Pushing Limits (20 page)

“Ok.  But, I’m going like this.  I am not getting all dressed
up.”

Sally looks at me in my jeans and purple tank and says, “Put on some
makeup, and it’s a deal.”

“Why?”  I ask with a sneer.

“Because I asked you to.”

“Fine.”  I trudge into the bathroom, slap on some makeup, and grab
my book bag, looking at her with a total lack of enthusiasm.  “I’m
ready.”  She sighs and pushes me out the door.  We stop at Karen’s
and knock.  Hearing giggling and muffled voices inside, we wait for Karen
to make it to the door.  I roll my eyes at Sally when Karen answers the
door with without-a-doubt, just-fucked hair.

“We’re heading to the union to wait for grades to post.  Do you
think you can manage to forfeit a few minutes from fucking to have a beer with
us?”  I ask dryly.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, Amber,” Karen says with her hand on
her chest.  Never mind that she is wrapped in nothing but an elaborately
twisted sheet. 
Who does she think she’s kidding?
  Melissa
thankfully is long gone, having moved out a few weeks after Karen grew a
backbone.  I’m sure Jerrod becoming a permanent fixture in her room had
little to do with it. 

“Hi Jerrod!” I shout into the room, keeping my eyes on Karen.

“Hi Amber!” he yells with a chuckle.

“Get out of bed, and let’s get a beer.” Sally yells over Karen’s head.

“Ok, let me get some pants on,” Karen turns away from the door to
probably give him a dirty look.  He calls out, “Mind if I ask Bobby to
join us?”

Both girls look at me and wait.  “That’s fine.”  I grumble.

We walk over, and Bobby is waiting for us on the front steps.  He’s
his usual charming self.  Holding the door open, pulling out my chair,
getting up to get the beer and something for me to eat.  I can’t help but
look at Sally, trying to gage her reaction.  She doesn’t seem to
care. 

We hang out, drinking beer, and talking about school and summer break
plans.  The clock tower bell rings four times.  I open my laptop and
log onto the college’s website.  I enter my user ID and pin and wait for
the information to load. 
I’m so excited.  I know it’s going to be
good.  Lord knows, I’ve done the work. 
My grade point average
comes up.  I stare at the screen.  Certain I have made some data
entry error, I look at the detail for each class.  Nope, still the
same.  My heart sinks.  I hit refresh.  Again. 
Again.  Again. 
Damn it!

Sally notices me pounding on the keyboard as I page through trying to get
the GPA to change. “What’s wrong, darlin’?”

I look at her as my stomach drops, “My GPA is one point seven five. 
That’s not right!  It can’t be.  My GPA should be
three
point
seven five, not a one point seven five.  How is this possible?” 
What
if my mother sends me somewhere else now? Another school?  I can’t do
another school.  I can’t leave.  These grades are wrong.  Shit!
 
“This is wrong.  How do I go about getting this fixed?”  My eyes
search my friends’ faces in a flurry.  “What if they can’t fix it? 
Oh my God, I’m going to be sick.  If my mother finds out about this, she
will rain down a shit storm on my ass.”  My pant, my face feels
flush.  “Shit, she’ll move me again.  Fuck!”

“Calm down.  We’ll find out what the problem is.  Here, let me
check mine.”  Sally takes the keyboard and inputs her
information.   “My GPA is about what I expected – three point
five.”  Pushing the computer to Karen, “Here Brainiac, check yours.”

Karen sneers at her, puts in her information, and says, “Mine’s right.”

“Mine, too,” Jerrod says

“This can’t be right.  What do I do?  I can’t let these grades
post.  Aunt Patty will have to tell my mother and God knows what she’ll
do.”  My heart is racing, and I feel a trickle of sweat run down my
back. 

“
Pequena
, it’ll be fine.”  Bobby grabs my hand, locking his
eyes with mine.  “Breathe.  It’s ok.”  I breathe in and out
slowly, staring into those dark pools as my heart slows.  He says,
“Good.  That’s much better.  I had a roommate my first year who had
an incorrect grade posted.  You have to gather all your papers and test
scores and talk to your advisor.  He should be able to help.  I think
he had to take his papers to each professor, and they had to file a correction
with the Chancellor’s office.  The good news is it can be fixed.”

Great.  I have to try to catch Professor Stewart and all the other
professors before finals start tomorrow.  Shit, that gives me twenty-four
hours. 

I run across campus and rush up the stairs to Professor Stewart’s
office.  The air rushes in and out of my lungs. 
Shit, I need to
start running, this is fucking ridiculous. 
I am gasping for air as I
blast through his open door. I stand, hands on knees, huffing and
puffing.  

“Really my dear, I can’t have students expiring in my office.  It
just wouldn’t do.”  His keen eyes dance with laughter as he patiently
waits for me to catch my breath.

I lean on the office chair in front of me, finally when I think I can
speak, I puff out,
“
Grades came out today.  Not
right.”  I pause to take a breath.  “Please help me.  What can I
do to fix this?” 
Geez, why can’t I catch my breath?
 I set my
laptop down on one of the massive piles of papers on his desk.  Type in my
user ID and student pin.  Turning the screen to him, I point and gulp in
air.

He takes a look and frowns.  He mumbles, “My word, Amber.  That
is a beastly average.”  As if he remembers who he’s talking to, he says,
“Let’s look at my class.  I certainly know what grade I submitted. 
Hmmm.  Bloody hell.  That is not what I submitted to the Chancellor’s
office.  You have an A in my class.  This is bullocks.  This
bloody machine says you have a D.”

“I know.  It’s not right.  I have some of my papers in my bag,
but most of them are in my dorm room.  What can I do?”  I know I
sound desperate, but I don’t care.  I need this fixed before the grades
post.

“I’m terribly sorry, but you will have to go to each professor and obtain
a written letter confirming the correct grade.  They file their copy with
the Chancellor’s office, and only then can the grades be changed.  I know
this is bloody inconvenient, but you have to speak to each of your teachers
personally.  With finals beginning tomorrow, you will be hard pressed to
get signed forms before the faculty is able to entertain your request. 
You would have to wait until finals are over and then file a form with the
chancellor’s office.  That could take several weeks to correct, and you
wouldn’t see any change until the fall.”

I’m dumbfounded.  I stare at him as my stomach hardens. 
I
am so fucked
.

His kind eyes drink in my tortured face as tears begin to well. 
“Buck up, girl.  Crying will not get this problem solved.”  Handing
me my copy of the form, he says, “I’ll take a stroll to Ms. Chadwick’s office
and discuss this with her.  Dreadful woman.  I detest spending any
time around her at all.  But, time to buck up.  There is definitely
something dodgy going on.  Righto.”  Staring at me as if he’s seeing
me for the first time, he says, “Clear off now.  No time to waste. 
Professor White’s office is in the math building.  I believe that is the
closest.  I would start with her.”  He rises with me, as if
remembering something important.  “Speak up, my dear.  You’ll have to
persuade each professor to submit the correction immediately.  That will
not be easy.  Most will beg off and offer to submit it later.  You
will have to politely insist.  No time for wallflower antics.  Clear
off now.”

“Thank you, Sir.” 

I run to each of my professor’s offices like a mad woman.  They all try
to blow me off but I do everything I can to get them to fill out the correction
form – plead, insist, cajole.

I text Sally:

Only one more class to go – Professor Black.

My phone pings:

Why are you texting me?

RUN!

I whisk across campus as the bell tower rings the six o’clock hour. 
Damn, there’s no way he’ll be in his office.  I rush into his office, and
Bobby is sitting in front of his desk.  He glances up at me and continues,
“Professor Black surely you can see the merits of amnesty for all current
aliens.  Oh, I’m sorry to have kept you.  I appreciate you taking the
time to have an open discussion regarding the matter.  I believe Ms.
Turner is waiting to speak with you.”

“Not at all, Mr. Sanchez.  I enjoy our spirited discussions. 
It’s refreshing to discuss current political issues with such a passionate
student.”  He smiles and looks up at me from his desk.  “Ms. Turner,
what can I do for you?”

Bobby stands to leave, squeezing my hand discreetly as he walks out to
the hallway.  

“Dr. Black, it appears a mistake has been made on my grade. My records
indicate I should have a B+ in your class, and a C has been posted for the
class.”  I open my computer log on and turn the screen to him.

“That’s not correct, but neither is a B+, Ms. Turner.”  His eyes
narrow as he examines my laptop.

“I made an A- on the paper, and I had a B on the midterm.  I’m
confused.  I should have at least a B+.”

“No, Ms. Turner,” he says, glancing at his computer and turning to me
with a smile.  “You have an A-.  If you refer to your syllabus, you
have a participation grade that increased your grade to an A-.”  He looks
at me impassively.  Pulling a correction sheet, he fills out the
correction request and hands me my copy.

Smiling a sheepish grin, “Is there any way I could persuade you to walk
the form over to the Chancellor’s office?  Please, sir.”

“Her office is closed.”

“Yes, but if it’s in her mail slot, she could have it processed along
with all the other grade corrections in the morning.  Please, Dr. Black.”

“I’m sorry, but that’s not possible.  My wife is waiting for
me.  I’ll turn it in next week, and we’ll get a corrected grade report out
hopefully before the semester ends.”

“All right.  I understand.”  I hedge out the door as Bobby’s hand
pushes me back in the office.

“I’m sorry sir, but my mother will give me no amount of grief if she sees
these grades.  I can’t risk it.”  I stand straight and try to sound
firm.  “I don’t want to leave school, and I don’t have the greatest track
record.  I’ve worked hard to correct that here,” I beg.  I’m willing
to humiliate myself to get this fixed. 
I know exactly what my mother
will do.  She’ll have me out of here in a hot minute.  I can’t let
that happen
.  “Please, sir.  Just walk past the Chancellor’s
office and slip it through the mail slot.  Please.”

He stares at me impassively and says, “All right, I’ll walk it
over.  I’ll drop it off on my way out.   Is there anything
else?”

“No, thank you, sir.  I really appreciate it.”  He hands me my
copy.

I walk out and jump into Bobby’s arms, kissing him on the lips. 
Just a quick peck.  I know exactly what he was doing.  If he hadn’t
stalled Professor Black, I wouldn’t have been able to talk to him.

Bobby cracks up and says, “Happy,
pequena
?  Should I duck now?”

I climb down and settle onto my feet, punching him on his arm. 
“No.”  I grin.

***

Bobby drops me off at the dorm and asks, “
Pequena
, let’s go out
and celebrate the end of the semester.  I’m flying back home tomorrow so I
won’t see you for the whole summer.  Can I take you to dinner?”

I smile and study my feet.  I guess it’s about damn time.  He’s
worn down my resistance…he’s been so sweet and patient. 
It’s only
dinner.  Throw the guy a bone
.  “Sure.  What time?”

His eyes widen, and his lips stretch into a broad grin. 
“Seven.  I’ll see you then.”  He turns and walks away.  I can’t
help but check out his ass.  It’s my thing, my favorite body part. 
Not
bad.  Not bad at all.

After so many weeks, hell months, I expected to hear something.  I
haven’t heard word one.  I finally resign myself that Tommy’s done. 
It’s over. 

I have to call Aunt Patty and see if she’s still coming for a
visit.  I’m surprised at myself that I want her to come.  I remember
how disappointed she was last time, and since I’m not going anywhere for summer
break, we can see some of the other parts of Austin together.  I wonder if
Sally has plans.

“Hey.”  I yell, closing the door. 

“Were you able to talk to all your professors?”  Her face is full of
hope, her eyes lit with expectation.

I smile, my eyes dancing as I jump up and down.  “They’re all
changing my respective grades.” I bounce around and do a little jump at her,
hugging her. 

She hugs me back and sets me back on my feet.  “That’s great,
hon.” She giggles, her hand grazing over my butt.

Slapping her arm playfully, I say, “Yeah, it was strange.  More than
one of them mentioned that the transmittal report they had showed the correct
grades for me.  Isn’t that weird?”

“What did you say?” Sally asks.  All the blood drains from her face.

“I said more than one of the professors mentioned that the transmittal
showed the correct grade was transmitted.”  Putting down my bag, I look
up, “What?” 

“None of them put in the wrong grade and were correcting their own
error?”  Her eyes widen.

“No, they all showed the correct grade.  Hell, Dr. Black had a
higher grade than I expected. It was-“

“-Amber, did I ever tell you what Lily’s major is?”  Sally face is
filled with concern.

“What does she have to do with anything?”  My eyes narrow as I tilt
my head to the side, looking at her. 
What does Lily have to do with my
grades?
  “You’re not sleep
- ”

“-Amber.  She’s an IT major.”  Her voice is firm, but her eyes
are anything but calm.

I drop to my bed as my stomach lurches to the floor.  “What did you
say?”

“She’s an IT major, and hello?  She works in Chadwick’s office,” she
says.

“What the fuck!  Are you kidding me?  Like fuck she is going to
get away with this.  I’ll go to Chad
- ”
 

“-Keep your voice down.  I haven’t seen her, but I also haven’t seen
her move out.  For all I know, she’s still down the hall.  Did you
talk to your advisor about it?”

“Yes, he’s the first person I spoke with.”

“Well, if he goes over there with his grade and mentions it to her that
should get Chadwick to investigate.   If everyone turns in new grades
for you, Chadwick will put two and two together.   But, that doesn’t
prove its Lily.  And, from what Lily tells me, Chadwick loves her.  I
wonder if she left some proof that she changed your grades.  We could ask
Jerrod.  He’s an IT major,” she says with a supportive smile, “Let’s go
down the hall, they‘re heading home to Kansas City after finals.”

We walk down the hall and pound on Karen’s door.  Karen opens the
door.

“Is Jerrod here?” I ask.

“Yeah.  What’s wrong?”  Karen pushes her glasses up as she
tilts her head.  Her eyes narrow as she looks at my anxious face.

“We can talk inside,” Sally says, pushing the door open and going inside
as I follow.  “Hey Jerrod.”

Jerrod looks up from his computer.  “Hey guys.”  His eyes
search my face, and he asks, “What’s up?”

Sally glances at me.  “When Amber went to talk to her professors
about her grades, they all mentioned one thing.  They had a transmittal
report that confirmed they submitted the grade Amber was expecting to the
Chancellor’s office.  Not a single professor made the error.  Every
grade was changed after it was submitted to the office and before it was posted
on the student connection.   Lily McAllister has been hassling Amber
since she got here, and she works in the Chancellor’s office.  AND, she’s
an IT major.  Is there any way to prove that she changed Amber’s grades?”

“If she did it from inside the network, yes, she would’ve had to log in
to do anything.”  Jerrod looks down in thought.  His face is
expressionless as he mulls over the problem.  “I doubt she would have used
her own user ID, or that she would have that kind of access under her ID. 
She could have used someone else’s user name if she knew it.  If she came
from outside the network, her IP address would have left a footprint. 
That is if she didn’t cover her tracks using an IP service that routes her
through several IP addresses.  She’s a first year, right?”

“She’s a sophomore,” Sally says.  I stare at him wondering if all
this crap has been Lily’s doing. 
Could she really hate me this much?

“I doubt she would be able to pull that off.  She probably went
through the network and used someone else’s ID and password.”

“Would you be able to tell what IP address an e-mail was sent from?”
Sally asks.

Where she going with this?

“Yeah, sure.”  He shrugs.

“Even if it was titled ‘Anonymous’ on the sent line?” Sally glances at
me, and my stomach sinks. 
She didn’t.

“Sure.”  I give him my phone and open the e-mail sent to
Tommy.  Jerrod punches into various programs and says, “It came from this
building.  I can’t tell you anything more than that without more
information.”

“That’s enough for me.  Thanks.”  My lips press into a thin
line.  “Thanks, Karen.”

We walk down to our room, and I sit on my bed.  “Someone in this
building sent Tommy that video of Bobby kissing me.  How much you want to
bet it was her?” I say with my head in my hands.

“I don’t take sucker bets, darlin’,” she says with a sneer.  “I
think you should talk to your advisor.”

“I was going to call my aunt and ask her to come down for a visit.
 She wants to meet Professor Stewart anyway.  I can tell her all the
shit that Lily has pulled, and she’ll be able to request an investigation from
Chadwick.  Hopefully, Lily left some kind of an electronic fingerprint
somewhere.”

“She’s manipulative, but I don’t think she’s smart enough to know how to
cover her tracks that well.  She probably thought you would get thrown out
of school and just leave.”

“I was waiting on you.  That’s why I asked you this morning,
dork.”  She smiles.

“I would really like for you to meet my aunt.  We can stay at the
hotel with her, show her around town, and explore all the shit I haven’t
seen.  She’s a riot.  I promise it will be fun.”