Sharing the Burden
Part One
Word Count: 6802
In all her years as an ethics professor, Macy had never seen a girl as stir crazy as Naomi.
More professionally described, Naomi had obsessive-compulsive tendencies, but from Layman's perspective, she was a spiraling stress-nado without an off switch. Worst yet, this problem wasn't isolated by time. She was in her third semester of this destructive behavior. It worsened to the point of faculty interference, prompting Macy to step in and have a one-on-one chat about the importance of taking breaks. Naomi went along with the chat and, after using up barriers like her job, family, studies, and personal goals, she eventually committed to taking more time off. Except, after a few days spent waiting for the positive signs of change to come, the problem only seemed to pick up steam. That's when Macy pulled the bookish mouse to the side once more to decide on a strategy; one that would give some well-needed balance to the nineteen-year-old's life.
That's also when Macy uncovered the underlying reason for Naomi's distress.
It was May; time for finals. The beams of sun along with the waning winds of spring made for the perfect climate to relax - if you weren't on a college campus. Macy brushed back her hair into a ponytail which resembled a bush the second she let it go. No, she didn't have time to straighten it. She barely had time to get dressed or make coffee that morning - and understand that, if forced to pick, she would have her double size mug above all, even if it meant showing up for work in pajamas. Luckily, she had time for her sport's coat and skirt, edging out the buzzer for when she had to show up for school; twenty minutes before her students. Her last message to a student was literally an hour and a half before she had to be up and it was only barely worth it to her. She loved teaching, had happily been doing it for seven years, but she could definitely go without the last minute questions about the final exam study guide.
At some point, you either had it or you didn't, right?
Well, Naomi didn't have it. Blinking at the harsh rays, Macy stood outside her classroom door and welcomed each of the students as they came into the building. This would be their final chance to have her as a professor since a majority of the class used ethics as an elective or graduation requirement. Then, skittering down the walkway like a hamster without her ball, came Naomi. Nearly late with her tortoiseshell backpack, and. . . no. Macy couldn't believe her eyes. Really, she put her knuckle to her eyes and rubbed away whatever sleep was there. But the image didn't change. Naomi came up quickly like she could sneak in somehow without her teacher seeing her. Her mistake was making eye contact which, once done, could never be undone.
"Good morning Naomi," Macy's hand clamped on the girl's shoulder.
"G-g-g. . ."
"How did you sleep last night?" Macy asked and then paused. The second she heard the beginnings of a reply, she interjected. "Because I barely slept an hour. If I remember how late our conversation went, I bet you haven't slept much either."
"I-I studied all night. I need an A. I read every chapter in the book, twice, just to be sure. Then I only had fifteen minutes to get to school, so I rushed over in whatever I could find-. . . EEEP!"
Naomi's cute bobbed hair smacked her from the force of Macy's pulling. With her student in tow, Macy made a beeline to the teacher's lounge upstairs. At the back was a bathroom the size of a walk-in closet that locked from the inside. People mostly used the teacher's lounge to keep their lunches cool, and even if they arrived with a need to do some business, they would need to knock before they could enter the bathroom. No one could interrupt what was about to happen.
The girls entered the space like a sport's car in an action movie. Naomi went spinning towards the wall while Macy locked the door behind them. The motion sensor clicked, the lights came on, and eye contact was made.
"I'm disappointed in you, Naomi. We talked about this."
Finding the most suitable corner, the brown-eyed girl spoke around her hands which were playing with her split ends. "I know. I'm sorry. I didn't want to disappoint anybody but I really didn't want to fail your class."
"Again, there is no way for you to fail. You have the highest grade in the class. You could even skip the final and it would only knock you down to a B plus."
The sound of a less-than-perfect grade made Naomi cringe like someone was putting nails on a chalkboard. She showed a brave face, a rare one. "I want an A. Not a B, an A."
"Where is that resolve when it comes to the rest of your life? You're so disciplined - more than some of the faculty that teaches you. Just be like that all the time, goofball."