"What the hell is he talking about?" Shelly leaned over to me asking what our Feminist Theory professor was talking about, again, for the third time this class period. We had only been there for a half hour. Mr. Watkins walked into the class talking and had barely stopped for a breath.
"I'm not too sure. Something about sexism as it relates to racism" Shelly just gave me a wild look. She must've known I wasn't paying attention either. I couldn't concentrate. There was this really cute girl in my class and all I could do was stare at her. I felt like a little boy entranced by some older woman. I knew her name was Maureen, but that's all I knew about her. She was short, probably around 5 foot, with long brown curly hair and deep brown eyes that sparkle.
Mr. Watkins must have noticed that I wasn't paying attention to his lecture because he asked me "Ms Colette, can you tell me what bell hooks is trying to say in the third paragraph?"
"Uhh...I...well...she..." I eventually found words somewhere in my head and rambled off something about black women vs. white women in feminism. He seemed pleased enough with my answer and continued his lecture. I looked back at Maureen to find she was smiling! At me! My heart skipped about 5 beats.
I spent the rest of class on cloud nine. When Mr. Watkins' lecture was finally done, I started to pack up, expecting to just get out of there and go get lunch with Shelly. I was putting my book into my bag when I heard someone clear their throat right in front of my desk. I looked up to see Maureen standing there.
"Colette, you really understand this stuff don't you? I wish I could understand bell hooks as well as you do. Well, uhh, have a good day. See you Thursday!"
With that she was gone. I didn't even have a chance to say hi or bye. Shelly just gave me that look she always does when someone attractive talks to me. "How is it that you, who aren't even totally gay, get all the cute girls to talk to you? It's not fair. I'm a complete lez and I can't get anyone!" she complained.
"Oh shut up and let's go to lunch!"
Mr. Watkins approached my desk. "Ms. Colette, may I speak with you?"
"Sure Professor." I replied "I'll meet you at the cafe, Shelly"
Shelly agreed and stalked out of the room, deciding how she can get more women to talk to her.
"I was really impressed with your answer today Colette. You really seem to understand this material and it's not easy, by any means" Mr. Watkins started out. "Some of the students have come to me for extra help and I just don't have the time to help them. I was wondering if there was someone that could. You would get extra class credit and any payment you set up."
Class credit and payment? I couldn't believe it. Most professors will offer one or the other, but not both!
"Sure, Mr. Watkins, that sounds great but I have rehearsal every Tuesday and Thursday night. Is that going to be a problem?" I asked.
"Well, no. I haven't told the students a meeting time yet. I assumed I would get someone willing to tutor first, then set up the first meeting and it would be up to you figure it out from there. There might be some students who want extra help, or some that can't make it the day you pick. It's really all up to you."
I replied with a hearty yes and we set up the first meeting for tomorrow night. He decided that he would be present at the beginning of the meeting, but had to leave sometime through. I was in heaven! A very attractive girl talked to me AND I found myself a job! I floated through the rest of my day.
Wednesday came and I didn't really think too much about the group that would be showing up at the library. I just arrived at the group study room around 6:15, 15 minutes earlier than I should have with the books I needed. Mr. Watkins and I had set up a little lesson plan that reflected the plans for that week. There was one guy from my class already there when I got there. His name was Jeff and he was a little slow. It wasn't that he was dumb or anything, it was just he had a simplistic mind. Nothing wrong with that.
Jeff and I made small talk while more people filtered in. I was about to start when Maureen walked through the door, wearing a really sexy skirt and low cut shirt. I thought my heart would burst from excitement. She smiled sweetly at me and took a seat.
The session went relatively smooth, even though I was distracted by Maureen's outfit and presence. The group worked really well together, sharing ideas and a few laughs along the way. We decided on meeting at the same time every Wednesday and left for the evening. I was packing up my books and chatting with some fellow classmates about the latest reading when I noticed Maureen just standing in the middle of the study room, watching us talk.
