized she wanted to cry. She was afraid. And angry. And disappointed. How had she let herself get into something like this? If her grandfather found out he’d kill her! But then again, she couldn’t be all that angry at herself. She loved Daniel. He’d made himself necessary to her and it hurt like hell that she had to choose between someone she cared deeply for and the job she’d always wanted. “Do you understand?”

    “Yes, sir. I understand perfectly.”

    “Is there anything you’d like to confess to me right now? It may make it easier on you when it’s all said and done.” Claire stared back at him, struggling to rid herself of the lump in . Hughes terrified her, that wasn’t news to anyone. But in that moment, she’d never felt more hatred and disdain for the man, not now that he was literally dangling her job and livelihood in front of her. 

    “No, sir. I have nothing to confess. And I never will. Because I’ve done nothing wrong,” she said and he nodded. 

    “Very well then. I’ll speak to you about your performance in another meeting.” He motioned for the door and she wasted no time getting to her feet and hustling from the room. 

    Her emotions were amplified beyond belief as she made her way to her classroom, and the day hadn’t even officially started yet. All she wanted was to collapse into her chair and have a good cry before gathering her things and heading home. Instead, she all but skidded to a halt when she rounded the corner into her office. It seemed fate had other plans. 

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