Page 21 of Courting Clemson

I nodded vigorously until my voice cooperated enough to produce a sound. “Yes, yes, I understand.”

“We’ve decided to suspend your scholarship for the next semester. If you get your grades back on track and continue your outstanding performance and dedication to the team, it will be reinstated. In the meantime, the financial responsibility of your classes and living arrangements are completely yours. Do you fully understand the board’s decision?”

“I do,” I assured him. “Thank you. I won’t disappoint you.”

“See that you don’t. You are excused,” he said and signed his name on the bottom of the paper in front of him with a grand flourish.

Because I was raised well, I went down the entire table offering my hand to each member of the board along with genuine gratitude. I couldn’t digest what the hell had just happened, but I knew it was the right thing to do. Some of them seemed surprised by my gesture but offered a little smile or a few words of encouragement as we shook.

Outside the door, I found a quiet corner far down the hall away from the remaining students and leaned against the wall. Now that it was over, I felt like I was going to pass out. I hadn’t eaten all day, despite the fact that we had a lunch break a couple of hours ago. I figured low blood sugar would be better than an upset stomach when facing the review board. But now, my legs were so shaky, I didn’t think I could make it through the parking lot to where I’d left my car.

I was pretty certain there was a vending machine on the first floor of this building, so I planned to stop there before heading out into the late-day heat to my overbaked car. Jackpot! I found a soda machine in the alcove near the restrooms and dug out my cash card to get some sugar in my system. No doubt I’d have a headache later from dousing my body with so much sugar and no actual nutrition, but I could eat something healthy when I got home to balance things out.

Back at home, I had to fight the urge to crawl into bed. That wasn’t going to solve anything, and I knew from past experience, the habit was harder to get out of on the other side of a crisis. I made this mess for myself. Now I had to figure out a way to get through it.

While I was making myself some dinner, Grace came bursting through the front door, looking like she was ready to explode with big news.

“Hey, girl. How was your day?” I asked. The longer I could keep her talking about what she had going on, the better chance I had of avoiding my shitty day.

“You. Are. Not. Going to believe who I ran into,” she said in choppy bits to start and then rushed out the ending as though it were one long word.

Darting my eyes around the room, wondering if anyone else was witnessing her excitement, I asked, “Who?”

She flopped down on the sofa and kicked off her shoes before curling her legs beneath her. Our living space was open concept, so even though I was cooking on the stove in the kitchen, I could see her clearly.

“Do you remember that guy I met in the beginning of the year at that party?”

I laughed. If I had a nickel for every guy she’d met at a party since we lived together, I wouldn’t be stressed out about having to pay tuition.

“Ummm…” I said. “Give me more details. I can think of a handful of guys you’ve met at parties, at least.”

“But this one was the one, Clemson. Remember? And then I could never find him again. It was like he was there and then he was gone. Never ran into him anywhere else, and around here, that’s pretty unusual.”

She had a point there. Our campus wasn’t as big as some of the state schools, and now that we had finished our second year, we knew most of the student body. I still had no idea who she was talking about but decided to just go along with the story. Eventually she’d get to the part that had her so excited right now.

“Oooohhh,” I dragged out like it was dawning on me now. “So where did you run into him? Did he remember you?” I asked like a good friend would.

“Oh, he remembered me, all right. And he asked me out! His name is Jaxson, and he just finished his junior year. He was studying abroad last semester. That’s why it seemed like he disappeared.”

“Perfect! Jaxson, huh? I knew a guy with that name once. When are you going out?”

“Tomorrow night. He’s taking me to dinner at some new place in La Jolla,” Grace shared, literally bouncing on the sofa cushion while she spoke.

“Well, I can’t wait to hear all about it,” I said as I plated the chicken I’d just pulled from the oven. “You hungry?”

“Mmmm, yes! Whatever you’re making smells delish. Do you have enough to share?”

“Of course I do.” I laughed. I always made more than one portion. If one of my roommates didn’t come sniffing around while I was cooking, I could eat the extra the following day. I didn’t love cooking the way my sisters did, so if I didn’t have to do it every night, I was glad.

“Is Avery home?” Grace asked, looking at her watch. “I thought she’d be here by now.”

“I haven’t seen her since I got home, but I haven’t checked if she’s in her room. I was so hungry when I walked in, I got right to cooking. Go see if she’s in there and if she’s hungry.”

Grace hopped up off the sofa and zipped down the hall to our roommate’s door. She was back quickly.

I had the plates on the table and was just sitting down when I saw a confused look on her face.

“What’s up? She not in there?”

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