I was speeding in the rain because I was late again. I saw her struggling with her umbrella in the storm. I had passed her before my brain process that it was she. The rain was coming down to heavily for me to stop suddenly. I slowing stopped about 100 feet ahead of her and put my flashers on. I watched in my rear view mirror as she approached. She discarded her umbrella and clutched her tote as she walked towards the car. When she was alongside the car. I rolled down the window and called out to her. She initially hesitated but once she recognized me she ran around and jumped into the car. I pulled off and waited as she caught her breath. 130lbs of shivering soaking wet english department grad student was drinking water all over my leather seats.

She told me where she lived, an apartment bldg a short walk from campus. I nodded and drove. For the first time that semester I noticed how young she was. She had to be in her early twenties. She started looking in her tote for something. When she couldn’t find it she got frantic. Apparently she had lost a file that contained the essays of the two english classes she taught somewhere in the storm. She yelled at me that she must have lost them while trying to get I the car. My irritated glance at her changed her tone from accusatory to apologetic. She said she wasn’t blaming me but would be in a lot big trouble if she didn’t find the papers. I gave her my phone and asked her to call the Department to cancel this evening’s class as I turned around and we drove back to where I had picked her up. “Great” I think to myself. If I had just ignored her and driven to class, I would be dry and joining the rest of class in invoking the 15 minute instructor absence rule and treating myself to an early evening.

When we get back I pull over and wait for her to get out and look for the file. She looks at me scared, wet and shivering. I curse under my breath as I unlooked the doors and we both get out to look for it. After being out just long enough to get soaked and get grass stains up my white sneakers she finds the file in the grass by the road. We get back into the car and drive to her apartment. We get to her apartments lot and she discovers that she has lost her keys. She had them in her hands before we went back to find the file. By the point I’m resigned to the fact that thanks to my conscience and professor idiot her my night was ruined. The rain is finally slowing down and she bursts into tears. I pull my car into a handicapped space and try to calm her down. I suggest knocking on a neighbor’s door and getting the number to maintenance. She nods and follows me silently still sobbing. We get the number, dial it and talk to the maintenance guy. As I hear the TV and children in the background I think even another evening ruined I say to myself.

I insist on waiting with her until he arrives. She still shivering so I give her a sweatshirt from the gym bag in my trunk. We sit on the floor in the hallway in front of her apartment. I feel her leaning into me as she falls asleep. I’m even more irritated at this point. I can’t move because I don’t want to wake her up. An hour later the guy with his young son in tow arrives to let her in. I nudge her gently to wake her up. She thanks me. I smile politely and leave as quickly as I can before she has a new emergency. As I pull unto the highway. I recall my last visual of her. Hair still wets, eyes red from crying, barefooted and still wearing my favorite sweatshirt - FUCK!



WYBMM? It's a movement fellas


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