Autumn Leaves (Watty Awards 2013)(Editing)

Chapter 24

Two Weeks Later

Nicki squirmed in her seat as she looked around the Dean’s office. Meeting important people always made her nervous. She heard the door open behind her and quickly wiped her hands on her skirt before getting up.

“Ms. Westmoore?”

She stuck out her hand. “That’s me. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Rosetti.”

The burly older man smiled at her. Nicki guessed he couldn’t have been more than fifty, but the stress of his job had aged him beyond his years.

“The same to you. Please, take a seat.”

She sat back down and flattened out her skirt. Tyler tried to tell her that it didn’t matter what she wore. But she was meeting the Dean of her college. She should look presentable. When she put on the skirt, he stopped arguing and tossed her onto the bed. He had almost made her late. Thinking about him put a smile on her face.

“So,” Dr. Rosetti began. “Your father has made me very aware of your situation.”

Nicki nodded her head, not knowing what to say.

“While I understand entirely why you wouldn’t want to finish the semester, I took it upon myself to speak to your professors. Each of them thinks that you’re a wonderful, dedicated student, and that just because you’ve had some setbacks in your personal life doesn’t mean you need to fall behind academically. Given the circumstances, they’ve all agreed to pass you and give you the credits for their classes.”

She could feel the shocked expression on her face. “What?”

“You will still receive full credit and passing grades for all of your classes. Unless you have any questions, you’re free to go.”

She shook her head. “No, no questions. Thank you so much, Dr. Rosetti.”

He stuck out his hand over his desk and she shook it. “It’s my pleasure. If you want to thank someone, thank your professors. Oh, on your way out check in with Miranda. She’ll help you make an appointment to see me before the start of the next semester.”

“Thank you,” she said again, opening the door to leave.

After making an appointment for the end of summer, Nicki bounced down the stairs and out of the building. She grinned as she saw Tyler, waiting by the passenger side of his car. Nicki wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

“I missed you!”

He laughed. “You were only gone for like, ten minutes.”

Nicki pouted. She was hoping he’d say he missed her too. He looked down at her and ran his fingers through her hair.

“I missed you too,” he said with a smile.

“That’s better,” she said. “You’ll never guess what happened.”

He stared at her, waiting for her to tell him.

“Not only do I not have to finish the semester, but they’re giving me all of my credits. I won’t have to make anything up.”

Tyler pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. It gave her chills.

“That’s awesome. I’m so happy for you. See? Now you don’t have anything to worry about.”

“Yeah, nothing to worry about except for your stupid game. By the time this season is over, I’m going to have the blood pressure of a five hundred pound man.”

“You’re more worried about this than I am,” he said, brushing a piece of hair out of her face.

“That’s because you can’t worry about it. Me, on the other hand… I get to do all the worrying for both of us.”