The Queen Of Seldon College

Maggie failed to be startled at the news of her redundancy, the premonition had kept her awake many nights, but the call for a change of lifestyle had her feeling utterly lost. Searching the web night and day for a new career path seemed useless with her lack of work experience. From the age of fourteen she had worked in the same local coffee shop, even meeting her wife at one of the many tables she religiously tidied, keeping her bills paid until a couple weeks after her thirty third birthday. Maggie’s wife, Penelope, supported her during her downfall. Pen, working in marketing, had tried time and time again to find something for Maggie in order to lift at least a single crumb of angst from her shoulders. However, no matter how hard the two women worked, Maggie was in dire need of some qualifications in order to meet employers standards. Which brings us to the present time, the beginning of Maggie’s college experience. 

Maggie paced in front of her living room door, the other side occupying all her fears and possible failures, her first day of schooling had approached way too swiftly for her liking. Every other minute she would flatten her blouse down as though to smoothen any crease yet herself and Pen knew it was to wipe the constant build up of sweat from her palms. The ringing of her ear drums prevented the worried ginger to take notice of her partners soft footsteps starting down the stairs. 

“Mag, we aren’t leaving yet. Please sit down you’ll wreck the souls of your shoes.” Even though angst laced through Penelope’s tone, she kept her voice tender in hopes of soothing her wife’s flustered state. Her brunette strands bounced effortlessly upon her shoulders as each heel balanced on a single step at a time. Contrary to a fumbling, nail biting, messy haired Maggie. 

“Pen, what if I’m stupid? What if my time to learn has passed? The opportunity swept from under me without me even noticing. Hell! I should have kids now not starting school! I feel eleven again at the beginning of secondary.” At some point during her speech many words intertwined as she gazed helplessly at her love who seems to make everything in her life serene again.

“Jeez Maggie! You’re only thirty three! We have plenty of time to have children. People go back to school in their sixties, you have nothing to worry about.” Penelope held onto Maggie’s shoulders, fingertips softly squeezing ripples of comfort over the cotton of her blouse. 

“Look…how about after work I take you for some ice c-.”

“Im not a child Pen! I don’t need ice cream after my first day of school.” A pout of frustration accompanied Maggie’s interruption. Only increasing as Penelope chuckled refusing to halt her teasing. 

“I’m just saying! If the teacher tells you off-.” 

“Oh stop. Let’s just leave before you’re on the couch tonight.” With that, ginger curls confidently strut from the house forgetting any prior worry. A light ‘woo’ leaves the lips of the brunette as her eyebrows dance in mock intimidation. 

The car ride consisted of playful banter between the two ladies, Maggie beaming gratitude towards Penelope’s distraction. Once the tires abruptly paused outside of Maggie’s new college building the need to hurl erupted from the depths of her stomach. Her knees knocked together as the anxiety spread throughout her whole body, drilling her heart almost out of her chest.

“Remember the day we met? How I sat near the very back window of the coffee shop drowning in revision papers for my upcoming exams. I ordered an iced coffee and you teased me for drinking a freezing cold drink while the rain didn’t stop pouring outside.” Pen found irony at the thought of Maggie being a scatter brain due to school, when the day they met it was herself who caught a lump in her throat from college but Maggie was the one to calm her down without even realising it. 

“I don’t take my words back. The average person drinks a warm coffee in cold weather.” Maggie muttered with a roll of her eyes.

“Don’t I know.” Penelope chortled as Maggie smirked. “That wasn’t my point. I had hardly slept. Cried the night before after talking myself in to dropping out but when I decided to carry on I was fortunate enough to meet you. I didn’t feel as stressed anymore… because of you. No matter what was thrown at you, you fought back. A breath of fresh air compared to my struggling student life. Mag’s you can handle this.” 

Maggie furrowed her brows feeling nostalgic over the memory, now aware of what her overly friendly personality had done for her love. Her shaky fingers cling onto Pen’s as a thank you, sealing her gratitude with a kiss to the lips. Front teeth meeting each other due to the love drunk smile the pair fail to conceal.

“You’re right…I’m being silly.” With the release of her seatbelt and a short shuffle towards the passenger door she gives Pen a small wave before climbing out. 

“Call me if you need me, love you!” Penelope hollers from her window, sending a cheeky wink to the ginger. 

“Love you!” Maggie presses her fingertips to her lips only to throw them back to her wife with a playful wag of her fingers. 

Now, without the unnecessary stress, Maggie wonders through the halls of her college. A new found bounce hits her steps, hips subtly dance a long with the bop of her head. Pulling out her schedule, she finds her room within minutes. Strangers scatter the room, tapping pencils, flipping through planners, scrolling through phones and setting up laptops. Maggie sends anyone who glances her way a shy smile once she locates a seat near the back of the room. Neatly, she places her notebooks and pens upon her desk feeling excited at the potential new occupation. Opening her notebook to the first page she follows the ink already embedded to the crisp white paper. 

You’ll be great. 

The Queen of Seldon College!

Love you x

“Hello everyone, my name is David and I am here to teach you business.” 

Incoherent greetings pass through the room while David sets up his laptop and text books behind his desk, Maggie doesn’t think this is too bad. Not at all. She sat writing notes as fast as she can, taking in all the information spewing from David’s mouth. The second David announces a break she books Penelope and herself into a fancy restaurant at the centre of the city. She sends her a simple text consisting the time, place and ‘be there or be square’. Residing back into her place after her small break, unbothered with the amount of writing she had to do. Instead content and little less lost.