The Professor's Girl (18+)

Episode 41

Emma

As it turns out, dad had to go out of town because my grandma got sick. He wanted to take care of her, so he flew out last night and isn't home when Kai and I arrive. Instead, my mom is there in the driveway, waving excitedly as we pull up.

"Your mom is sweet," Kai says.

"Get ready, because she can be a bit much sometimes," I say, unbuckling my seatbelt.

Kai laughs. "Trust me, I'm ready."

We both get out of the car, and immediately my mother embraces me. "Hi Emma! I missed you!" When she releases me from her bear hug, she turns to Kai.

"Hi Mrs. Jewel," Kai says. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

My mom hugs Kai, and winks at me when he can't see. He's cute, she mouths.

I know, I mouth back.

"Come inside please," She beckons for us to come through the front door, and I see that nothing has changed since I left to go to college. The photo frames with me and my parents are still hanging all over the walls, and they are the first thing Kai notices when he steps inside.

He stops in front of a photo frame of me at the beach. I'm wearing a pair of sunglasses, and I have two ponytails in my hair. There is a bucket and a shovel in the sand by my feet. "You were so cute," Kai says with a smile on his face.

"I know," I say smugly.

Kai laughs at me, and he hugs me in his arms from behind, holding me tight. I feel him kiss my cheek, and then my mom interrupts us. "You two are so adorable," she says.

I blush. Kai is so consuming. I forgot that my mom was even here while I was distracted by his presence. From the way Kai's cheeks are tinted pink, it seems like he also forgot that my mom is here.

"I prepared some dinner for us," she says.

When we get to the kitchen, I see that my mother has prepared a feast. Clearly, she got over excited and made everything in our pantry. I see mac & cheese, salad, baked potatoes, quiche, bread, and pasta all on the table.

"Mom, you do realize there are only two of us?"

My mom looks at me sheepishly. "I was just excited for you to come home. And to be fair, your dad was supposed to be here, and he eats a lot."

"That's true."

My mom encourages us to sit at the table, and she grabs a bottle of wine for us to share. "So tell me about yourself. How did you and Emma meet?"

Kai looks at me nervously. He doesn't know if he should mention that we met on my 21st birthday when I was his one night stand, so I jump in. "Mom, you remember I mentioned him after my birthday. We met at a bar," I say.

~~~
Kai

I feel relieved that Emma jumped in. I realize that I don't know how much Mrs. Jewel actually knows about me, so I'm not sure how to answer her questions. Does she know that I am Emma's college professor?

Fortunately, Emma interrupts my thoughts. "Kai, why don't you take some mac & cheese?"

I reach my hand out for the bowl, and then I begin to pile my plate high with food. I take a little bit of everything, and when we start eating together I see that the food tastes amazing. "You should be a chef," I tell Mrs. Jewel.

She laughs. "I want to open my own restaurant, but it's too big of an endeavor. We don't have the finances for it at the moment. Maybe one day," she says.

"I didn't know you wanted to open a restaurant mom," Emma says. "Why didn't you tell me that before?"

Emma's mother waves her off and makes it sound like her own dream isn't a big deal. I can see that Emma's mom must be really selfless. Instead of spending her own money on a restaurant, she puts it toward paying for Emma's education. What an amazing woman.

"It's just a silly dream," she tells her daughter.

"It is not a silly dream. You deserve to have a restaurant if that's what you want. I feel so guilty that you've been paying for my education when you could've been opening your dream restaurant."

Her mother looks genuinely upset now. "Don't think like that. I don't regret a single penny I have spent on you. Your education is the most important thing in this world, and it is the one thing that can never be taken away from you. If I was going to put my money toward anything, it would be your schooling. Don't feel bad at all," she says.

Emma goes up to hug her mom, and I smile at her appreciation for her mother. I've seen too many spoiled kids that are ungrateful for the money their parents give them. They act like it's owed to them.

"So Kai, what do you do for a living?"

I glance at Emma uncomfortably. Do we tell her mom that I'm Emma's professor? What if she disapproves? Who am I kidding? Of course she's going to disapprove. If Emma cares about her mom's opinion, I might lose her. And I don't want to lose Emma.

I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out. That's when Emma jumps in, walking over to me and pulling up a chair at my side. "Mom, don't freak out, but Kai...he's my English professor."

I can't believe she's just told her mom the truth. I'm surprised by her honesty--Sadie was a deceptive woman, and she never would have been honest with her parents. Mrs. Jewel's mouth opens while she processes what I've just said. I wait for her to scold me, and when she speaks, I'm already wincing. "I thought you hated English," she says.

My jaw drops at her response. She doesn't sound upset that I'm dating my student. That's surprising.

"What?" Even Emma sounds shocked.

"Yes, you're always telling me how you hate English. I never would have believed that you're dating your English professor of all people. If anything, I'd assume it was a bio professor."

"Why would you assume I'm dating one of my professors in the first place?"

"I wouldn't! That's just what I would pick if I had to."

"You're not upset that I'm dating your daughter?"

"Of course not. I haven't seen her this happy in a long time. It's obvious that she's doing better now because of you. Who am I to take that away from her? As long as you two are being safe and smart about it, I'm going to be supportive. I'm not gonna tell your dad though," she says to Emma.

"Yeah, I think that's for the best. I don't want him to freak out." Emma looks relieved that her mother is on her side.

"I really appreciate you trusting me," I tell Emma's mom.

"I really appreciate everything you've done for my daughter. Just don't break her heart, and we'll stay on good terms."

I grin at her. She's so much more laid back than I expected. I can see why her and Emma are so close. She seems really trustworthy, and that's saying a lot coming from me. "I assure you, I have no intention of doing that."