Page 38 of Pleasuring Professor Pisces
ME:
Where are you?
An hour passed, and I didn’t get a response. I blew out the candles, turned off the music, and put the food away. After locking my place up, I jogged downstairs and across the street. I walked up the block to the studio and walked inside.
Chelsea’s class was just ending, and people were milling about, gathering their things for the evening, and leaving.
“Hey, Salem,” Cassandra, one of the students, greeted me.
“Hey, baby girl. Take it easy.”
“You too.”
“Hey, Salem,” Jason, another student, greeted.
“Wassup, li’l homie.”
“Nothing much. Aye, don’t forget to put a bro on for how I can get some of that modeling work in.”
“Just call the number that I gave you. They’ll hook you up. Tell Ralph that Salem sent you.”
“A’ight, man.”
A few other people greeted me as I made my way through the departing crowd. I finally made it to Chelsea, and she smiled brightly when she spotted me, but her smile turned to one of concern when she saw my face.
“Uh-oh. What’s wrong now?”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I replied, “I don’t know. You gotta tell me. I saw her today, and she was supposed to meet me, but she never showed up, and she’s not answering my calls.”
“I’m sorry, Salem. It was all too much for her.”
“What was?”
“You. The relationship. Her job. I don’t know. I just know that she called me earlier, bawling her eyes out. This was about three hours ago. She quit her job, Salem.”
Hope filled me, but that didn’t explain why she wouldn’t take my calls.
“What happened?”
“There were some allegations about the two of you that were brought to the dean’s attention. Apparently, they were about to do another investigation. Aside from that, she would also have had to undergo another faculty committee evaluation and a review by the Board of Trustees.”
“That’s bullshit! If they took it to them, why didn’t they tell them that I was the one who pursued her?” I fumed.
Shaking her head, Chelsea answered, “I don’t know. But what I do know is that the last time my friend went through that, she almost didn’t survive. She was depressed for a while and started taking antidepressant medications and going to therapy. They were going over all her work, her assignments she had graded, and everything else with a fine-tooth comb. It was too much.”
“Fuck! Man, I was there today trying to convince her to leave, but I didn’t want it to be like this.”
“You weren’t there the first time, Salem. She was hurt badly, and she’s hurting now. She might try to deny it, but my friend needs you.”
I nodded. “All right. I’m heading over there now.”
“Good for you. Good luck, Salem.”
“Thanks, Chels. I’m gonna need it.”
I muttered the last sentence under my breath as I ran back across the street to get my car. The entire drive to her apartment, I tried calling her intermittently without success. If they were starting this bullshit with her, I knew they would be coming for me soon. But I had some firepower for those bastards.
When I pulled up to her apartment, I parked haphazardly in the parking lot and jumped out. I ran up the stairs and banged on her door several times. I got no answer. Then something hit me. I walked back downstairs and looked around the parking lot. I didn’t see her car.
