AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Tell me about it.”
I disconnected and stared at the phone.
Fuck. This was going to suck.
My mom would argue and cajole. Once she realized I was serious, she would cry. Her final tactic would be to hang up and freeze me out. Then, after she made my dad insane for a few days, he would call and beg me to change my mind. That wouldn’t happen this time, though. And I had to make sure she knew that. Just because I made tens of millions of dollars every year didn’t mean I always would. Or that she could spend it like it was hers.
If I wasn’t careful, there wouldn’t be anything left by the time I had the chance to enjoy it. And there wasn’t much I enjoyed in my life these days.
10
Presley
Working five days a week was exhausting. The money was decent, but it felt like I never slept enough. It had only been a few weeks, and I was dragging. I’d been waiting tables for four years, so it wasn’t like I couldn’t do the job, but this restaurant by the mall was always slammed. No breaks, no time to grab a drink, nothing but running from one table to the next.
Today I was meeting with my advisor about graduation and his email hadn’t sounded like he had good news, which made my stomach churn with anxiety. By the time I got to his office, I felt like I might lose my breakfast, and I paused outside the door to take a few deep breaths.
I’d done a great job on my final project, no matter what he said. I was proud of the work I’d done, even if I hadn’t managed to snag an interview with the hottest rock band in the world. I had to keep that in mind as I knocked on his door and walked into his office.
“Hi, Dr. Russell.”
“Good afternoon, Presley. Have a seat.” He took off his reading glasses and looked at me.
“Based on your tone of voice, I’m guessing you don’t have good news for me,” I said quietly.
He sighed. “I do not.”
Fuck.
“Are you failing me?” I asked, my heart sinking.
“Although you did excellent work on your e-zine, the content isn’t what we agreed upon.” He sifted through some papers on his desk. “Your design and the technical part of the project was top-notch, but I can’t in good conscience give you a pass on that alone.”
“Well, if half the project was perfect, and the other half was a fail, wouldn’t that be a C?” I asked.
“It’s not that simple, Presley. You chose the project track, and the agreement was that you would push the boundaries and accomplish something you wouldn’t normally be able to do as a college student. The whole point was for those of you who went that direction to be treated like employees, instead of students. If you recall, I tried to talk you out of the music magazine idea, but you insisted you could do it.”
“I did do it,” I said quietly.
“You did. But not the way we agreed it would be done. Frankly, it wasn’t what I expected from you, Presley. You’ve always been a stellar student. This project fell flat. If that interview had been your assignment at a real magazine, your editor could very well have fired you.”
“I spent eight months creating the website, the content—even getting legitimate advertising! And you’re going to fail me because the guys in Onyx Knight decided to be jerks and blow me off? How is that fair?”
“Did someone tell you that life would be fair? In the music industry, no less?” He sighed, putting his glasses back on. “Look, I have a compromise for you.” He ruffled some more papers around on his desk until he found the one he was looking for.
I was already exhausted and nauseated, and now my chest tightened as I waited to hear if there was anything I could do to graduate.
“Re-take the class this summer and find another band to interview. Maybe not quite at the level of Onyx Knight, but if you can get a band with some level of success—instead of a local band—I’ll pass you and you can graduate.”
I stared at him, trying to understand why he was being such a hard ass about this. He knew how much I’d struggled since Aunt Meg’s diagnosis. How she couldn’t work anymore because of it. How I was already drowning in student loans since I hadn’t qualified for any scholarships. He knew damn well I couldn’t afford another semester of classes. Not to mention that I needed to start working full-time as soon as possible.
“I can’t afford another semester,” I whispered, hating the tears that filled my eyes. “Aunt Meg’s meds cost a fortune and her disability only goes so far.”
“I’m sorry, Presley. I truly am. If it was just up to me, I could make an exception, but there’s a whole committee. You opted for the project track.”
“So that’s it? You’re failing me, so I can’t graduate, and I can only get my degree if I come back over the summer, and somehow find another big band to write about?”
“Unless you want to change your entire project, but then you’d need to come back for a full semester in the fall.”
