1. You've probably heard people talk about minimum wage a hundred times before, so let's set the record straight: the U.S. minimum wage should be $15. The federal minimum wage is currently only $7.25 an hour, and it has been this low since 2009, despite the fact that prices have continued to increase since then (ex. the average house cost $209k in 2009 and now costs $362k in 2020). It's also worth noting that if the minimum wage had risen at the same pace as productivity since the Vietnam war, it would be over $20 an hour today, meaning $15 should be more than enough of a compromise between (ridiculous) partisan debates. Furthermore, there are 3.3 million workers in the U.S. that are paid below the federal minimum wage; 63% are women, over 50% are Black, and over 60% are Latine. And keep in mind that the people who make less than $15 an hour are also people we rely on to keep our lives running, such as fast food workers, childcare workers, and retail workers. If a fast food CEO makes $23.8 million a year while their employees are only making $16.9k a year, there's a problem. Think about it this way: if McDonald's raised their minimum wage to $15 an hour across the board, the price of a Big Mac would only increase by 17 cents. That's not even a quarter of a dollar! The bottom line? People working at least 40 hours a week should not be living in poverty. The U.S. needs to set a $15 minimum wage. (Condensed from soyouwanttotalkabout on Instagram.)

Bonjour vous-autres! I hope you all had a very happy Halloween last week (I was barraged with atla asks on Tumblr, lol, which made it a very unique Halloween experience for me). Idk about y'all, but the talk of Christmas is already driving me up the wall. IT'S NOVEMBER. R. Anyways. This chapter is a soft one,, you will soon see why. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it!

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Callum had planned with Rayla that they'd spend most of their homework session studying for the Renaissance History final, since it was the one subject they shared, but those plans changed after their class on Monday. Professor Nguyen had given an update on their life, as promised, as well as their new lecture about the commonalities between the treatment of Renaissance women and women of modern day. While the lecture itself hadn't been the cause of their changed plans, the fact that Professor Nguyen altered the assignment for their final as a result of the lecture was the deciding factor. Instead of a 200-question exam, they needed to write a minimum five-page reflection on that day's lecture.

If Callum was being honest, it was a generous change to their final. Five pages, especially when they had to be double-spaced, was not much. And Callum had been so shocked - probably more than he had any right to be, because it wasn't as if he was oblivious to modern sexism and misogyny - by Professor Nguyen's lecture that he'd written six pages the day the reflection had been assigned. It was a rare instance where words had come easily to him. Rayla and Sonya had done the same, and Callum would freely admit that they'd all cross-referenced each other's notes as they went. But long story short: they'd all finished the first draft of their final basically two weeks before it was due, and had thus arranged that they'd edit each other's papers the following weekend, which would give them plenty of time to make necessary changes and produce polished drafts.

It was a great system, really.

All together, that meant Callum had taken to focusing on his poetry and physics finals, while Rayla sat on his bed beside him and struggled with calculus.

"Why are integrals the worst things in the world?" Rayla complained as she worked out the fifth or sixth practice problem on a worksheet she'd printed of close to twenty. "I remember thinking derivatives were bad." She sighed and shook her head, leaning back on the wall his bed rested against. "I was so young. So naive."

Callum snorted at her dramatic declaration, flipping over a notecard to see if he'd correctly remembered the formula he was quizzing himself on - he had. Sometimes it was very easy to remember his girlfriend used to be a theatre kid. "You only need to deal with them for two more weeks. Then you'll never have to take a math class again."

"Oh, I know. Longest two weeks of my life." She cursed, erasing all the work she'd done on the problem. "See, integrals really aren't that hard. I'd say for the most part, I do understand them. Especially because Dr. Harsch said we don't need to know trig substitution for the final. But I'm just rubbish at figuring out what integration technique I need to use for each expression! So every problem takes a million years because I end up testing all ten trillion methods."

"Did your professor not teach you about the best order to approach integrals?" Callum asked, skimming over a different flashcard. "Or ways to identify what techniques might apply per problem?"

"Uh… No?" She shrugged. "Not that I can remember. Dr. Harsch is an okay teacher, but he's a little absent-minded. And since my calc class is one for non-math majors, maybe he didn't think we needed to know that much?"

Callum nodded in understanding before winking at her. "Well, lucky for you, I'm great with integrals." He was always brushing up on his calculus because of his physics classes, anyway. He grabbed a blank index card and a pen, placing the former on top of his closed computer so he'd have something flat to write on. "My AP calculus teacher told us that the best order to approach integrals was this: reverse power rule, u-sub, partial fractions, integration by parts, and if all else fails, inverse trig." He made a numbered list of the methods as he spoke. "Good so far?"

Rayla nodded. "Yes. From the simplest technique to the most complicated, right?"

"Exactly." He flipped the index card over to the lined side. "But there are also some ways to identify what integration technique you should use before you actually start the problem, that way you don't have to go through this entire list every single time."

She gave him an amused smile. "Like how using partial fractions is only going to be effective with an integral involving a large fraction?"

Callum laughed. "Right. Some people like partial fractions for that exact reason - it's pretty easy to tell when you're going to use them." He wrote that tip on the first line of the index card. "But there are ways to help identify when to apply the other techniques, too." He glanced at her. "Before I tell you them, though, are there any you can think of off the top of your head?"

Rayla pursed her lips. "Uh. Are you going to think I'm stupid if I say no?"

Callum rolled his eyes. "Of course not. I already know how smart you are."

Rayla seemed to either disregard or not process his words, as she snapped her fingers as something occurred to her. "No, no! I do know one! I think." Embarrassment flickered across her features. "It's kind of obvious, though."

"Just because it's obvious doesn't mean it won't be helpful," he said, poising his pen over the index card to write. "Whatcha got?"

"Well, if the integral is just a polynomial, then reverse power rule should take care of it."

Callum nodded, writing her note down. "That's definitely an important one. You don't want to waste time trying every other method when a simple one will suffice." He paused to finish writing before turning back to face his girlfriend. "Anything else?"

Rayla hesitated, then shook her head. "Nope. That's the extent of my knowledge."

Callum laughed. "Understandable." He pushed his bangs out of his face with his free hand as he continued. "The other big thing to look for applies to integration by parts. If you see natural log, I can guarantee you'll use integration by parts, since you're in calculus for non-math majors." He started writing his advice down. "And, in general, if you see a combination of expressions, like 'e' and 'sin', you're probably going to use integration by parts for that, too. Make sense?"

Rayla nodded slowly. "Yes. Yes, that makes sense." She grinned, lightly elbowing him in the ribs. "Wow. I'm so lucky to have a boyfriend who's a genius. The smartest person and most talented artist in the entire world."

He flushed. "Hey - don't try to distract me. This is supposed to help you prepare for your final." He handed her the index card, which she accepted. "Uh. Has it helped you?"

Rayla smiled at him. "Yes, very much so." She glanced down at the index card. "Is there a way to know if I'll ever need to use u-substitution?"

Callum chuckled, making a so-so gesture with his hand. "Sort of. U-sub is the most common integration technique, so it should be the default method you should try if the integral isn't just a basic polynomial and you don't see any other patterns."

Rayla nodded again. "So that means inverse trig is only for when I've exhausted every other option."

"Yep. Literally no one likes inverse trig." He shuddered. "Consider yourself lucky you don't need to know trig substitution. It's the worst."

She snorted. "Trust me. When I count my blessings, that's the first on the list." She rested her head on his shoulder as she returned to her worksheet, and Callum brought his attention back to his flashcards of physics formulas. His professor had said that he was still deciding on whether or not to give them an open-notes final. Callum had a feeling he probably would, but that didn't mean he was taking any chances.

Even if it meant studying so much his brain would ooze out of his ears. A necessary sacrifice, at the end of the day.

He did glance at Rayla every now and then, just to see how her calculus was coming along. She appeared to be working through the problem set more efficiently now, referring to her index card every so often, as if checking herself.

Callum eventually moved from studying formulas to solving problems on his own worksheet that his professor had provided, unable to stop satisfaction from blooming in his chest as he raced through them without having to check his list of formulas once. Studying plus paying attention in class was the most effective combination for learning and maintaining good grades. At least for him.

Plus sometimes playing the teacher's pet if the situation demanded it, of course.

"Ugh. Can we take a break?" Rayla groaned. "I think my eyes are going to fall out of my skull if I read over these notes again."

She'd shifted to rewriting and rereading a study packet for her women's and gender studies class, Callum realized. He grabbed his phone to check the time. "We only have another hour to go before we'll be leaving to pick up Claudia from rehearsal," he reasoned with her. "Surely you can last that long."

"Don't call me Shirley," she deadpanned, earning an eye roll from him. Then she sighed dramatically. "But I don't want to take a break then, when we're driving to Seton Hall. I want to take a break now, when we can relax."

He was tempted to relent. So, so incredibly tempted. "How about we stop in half an hour?" he suggested. "I want to get in at least a little studying for my poetry final first."

Rayla's eyes lit up. "Ooh, can I help?"

Callum frowned. "I don't want to distract you from your own work."

Rayla waved her hand dismissively at his protest. "Consider it me returning the favor for your help with those integrals. It's - It's like equivalent exchange."

Well, how could he argue with that infallible logic? "Alright," he agreed, amused. "Let me pull the poems up." Rayla scooted closer to him as he opened his laptop and signed in, to the point where their shoulders were touching. Not that he was complaining.

But as his lockscreen lifted, he remembered the webpage that he currently had pulled up.

The KSU-XU exchange program.

Crap - he didn't want Rayla to see that yet. Not before he'd had a chance to properly talk to her about his thought process regarding the program. So Callum did the only logical thing.

He slammed his laptop shut and shoved it aside.

"Changed my mind!" he exclaimed, trying not to wince as his voice jumped at least an octave higher than it needed to be. "Forget English. Who needs it? We can take a break now!" He cleared his throat. "You were right. We've been studying for hours, and we deserve a breather."

Rayla appeared - understandably - suspicious about his sudden change of heart, but evidently decided not to comment on it, as she instead moved all of their school and study materials to the foot of his bed before pushing him onto his back. His head landed in the center of his pillow.

Callum could feel his face reddening at her action, especially as she lay down next to him. "So… Is your idea of taking a break just taking a nap?"

"Mm… Yeah, pretty much." She turned on her side to face him directly. "I like being with you. In the quiet. Also, I love sleeping."

He followed suit, rolling over so they were properly lying face-to-face. "That's a fair assessment." He reached out to push her hair behind her ear. "And for the record, I like being with you, too." Of course, he liked being with Rayla more than anything. He liked hearing her laugh, seeing her smile, holding her hand - it wasn't an exaggeration to say a weight always disappeared from his shoulders when he was with her. And he was more than willing to go to Xadia University if it meant he could be with her for even just a year longer.

Yeah, he needed to tell her about the exchange program.

"Well, you've clearly got something on your mind," Rayla said with a chuckle. She reached out to lightly tap his nose. "I can see concentration all over your face. So spill it, anxious prince. I'm here to listen."

Callum couldn't help but smile at her comment. "How can you read me so well?"

She rolled her eyes. "I just told you. You're an open book." She hooked one of her legs over his, and he had to pretend the action hadn't made him blush cherry red, though her own face was similarly dusted with pink. "'Fess up. What are you thinking about?"

"How much you mean to me," he said honestly. Which was… well, at least part of what he'd been thinking about. Was lying by omission really a thing? Nah. "And how… I want to be with you. Always."

Rayla's face darkened from pink to scarlet. "Is that a marriage proposal, Callum? Because I think we're a little young -"

"No, no," Callum interrupted, laughing. "If I were going to propose to you, it'd be way more romantic than that -"

He was cut off by Rayla placing a hand on his chest as she moved in to press a soft kiss to his lips. "I mean, that seemed pretty romantic to me," she breathed as she pulled away. "Although I still recommend waiting a few years."

He flushed. "Then I'll remember that. For after we've graduated." He was surprised - or maybe not - by how sincere his words were. But silence followed, an almost weighty pause where neither of them spoke. Callum took a deep breath. "Can I - Can I ask you something?" He hastily added, "Not about marriage or proposals. Something else."

Rayla laughed. "Yes, of course you can."

He reached out to take her hand in his, gently tracing circles on her palm with his thumb. He needed to talk to her about the exchange program, yes, but… now didn't feel like the right time. Maybe he was just making excuses again.

And yet… "You don't have any morning classes on Friday, right?"

"No. Renaissance History is my first class on Fridays." Rayla frowned. "Why?"

Callum hesitated. "Do you… Would you mind coming with me to my mom's grave?" He could tell Rayla and his mother about the exchange program. At the same time. And he could finally introduce Rayla to his mom, too.

Rayla blinked, staring at him in shock. "Really? You're - You'd want me to come with you?"

Callum nodded, unable to stop himself from finding her surprise a little bit comical. "Yes. Trust me, I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't sure."

Rayla's expression shifted to one so tender his heart practically melted in his chest. "Okay," she whispered, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "I'd be honored."

They talked for a little while longer, mostly about finals, but apparently they were more tired than they'd thought, because they soon found themselves drifting off to sleep. Of course, Callum was rudely awoken by his alarm about 20 or so minutes later, reminding him that they needed to leave and pick up Claudia from rehearsal. The blaring sound didn't wake Rayla, however, and neither did Callum jerking his arm out to snooze the annoying alarm on his phone. He knew they could spare another five minutes before they left.

Callum breathed a quiet sigh of relief as he successfully muted the sound. He then looked down at his girlfriend, who had nestled up to his chest in her sleep, a peaceful expression resting on her features. While it wasn't as if such proximity was new to either of them - it definitely wasn't - he didn't know if they'd ever fallen asleep together before.

He did know, however, that it was something he wouldn't mind doing again. Rayla was always beautiful, but there was a certain tranquility to her frame while she slept that made her appear… almost delicate. The slow rise and fall of her chest, the way she'd moved her body so close to his, the perfect fit of her head beneath his chin… It was an intimacy Callum was unfamiliar with, but one that made him fall in love with her all over again.

Hmm. He wondered if it was weird to be watching his girlfriend in her sleep…?

His alarm went off again, effectively disrupting his reverie. This time, Callum sat fully up to turn it off, though he was careful to do so without disturbing Rayla. He knew he'd have to wake her, but violently jolting her back to reality didn't seem like the right way to go about it.

He sent a quick text to Claudia, letting her know that they'd be leaving soon to get her. He returned his phone to the top of his desk before turning to look down at his girlfriend.

"Rayla," he said, gently shaking her shoulder. "Come on. We have to go get Claudia."

Rayla groaned, rolling over so her face was buried in his pillow. "No. Need more sleep."

He rolled his eyes, fighting back an amused smile. "You're the one who had the brilliant idea to take a thirty-minute nap while knowing very well you wouldn't have enough time to enter the REM stage of sleep." He started to swing his legs off his bed, but was stopped by Rayla sitting up to wrap her arms around his waist and pull him back towards her.

She rested her chin on his shoulder, nuzzling her face into his neck. "Five more minutes?"

Callum laughed. "Sorry. I already gave us five more minutes." But it was impossible for him to say no to her. Which she knew, and often weaponized against him. Not that he could blame her, because he'd probably do the same.

"If we're late," he warned as they got into the car ten - not five, but ten - minutes later, "I hope you know that I will hold you solely accountable."

Rayla snickered as she slung her schoolbag onto the floor of the passenger side before putting on her seatbelt. "Totally worth it."

They were not late, as it happened, because his dorm really wasn't far from Seton Hall. And - more significantly - he'd overestimated how much time they'd need to get there, which of course earned him a good minute of teasing from Rayla. He supposed he deserved it.

"Do you want to go inside and wait?" Callum offered as he turned his car off and pulled the key out of the ignition. "Claudia says Ms. Secrest doesn't care if we sit in during rehearsals as long as we're quiet and don't disturb the cast. We'd basically be getting a sneak peak of the show."

"Their first performance is coming up pretty soon, isn't it?" Rayla mused as she climbed out of the car. "Opening night is the last day of this semester, which is the Friday before senior night. I think."

Callum frowned. 'Senior night'. He knew that term. He just couldn't at all remember what it meant or what it referred to. "What's -"

" - senior night?" Rayla finished, amused. "It's just the last home game of a season for seniors. The only one relevant to you is football, because of Soren. Coincidentally, senior night also happens to fall on KSU's actual last game of the regular season this year." She grimaced. "Ugh. I feel like I didn't word that well. Did what I said make any sense?

Callum chucked. "Yes. You're fine."

"Good. I was worried all our studying had killed my brain."

"A valid concern."

"Thank you."

"If I'm honest, though, I do find it hard to believe that Claudia is somehow okay with missing the last game of the season for her show," Callum then commented as they headed towards the building's entrance. "Especially because Soren is a senior, like you said."

"She wasn't okay with it at first, actually. When the official performance dates were revealed, she seriously considered dropping out," Rayla explained, pausing on the doorstep. "But Soren convinced her to stay because she was so excited to be one of the witches. A couple weeks later, she managed to get permission to leave Saturday night immediately after her last scene, so she should catch the second half of the game and only miss curtain call." She hesitated before continuing. "I… don't know if you knew, but Claudia and Soren got into a pretty big fight with their dad about the show and the game being almost at the same time."

Callum winced. He didn't know specifically about any arguments, but Claudia had seemed more on edge the past few days, so maybe that was the reason behind it. Not to mention he had a bad feeling about what, exactly, the family's argument may have centered on. "Was it related to which one Viren could" - should - "go to?"

Rayla nodded. "He plans to go to Claudia's show. On senior night. He says he's not available any of the other dates, but…" She shook her head. "There's four different performances. The Thursday matinee through Sunday night. I can't help but feel like he's lying, you know?"

Callum did know. And the fact that Rayla had spent far less time around Viren than he had and yet she still picked up the same eerie, malicious intent from the man spoke wonders about Viren's character. In the worst way possible. "Poor Soren. I don't think Viren's been to a single game all year."

Rayla shuddered. "I remember how angry Soren was at practice that day. After the argument. And - And it was so clear, at least to me, that his anger was really… He was just so sad, you know?" She pulled open the door to the building. "I wish there was something we could do, but…" She sighed. "And then Claudia is torn. I'm pretty sure she does believe her dad when he says that he's only available for the one night, so she's ecstatic that he's making time to come to her show, but she's also devastated for Soren, since Viren is missing senior night, of all games. And like you said - Viren hasn't been to any other game all year." She propped open the door behind her heel. "I think she's trying to convince him to come with her to catch the second half of the game, but…"

"But who knows if she'll have any luck?" Callum finished as he walked into the building.

Rayla nodded, moving her foot to let the door swing shut behind them. "Yep."

"Well, we'll just make sure to throw Soren a big party or something. After the game, I mean. Something to distract him for a little while."

"That's exactly what I was thinking," Rayla agreed as they passed by empty classrooms. "Felix and I have already started plotting."

Callum laughed. "I should have expected that from you two, huh?"

"Yes, you should have."

All of that said, Callum had not expected to walk into Claudia's rehearsal and see - speak of the devil and he shall appear? - Felix himself, sitting in the back of the room. He and Rayla did the logical thing, of course. They joined him immediately.

"So, did you also come to get a sneak peek of the big show?" Rayla whispered teasingly as she snagged the seat next to Felix, who jumped at her voice before his face broke out into a wide smile upon seeing her.

"You could say that." Felix gestured to the makeshift stage, where Dominic and someone with a buzzcut stood across from Claudia, Emilé, and a girl with long, curly red hair that looked vaguely familiar, though Callum couldn't place where he'd seen her before. They were presumably running through the scene where Macbeth and Banquo first encountered the witches. "I'm also Dominic's ride home, so I didn't have much of a choice but to be here."

"Oh, because you were the only one available to give him a ride?" Rayla said, winking at him. "Let me guess: you eagerly volunteered when Dominic asked before anyone else could get an offer in."

Felix flushed. "I'm just trying to be a good friend. If I'm in the area, then I might as well play taxi."

Rayla snorted. "Sure. And Dominic pays you just by smiling in your general direction, right?"

Felix's face turned an even darker red, if that was possible. "Ha ha. You think you're so funny."

Rayla snickered. "I don't think, Felix - I know." She then seemed to decide that she'd teased him enough - while Callum was pretty confused about the entire interaction he'd just witnessed - as she leaned back in her seat and gestured to her boyfriend. "Callum and I are here to pick up Claudia."

Callum leaned forward to give Felix a small wave. "Heyo."

Felix nodded and smiled in response, returning the wave. "Nice. You know, it's been a while since I've seen you both!"

Rayla snorted. "Felix. It's been maybe five days since the art showcase."

"And that's five days too many, Rayla!"

From the corner where they sat, Callum was able to see just a smidgen into the 'wings' on stage left, and he noticed Sonya there, her pink hijab making her easily identifiable. She appeared to be talking to someone through a headset while messing with a box of switches on the wall. He couldn't help but smile as she worked - it looked like Claudia had convinced her to help run tech after all.

They chatted quietly with Felix a while longer, pausing every now and then to glance at the stage whenever something caught their eye. Callum found himself particularly enraptured by the witches' chanting - Claudia really was a phenomenal actress. Felix seemed to pay most attention to Dominic, which was understandable, in Callum's opinion, because Dominic's reactions were a dozen times more genuine than the actor playing Banquo.

Eventually Ms. Secrest clapped her hands together and shouted, "That's the ticket!" before dismissing the cast and crew from rehearsal. Callum and Rayla exchanged parting words with Felix before going their separate ways to pick up their respective friends.

"I noticed you guys in the back towards the end of rehearsal," Claudia said eagerly as they headed outside toward Callum's car. "I have to ask - what did you think?"

"I think that I am very excited to see the final show," Rayla said with a wide smile. "Plus, it'll be the first Shakespeare production I've ever seen performed live!"

Claudia wiped an imaginary tear from her eye. "I am honored to be your first."

Callum wrinkled his nose as he unlocked his car. "Clauds, you have to know how that sounds."

"Yes, but I have chosen to live a life of no regrets, and thus I refuse to recant it."

How very Claudia.

As Callum drove the two girls back to their dorm, their lighthearted teasing and excited chatter about theatre reminded him that although he hardly knew a single thing about Shakespeare, he wouldn't want his friends to be any other way. Variety truly was the spice of life.

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I don't think y'all understand that I had to physically restrain myself from making a "haha they're gonna sleep together this chapter you guys ;)" in my first A/N. I'm sure you're all relieved I spared you of that terrible, cringeworthy joke, lmao. But like for real. Non-sexual intimacy is,, it's just so good. So soft. So gentle. I love to see it, and I hope you did, too! Thank you for reading!