Ties That Bind

Jennifer always dreamt about her ideal man. Tall, handsome, kind… these were the qualities she always had in mind when thinking about her future partner. Of course, she knew she had to be practical. We seldom get what we want, after all. A presentable and loving man would be alright, for as long as he would take care of her and for as long as he would always have the patience and understanding to work out the differences they would encounter. She was still in college when she met Paul. At 19, Jennifer was in her sophomore year, taking up AB Marketing. Paul was 27, and he was the teacher’s assistant, and since the professor was almost, always absent, attending a seminar or two in other states, Paul delivered the lectures in class most of the time.

He always had his eyes on Jennifer. And she took notice as well. A few exchanged looks led to some lunches together. And lunches became dinner dates. And they got to know each other better. Soon enough, they were going out on a regular basis. There was a problem to their budding relationship, however. School policies prohibit teacher-student affairs, and that extends to teacher assistants. Much as how happy they felt during the first few months of their togetherness, they had to keep it a secret. They had to pretend that they were just casual friends whenever prying eyes were looking at them.