First Love

Chpt. 42

|A L Y S S A|

"So tell me how was your day at school lovely?" Dom asked as he reversed out of the parking lot of the campus.

I threw my backpack in the backseat and put on my seat belt. Laying my head back on the head rest, I closed my tired eyes and took in the sweet smell of cinnamon coming from the air freshener hanging over the review mirror. "It was difficult as usual", I said. "Dr. Goldstein wants us to do a case brief on the supreme court rule in legalizing gay marriage, and interracial marriage. Then he gave us a list of 80 complicated legal terms that he wanted us to summarize in our own words, each word has to have their own one-page summary, double spaced. Then there's this exam for my legal research course---that I hadn't even had time to study for---that's due next week, and lets not forget the 3 different essays professor Johnson wants all due tomorrow, and he literally just gave us these assignments yesterday. Then I have to go to court to interview Judge Malene and I don't even have my questions together....Dom, I am so stressed out that I can't even breathe. I'm tired of this, it's getting to the point where it's starting to make me sick." I took a deep breath, rubbing my temples, feeling a migraine about to come on---I been having them a lot lately.

Dom took my hand, the other hand gripping the steering wheel as he drove. "I know it's hard baby, but you knew what you were getting yourself into when you applied. Law school is difficult, but you could do this, you just got to suck it up and stop complaining all the time and just do whatever it is you have to do. Complaining about it isn't going to get you anywhere. Complaining is for losers."

I snatched my hand out of his. "So, basically you're saying that I'm a loser?"

He cut his eyes at me. "No, that's not what I meant Alyssa and you know it." He put his eyes back on the road ahead of him. "It's just I get tired of hearing you whine about the same thing. I'm a med student, I do 10 times as much work than you and yet you rarely hear me whine about it. In life, if you want to be successful, this is what you have to deal with, you just got to suck it up and do what you have to do...This is exactly why women have no business in law, it's too complicated for you all to handle."

I rolled my eyes and looked out of the window next to me. I wasn't going to respond to him, because it would only grow into an argument, making my headache even worse.

"Your mother wants us to meet her at Red Lobster, that's where we're headed now."

I ignored him as I stared out of my window, watching cars fly by.

30 minutes later, we were pulling up at the restaurant. He parked his Mercedes, turned off the engine and looked at me, sensing my attitude. "Please don't tell me you're upset."

"No, why would I be?" I asked sarcastically.

"Come on lovely, let's just go and enjoy dinner with your mother. You're upset over something ridiculous. I was only sharing my opinion with you. If you didn't want it, you shouldn't have asked."

"Dom, I don't remember ever asking for your opinion. You asked me how was my day, and in turn, I told you but I don't even know why I even bother because you never understand."

"How do I not understand Alyssa? I understood perfectly fine, you just didn't like what I had to say, that's not my issue, it's yours."

I quickly got out of my seatbelt and opened the car door. "You're right Dom, it's mines, not yours, which is why I shouldn't have told you, especially knowing how you are."

"Come on babe, let's not take this energy with us to dinner. How about this? I apologize for whatever it was I said that made you upset."

"The fact that you don't even know what you're apologizing for is enough for me to not accept it. Look, let's just go. My mom doesn't like to wait on others."