Total pages in book: 15
Estimated words: 13606 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 68(@200wpm)___ 54(@250wpm)___ 45(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 13606 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 68(@200wpm)___ 54(@250wpm)___ 45(@300wpm)
“Thank you for coming in on such short notice,” Dean Carlton says as I take a seat behind his desk. “Do you have any idea why you're here?”
I shake my head nervously, purposefully looking as uncomfortable as possible.
“It's come to our attention that Dr. Griffin has been engaging in inappropriate relations with you, and it's something we have to take action against as it violates our code of conduct,” he carefully begins, making sure he doesn’t overstep with his words. “Dr. Griffin has been put on temporary leave while we begin investigating. I wanted to start with you before anything else to hear your side of the story if you're comfortable sharing.”
My heart pounds in my chest, and I can feel myself blushing. “We have been seeing each other,” I cautiously admit. “He never seduced me or took advantage of me. In fact, it was … it was me who made the first move.”
“My concern, as an administrator of the university, is that Dr. Griffin is in a position of power over you.” He leans forward and stares deep into my eyes. “When this relationship began, did he mention anything about it affecting your grades or scholarships? Anything like that?”
I quickly shake my head and straighten myself in my seat. “Of course not! He's never indicated once that our relationship would have an impact on my grade. We just realized we had a lot in common when we were discussing the reading list, and things went from there. He's never done anything to make me feel like I've been taken advantage of.”
He nods and writes something down in front of me. “I'm glad to hear that, Miss Simmons. I'm not gonna lie; that doesn't change much as far as the investigation is concerned, but if you feel this was wholly consensual, that takes some stress off the situation.”
“What's going to happen to him?” I ask, nervously biting my lip.
“That's to be determined right now,” he answers, shrugging his shoulders gently. “It's difficult to say because he's a valuable part of the team here, but it's our duty to hire faculty and staff that are conducive to the environment we're trying to create. On top of that, knowing that he's engaged in illicit relations with one student, it brings up questions about if this was the first time or not.”
“What should I expect for the rest of the investigation?”
Dean Carlton takes a deep breath and stares at me with a nervous look. “While the investigation is ongoing, we think it would be best to put you on temporary academic probation.”
“What?” I lean forward, with my mouth hanging open in disbelief. “If I'm on academic probation, I'll lose all of my scholarships. I can't afford to go here if I don't have them.”
He takes a deep breath and slowly nods again, making it seem like he knew that before he made the decision. “I'm really sorry, Miss Simmons. I don't think there's anything I can do about it at this point.”
I can feel the tears stinging the corners of my eyes, so I stand up and rush out of the office before he can say anything else. I don't stop to talk to anyone along the way and go right back to Gabriel's house to speak to him. As soon as I walk in the door, he takes me in his arms and holds me while I cry about the news. I don't know how I’m going to tell my parents that I won’t be attending school anymore because I’m on probation. I know they won't understand, and part of me feels like I failed them.
“I won’t let him do this to you,” Gabriel whispers with a determined tone, grabbing his car keys and leading me out of the house.
I calm down enough on the drive back to campus to hold back some of the tears. Dean Carlton is sitting in his office, on the phone, talking to someone when Gabriel and I walk back in. Gabriel holds my hand tightly on his own, and we sit down in the chairs across from the desk, watching as the Dean's face changes to one of disapproval.
“Gabriel, I told you we would keep this quiet, but you were walking around holding hands with her in public—” Dean Carlton begins, his face turning red.
“I quit,” Gabriel says, interrupting him.
“What?” I ask, turning to him with a shocked face.
“If I quit, will that make this go away? Will Grace still be able to stay enrolled without going on academic probation?” He looks at me while he waits for a response.
“I suppose if you do, then the investigation could be called off, and Miss Simmons could stay enrolled,” the Dean replies, shaking his head. “But if you quit, you'll lose all of your benefits and your pension. There's going to be repercussions for quitting this position.”