Chapter 3 Change of plans

Chapter 3: Change of plans.

Narrator POV

As he walks to the boss's office, he wonders what was so important for him to call him.

"Sit down Alex" the boss says to him.

"Thank you, Mr. Harold and tell me what you need me for" Alex replies concerned.

"I am informed that something is not going well in the budget project for the two buildings for the east zone".

"Excuse me sir?" Alex was confused.

"It was what Rodrigo's department told me this morning, what's going on, can't you handle the work, is it too heavy for you, are you stressed out?" asked the boss and suddenly Alex felt a bit exalted.

"Mr. Rodrigo, you just let me know that information a couple of days ago," Alex tells him.

"Rodrigo informed me that he sent you that information a week ago".

"Sir, which is false" Alex tells him, shocked.

"Alex, calm down," says the boss.

"I told you on the phone sir to stop rushing us. Our department has a lot of work that was before and cannot be neglected, but I mentioned to you that in three days you would have your budget."

"Excuse me, but that budget as you tell them are part of the expansion project we need some support and I see that you are not in coordination with the other departments, I have received several complaints from many of your colleagues, just seeing your tone of voice is enough to tell you that you are not fit for the position I was going to assign you."

"Sir, I..." says Alex.

"I don't want to listen, you have been very privileged, but I will not tolerate this lack of interest in the job Alex, I feel you need to leave for a little while."

"What? Mr. I" says Alex.

"No Alex now we will have losses of money and time because of your ineptitude, it has been enough, you are on suspension besides it would be a good time to be with her don't you think?" finished saying the boss.

A collapsed Alex, crumbling under the circumstances, made his way down the hallway and slowly, ignoring Annie, entered his office. As he closes the door an air of consolation and despair sweeps through his body to stroll across the brown carpet until he reaches the window, at that instant a woman in bed and in poor health floods his thoughts.

Sitting on the edge of the bed with a pillow in her hands, Clara, with her mind elsewhere, looks worried, for her to be expelled or suspended meant that she would no longer enjoy the benefits of the campus or the prestige, in addition to the shame of not finishing and graduating being so close to the goal. So close to her medical degree, but she knew this was all a misunderstanding, and she was going to work it out.

"How are you, honey?" says Luci to her, as she walks in the door of her room with two cups of Tea.

"I feel terrible, but I will try to get over it, I can't afford to cry or decay right now because I..." says Clara, but the instant she was about to tell her friend what she had planned to clear her name she looked her in the eyes and felt she shouldn't do it, instead she just averted her gaze and got up to continue packing her things.

"Honey, but you can stay here even if you don't have a scholarship while you find a job" she replies with an air of concern, of course Luci was from a good family she only had to make one phone call and her father would fulfill her every wish. That remarkable concern was not for Clara but for herself, for when Clara left it was going to cost her twice as much to learn and pass on to the teachers if she did not use her influence.

"I can't, I have to go see my grandparents, besides, you are far enough along and well enough without me" Clara replied as she placed the last pair of boots in her suitcase.

"But you are my friend, besides, imagine how boring everything will be without you or Sam" Luci tells her while giving her a back hug with her arms around his neck.

Sam will stay in the same place, but what the fuck did Luci have to say about that to her what does she care if he went with her or if they both got engaged, what does Luci care about? Clara thought immediately, grabbing her friend's wrists, and pulling out of the hug.

"Why are you mentioning Sam, can't he do with his life what he wants?" she said to Luci as the doorbell rings and Luci with a worried expression says:

"I'm going..." leaving Clara with the word in her mouth, the relationship with Sam was something of little time, they had been 1 year, and it did not go beyond intense kisses, besides, she always felt that something was missing in that relationship, and it wasn't exactly sex.

"Clara, honey. a girl is looking for you, her name is Andrea, do you know her?"

"No, but I'll see what she wants" Clara answers.

"Hi, you must be Clara! Nice to meet you, Andrea, I am from the student committee" greets the reddish-haired girl as she extends a hand to Clara.

"Nice to meet you" Clara says to her, while smiling at her with amazement.

"Can we walk? I have something important to tell you".

"Yes" Clara answers him, and they leave as she puts on her jacket.

"I wanted to ask you; did you get expelled for drug possession?" says the girl Andrea with curiosity.

"Hey, I think it's bad enough to be making a joke out of it" Clara tells her as she lightens her pace.

"Oh, no, sorry if you felt offended, I just want to check if I can support you" finishes saying the girl with freckles on her face and glasses.

"How could you do that?" replies Clara, stopping.

I studied your record last night and I observed that it is impeccable, graduated from high school in only 4 years, excellent conduct, creator of the theory of the central nervous system, activist at the beginning of the career, high grades and the most interesting thing in these 4 years in the faculty you have not been attributed any fault by the general direction".

"Yes, I know that, but all of that is brought down by what they found yesterday.

"Just tell me, what did they tell you in admissions when they gave you the expulsion letter?" the girl told her, and Clara's eyes moistened.

"That's just it, the expulsion letter" Clara's cell phone started to ring, it was her grandmother Felicia but seeing it was her she ignored him.

"Hey, calm down, I didn't come to harass you, I know you want to be alone, but I wanted to help you because I see that you are at the end of your career and, it is very painful to end up like this, if you could mention me some other detail that..." the girl tells her.

"The secretary told me that I had 30 days to revoke that, proving that I had nothing to do with it" answers Clara.

"That's it, there it is, it's one of the articles of the rules of the institution" mentions Andrea while she starts to write down quickly.

"I sincerely appreciate your support, I know this should be with police and everything to prove my innocence, but I will try something different" while hesitating to tell her I look at her and gave her an air of confidence that I had not seen in 4 years "I'm going to go look for the one who did this to me, I think I know who it was".

"Really?" Andrea says to him.

"Yeah, I wasn't going to tell you, but you're the only one who has mentioned the word 'support' here" Clara tells her.

"I believe you, since you don't have many trusted friends".

"What do you mean?" says Clara.

"I'm just telling you to watch out for everyone around you" and raising an eyebrow made Clara understand that everyone knew something was wrong with her surroundings.

"Well, thank you, Andrea, you helped me with remembering the good things". Clara says as she shakes his hand and turns to leave.

"Take my number, for anything here we are the student association to help you".

"Thank you!" exclaims Clara, as she was walking and then many ideas were going through her head, like the time she found her friend in the lakeside forest with two very funny fellow Chemistry students with no shirt on and them with no pants. Somehow, she tried to believe that there was no trap involving her brother, but she would see that in a few hours, when she found herself at the apartment where she would do one of her tour-style parties to see the sights of Spain. With her bags in the cab and a lonely looking Luci at the door, Clara set off on her way.

"To the airport please" said Clara to the cab driver and with a tired expression, the cab driver nodded. "Everything will go according to plan" Clara thinks inside the cab, but then a message from Sam catches her attention.

'Hi beautiful, I'm sorry I didn't say goodbye to you, but in the group where I'm living they forbade me to see you, I also think we should allow ourselves a good time to reflect our academic and personal priorities, I still love you, but I need to graduate and being with you will prevent me from doing it, with love Sam'.

Clara's eyes moistened as she replies:

'Dear Sam, I didn't know you admired your team group so much where you live without paying, of course I will leave you alone because you are already one step away from finishing your degree and the final project you will present I remind you that I did it practically for you, I have nothing left to say but congratulations and that for my part this is over we are no longer boyfriend and girlfriend then thanks for nothing'.

While she leans her head on the seat, Clara tries not to cry, but the only thing she feels at that moment is a deep impotence, since she feels used and devalued for not belonging to anything anymore.

Already at the airport, passing all the security measures, Clara finally gets on the plane that will take her to Spain. Clara, a little tired, places her bag on the top of her seat. Suddenly, the euphoria and euphoria that she felt three hours ago faded little by little, she places her headphones from side to side and the melody of Swan Lake fills her mind, then her eyes close, and she falls deeply asleep...

She dives into a small place, where peace dwells in her dreams, a beautiful blue lake takes shape and with the tip of her finger she touches the surface, fullness, and calm in total silence, then a soft voice says:

"Hey, get up you are soiling your blue jacket" tells her, the figure of a young man kneeling in front repeatedly utters those words to her. She is on the ground and only sees her right hand, then when she touches her cheek she can see a mole on her wrist in the shape of a walnut, slowly she looks up, but she cannot see it because she wakes up in her plane seat, and it is already dark.