Chapter 1
The Professor
Home. Jan 20th
The day has finally arrived! You run back in your house, brimming with excitement, rushing to the table to open the correspondence.
Your husband, confused by the sudden burst of energy, yells from the other room. "What is it, honey?!" You reply in an excited tone. "The university of Texas has finally sent me a letter! God, I hope I got accepted!"
Your hands shake with anticipation as you clumsily open the letter. You skim the letter for the keywords you desire more than anything to see and you come across them: "Congratulations! You have been accepted into our prestigious Global Operations Management program!"
You squeal in excitement. "Yes! Yes! FUCK YES! I got in, baby. I got in!!" Your husband walks around to see what you're looking at. He doesn't seem as excited. "Does this mean you're leaving us for school in TEXAS!? How can we afford that? We can barely afford this place."
You feel your anger rising. This is a sore subject for your relationship. You're the breadwinner here, who is he to tell you what you can and can't do. Does he want you rotting in mediocrity forever? "I'm going, damn it! I've been working towards this program the entire time I've been in college and I'm not passing up this opportunity.
Professor Green is renowned in the field, and I will have a leg up on my competition with his tutelage. I have a full ride scholarship, with board! You won't have to pay a cent! I love you, but it's not fair to hold me back because it's slightly inconvenient for you!"
He storms off yelling. "Fine! Do what you want! Be selfish! You're going to destroy us with this!" You reply with irritation. "I'm not leaving you! I'm just going to school. If we can't survive that, we can't survive anything. I need you to support me!"
He comes back in the room and hugs you. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'm just scared about losing you. I hear horror stories about long distance relationships. I'll be here for you when you return. Its not like I'm going anywhere. I have a trucking route that's consistent and I need the cash. Please don't let this destroy us." You reply softly and kindly. "Honey, of course not. We're stronger than that."
University of Texas Aug 4th
You are filled with nervous energy and the amount of excitement in the air is palpable. It is the first day of orientation for those residing on campus. Who will be your roommate? Will you even have a roommate? What happens if you don't like them!? Ugh, the anxiety is overwhelming, but you're here to accomplish your goals and damn it, you will accomplish them!
You finally arrive at your quarters. First floor. Room 013. 13.. something special about that number. It seems to follow you around in life. You shake your head clear. "Get your shit together," you tell yourself. You walk into your assigned quarters. It's sparse. One twin sized bed with a small bathroom of no serious interest. Well, you're not here to live like a queen. Provided the WIFI works, that's all that really matters. Luckily, it seems as though this room is for a single person.
Whew. Thank God. You sit on the small bed and think. Four days. That's it. Then I can finally start on the road to my new life as a career woman! You let out a silent squeal. Imagine what everyone will say back home when they see you on the cover of Forbes!
University of Texas Aug 8th
Today is the day. You didn't sleep well last night. Like a kid on Christmas eve, you couldn't seem to make it happen. You should be groggy, but the sheer amount of excitement has you bouncing in your step. You look through the clothes you set out last night. A very appropriate skirt (below the knees) and a very professional blouse with a small sweater.
It's warm here in Texas, though, so fuck wearing that hot ass sweater. Luckily, it's a darker blouse, otherwise you would sweat right through it. While you think your breasts are quite nice to look at, it wouldn't be a good first impression on your first day in a real university. You put on your outfit and look in the mirror. Appropriate and attractive. Perfect.
You put on your flats, grab your laptop, and secure your notebook. You walk out of the dorm quickly. Fuck... maybe you should've eaten something. Oh well. You probably couldn't hold it down anyway.
As you approach the business compound, you review your schedule. This is a One station program, so Dr. Green and his staff will be teaching all your classes. You hope you get assigned a mentor that's as intelligent as they say Professor Green is.
The first class is: "Orientation and assignment to the capstone program." What the hell does that even mean? You guess you'll find out. It's in room 13. Seriously? What is it with this number!? Coincidence. Must be.
You walk into the chamber. There doesn't appear to be assigned seating, so you take a seat to the side; midway up. Close enough to hear, yet out of the way enough to blend in. Perfect.
For the next 20 minutes or so, students start funneling into the classroom and taking their seats. You look around and see a whole bunch of people that make you feel quite old. Stupid generation Z. just looking them annoys you. So young and stupid. Hormonal and useless. Fuck it. You're here for a reason. Focus.
The cadre of professors finally trudged in. The first person was a middle-aged woman with a swaddling gait, clear blue eyes and a sharp demeanor. You swear you've seen her before. She reminds you of a pissed off librarian. You giggle a bit.
The other person that walks in behind her is a short, stocky and balding man. He reminds you of a chunky Danny DeVito. You can swear you can smell him from here. You imagine he smells like moldy cheese and burnt hair. Gross. You look around but you don't see anyone else?
That CAN'T be Professor Green, can it? I mean, how could someone so intelligent be so sloppy? It doesn't make sense. As your thoughts race, the portly man clears his throat. "Ahem, Welcome, students! My name is Mr. Smock. I'm Dr. Green's doctoral candidate and executive assistant. This is my final assignment. That is to assist Dr. Green and Yourselves in your endeavors to become business professionals.
You sigh in relief. Thank God. You don't know if you could take this man seriously. He continues. "This is professor McDole. She is Professor Green's associate professor for this course and every other course in the capstone program. She is a full Doctor of Business Administration and will be addressed and respected accordingly.
That said, we are very pleased to welcome you to UT Dallas and look forward to facilitating and environment where you can thrive and be successful. So, on behalf of Dr. Green and his staff, WELCOME and GOOD LUCK!" A student in the back raises his hand. Smock notices. "Before you ask, sir, Professor Green will be arriving shortly. He is in a conference call with the secretary of monetary policy for the state.
In the meantime, Professor Green has charged me with the task of assigning you all your mentors for this coursework. These mentors will be with you for the next three years, so you may want to make a good first impression.
While Smock is talking, you receive a text. A LOUD TEXT! Oh no. how embarrassing! You fumble for your phone to put it on silent. "Excuse me, miss. Please keep phones on silent," Smock Chides. "Yes, sir. Sorry sir," you reply. While you put it on silent, you notice it's a message from your husband. "I miss you. I'm so lost without you."
Ugh. How can he be so annoying and selfish? You're trying to better yourself. He just worries about himself. You wonder what you ever saw in him. Hometown boy with a job you guess. You sigh again. Focus. Smock resumes talking about assignments. "Look down at your desk. You will have a number on a placard beneath the desktop. Reach down and grab the card."
You look at your card. It says the number "13." Ok. Something fucking weird is going on here. Before you can delve too much into this obvious conspiracy, smock opens his massive jowls again. "There are 14 people in this program. Professor Green has a great many other responsibilities up to and including writing the curriculum for this course and few others.