The Stipulation (Volume Five)

by M. L. Young

  A book fell off of a desk, making a loud thump and bringing me out of my trance as I looked up to see an entire board filled with notes I was supposed to be taking down. I glanced at the professor, who luckily hadn’t noticed me and seen that I hadn’t written down a single letter from the board. I hurried and opened my notebook as she turned her back and starting writing down notes so fast I was sure my hand was about to start bleeding from the speed. I really needed to get my head back in the game.

  ***

  Jillian went out for the night, saying she had a date with some cute boy she met when she ventured out with Tara, and went to a different dining hall in a residence building on the other side of campus. She told me all about him, and I was very happy to hear he wasn’t a frat guy, but instead just a normal and very regular guy who had his life together, unlike Steve. It made me happy to see her beginning to have success in dating, because Steve really was a douche and treated her like some kind of expendable commodity, which Jillian is far from. I think she was the hottest out of Tara, her, and myself, and logic would tell you that she should be the one jet-setting with somebody as gorgeous as Roman.

  My night was fairly bland and boring, with only a bowl of popcorn and some studying to do. I kept the television on in the background originally for the ambiance and background noise, but I found myself listening more and more while neglecting to actually study and retain the information in front of me. Ever since I started seeing Roman those many months ago, I’ve noticed I wasn’t as into my schoolwork and studies as I was in the past. Many people would look in at my study habits and say that was bad, but I think it was partially a good thing. It wasn’t that I didn’t care about school or my education and learning new things, but I thought Roman just showed me that there was more to life than just sticking your face in a book. Sometimes you needed to get out there and experience new things, because we weren’t here forever and if you didn’t do them now then you’d never get the opportunity to.

  I knew Roman was likely on business already, even though he shouldn’t have left this early. He wasn’t texting me back much throughout the day, and he only did that when he was either in meetings or he was out of town. I didn’t get too mad or upset though, realizing instead that it came with the territory and I signed up to date him when I clearly knew he wouldn’t always be around.

  As I sat there stuffing the buttery goodness that was my popcorn in my mouth, my phone vibrated on the nightstand, prompting me to look over and see it was Roman.

  I grabbed my phone quickly, my fingers fumbling to press any button as they were covered in oil and grease from my snack. I was finally, after about four long and painful seconds, able to unlock my phone and opened his text message, which I had been waiting to get for hours.

  Sorry I haven’t been able to reply much. I left this morning for Toronto and am just back at the hotel and getting in bed. I just wanted to say that I love you very much and I can’t wait to explore more of the world with you. You’ll never forget this summer.

  I put down my phone and smiled as the thoughts of Jillian, Tara, and now this message really made me believe that something big was going to happen to me on our trip. Maybe my friends were right, and this really would be a summer I’d never be able to forget.

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  Excerpt from Volume 6 below.

  The Stipulation Volume Six

  Chapter One

  Since spring break, my life had been happy and filled with a complete sense of perfection that I never wanted to end. Roman and I were inseparable—whenever he was home from business, we were together. I routinely spent the weekend with him while we rarely left the bed. We were completely in love, and it seemed as though nothing could break that apart and keep us from being with one another.

  Months had passed, and my summer classes, which were long and taxing, were finally coming to a very happy end. It was the end of July, the last day actually, and I was about to take my final exams and get my grades so I could move on and have a few weeks of summer vacation before the fall semester crept up on me again. Roman and I had taken a couple weekend trips, mostly to Cape Cod and Seattle, and did everything from fishing to hiking to just staying in bed and enjoying each other’s company.

  I stayed in the dorms because not only was my room paid for, but I also didn’t want to leave Jillian alone—not to mention—I didn’t own a car. I didn’t want to rely on Roman for everything, although he did mention the possibility of us moving in together within the next year or so, and that I could likely get a car so I could be more self-sufficient. Jillian ended up staying for summer classes, since she failed two classes in the spring semester and had to take them again immediately to avoid an F grade on her transcripts. We were lucky that our school would allow you to take the class again the next semester and have that grade recorded on your transcripts, so that was what she did.

  “I’m so glad we’re almost done with class,” Jillian said as we put our shoes on to get ready for class.

  Jillian and I had only one class together—our first of the day—which was nice because we were able to get ready and walk over together. She had to retake this class to avoid a failing grade, and I needed the class for my degree.

  “Me, too. Roman is picking me up tonight and we’re leaving tomorrow, just in case you forgot,” I said.

  “You’ve been talking about this trip for the past few months, so needless to say, I haven’t forgotten in the slightest,” Jillian replied with a smile.

  “Well it isn’t every day you get to go off to Paris with a beautiful man. I mean, who do you know who does that?” I asked.

  “Only you, Natty, only you,” Jillian replied.

  Jillian finished tying her shoes and got up to grab her backpack and open the door, almost doing it to nudge me along so I wouldn’t mess around any longer. While I couldn’t afford to be late to our final, Jillian definitely couldn’t—she was on the verge of failing yet again with her seventy-two average.

  “So how long are you guys going to be gone? Doesn’t he have business in Los Angeles?” Jillian asked as she stood at the door.

  “We’ll probably be gone for four days or so, maybe five. Yeah, he has a merger to do in Los Angeles shortly after the trip, but he promised it’d be the last one for a while, so we could spend time together before classes start back up.” I grabbed my backpack and walked out of the door with her.

  “I don’t know how you do it. I couldn’t imagine being away from a boyfriend that often, and not knowing when he’ll leave or come back,” Jillian said.

  “What can I say? I love the guy,” I said as we got on the elevator and the doors closed.

  ***

  I had plans later that night to go to dinner with Roman and spend the night at his place before our flight tomorrow. His pilot wasn’t available for this trip, because he was having hernia surgery, and for whatever reason, Roman refused to fly on a private jet without him. We had to fly commercial now, which wasn’t so bad considering Roman got us first class, but that meant we were on their schedule and not our own like we would’ve been with the private jet. The only flight we were able to get left at seven in the morning, which was way earlier than either of us wanted, but if we wanted to go to Paris and have this vacation then we needed to deal with it and try and sleep longer on the plane.

  Jillian and I both got ready together, with my sporadically packing and trying to get as many cute outfits as I could into my suitcase. Roman had bought me these pink hard shell suitcases for the trip, saying my old and hole-ridden suitcases weren’t going to do any longer. The new suitcases were beautiful, but I still had the problem of being a girl who felt as though she had nothing to wear, even though her suitcase was filling up to the brim.

  Jillian had a date tonight—with a sugar daddy—and it was her first ever. Tara and I had coerced her into it, and Jerome eagerly accepted her as I had given up my spot. I went to him about three weeks ago, and he said he knew all a
long and that he was just waiting for me to come to him, but he wasn’t mad in the slightest. Actually, he said he was ecstatic that Roman and I had reconciled and that I was in a serious relationship with him now because he claimed he wouldn’t have been able to set me up with any other guys anyway. I was so against dating and never had a good one that Jerome said if Roman hadn’t come back he likely would’ve been forced to drop me for that purpose. I was still in contact with him, though, and even helped Jillian when Tara was unable, just so she could be the best sugar baby she could possibly be.

  “Well, I guess I better go before Roman gets here. He said that we had dinner plans and we have to get to bed early for our flight, so I suppose I’ll see you when I get back,” I said to Jillian.

  “Well, have fun and don’t do anything too crazy. You can e-mail anytime you want to, but don’t call or text me, cause I don’t have an international plan. I’m not with a rich man you know,” Jillian said playfully.

  “Oh and by the way, if you’re going to bring a guy here tonight, don’t. I don’t want you having sex on my bed or something,” I said as I gave her a hug.

  “Oh shut up. I don’t give it up that easily,” she replied jokingly.

  I grabbed my bags, went downstairs and outside with my girly pink suitcases in tow, and waited for Roman to show up and whisk me away. This was shaping up to be the biggest adventure of my life.

  ***

  “We’ll start off with the artichoke dip while we look over the menus,” Roman said to our waitress.

  “Great choice. I’ll be back shortly to take your orders,” she replied with a smile before heading to the kitchen.

  Roman had decided to take me to a cool little pub that served a little nicer food. The décor had old sports relics and signs, and they claimed to have over a hundred beers in stock, so you could say this was definitely a guy’s place. I liked it though, and it was a little more my speed compared to the fancy places he’d taken me to. Don’t get me wrong, I liked going to those places with him, but sometimes I liked going to normal places. I knew we were going to be dining fancy in Paris anyway, so getting this in beforehand was sort of like a refresher.

  “So, are you excited to go to Paris?” Roman asked me with a wide grin.

  “Is the Pope a Catholic? Of course I’m excited to go! I’ve been wanting to go to Paris since I was a little girl,” I replied with a smile.

  “I knew you would be. I think we’re going to have a very exciting and breathtaking trip. I have a lot planned, and I know you’ll leave this trip with a gigantic smile,” Roman said.

  “What are some of the places we’re going to or going to do?” I asked curiously.

  “Well, we will see the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, a couple other museums, some great stores, and even a boat ride down the Seine River,” Roman said.

  “Are you two ready to order?” the waitress asked as she interrupted our conversation.

  We ordered, with me getting fish while Roman got a burger, and went back to oodling each other and talking about our trip. Every question I had for him resulted in an answer, as if he had no hesitation and didn’t have to think about what I was asking him. He was showing that he had thought about this trip and what we were doing very many times, and had a strict timeline almost of how things would happen and what we’d do. I really didn’t mind, for I didn’t know anyone or anything in Paris, and all I really was concerned about was going to the Eiffel Tower. I think every girl has a dream to be kissed under the Tower by the man they love, and I was going to make sure I made that dream come true.

  We waited for five minutes before the waitress brought over the artichoke dip, which was in a word, spectacular. The spinach that was mixed in was excellent and tasted as though it had just been harvested. I didn’t think the food here would be bad, but I never expected it to be this amazing.

  “So, do you parents know you’re going with me to Paris?” Roman asked before biting into a piece of his toast and dip.

  “Yeah, but they think that you’re going there for work and that your job is paying for the entire trip. They don’t know how we’re actually going or what we’re doing,” I said.

  “Still haven’t told them the truth about me?” he asked as he wiped his mouth with his napkin.

  “No, not yet. They’re in Thailand anyway, so I don’t want to give them that kind of bombshell news before they’re back home and somewhere where I can see them and talk to them,” I said.

  “Well, you might need to tell them sooner than you think,” Roman said.

  “What does that me—“

  “Okay you two, here are your meals. For you, a bacon cheeseburger, and for you, the teriyaki glazed salmon with steamed broccoli and carrots,” the waitress said, interrupting my question and giving us our food.

  “What does that mean?” I asked as the waitress walked away.

  “What does what mean?” he replied.

  “What you were talking about,” I said.

  “Oh I don’t remember, probably nothing important,” Roman replied before taking a big bite from his juicy and dripping burger.

  I seemingly forgot and brushed off what he said earlier and went on to eat my food, which was a little fishy but still good nonetheless. Roman let me have a bite of his burger, which was incredibly better than what I had, and he offered to let me order one, but I declined, saying that I didn’t want to wait around and have him sit here while I slowly ate it. I knew he had some snacks at his place anyway, and I told him I’d just eat some of those when we got back. He shrugged and brushed off my comment, as the waitress brought the bill to us. He seemed to shock her when he handed her his black credit card. It was amazing what people would be taken back by, and I was sure seeing a black card made this waitress wonder who in the hell Roman was and how he had that much money. I thought the same thing when I met him, so I understood.

  “Well, are you ready to go?” Roman asked as he signed his name on the check and put his card away.

  “You know it,” I replied as I got up and fixed my shorts so they wouldn’t ride up.

  Roman grabbed my hand as we exited the restaurant into the glow of the warm orange sky, and got into his car to make our way back to his mansion.

  Paris, here we come!

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