The elderly woman signing Laura Chen's "withdrawal from course" form sighed. "I really wish you'd re-think this, Laura. You're one of the very few students I've ever had with a talent for the subject."

Josh McGrath's girlfriend stared at her feet. "I've given it plenty of thought. The way things are going I'll never need to earn a living. Besides, what would I have done with a degree in marine biology anyway?" She laughed, but stopped immediately when she saw the hurt look on her favorite professor's face. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

Dr. Miller waved dismissively, and the hurt expression turned to one of worry. "Laura…I'm sure this boyfriend of yours is great. I'm sure you do really love him. But please, don't make the same mistake so many other women in love have made. You need to finish your education. You need to be able to stand on your own feet…whether you ever have to or not."

Laura stared at the woman coldly as she took the form from her hand. "You'll see me on tv."

Her professor watched the young woman storm out the door, feeling helpless. She knew her student would find out the hard way, as all stubborn people inevitably did. She just wished that one time she could be able to stop them from getting hurt in the first place. She touched the spot on her finger where her wedding ring had sat for twenty-four years. All fools in love believed in the promise of forever.

Laura finished her business at the university and smiled as she confidently strode out the door of the building for the last time. The struggle of academic life was for average people who didn't yet know where their lives were going. She knew. Josh was going to be famous, and she was going to be with him every step of the way.

He was waiting for her in the red convertible his dad had bought him on his seventeenth birthday- even though he had failed the driving test three times. She noticed the cardboard boxes stacked across the back seats as she got into the passenger seat. "What's all that?"

"Our stuff." He started the car and sped off towards the highway.

"Our stuff? Are we going somewhere?"

"We're moving to LA. That's where all the big competitions are in this part of the country. Pete's tying up all the loose ends. We should be there by dinner time."

"Oh." She began to ask him who had packed up all her clothes, but his phone rang and he was soon involved in an animated conversation about Saturday's competition.

She turned and looked out the window as they zoomed past the sign stating they were leaving the city limits. "Bye Del Oro."