Back to school

Chapter 1

Alexander woke up in a puddle of his own sweat. His breathing was raspy and heavy. His muscles were on fire. Slowly, he pushed himself towards his nightstand and grabbed his alarm clock.

4:45 am.

He was being ridiculous. Waking up this early? Why was he so nervous? At 59 years old, it was hardly his first day of anything. He had changed workplaces before. He had changed countries before. Yet, he could not help but feel sick at the idea of getting up, getting dressed and going to work.

Perhaps, perhaps, this latest move was the last straw.

The Londoner had been all across the globe. His purpose? To teach and to research. His younger years had been filled with adventure, with excitement, with joy. He had woken up each day with a will to live. Nowadays, not so much.

He dragged himself to his kitchen to make himself breakfast. Alexander had recently made a few changes to his diet; he was trying to drastically reduce his sugar intake. It was nothing he could not afford: he had the good sense in him to always save some of his salary at the end of each month. This measure could sometimes be a nuisance to everyday life but in the long run, it was a lifesaver.

As he ate his bowl of porridge, the professor was beginning to feel nauseated. Was one even capable of making acquaintances at his age? Of making friends? He heavily doubted it. As a child and even as a young man, he had observed the loneliness of adulthood through the behavior of his parents. As their age progressed, he had seen his once extroverted parents slowly but surely stop interacting with the outside world. Those who they had once called friends became nothing but topics of gossip. Jealousy clouded the minds of his mother and father. Bonds became insignificant.

He sighed. Unlike his parents, he still had to work. Alexander had arrived in Paris two days ago. He was to become the new mathematics professor at the French capital city's well known international school. Alexander took comfort in knowing that there was a high chance that a variety of languages would be spoken, which was something that he was extremely familiar with.

As he finished his breakfast, he attempted to calm himself. It was highly illogical for him to be nervous. He had been in this very same situation, time and time again.

Even if things were to become unpleasant, home was only a Eurostar away.