The College Professor

Chapter 02

I installed Tinder on my phone. Signing up was easy, the idea behind it even easier. I swiped and swiped and at some point I was getting bored and put my phone away. My roommates and I were having an apartment dinner. We sometimes just did that to talk about the broken shower, talk about the trash or just to catch up and try a new recipe.

Finishing the Mueller assignment was tough and I was happy that I didn't need to head out anymore on this rainy Saturday night. The groceries were already sitting on the kitchen table and the girls were only waiting for me to finish my college stuff. They had already opened a bottle of wine and I was almost laughing out loud when I noticed half of it was already gone.

We chopped up the veggies, Penelope and Wanda were sitting back down as I poured pasta into the big pot. And now we'd wait for the veggies to cook, add some cream and the pasta, pour a shit load of cheese on top and bake everything for a few more minutes. Easy and pairing well with the amounts of wine we had already taken in.

They asked about my now ex-boyfriend and we complained about Mueller. I asked Wanda if she had heard from Rachel lately because I hadn't and we agreed she was probably caught up with college stuff - it was still the beginning of the semester, somehow.

"I can't believe we'll be finishing soon" I said and Penelope nodded.

"College was so good until now, I really don't want to leave right now" she said and breathed out heavily. "I just really don't want to get older."

Wanda chuckled. "Well, if everything works out I have another three years of law school coming."

"Your choice" Penelope retored and I laughed.

"She has a point" I said and Wanda shook her head.

"I know, I know." She was smiling nonetheless.

My phone vibrated and I showed the girls my tinder profile. I had a few matches, a guy was texting me and we kept texting back together. It was fun, I ate more than enough and drank another two glasses of wine. Catching up was good and I liked their advice on how to play the online dating game.

I had no idea what I wanted, I hadn't been single for more than two years and I didn't want to get back into a serious relationship. Wanda called it 'playing the field' and Penelope called it plain 'hooking up with random people'. Well, I just wanted to have some uncommited fun, go on a few dates and meet new people.

As I went to bed I was talking to some guy on the app and we agreed to meet Monday night for drinks in that campus pub. He seemed nice enough and I had nothing to lose. I wondered though, if my ex-boyfriend was now also 'playing the field' - I didn't want to know.

Monday passed in a blur, there was a lot do to and when I went back home to get ready I was trying my best not to be late - not a good idea to show up late for a date, especialle a first one. Instead of doing intense hair styling and make-up I tried to impress with black overknee boots and a burgundy camisole.

It took me fifteen minutes to be out the door again and on my way to the pub. My heart was beating quickly as I was in a rush and I was just ready to sit down with a beer and relax. I wasn't good at being stressed, some people were able to use their full potential in stressful situations and I do okay, no breakdowns or anything, but stress wasn't something that helped me in that sense. It was tiring and I needed a lot of off time afterwards. Going on a date with a Tinder match after having only been single for a few days wasn't the most relaxing situation imaginable but it was better than running after Mueller to hand in an assignment. To cut it short, I was stressed and kind of looking forward to the night and kind of not. My body just told me to stay home and relax in bed.