In Her Shadow
Jennifer had weaseled her way into a top university, but her old habits died hard; she played hooky more than she hit the books.
Predictably, she flunked out, diploma-less after four wasted years. Then, with no prospects, she was slinging burgers and fries.
That kind of grind would break her spirit in no time.
So, she had her sights set on me again.
She wanted to trade her greasy spoon gig for my grad student grind.
I hung up and eyed the calendar.
In 36 hours, my advisor and I would unveil our findings.
A steely resolve took hold of me.
If they would not back off, I would have to hand it all to Jennifer, every last bit of my hard-earned success and the mess she had made.