"Ms. Kumaritashvilli? Your presentation, please."
Karina knew it was her time- time to be assertive, aggressive, even if she wasn't normally so. She wanted this position. She needed this position, and she was darn well qualified for it!
"Yes." Karina smiled at her fellow teachers and at the superintendent and administrators, steadying her hands at her sides as she approached the front of the room.
"I will keep this succinct- I would like to start teaching an AP Chemistry course."
A few of the teachers smiled at her, happy that she took the bold initiative. A fellow chemistry teacher stared at her in bewilderment- was honors chemistry not time-consuming enough for her? Antonio grinned, silently mouthing "Go for it!"
"I would still like to teach some honors courses, if possible, but I feel that it would be beneficial to North Hollywood High School to have AP Chemistry as part of the curriculum. As of last year, I am AP certified, and I have several cost-efficient labs already planned out as well. I plan on carefully budgeting the course so that I do not cut into the school's expenses, but I feel that the course would be worthwhile. Many of my students have expressed an interest in moving on to AP Chemistry next year, and I want to give them the best chance possible to pursue careers in science."
The superintendent, Dr. Braginskaya, widened her eyes in interest, a cheerful smile playing across her features. Administrator Arlovskaya, however, was less-than-impressed.
"An AP course in itself, no matter how well it is budgeted, is still costly, Ms. Kumaritashvilli."
"I feel that the benefits will outweigh the costs. Should we offer AP chemistry, our school will be one of the few in the Los Angeles School District to do so. This will attract students that would otherwise go to private schools, aiding North Hollywood High in fundraisers and wages, should we have a larger student body."
"I think it's a wonderful idea!" Dr. Braginskaya rose to stand next to Karina. "I'm glad you spoke up about this- I've been thinking that, with such a talented Science Olympiad team at this school, there ought to be more AP science courses here. Don't worry about the funding- we want to give these students an innovative course, so I'm sure that with some proper fundraising we can stretch the budget. You are the supervisor of the Science Olympiad team here, am I correct?"
"I'm the co-supervisor," Karina politely corrected. "Mr. Carriedo Fernandez and I both guide the club." She smiled at her boyfriend, and he beamed at her in response.
"Well, you both are doing a great job of it. Mr. Carriedo, you teach AP Biology, if I'm not mistaken?"
"Yes, Dr. Braginskaya. Along with material sciences."
"Then it seems we ought to give Karina an AP course to teach, as well!" Yekaterina smiled at Karina. "I'll be looking forward to it."
"Thank you so much." Karina sighed with relief, feeling her pale face heat with adrenaline. Had it really been so easy? Natalya Arlovskaya merely huffed indignantly at her as she walked by.
…
"You look down," Elizaveta commented as Alexianos picked apart his lunch. "What's wrong?"
"Huh?" Alex's head snapped up, and he brightened his expression. "Oh, nothing. I'm fine, I was just thinking. This chicken tartar is exceptional-"
"You're hiding something." Her tightly drawn lips conveyed that she would not rest until she got a suitable explanation as to why Alexianos was acting so solemn.
He sighed. "Yeah, I am. This really creepy guy has been stalking Tino for the past few years, and…Tino had this fiancée, you see, and the guy possibly had something to do with a fatal car accident that Tino's ex-fiancee was involved in. And he's still calling Tino, even though he had a restraining order put on him. Tino's called the police, but I'm worried."
"Of course you are; that's serious. Well, does this guy live in the U.S.?"
"No, presumably he lives in Finland. Tino was talking harshly on the phone to him mainly in English, though…"
Elizaveta shrugged. "He could be a foreigner, I suppose."
"The guy's name is Berwald. That sounds German."
"He could be that, or maybe Swedish. Anyway, whatever he is doesn't matter. The guy's a creep."
"Yeah, tell me about it. Do you think Tino will be okay?"
"Of course. This guy lives in Finland! He won't be able to get across the ocean without being noticed."
"Unless he's already in the states…"
"You're overcomplicating things."
"I just get scared. I'm Near-eastern*; you have to allow me a degree of anxiety over certain things." Alexianos smirked, only half-kidding.
"Well, speaking of things causing anxiety and discomfort, let's talk about the fact that Sadik and Farah were googly-eyed cuddling when I came over."
Alexianos groaned. "Ugh…that was so awkward. The thing is, they aren't doing it on purpose. They're just really cheesy."
"But, come on, in front of you? That seems disrespectful."
"Yeah, but I tell myself that they don't mean it. I'd probably hate them, otherwise." He laughed bitterly to accentuate his point.
"You couldn't hate anybody, Alex, and you know it."
"That's true. Though this Berwald guy is coming pretty close."
Eli took a bite of her chicken before replying, her fork raised thoughtfully.
"You seem to care a lot about this."
Alexianos blushed. "What are you implying?"
"You know damn well what I'm implying," the Hungarian woman grinned, "You have a crush on a cute blondie."
"He's my patient, not my crush."
"Lies. Your face is beet red. You know, you wouldn't be the first Finnish-American couple in the valley. Some woman in the LAFF is married to an Armenian guy..."
"Eli, this is embarrassing. I don't like him. Anyhow, what is the situation with you and Roderich?"
"Ugh, he screwed up. Up being the soloist in the choir he accompanies…"
Alexianos patted her hand comfortingly. "You deserve much better."
"Heck yes, I do! I even tried to give him a chance. I asked him if he wanted to work this out, and be faithful, you know? Yeah, I was hurt, but I don't mind rebuilding. Do you know what he said? 'Maybe I'm just not suitable for monogamy.' You should have thought about that before you married me, then!" She flushed, suddenly enraged. She had never given herself the opportunity to get so upset with Roderich before, and now her anger displayed itself in the most embarrassing of places. Still, Alexianos understood.
"He really said that? Ew."
"I know. And besides, you want to know something really terrible? For the past few months, I started having feelings for this friend of mine. I've known him since I was three. Oh, don't look at me like that, I know! It's bad, but I never did anything with him. I never mentioned my feelings, because I thought that I could eradicate them. I thought I could work through it. But…maybe things didn't work out with Roderich for a reason."
"It's certainly possible. To be honest, I never really liked him. He was a snob."
"I know it now, it's just…What if it's my fault, too? What if my emotional detachment made him go away? What if I'm one of those women that will never be satisfied with the guy she's with?"
"You're not like that at all. Roderich was distant with you for over a year, and it's natural that you'd find a friend attractive. The good thing was that you didn't do anything to act on that attraction- that alone shows that you're a very different person from Roderich. Who is the friend?"
She blushed. "I'm afraid to say. You know him."
"I won't judge."
"Eduard."
"Ed?" Alexianos' eyes nearly popped out of his skull. "Our friend, Ed? The pharmacist? Wow. And you never told me?" He poked her teasingly, smiling.
"I was ashamed!" She chuckled, happy that her friend accepted the confession. " I felt bad for liking someone else while I was married."
"You were still a great wife, though. Roderich had it way too easy."
"You're nice. He's not all awful. He just can't keep it in his pants, and I don't like infidelity."
"Understandably so. I honestly don't even know if I could be able to offer to work through an affair if a guy cheated on me."
"If a guy cheated on you, then he probably doesn't have a heart at all. That would be like stealing from a child or slapping Mother Theresa."*
Alex laughed. "You glorify me, Eli."
…
A/N: Thanks, guys, for waiting for my update! I had a busy weekend with SAT subject tests and my birthday (I'm now 17 :D), and I started class at a college nearby, but thankfully the story is all written out now! :) I still need to make some edits, but expect it to be posted soon (especially if I get some reviews :D). Thanks to all my readers and reviewers!
By the way, remember when I used to write FinRus eons ago under the account "PianoIsLove?" Well, I'm going to be posting a Winter-War centric story soon. :)
Notes:
-Fun fact! Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan are technically neither European nor Middle-Eastern- they're Near Eastern or Caucasian! The more you know! ;)
-Considering the fact that many Hungarians are Catholic (I'm pretty sure the majority are), Catholic Elizaveta would see someone slapping Mother Theresa as the worst possible thing in the planet. We Catholics love Mother Theresa like people wouldn't understand otherwise. xD In church, they once brought in cloth from one of her old shirts, and most people kissed it. I suppose a lot of people would find that disgusting, and I can't blame them, but we didn't mind. xD
