August 30th, 2015

7:20 PM

The Coffee Express

Stanford, California

Olivia's POV

"One caramel frappe with a shot of hazelnut, one hot chocolate no whip and one chilled, pumpkin spice mocha, no ice." I say confidently, glancing sideways at my boss Harrison for approval as I repeat my customer's orders.

Harrison nods firmly and I smile as the young student in front of me hands me a twenty before I can even tell her the total.

Just to show off, I rapidly calculate the prices with tax I memorized this afternoon in my head and tell her, "Your total will be $12.33."

Harrison just gapes at me, impressed. I smirk a little. I've always been good at math and numbers and impressing my boss can't hurt.

"You're good," Harrison admits after I give the girl a tray with her drinks. He's actually really chill and not to mention extremely good looking. If he wasn't my boss, I would shamelessly try to get with him.

"So I've been told," I throw in a wink. I'm not trying to be flirty or anything but I guess it comes off that way because it makes him blush. And that makes me smile.

I think Quinn was right. I am starting to like it here. I mean, I wouldn't work if I had a choice, but I really don't. If I had to chose one place to work, I guess this would be it.

"So, I gotta ask," Harrison leans against the counter. "What's a mathematician like you doing, looking for work in a coffee shop? You have amazing number skills, people skills, memorization skills and word on the street is, you're into politics. You do it all. You could be a young adult prodigy."

I laugh. It's so funny how inaccurate that is. "I am smart but I work for it. I wasn't born with a gifted brain - nobody is. I put in the effort. Every day of my life, I work for it." I pause and inhale. "My dad used to always say 'we have to be twice as hard to get half of what they had' and I think you know what that means. Who 'they' are and who 'we' are." Harrison nods understandingly as I go on. "I always thought my dad was full of crap and maybe he was but there's a lot of truth to that. And here I am, in Stanford. This university has the lowest acceptance rate in the entire country. So I would say I'm doing pretty good for myself. Even if I'm working in a shitty coffee shop."

Harrison raises his eyebrow, grinning. "I happen to be the very offended manager of that 'shitty' coffee shop."

"I'm sorry," I shrug without really meaning it. I can already tell he's the type of boss you can joke around with. "It's really not that bad here, I guess. Not as bad as I thought anyways."

"I'll take that as a compliment. And I'll tell you what," he shoves his hands in his jeans. "You can take off."

I look up from the register. "I've only been here for half my shift..."

"Olivia," Harrison smiles. "When your boss offers you an out, with pay, learn to not question it. You can work the shift tomorrow night. How's that sound?"

I stare at him. "Why?" I ask blantly. "I mean, there must be some type of catch - unless you're the most laid back boss in the world."

"I am," Harrison chuckles. "But that's besides the point. You can take off if you go with me to this party tonight at my frat house."

I raise my eyebrows. Okay, that was forward. The truth is, I really don't want to go to this party with Harrison. He seems like a cool guy and he's definitely attractive but he's my boss. This is my first job - ever. And how would it seem to the others if I was getting favored? It's just not fair. That, and there's another guy kind of lingering on the back of my mind...

"Olivia," Harrison speaks up, noting my reluctance. "I meant as friends."

"Oh," I soften my expression.

Harrison grins but not in a mean way. "Don't get me wrong. You're beautiful and very smart. Those two qualities don't often come together in girls, but they do with you. That's interesting. You're interesting. But...I am still your boss. And while I would be honored if you went to the party with me, that will never change."

I nod, trying to shrug of that slightly misogynistic, sexist comment. Plenty of girls are smart and beautiful but it's not my place to correct him. The rest of what he said makes sense. And I would love to go then. Today was tough and I've never been to an official college party. I would have never pegged Harrison for a frat boy though. "Can my friend Abby come?"

"Depends. Is she as cute as you?"

"Cuter," I smile, lifting the top of the forest green apron over my head. "Can you drop me off to my dorm first?"

August 30th, 2015

9:01 PM

Lyman Graduate Residences

Stanford, California

Fitz's POV

"Mellie," I pick up the phone and try my best 'I just woke up voice'. The cold, hard truth is that I didn't call Mellie all afternoon because I didn't feel like it. I ignored at least five of her calls and texts, which was basically suicide. "Just got up from a nap, babe."

As I listen to her go on about how my sleeping routines need to get better, i pace around the barely furnished dorm room. Big Gerry paid for a singular, studio style room. It's time like these I seriously wish I had a roommate and wasn't this freaking lonely all the time.

Today, spending those few minutes with that girl, Livvy? That was the best part of my whole freaking day. She's the only girl that wasn't drooling over me when I was assisting today and that made her more approachable and easier to talk to. She's funny and we spoke like we had been friends for years. She makes me open up and speak more - which is not really something I do, being as introverted as I am.

On top of that, she is ridiculously smart. I can tell she's one of those few girls that are both book smart and street smart, which is really incredible and not something I see everyday - especially not with freshmen students.

And not to mention the fact that she's gorgeous.

"Are you listening to me?" Mellie demands through the other line.

"Of course," I lie. I've done it so many times to her it just flows naturally. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. "I'm sorry, Mel. The time zone difference-"

"There is no fucking time zone difference," Mellie screams. "We're both in the goddamn Golden State. I'm five fucking hours away from you, you asshole."

I grimace. Well, yeah. That was a stupid argument. I sit down on my mattress, not really knowing what to say. "I'm sorry, Mellie."

"Whatever, Fitz," Mellie replies, sounding exhausted. "You say these things and you charm your way out of arguments. Sometimes I feel like you just tone me out and don't listen to a word I say."

How'd you guess? I lean back on my mattress and sigh. I really don't mean to hurt her but every time I pick up the phone to talk to her, I just end up regretting it. She gets angry over the stupidest things.

As if I'm saved by the bell, I get another call. It's from an unknown number. "That's not true. Look, I'm sorry, Mel. I'm getting another call."

"Of course you are."

I exhale. "I really got to take this."

"Of course you do."

Not knowing how to reply, I just take the other call and hope I don't get killed in my sleep for the next few days to come. "Hello?"

"Hi...I got this number from the Stanford website...are you the RA on call right now?"

I close my eyes and try not to scream. When Big Gerry forced me to sign up for Residence Advisor, I thought it would just look good on internship resumes. I didn't think I would actually get calls or complaints. Especially not before classes actually freaking began. "Yes. I'm Fitz. How can I help you?"

"Yeah, um," the girl goes on. I can't decide if she sounds annoyed or annoying. "There's, a, uh, party going on."

Well, it IS college. "There's always a party going on. The best option for disturbance to go to the dorm or fraternity or sorority hall directly and communicate effectively with the residents."

"Yeah, um, no," the girl says. I grit my teeth. Im really not in the mood for this. "The thing is, Fitz, it's a fraternity house and I'm like, no sure if, um...I see a lot of young people there, like freshman and they're all drinking and I think...well, I think some of them might have, um...illegal substances...?"

Welcome to university. You just describe every single one in the United States of America. "No frigging way!" I can't help but say sarcastically.

"If, you're not, uh, gonna help," the girl continues. "I mean, I can always, uh, go straight to campus security."

I stretch my arm and exhale. I was never a party guy in my undergrad years but a lot of my friends were. It's a part of life and people, especially college students, shouldn't be penalized for it, as long as they're not hurting anyone. The last thing I want for these kids is to suffer because someone snitched on them. I get up from my bed and from my half unpacked suitcase, throw on a pair of dark grey Nike sweatpants and a black fitted t shirt. "That's not necessary. I'll be right there. What house did you say it was in?"

August 30th, 2015

9:16 PM

Sigma Chi Fraternity House

Stanford, California

"I'm sorry," I apologize for about sixth time into the phone. Even as I'm walking down to to Sigma Chi fraternity house, Mellie seemed it acceptable to further lecture me and make my life a living hell. "I'm really sorry, Mellie. But can you just..."

"Can I just what?" Mellie demands.

I stop in front of the noisy frat house. Students, either wasted or high (or both) are pouring in and out and some Kanye West sound is piercing into my ear. It's amazing how they haven't been caught by campus security yet. I have to yell to make Mellie hear me over the phone, so my tone matches her. "Can you just like calm down for a second?!"

"Me?" Mellie screams like I just told her the most shocking thing in the world. "You're telling me to calm down? And on top of that, you're freaking yelling at me? What the hell is the background noise?...Fitzgerald Thomas Grant, do not tell me you're at some college party like a frat boy bitch. I swear I will come to Stanford myself and-"

I hang up. I know that's the worst possible thing to do but I do it anyway. Despite the fact that nobody ever hangs up on Mellie - not unless they have a death wish. Being with her at this point, I just might. I'll deal with the consequences later. Right now I've got some more complete utter bullshit to attend to.

When I enter to house, I'm bombarded with completely wasted, half naked girls approaching me. I smile nicely and try to wave them off. I can't hear what they're saying over the loud music and maybe that's for the best.

"Fitz!" a familiar voice screams into my ear.

I turn around and it's my friend, Jake. He's in his fourth year of undergrad and he's been my best friend ever since I was a sophomore and he was a freshman. I haven't seen him for weeks. "I'm glad you could make it to the party, man. How was the rest of your summer?"

"Jake," I sigh over the music. "Please do not tell me you were the one who pulled this shit."

"Me?" Jake laughs. "No. Harrison threw this party."

"Harrison," I repeat the unfamiliar name.

Jake points across the foyer to a tall, muscular guy sitting on a white couch. "Harrison. He's a junior - pre med."

But Harrison is not who catches my attention. It's the girl next to him, drinking something from a red solo cup. It's Livvy. She looks different - in a tight, mid thigh black dress and the highest heels I have ever seen.

I catch my breath. "He's with her?"

"Isn't she hot?" Jake sips his beer. He watches as I simply stare at her. She is not the type of girl I would expect to see at a party like this. "Don't bother, man. I tried to buy her and her friend a drink yesterday and they rejected me so bad my heart still stings a little."

I force out a laugh. "I'll catch up with you later, Jake. And find away to shut this party down or at least control the music a bit so you're not giving the entire campus a brain aneurysm."

Before he can say anything else, I make my way through the crowd and stop in front of Livvy and Harrison. I get a closer look at her and realize her hair is straightened. It's longer this way. "Hi guys."

Harrison gives me a quizzical look but Liv jumps up and puts her bare arms around my neck. I involuntarily inhale the scent of vodka and perfume. "Fittttzzzz..."

I force a smile and reluctantly hug her back. It's obvious she's completely wasted. I don't care about the party. I just want to get her home right now. "Livvy."

The other guy stands up and straightens the collar on his shirt. "I'm Harrison." I can already tell he's very protective of her. I would guess he would be her brother but what type of brother would let his sister run around a frat house half naked and drunk?

"Hi, Harrison," I try to say in an I'm-totally-not-a-rapist tone.

Harrison doesn't reply. He stares me up and down and then points to Livvy, who is still attached to my torso, hugging me. "I'm her boyfriend."

I try not to laugh. This guy is totally lying. I can tell he's just saying it to protect her and I respect that. But that's just what I'm trying to do as well. I would never take advantage of one of my students. On top of that, it's Livvy. I would hate myself if I did that. "I'm Fitz Grant. I'm Liv's professor."

"Professor?" Harrison raises his eyebrow. "What type of professor hangs out in frat parties?"

"Professor Assistant," I correct myself. I realize I must sound like i'm lying too. "Look, I don't think Livvy should be here."

"Her name is Olivia," Harrison reaches out and touches her elbow. "And I think you should leave."

I stare at him. Does he really think I'm trying to take advantage of her? And is he really trying to fight me? Is he threatening me? Because it really sounds like a threat. But it's not worth it. I know for a fact it's not worth it. I could take him. I know that without a doubt. But like I said - it's not worth it. He's not worth it.

"Olivia," I put my hands on her waist and gently pull her away from me. She smiles at me. It's a pretty smile but it's a completely intoxicated one. She's so oblivious to what's going on right now and maybe it's better if it stays that way. "Livvy, I'll walk you to your dorm. Come on."

She frowns seriously. "What...no...no. Why don't you wanna stay with me?"

I try to smile. I don't want her to worry or catch the drift that something is wrong. If her being in her innocent, intoxicated bubble is gonna make her happy, so be it. "I just wanna get you home right now, okay sweetheart?"

"No," she protests softly. Harrison comes up behind her but she doesn't notice. "No. I came here with my friend...Abby...I came here with Abby."

"I'll walk Abby home too," I tell her. At this point, I just want to get her out of here. I know what goes through college boys minds these days. Hell, I am a college boy. I know how they treat pretty girls like Olivia - especially if they find them in such a compromised state. I would never wish that on her and at this point, I'm just hellbent on getting her the fuck out of here. "Please, Livvy -"

"That's not her name," Harrison wraps his hand on her hip, which makes my blood boil for some reason. I don't know what his problem is, but on top of everything, I'm not dealing with this right now.

"I'm seriously get trying to get her home," I tell him candidly over the music. "I swear. It's her first day of school and she's a bright student. If she was caught in this shit, she'd get in trouble."

"More trouble than if she was walking around drunk on campus?" Harrison demands roughly.

I sigh. "Like I've been trying to tell you, you douchebag, I am a teacher's assistant. On top of that, I'm a resident advisor. I've been going to Stanford for four years. If any professors or security guards saw her with me, they'd cut her some slack. If you want, man, I'll walk you home to -"

"This is my home!" Harrison shouts. "And you need to get the fuck out of here. Now."

Okay. I've tried reasoning with him, but he's too drunk to be coherent. This is none of my business. I slip Liv's hand in mine and I begin turning away when I feel his hand whack my shoulder.

"Without her," he corrects himself.

I don't care if he touches me. He's pretty big but I'm at least three inches taller and three years older. I keep pulling Livvy away until I hear her yell, which makes me turn around.

His hand is grabbing her side and I don't know what goes on with me but that draws the line. He can touch me, he can fuck me up, I don't care. But he cannot put his hands on Livvy - not when that's not what she wants.

I swallow and as calmly as I can move Livvy to the side. My fist interacts with Harrison's eye socket and before I know it, I'm on top of him and his hands are balling up my collar.

"Fitz!" Livvy shrieks. "Get off him!"

I hear her, but I'm not listening. I keep on punching Harrison until I feel blood on the base of my palms.

"Stop it," I feel Jake's arms lock around mine and drag me up. "You're gonna kill him!"

But I don't care. As long as I feel Harrison struggle under me, I don't care. I don't know what's going on with me. I don't fight - ever. But my heart is beating so fast and hitting him, hitting this asshole is making me feel slightly better.

I keep on hitting him and Harrison is a pretty buff guy but I caught him completely by surprise. Jake and this other guy manage to pull me up and I stumble back. It's not until I'm on my ass that I realize that Harrison actually got a few punches in and there's a cut under my eye. My jaw hurts to and my vision is blurred. That, and my adrenaline is pumping and I want nothing more to hit him again. But Jake holds me in place.

"Get up," Jake pulls my elbow. "Get up and let me get you the fuck outta here before security comes."

He pushes me through the crowd of onlookers. I see some people recording but I don't care. I don't care about security either. I just care about one person.

Her name is Olivia and she's tailing us, crying.