Initial Completion: October 25, 2020

Revised: November 5, 2020

Two hours passed too quickly for some students but for others rather slowly. Jim finished his exam in a flash and turned it in promptly, only to be left alone with his thoughts for the rest of the class. Surely he needed to do something about him and Kate, but he wasn't quite sure what.

After the doctor allowed the students to leave, Jim thought to talk to Kate, still unsure what course of action to take. He looked for her amidst the sudden flood of students, but she had left the classroom, it seemed.

As the rest of the class emptied Jim found himself remaining in his seat for a long moment with his mind in a flurry. He had another class soon so he knew he should have been on his way, but he was feeling quite stuck with his situation.

A sniff followed by a relieved sigh brought his attention to Delbert, who had just removed the clothespin from his nose. He was still sitting at the instructor's desk, looking over the finished exams.

The thought of asking the doctor for advice passed through Jim's mind.

There weren't many people he felt he could talk to, but Delbert was an old family friend and maybe he could offer some help, something Jim really needed.

"Ah, Jim!" the doctor exclaimed, looking up from his desk as Jim approached, "Excellent work on the exam!" he beamed, genuinely proud, "I still have to manually grade the written portion, but according to the Scan-O-Tron you've got a perfect score!"

Jim gave a hint of a smile, glad he was able to ace the exam.

"You know, of the fifty students, you were of the four percent who knew more about neutron star mergers," the doctor continued, "More specifically, kilonovas."

Any trace of a smile faded as Jim inwardly groaned. Delbert didn't notice, turning his attention back down at his paperwork. "Still a new subject, the kilonova. I'm not surprised that not many of you knew much," the Doc mused, "Theories have not been suggested much earlier than, give or take, five years? I had personally not expected any concrete observations of such an occurrence any sooner than fourteen years from now, eleven at least. I mean, given the current rate of technological advancements in detecting-"

"Doc," Jim interrupted, "I'm in trouble."

Delbert's ears shot up and he instantly became alert. He remembered the kind of trouble Jim had gotten himself into in the past and it was never anything too serious, but he never wanted to talk about it before. The doctor lifted his gaze and briefly glanced at the few remaining students who were chatting in the back of the room. Slowly, he leaned in close, his voice just above a whisper, "I should inform you, Jim, that I am obliged to report any information concerning student misconduct to my superiors."

Jim nearly took a step back. That wasn't exactly the response he expected. "Wha- no! Not that kind of trouble!" he exclaimed, "I just… I might've crossed a line with a friend and I think she might hate me for it."

Delbert placed a hand on his chest as he let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, well, that's good. For a moment I was afraid I would have to…" he paused, not exactly wanting to mention what he would have to do, "Well, what happened?"

Jim took a deep breath, not exactly wanting to mention what had happened, "I kinda… unexpectedly kissed her."

Delbert's face fell.

Did that count as misconduct? "Well, uh…It is perfectly..." he stammered, his mind scrambling for words, "… understandable for a young man when in the presence of a young lady to sometimes be somewhat repulsive- er, impulsive..."

Jim's eyes widened and he waved his hands in defense. "But it wasn't my fault! Morph's the one who pushed me!" he argued, "He's been bugging me about her for ages, and today he was hiding when we were studying and-" he cut himself off as he partially turned away, smacking himself in the face with both hands and letting them slide down.

Delbert leaned forward on his desk. "Does she know it was caused by Morph and not you?" he asked.

Jim stood frozen. "I… think," he hesitated. He didn't really know where Kate stood on the situation, given that he ran off rather quickly, "I'm not... sure."

Delbert felt rather tongue-tied. "Well, she may be in a position to, you know…" he tried to explain as he nervously shuffled in his seat, twiddling his thumbs, "... file a report against you for, um… inappropriate behavior."

Jim's eyes widened. Kate wouldn't do that, right? She must have seen Morph, she probably understood what had happened.

Probably.

But if she reported him he wouldn't be allowed anywhere near her for who knows how long. He didn't know if she would do such a thing, but the mere thought of never seeing Kate again hurt Jim's soul.

A gentle hand on his shoulder woke him from his daze. He looked up to find the doctor with a caring look in contrast to his own weary expression. "I think your best course of action is to find her and have a mature conversation," the Doc advised, "Explain what happened and apologize, even if it wasn't your fault. That's something important I've learned from Amelia."

Jim turned away, not exactly amused. Delbert offered a friendly smile, "Just be honest with her and I'm certain that Kate will find it in her heart to forgive you."

Jim looked at the doctor in surprise, "How did you know it was Kate?"

Delbert stiffened as he suddenly felt defenseless. "Well, uh, I just assumed," he reasoned, "I mean, Morph does talk about you two quite a lot when he's helping me with the children."

Jim rolled his eyes. 'Of course he does,' he thought spitefully.

Delbert continued, scratching at the back of his head, "And you do spend quite a lot of time together, so I merely figured-"

"Okay, okay," Jim waved a hand, cutting off the doctor, "I'll make sure to talk with her." It didn't seem like particularly special advice but as the Doc said, it was probably his best bet. Delbert was slightly taken aback at the interruption but resumed his friendly attitude as he habitually adjusted his coat, "Yes, of course. Do let me know how it goes."

Jim turned to finally leave, waving over his shoulder, "Thanks for the advice, Doc."

Delbert offered Jim a wave in return as he made his way back to his seat, "Certainly, anytime."

As soon as he stepped out of the lecture hall Jim caught a glimpse of Kate. She was leaning against the wall with her textbook clutched in her arms and her gaze focused on the floor.

Jim almost wanted to turn away and pretend he didn't see her. He knew he needed to speak with her, but he really wasn't sure if she would be willing to talk to him. However, Kate saw him before he could move another muscle.

She raised her head and caught his stare, "Jim." Her tone was as dry as his throat felt. He was suddenly frozen in place as Kate approached. "Yeah?" he managed to say. She stopped in front of him and held his book bag in her outstretched arm, "Your bag."

Jim turned to face her and cautiously grabbed it. "Thanks," he said. Kate nodded in response, her face remaining stoic.

Now, when Jim had first met Kate she was no different than she was at that moment: direct, serious, to-the-point. But the more time passed the more she opened up to him and the more he saw exactly who she was.

To see her now like she once was... it made him wonder just how badly things had been screwed up in the courtyard.

Jim took in a deep breath before finally speaking, "Can we talk?"

"The sky bridge" she replied, almost too quickly, "After school."

"Seven-thirty?"

"Sure."

Jim nodded hurriedly, "I'll be there."

With that, Kate turned on her heel and left without another word. Jim let go of the breath he had been unintentionally holding in.

There was a pitiful feeling in his gut as he watched her walk off. A memory flashed in his mind of when Silver had mentioned his own dealings with a lady that caused him to lose her. He had advised Jim to be careful with Kate and how he treated their friendship.

As he started towards his next class Jim hoped that, no matter what happened between him and Kate tonight, it would not be the last time he saw her.