95
Lucy
I didn’t understand.
“Hey,” Duke whispered in my ear. “It’s alright. It’s still just the first assignment. And it can’t be that bad, right?”
I turned the page to him and he frowned.
“That… can’t be right.” He pointed at one of the questions. “I had the same answer for that question and mine was marked right.”
My jaw trembled as a bit of hope filled me. I looked at Duke’s page and saw it coded ‘B’. Mine was coded ‘A’.
“Would you mind checking your answers against mine, Amy?” I asked. “You got the one labeled Exam A, right?”
Amy nodded and took my paper. We went question by question, but it made no sense. The answers matched up almost perfectly. I couldn't help but feel relieved. I hadn’t done as bad as I thought.
Amy frowned. “The T.A. just used the wrong answer key. That’s the only way it makes sense.”
“Do you think she’ll fix it?” I worried my lip.
“She has to,” Michelle said and scoffed. “She fucked up. It’s not your fault.”
“I’m sure it was just a mistake,” Amy said with a kind smile.
I stood up and took a deep breath. “I’m going to go talk to her.”
My heart was still pounding in my chest with anxiety. My hands shook with nervousness, but I had to go see her.
“You should,” Duke said. “We’ll come with you.”
I let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
I quickly gathered my things and headed straight to the T.A.’s office, trying to keep calm as I knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
I opened the door. The woman sat at her desk looking completely at ease as she looked at me. Her expression was cold as she watched me.
“H-Hi,” I said softly. “Uhm… You’re T.A. Wright? You graded my assignment?”
She smirked. “I grade all of your assignments.”
“I-I… I think you might have used the wrong answer key,” I said. “My friend and I have the same exam code a-and our answers match up mostly.”
“Apparently not enough.” She smiled. “I don’t make mistakes.”
I frowned. “But… My entire assignment was marked in correct, even the once that were examples in class.”
“I guess you just copied the answers wrong,” she shrugged. “You failed. Are you done wasting my time?”
I clenched my fists on the paper. Anger started to flicker in me at how unfair this was. She looked completely unbothered.
No…. She looked happy.
“Are you…” I frowned. “Do you have a reason to be so mean to me?”
She smiled. “I guess you aren’t that stupid after all.”
She sat back. “You have no idea how happy I was when I saw you walk into class. I checked your name and photo. I made sure I was grading your alphabet block. You’re not going to sit for the GED if I have anything to say about it.”
I shook my head. “I don’t even know you. Why would you—”
“But you know, Matt don’t you?”
My stomach plummeted and I staggered back. Her words sunk in.
She smiled. “You’ll be in this class for years so long as I have a say in it. We’ll see how long Matt has an interest in an idiot who can’t even get her GED.”
I left the office shaking. My mind raced with a mix of emotions. Anger and frustration were the strongest.
“Even now?”
“Hey,” Duke said coming to me. “What’s wrong? She wasn’t in there?”
My jaw trembled. “Sh-She… She did it on purpose.”
“What?”
I sniffled, the paper crinkled in my hands. “S-She did it on purpose b-because of Matt.”
Duke wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me down the corridor. Michelle and Amy followed until we reached an empty classroom.
As tears streamed down my face, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. My chest felt tight like something wanted to burst out. My fists curled tightly on the paper and my whole body was shaking.
“What happened?”
I told them what she said to me. I could barely get the words out as I sobbed.
“Is this ever going to end?” I sniffled. “Should I have just---“
“Don’t you finish that sentence,” Duke said sternly. He lifted my chin on the edge of his hand. “Don’t you even think it.”
I sniffled.
"I can't believe she's doing this to you, Lucy," Michelle exclaimed, her voice filled with disbelief. "It's downright cruel! Over some guy you don’t even want?"
Amy's brows furrowed, his eyes glinting with determination. "We can't let her get away with this. We need to take this to the professor. She has to do something, doesn’t she?"
My heart skipped a beat at Amy’s suggestion. The thought of confronting the professor made me nervous, but she was the only person who could do something in this situation.
“There’s no way that she knows that this woman is doing this.” Michelle shook her head.
Amy looked at her phone. “Office hours aren’t over yet. She should be there still.”
I nodded and wiped my face. “L-Let’s go then.”
Duke opened the door and we walked down the hall toward the professor’s office. My hands trembled. It would be the second time today that I had to speak to someone in authority over me. I tried not to think of my adoptive parents or even of Tony snarling at me when I walked ahead of him. The woman walked out of her office with her jacket.
Taking a deep breath, I cleared my throat. “P-Professor Smith?”
She looked up at me. A hint of surprise crossed her face but it vanished as she smiled. My gut churned as I realized that the smile didn’t even reach her eyes.
"D-Do you have a minute?” I swallowed. “I need to speak with you about… my assignment.”
I felt cold sweat starting to slide down the back of my neck.
She sighed, clearly annoyed. "What is it? Lucy, right? Graves?”
I nodded. “That’s me. I… I was checking my assignment, and realized that T.A. Wright had marked it all wrong. I thought she had just used the wrong key, but when I asked her about it, she said that she’d done it on purpose.”
Her eyes narrowed and her smiled turned into a smirk. "Oh, really? And why should I believe you? You wouldn’t be the first mediocre student I’ve had.”
I swallowed as her words cut through me. I heard scuffling behind me.
“I’m not making this up. I c-compared mine to another student with the same code as mine, and they match up. I—”
She sighed again, rolling her eyes. “I really don’t have the patience. I thought you wouldn’t be so pathetic, but there’s really nothing for it. I don’t care.”
“But—”
“In your case, I’m ecstatic to know that you’ll be in this class until you give up,” she smiled. “I doubt a man like Tony Chance has any interest in someone who can’t even get her GED.”
I blinked at her. “What?”
“Don’t play dumb,” she sneered. “Cheap, worthless, aimless whores like you are always cutting in where you’re not wanted. Consider it repayment for not knowing your place. Maybe it will teach you to stay in the muck where you belong.”
I stared at her. My blood cold as she locked the door behind her.
“I hate little girls playing at being women. Getting in the way of real women with their tricks, especially when they start blaming others for their shortcomings.”
“But, I—”
“Don’t waste my time any further, or I’ll consider it harassment.” Her lips lifted. “You might as well start trying to transfer out, but you should know that no other university is going to want you once I pass them your transcripts.” She chuckled. “Honestly, you look so pathetic standing there it’s been worth it having to look at your stupid face these past few weeks.”
I swallowed. “I… I don’t understand.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Don’t play coy with me, you idiot. I know your type. You’re a dime a dozen, and just like every other whore who happens to catch the eye of a worthy man, you’ll be pushed aside soon enough.”
She lifted her nose. “I suspect you’ll need to return to the streets when I’m done with you. You should feel very comfortable there.”
“You can’t talk to her like that!” Michelle screamed coming down the hall.
“You can’t do that!” Duke said just behind her. “We’re going to take this to the department head and the administration. You’re not going to get away with this.”
She smiled coldly. “I’d love to see how that will work out.”
She turned and laughed, walking away from me. My blood ran cold. I heard Duke and Amy talking. I heard Michelle speaking to me, but I could hear what they were saying around the roaring in my ears.
“Even now?”
I didn’t even know what else to say.
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