Page 12 of Baby for the Professor
My phone chimed with an incoming message from Emily and I was glad for the distraction.
Good luck on the first day!
It was followed by a smiling face.
Thanks!I replied with hugs and kisses.
I was grateful for having Emily as a friend. True to her promise, she supported my decision to raise the baby. Before my mom retired, Emily would help me babysit my son whenever I couldn’t find anyone. She and Bob, the school teacher, got together after dating for a year and had become a mom herself.
Emily had also convinced me to get a degree in business and become an accountant saying I had been good with accounting work. I decided it wasn't a bad idea. I took a business class back in college, thanks to my asshole boyfriend Kevin, and I took some more accounting and business classes at a community college in the past two years. I had a decent GPA. My current job experience at the shipping company also helped, and I got accepted into the program fairly easily.
When I finished with the report, it was ten past five. I took out the remaining sandwich I brought from the fridge while calling my parents and my son on Facetime.
"Hi Mom!" I said after swallowing a bite.
"Sabrina, where are you?"
"Still in my office. I'm going to school soon."
"Okay, safe drive. The traffic must be crazy now."
"I know. Where's Aiden?"
"Oh he's playing with your dad. Hold on."
I heard Aiden's voice and my dad’s laughter in the distance and couldn’t help the grin spreading across my face. Gosh. I felt so lucky to have my parents' help. When they found out about my pregnancy, they didn't blame my thoughtless, stupid act at all but only offered help. I had considered adoption, but they were both against it.
"Hi, Mommy!" Aiden's face popped on the screen, pulling my thoughts together.
"Hi, sweetie!" His bright blue eyes and deep dimples erased all my stress just like that. My baby had been my happiness drug for the past five years. He was the reason I gave up some goals and dreams, but he was also what cheered me up whenever I felt down.
"When are you coming home?" Aiden asked.
My heart squeezed. Going home late had been a regular occurrence since I started taking evening classes. Even though I wasn’t getting a degree out of vanity, I couldn't help but feel sorry. I had the impulse to forget about the class and spend the evening with my son. But I recalled the main reason I wanted an MBA was to get a better job and a home for Aiden and me. My parents wouldn't mind if Aiden and I stayed with them forever, but I felt like a loser. A twenty-seven-year-old dependent. Besides, my parents deserved some freedom, too.
"Mommy will be a bit late, sweetie. Don't wait up. Let grandma tuck you in."
"Okay. Where you going?"
"Mommy is going to school."
"Aiden wants to go to school too."
I laughed. "You will soon, honey."
I ended the call reluctantly, and glancing at the clock made me curse. It was twenty minutes to six.
After fighting the horrible rush-hour traffic, I arrived at UCLA at six thirty. Shit. I was late on my first day. It had never happened when I was an undergrad. I cringed as I imagined walking into the classroom under everyone’s curious eyes. What a bad impression to give the professor! Late on my first day. Unheard of. I might be better off not showing up at all. Skipping the first day wouldn't kill me, would it? But missing the rest of the lecture could be worse.
Suck it up. Better late than never.
I sighed and then got out of my car. I paid a lot of money for this and shouldn’t waste the opportunity. The same class offered at community colleges was a lot cheaper, but the program wouldn't accept the transferred credits for the class I would take.
I found my way to the econ building easily because the campus hadn't changed much over the years.
"So, now, we're finally done with the administrative part of today’s plan. Let's learn some basics of microeconomics. Let's..."
I heard a deep, resonant male voice in the hallway before I reached the right classroom. I liked that voice. I might have heard it before. Professor J. Hale sounded younger than I had expected.
