PHILIP
I didn’t care about this stupid disciplinary hearing at all. It was nearing the end of the semester, they’d already made me miss so much class time, I’d decided I wasn’t going back to teaching. I had some ideas about what I could do and none of it included teaching entitled kids like Candy. The only reason we even decided to go to the disciplinary hearing in the first place was for Abby. The custody hearing was in a couple days and this whole thing needed to be settled before we went to court.
We walked into the administration building past the camera crews all clambering to get a piece of the story. The receptionist nodded her head. “Please have a seat, they’ll call you in one at a time.”
“No,” I said forcefully. “We’re going in together.”
“That’s not allowed, Mr. Marks.” The woman bristled.
“Philip, it’s fine,” Ryan said softly. He was still wearing his sunglasses even though the light sensitivity had started to lessen. If he didn’t heal completely in the next few days, we were going to take him back to the doctor. They called me in first. Ryan squeezed my hand as I rose to my feet, then strode into the room confidently. This hearing was serious apparently, because all the higher-ups from the university were sitting in a line at a long table. I noticed the president of the university was in the middle, right in front of a single chair that was meant for me to sit in.
“Please sit,” he said firmly. I walked over and sat in the chair he’d indicated with my head held high. “Do you recognize these photographs?”
“Yes,” I stated simply. Looking down at the photograph of Ryan answering the door in his underwear.
“Well, what do you have to say in your defense?”
“Not that it matters, but I believe this has been a witch hunt. There are no photos of me actually touching Ryan or walking into his dorm room in his state of undress.”
“Well, no... but the video of you speaking with the little girl?” the president asked.
“Nowhere in that video did we acknowledge any kind of romantic relationship. We explained to a little girl why we couldn’t be together. She was living with me and wanted a real family with Ryan. You have no evidence of any wrong doing.”
“What about now?” another board member asked.
“Since I have been put on leave and Ryan was put on academic probation with the threat of removing his scholarship on baseless accusations from a jealous girl?” I lifted a brow at them. They started shifting in their chairs uncomfortably.
“But, uh, you are in a relationship with him now?”
“Does it matter? According to a conversation you had with Ryan, this meeting was just a formality and me losing my job was a foregone conclusion.”
“I, uh, I think we have enough to adjourn this meeting,” the president stuttered. The rest of the board looked at him warily.
“Wait, we need to vote,” the head of the board stopped everyone from getting up. “All those in favor of reinstating Professor Marks raise your hand.”
I was shocked to see every hand in the room rise, other than the president’s. They were all looking at him like he’d lost his mind. “Thank you, but no thanks. My teaching days are done. I have other plans for my future. This was solely to receive the clearing of my name for another more important hearing in a few days.”
I pushed myself away from the table and stood.
“We’ll make sure to make a statement that the investigation is done and that the claims were unfounded,” the head of the board said. “It will be really hard to replace you.”
I walked out of the room with my head held high and a bright smile on my face. Ryan looked up from where he was slightly hunched over. My expression must have conveyed it all. He shot from his chair looking at me closely. “How did it go?”
“They reinstated me.” I smiled. Ryan looked confused for a second before I added, “I turned them down.”
All the board members walked out of the conference room a few minutes later. They looked at Ryan smiling warmly at him. “Your scholarship is fine, young man. There will be no academic probation.”
Ryan looked stricken. I knew he originally wanted to be a psychologist to help addicts, but he’d thought for weeks that dream was gone and had been brainstorming with me about what we could do to honor Martha as well as help people.
“Thank you, sir. We have other plans though.” He squeezed my hand. “We want to help people now, not wait for a degree that I may not even be able to use.”
“I understand. Your experience with this situation left much to be desired on the part of our university. Good luck in your future endeavors.” He nodded to us both and walked out of the administration building and stood in front of the waiting cameras. I watched through the glass doors as he spoke animatedly.
“C’mon, let’s go home.”
“I can’t wait to tell Abby the news. We’re one step closer to getting her permanently,” Ryan said excitedly.