Three dots appeared,and Megs held her breath.
Off the record, it was relaxing.
Off the record, I’m heading to karaoke.
With your friend from the coffee shop?
Megs’heart stuttered. He remembered that?
You didn’t say “off the record”
Glad you caught that. Those three words are my only protection from potential disciplinary action
Sorry. I won’t continue to ask you to sacrifice your morals
My willpower is obviously lacking when it comes to students who aren’t really my students
If this is a common problem, you should consider getting help
The opposite of common
The word you’re looking for is “rare.” Aren’t you a professor or something?
Megs should’ve been getting dressed.She should’ve been walking to the car to meet Haley, but she sat glued to her phone.
Title doesn’t mean much. Just a piece of paper you can get online
Megs snorted.
Off the record, have a good night.
Off the record, are you working Wednesday?
Megs’stomach swooped like she was on a playground swing.
Off the record, yes
The following day,Megs stepped into Green Mountain Grinds. The stillness immediately put her at ease, which was no easy task. After her text conversation with Gideon and despite singing her heart out at karaoke, she’d tossed and turned all night. Her excitement over meeting him only made her fear of not being able to drop his class explode like elephant toothpaste.
She strode to the back room and hung up her jacket.
"Morning, Megs.” John turned from the table, coffee in hand.
“Morning.” She was glad to have help this morning. They’d been understaffed for months, and Monday mornings were always busier first thing than the rest of the week. “I need to make a phone call at eight. Shouldn’t take long. Are you okay to cover me?”
John nodded. “Should be slowing a bit by then anyway.”
“Hopefully.” She smiled and tied on her apron, then made her way to the counter. John was a good kid. Seventeen and homeschooled with better social skills than most teens she interacted with these days.
As usual, when they opened the doors at six-thirty, the first hour raced by. Megs kept a close eye on her watch, and at five to eight, she finished up an order and caught John’s attention. She mimed taking a phone call and, when he nodded, hustled to the hall and into the back room.
Megs stared at her phone, and when her toes began to tap after only a minute, she flipped over to her social media to distract herself. There hadn’t been any other texts from Gideon last night, which was probably a good thing. All she wanted to do was plunk down on the couch and send messages back and forth, and that was just another red flag to stab into the ground next to the others.
The clock hit eight and Megs dialed the number for the academic counseling office she’d saved in her phone. It rang three times before a woman with a cotton candy voice answered.
"Champlain Community College, how may I help you?"
"Hi, I’ve been trying to drop a course, but there's been some trouble with the online system," Megs explained.
