Chapter 33: Campus Romance
"Is this a date?"
After dropping Paige off—still lost in thought over that math problem—Monica rushed back to her apartment and started frantically digging through her closet, immediately attracting curious attention from her roommate, Rachel.
"Yes, Rachel, come help me out. Which outfit should I go with?"
Monica stood in front of her mirror, trying on different clothes but feeling indecisive and unsatisfied with everything, so she turned to Rachel—her former high school's golden girl.
"Is this about that doctor?"
Rachel asked with a knowing smile, casually tossing aside the dress Monica was modeling and gesturing for her to try another one.
"Yes,"
Monica followed Rachel's suggestion, grabbing a different outfit and nodding as she held it up to herself. "His flight leaves at 9 PM."
"That's pretty last-minute, isn't it?"
Rachel asked, surprised. "Why not convince him to stay another day?"
Monica rolled her eyes at her reflection.
"Okay, okay, I get it,"
Rachel said with understanding.
Monica and Ross had run into Chuck at that farm upstate. As old friends, they'd naturally gossiped about it afterward, and the story had spread through their circle.
Everyone knew Chuck's deal by now.
Especially after listening to her brother Ross's endless complaints, and knowing Monica had developed this unusual crush on Chuck, the gossip mill had been working overtime—everyone calling him "the Doctor" with air quotes.
Rachel and the others had already gotten the full scoop on Chuck's personality and quirks, understanding that he had severe autism—or as Monica always corrected them, high-functioning autism, the kind you see in super-genius types.
"It's too bad he's not a medical doctor like my dad,"
Rachel said, genuinely happy for her best friend but also feeling a bit wistful as she watched Monica's obvious anxiety.
"Thank God he's not,"
Monica said instinctively.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Rachel was immediately offended.
"Nothing... I mean, no matter how high-functioning Chuck is, he's still autistic. Being a research scientist is already pushing it. How could he possibly be a practicing physician like your dad, making life-and-death decisions about patients?"
Monica quickly clarified.
She knew Rachel had always harbored this fantasy about her father—a successful doctor who made serious money and could provide the luxurious lifestyle she craved. So much so that right after college graduation, she'd married a similarly well-off orthodontist.
Even though she'd bolted at the altar, and later realized she'd made the right call when the guy turned out to be a total sleazeball who cheated with her maid of honor, Rachel's obsession with wealthy, successful doctors would probably last forever.
She had zero resistance to doctors who made bank and had social status—and if they were also good-looking, forget about it.
That's right!
As a regular person, she'd always thought of research PhDs as more like "doctors" than actual doctors.
This was partly due to her preconceptions formed by her brother Ross, who had a PhD.
But now she was reconsidering that view.
"Hey, Rachel."
The door swung open and Ross, with his perpetually hangdog expression, walked in, giving Rachel the warmest smile he could muster.
"Hi, Ross."
Rachel smiled back. "Check out Monica's fashion crisis."
"Getting all dressed up? Do you have a date?"
Ross glanced over casually. Then his eyes widened and he practically yelled, "Please don't tell me it's with that doctor!"
"What's your problem?"
Monica continued pulling Rachel around to help with outfit selection.
"What's my problem?"
Ross shouted. "I honestly cannot understand why you're into that guy!"
"If you could understand, I'd be seriously worried."
Influenced by her friend group, Monica had developed a sharp sense of humor. "I already have one gorgeous female professor putting pressure on me. I don't need my own brother as romantic competition too."
"..."
Ross's face went dark.
"A gorgeous female professor?"
Rachel grinned knowingly, zeroing in on the important detail.
"Yeah."
Monica thought about Professor Alicia Harper and immediately dropped the clothes she'd been holding up. She said with obvious frustration, "I'm positive Chuck is only going for his second degree because of her."
"Is that why you're so stressed out?"
Rachel suddenly got it. "Don't worry, you've totally got this. You're definitely not inferior to some beautiful professor."
"Ha, sure, that's convincing,"
Monica said sarcastically. "Once you meet Alicia, you'll understand the difference between us."
"Alicia?"
Ross, who was already scowling, heard the name and his expression got even darker. "Professor Alicia Harper? Physics professor at Princeton?"
"Yeah, you know her?"
Monica asked in surprise.
Rachel looked over with interest.
"Of course I know her,"
Ross said with obvious agitation. "I actually considered getting a PhD in physics at Princeton once..."
"See what I mean?"
Monica smiled bitterly. "With a professor like that, any guy would suddenly want to study physics."
"That wasn't the only reason..."
Ross turned red, but under the scrutiny of both Monica and Rachel, he couldn't continue.
He'd originally gotten that idea specifically because of Professor Alicia Harper's incredible beauty.
But he'd ultimately abandoned the plan after meeting his wife—well, now his ex-wife.
He'd given it up for love, obviously, not because physics was way harder than paleontology and completely beyond his capabilities.
"I'd love to meet her sometime,"
Rachel said with barely concealed skepticism.
As a gorgeous former popular girl, she naturally felt competitive with any other gorgeous academic overachiever.
"Oh crap, look at the time!"
Monica glanced at her phone and panicked. "Rachel, which outfit should I go with?"
"That one,"
Rachel snapped back to attention and pointed randomly. "Did you guys decide on a place to meet?"
"Uh,"
Monica went speechless.
She'd been so focused on setting up tonight's date that she'd completely forgotten to suggest a location. In her subconscious, she'd always assumed guys handled that part.
"I'll just call him,"
Monica said helplessly, picking up her phone and dialing. "What? You're still at Princeton? No, don't worry, I'll just come over there."
"He's still there?"
Rachel laughed. "That's not exactly encouraging. How about I lend you my lucky outfit? At least you'll get to experience some authentic campus romance."
"Campus romance does sound nice,"
Monica's eyes lit up. She shut the bedroom door and said as she changed clothes, "Forget the lucky outfit though. I can pass for 22, not 18!"
When she arrived at Princeton dressed in college-appropriate clothes, she found Chuck sitting alone in the hallway, staring off into space.
"Hey there,"
Monica said, tugging at her slightly uncomfortable outfit and smiling at the spaced-out Chuck.
Chuck looked up and nodded.
"You're still here?"
Monica sat down next to him, trying to start a conversation.
"Yeah,"
Chuck nodded.
Monica glanced at the sky outside. It was already evening, and the soft campus lighting created a romantic atmosphere. The only downside was that Chuck wasn't exactly picking up on romantic cues, which left her feeling a bit helpless. She couldn't help but ask, "Why?"
It had still been afternoon when they'd parted ways.
After she'd suggested the date and he'd agreed, why was he still sitting here without making any preparations?
This made her feel really unsettled.
(End of chapter)
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