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I don't think she's processed yet that the clock hanging over her head has vanished. Her parents already know what's going on. Even if the Dean decides to follow through with her expulsion, her worst-case scenario is off the table. She may not graduate from Rice University, but that doesn't mean she won't graduate from college at all. There are plenty of other schools that would jump at the chance to add her to their student rosters, especially with her GPA.
If she loses her scholarship, so be it. She doesn't need it anymore. I'll pay for her education. Hell, I can pay for as many degrees as she wants, and my bank account still won't feel it. Let someone else have her scholarship. They need it more than she does at this point. She's mine to take care of now, and I'll provide for her in every way.
"I'm nervous," she says for the eighteenth time, pacing back and forth in front of the Dean's door once we finally make it to his office. "Maybe we should have scheduled an appointment. What if he's not coming in today? Maybe he's busy. We should come back later. It's too early for us to be here. He's probably still sleeping. I bet he's grumpy. He may expel just because he hasn't had his coffee yet, and we're here, demanding to see him."
"Kitten," I say, grabbing her arm as she paces by me. I tug gently, toppling her into my arms. "Stop thinking. You're stressing yourself out."
"I can't stop thinking, Xavier. My brain just does what it wants. It's exhausting, honestly. Sometimes, I get tired of thinking, but it just keeps going and going."
"What are you studying, Charlie?" Jude asks from his place on the bench across from us.
"Sociology," she says.
"You want to go into social work?" he asks.
"Yes." She peers over her shoulder at him. "Um, my sisters and I grew up in the system before we were adopted. We had one social worker who was really kind, Ms. Brenda. She always brought us candy necklaces when she visited us and tried to make sure we were placed together. I've always remembered her. I guess I want to do for kids what she tried to do for me and my sisters."
Jude smiles at her, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "That's a helluva good reason to go into social work."
"I was in the system, too," Finn says.
"Really?" Charlie's eyes widen.
He nods, his gaze somber behind his glasses. "I was adopted out when I was two. I don't remember it, but I know enough about how it works to be able to fill in the details." A shadow passes through his expression. "Though I'd hazard a guess that your adoptive parents and mine were not built the same. Mine were not great."
"I'm sorry," Charlie whispers, her face falling. "That's awful."
"It is what it is, little one," he says, his lips lifting at the corners. "I'm still fortunate. I'd take being adopted out by them over being stuck in the system any day."
Charlie nods her head as they share a silent moment of understanding on a level only those who have been in the system and escaped can truly identify with. I don't mind. I find myself grateful as hell to Finn and Jude for helping keep her mind occupied while we wait. Still, I send up a silent thank you to God that she and her sisters and Finn made it out of the system young and didn't spend their entire childhoods bouncing around with no stability or sense of place or belonging in the world. Not every kid is so lucky. Thousands aren't.
A few moments later, the doors open, and a middle-aged couple bustles through, dressed in their Sunday best. David Marsh is a mountain of a man with graying hair and kind eyes. His wife is tiny, with poufy blonde hair and a bright smile.
"Mom! Dad!" Charlie cries, pulling out of my arms to hurry toward them. "You're here."
"Of course we're here, dear," her mom says, holding out her arms for a hug. "Where else would we be?"
Charlie flings herself into her mom's outstretched arms. Her mom laughs softly and pulls her, squeezing her tight.
"You must be Xavier," David says, glancing me over.
"Yes, sir," I say, extending a hand for him to shake.
He eyes it for a moment and then grasps it, pulling me into a hug. His hand clamps down on my shoulder. "Thank you for letting us be here," he says next to my ear. "Thank you for looking out for her."
"It's my greatest pleasure," I murmur, meaning it all the way to my soul.
He releases me, and then Charlie drags her mom forward to introduce me. Like David, Jennifer Marsh is a hugger. She squeezes me tight, patting me on the back, and then her gaze drifts to Finn and Jude.
