Mr. Ford stood up so that he was standing over Crystal. “Crystal,” he said, “our school does not object to students falling in love, but we try to encourage our teachers not to enter into sexual relationships with students, and if they must, then they should at least wait until the students are of legal age. Surely, you must understand that if this got out, it would tarnish the reputation of the school.”
Ms. Ford whined, “Dad... Mr. Ford, I mean... Her behavior has already been a bad influence on other students. Furthermore, although she keeps saying that she and Professor Davis are in love with each other, it is clear that she is the one who seduced Professor Davis, and not the other way around! Young girls have ways of mesmerizing men, as I am sure even you know, so how could he resist the provocation of this naughty vixen?!?!? I think that since this kind of thing has never happened in our school with a girl so young, it is necessary to make an example of her.”
Mr. Ford nodded approvingly and asked, “What do you think is an effective way to control something like this? Should we circulate a notice of criticism?”
Off with her head! - Crystal thought wildly, and she was barely able to contain her laughter.
“That’s too serious,” Ms. Ford replied. “I think it would be better to expel her.”
Mr. Ford looked at Crystal thoughtfully and said, “These are some heavy charges that have been made against you. But I know that you have been through a lot lately, what with your Mother’s death and your Father’s remarriage, so I don’t want to be too quick to give up on you, particularly because of your previous exemplary record. Do you have anything to say on your behalf before I pass judgment?”
Crystal looked first at Ms. Ford and then at Mr. Ford. “This is hard to talk about,” she admitted, “but my relationship with Professor Davis is not one that is comparable to that of the love that is sometimes made between a man and a woman, but -”
“Ugh, I knew you’d say that,” Tiffany interrupted cruelly. She rose and grabbed her laptop, plugged in her hard drive, and an image of her and Nathan appeared on the computer screen. He had her pressed up against the wall with her arm twisted behind her back, and his free hand was down the front of her pants. “What excuse do you have now, Miss Crystal? Isn’t this evidence of a relationship between a man and a woman or a man and a little GIRL, as is the case?”
Mr. Ford looked away in disgust and said, “Geez! You really are shameless. You will disgrace our school. I have made up my mind: for seducing a teacher, you are being expelled. You can empty your locker!”
Having nothing to say, Crystal stood up and left the office. On the way out, Ms. Ford yelled at her to” STOP!” but Crystal paid her no mind.
After all, now that she was no longer a student here, the staff no longer had any hold over her.
What a bad day - she thought to herself - my boyfriend cheated on me. My guardian sexually assaulted me. And now I’ve been expelled from school. Damn it! What is the point of even living...?
Crystal found Serenity in the cafeteria, and she ordered a large lunch for herself. Why despair when you can eat?!?!?! When Serenity saw how much food she’d purchased, she nearly choked. “Did Mr. Ford offer you a double scholarship?” she asked.
“No,” Crystal replied flatly, “he expelled me.
This isn’t a celebratory meal! It is a consolatory meal! Can’t you tell the difference?!?!!?
Serenity frowned, and tears welled up in her eyes, and Crystal felt bad for speaking to her friend in such a harsh manner. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m upset, but it wasn’t fair to take it out on you.”
“It’s okay,” Serenity replied. “I forgive you. We all have bad days, and yours sounds particularly bad. Why did the school expel you, though?”
“Because of Nathan,” Crystal replied.
Serenity: “So, your affair with Professor Davis was exposed?”
Crystal: “It isn’t an affair. I may have been a bit of a cock-tease, but he sexually assaulted me, and they’ve turned me into the villain!”
Serenity: “Why don’t you ask Professor Davis to explain it to them? Maybe they’ll let you stay in school.”
Crystal: “The evidence is conclusive. How could he explain it away? Let’s end this talk, shall we? I want to eat my lunch. When I’m full, then I will have the strength to think about what to do next.”
As they were eating, Crystal’s big brother, Evan Henry, came and sat with them. Crystal looked at him uncomfortably and asked him what he was doing.
“Surprised to see me?” he asked. He was wearing a light blue shirt and black pants.
“Shouldn’t I be?” Crystal replied.
“Not really,” Evan replied. “Who did you think Dad would send after he discovered that you were expelled? He cares about you. You know that, don’t you?”
“Cut the crap,” Crystal replied coldly.
“He does!” Evan insisted. “And he plans to contribute five million dollars to this institution to keep you enrolled, and I finally persuaded Mr. Ford to reduce your sentence from expulsion to probation.”
“How about if I accept the dismissal, and he can transfer the money to my account,” Crystal replied snarkily. “How does that sound? And why would a man that didn’t want to raise his own daughter set aside five million dollars to keep her in school? Can you answer that question for me?”
Serenity listened quietly, not daring to interrupt. She had heard Crystal’s story about their family and felt sorry for her.
Evan frowned and said, “Crystal, you can come to me if you need money. Don’t be angry at Dad. He has his reasons for abandoning you, and they are reasonable. Can you believe me?” Crystal rolled her eyes and said, “Of course… NOT.
Evan nodded as if he hadn’t expected any other answer from her, which he likely hadn’t... “Dad hasn’t been feeling well lately,” he said. “Go and see him whenever you can.”
Crystal was about to excuse herself by saying she wasn’t available, but Evan saw through her. He said, “Dad asked that you come and see him tomorrow. Your Mother left something at his place for you to have.”
Then, without saying goodbye, Evan rose and left.
“Is he your half-brother?” Serenity wondered.
“No,” Crystal replied. “He was adopted.”
Mr. Ford was at a loss about what to do with Professor Davis. He knew that Ms. Crystal Smith had been responsible for what had happened between them, but that didn’t completely exonerate him. After giving it much thought, he called Nathan into his office and said, “Professor Davis, you may have been recommended by the board of directors, but that doesn’t mean you can do whatever you like with the students! You should pay a little more attention to your behavior, and perhaps you need a little discipline to help you keep your mind out of the proverbial gutter.”Ms. Ford was also there, and she stood up for Nathan, saying, “Dad, don’t blame Professor Davis. The girl is a tramp and a trollop. Professor Davis can’t help it.” Ms. Ford gave Nathan an irritated look and added: “Isn’t that right, Professor Davis?”
Susie had already prepared dinner, and when she saw Nathan enter the door that evening, she hurried to put out slippers for him. “Mr. Davis,” she said, “dinner is ready, but Ms. Crystal hasn’t come back yet. Would you like to have dinner first or wait for her?”“I’ll wait for her,” Nathan said. “Susie, you can go home now.”Susie’s daughter-in-law was pregnant and needed to be cared for, so Susie had to go home every night. So after Susie left, Nathan took a shower and went straight to the study, where he waited until nine o’clock, which was what time it was when Crystal arrived home.Nathan heard a noise at the door, and then the study door was pushed open. Crystal staggered through the door. Her cheeks were glowing, her eyes were dim, and ther
The parcel was from Amazon, which meant that the box opened easily. The package was rectangular, and there was a single strip of packing tape holding it shut. Crystal pushed one side of the box in, hooked her finger underneath it, tore it, pulled it away from the box, and tossed it into the wastebasket beside her bed.After sitting up straight again, Crystal pulled open the cardboard and wasn't surprised to discover that the box was half-filled with bubble wrap. Just like Amazon to use an oversized box and stuff it with bubble wrap- Crystal thought - What a waste. It is no wonder the package was so light!Crystal pulled out the bubble wrap, and when she saw what was underneath it (Serenity's gift!), her face immediately turned r
Crystal screamed at the realization that she had been, for all intent and purposes, playing with Nathan's genitals, and she pulled her hand away quickly, as a child might do after accidentally touching a hot burner. But, like a cruel mother who thinks that her child hasn't quite learned their lesson yet, Nathan grabbed her hand and held it where it was."Who's there?" Crystal shouted as she tried to withdraw her hand."It's me," Nathan replied, and then he began to laugh. "Who else would be wandering the hallway with their dingus hanging out?!?!?" Crystal stopped screaming and stammered in confusion: "Prof... Professor Davis?""Yes," Nathan replied. "Don't be afraid it's me."Crystal began to calm down, and she was surprised by how easily Nathan's words had settled her n
Crystal was at a loss for words, and she didn’t like the feelings of complete helplessness that were washing over her in waves. She recognized that her heart was racing, though, and that was one thing that she could control. She began to slow her breathing, and she counted backward in her head- ten, nine, eight, seven, and so on - hoping that if she could think straight, she could find a way out of her current predicament.Crystal didn’t know what to say to Nathan. It seemed like whatever she said, he twisted her words and used them against her. It doesn’t help that he’s much smarter than I am - a voice in her head whines so much smarter. After all, he is a teacher!After a minute, Crystal said, “That vibrator was a gift from Serenity. Didn&rsquo
As Nathan stepped out of the room, Crystal took the opportunity to peek into his more personal belongings. She looked around. This room that Nathan lived in had initially been a guest room in Crystal's home, and the patterns of black and white tones had not changed. Nathan had few personal belongings, she noticed. There was a book and a pen on the coffee table, though, which was something.Crystal leaned over, picked it up, and was disappointed to discover that it wasn't a diary or journal. The title on the book's jacket read: Howard's Amazing Adventure- and according to the back cover, the book told the story of an alien rabbit that had accidentally broken into the earth. Crystal picked up the book, turned a few pages randomly, and finally put it down indifferently.Nathan h
The next day, when Crystal came down for breakfast, Nathan was already sitting at the head of the table in the dining room. And to the right of him, there was a man in a black suit. The stranger was standing over Nathan, slightly bowed, and he was handing a document to him. From the way that the stranger carried himself in Nathan’s presence, it was apparent to Crystal that he was subordinate to him.When Nathan heard Crystal’s footsteps, he looked up from the papers and ordered her to join him at the table. Once she was seated, he introduced the man in black to her. “This is Mike,” he said. “Mike is my lawyer. Say hello to Mike.”Suddenly Crystal felt like a child, which, she supposed, she was, at least as far as these men were concerned. Her cheeks turned pink, and she looked at her shoes. “Hello, Mike,” she said
“All you want is to fuck me?” Crystal asked skeptically. “And then you will forgive my debt?”“No, not just fuck,” Nathan laughed. “I want you to give yourself to me, fully, as my wife!”Crystal gasped as Mike produced a marriage certificate. Nathan had laid a much bigger trap for her than she could have ever imagined. Crystal contemplated the proposal for a moment before addressing Mike, his lawyer. “I only have two questions,” she said. “The first question is this: if I sign it, does it mean that I don’t need to pay my debt?”Mike: “Yes. And your second question...?”Crystal: “Okay, I haven’t reached the legal age for marriage yet, so even if I sign it, it won&rs