Relieved, she renewed her focus on her studies, setting a plan in motion to double her workload over the next two semesters. If she was successful in attaining high distinctions for all eight first-year subjects over this period, she could present a good argument to fast-track her degree. Her goal was to slash two years off a three-year full-time bachelor’s degree.
She had ditched the idea of a double degree to focus only on her Bachelor of Law for the sole purpose of getting into a PhD course as soon as possible. The PhD research degree she’d already decided on would give her the highest education which should carry her through life’s most difficult challenges. Plus, it would give her the stability she’d always wanted—she would never be out of work again.
But she had to make it happen before she was discovered, and the book glasses were taken away from her forever.
She began hitting the books every chance she got, careful to restrict wearing the glasses to a maximum of eight hours at a time and scheduling long breaks to avoid suffering the horrendous side effects.
But there was also the worry of the men who had attacked Billy. What if they tried something again? What if they came for them both? There was no doubt in her mind that they’d been after the glasses. She went to the library and borrowed Bruce Lee’s Chinese Gung Fu: The Philosophical Art of Self-Defense for some light reading.
But while the book glasses could help train her mind, she knew she needed to train her body as well. She hunted online for the best self-defence classes available and made bookings with a few to see which would best suit her needs.
Billy was curious when he realised what she’d done. “Self-defence classes? Really? On top of all your studying?”
She shrugged. “Sure. Why don’t you do it too? It’s a great way to keep fit.”
But she saw realisation on his face, and he took her in his arms. “Darling, is this because of those men? Are you worried they’ll come back?”
She didn’t want to worry him so tried not to look too concerned. “A little. I just thought it was worth it, you know?”
He flexed his arms. “Yeah, maybe you’re right. But I don’t think I want to do it too. I can pack a decent punch already.”
Days turned into weeks and weeks into months. Before she knew it, she had achieved high distinctions for each of her eight subjects. In light of this outstanding result, she was confident she could make an argument to get her credits on the grounds of prior learning, so the university could waive the remaining sixteen subjects and award her a Bachelor of Law Degree, which would allow her to move straight on to a PhD course.
Sam waited after knocking on Professor Grasim’s door.
“Come in.”
She opened the door. “Hello, Professor. It’s Sam Page. Can I see you, please? Do you have time?”
“Come in, Samantha,” the professor said with a smile. “I know what you are here for. First, congratulations on achieving an incredible eight high distinctions. We ask for it every year but when we finally get it, we are truly astonished at the remarkable accomplishment. Well done. Well done indeed.”
“Thank you, Professor. Have you had a chance to read my email yet?”
“Yes, and I don’t think there will be any problem. I just need to run it by the faculty board, and I will get back to you soon. No one is likely to object, and I will be thrilled to see you moving into a PhD research course. I don’t need to tell you about the difference between course work and completing a thesis. I’m sure you know the significance of doing an original body of research.”
“Yes, and thank you again, Professor,” Sam said as she reached out her hand to shake his.
“No, thank you for your hard work. We are all proud of you at the faculty.”
As she walked back to her studio apartment, she thought back over the previous several months and couldn’t believe how fast the time had flown. Billy had been wonderful and patient with her and she’d managed to schedule her wearing of the book glasses in such a way to avoid the nightmarish visions and inflicting serious injury on herself.
Also, miraculously, she had not yet been discovered by the three thugs who were looking for her.
When her thoughts turned to Dr Julie Dunn, she was saddened by her unnecessary death and, at the same time, her blood boiled. But she always pushed those feelings aside. It was not yet time for revenge. She needed to focus on her education and was determined to see it through.
Once inside her apartment, Sam put on the book glasses to check her email and was pleased to find her presence had been requested back in the professor’s office at 9 a.m. the next day. She knew the decision had been made and she would be informed of the outcome. Confident it would go her way, she hit the books even harder and continued studying late into the night.
The next morning, Sam headed off to the law faculty building for her 9 a.m. meeting.
“Come in, please,” said the professor in response to her knock and Sam opened the door without any hesitation. “Samantha, good morning.”
“Thank you for this meeting,” Sam said, shocked to see the entire law faculty teaching staff gathered in Professor Grasim’s office.
“Samantha, please come and stand over here next to me,” the professor said with a welcoming wave. She joined him. “Once in a while, a student comes along who is exceptional. Their discipline and work ethic are so unmatched that they achieve great heights.
“With a result of eight out of eight high distinctions for your Bachelor’s degree, we believe you are that exceptional student. Therefore, in response to your request and after much deliberation, the faculty has granted you the sixteen credits needed to complete your degree and acceptance into a research degree as a PhD candidate starting next semester. On behalf of the law faculty, congratulations and well done!”
There was an outbreak of applause.
“Thank you, Professor. Thank you to the whole faculty. I will not let you down,” Sam said, tears streaming down her face.
A couple of staff members brought in an assortment of hot and cold drinks and plates of gourmet sandwiches, mini quiches, tarts, and tiny cupcakes. Starstruck, over the next two hours, Sam mingled with the staff. The offers of support she received were remarkable, but the show of how impressed these academics, authorities in their field, were with her was even more remarkable.
How did I get here? She was proud of how far she’d come but knew that without the book glasses she would not be there.
The two-hour experience was something she never forgot and, upon leaving, she found a quiet place in the grounds of the university to call Billy and tell him all about it.
“Billy, Billy, I got credits for my remaining subjects and was also accepted into a Doctorate for next semester and Professor Grasim announced it in front of the entire law faculty staff. Can you believe it?” Sam poured her heart out over the phone, and they continued talking for over twenty minutes.
“I’m happy for you, sweetheart, but I need to go back to work now. How about you come to my place for dinner tonight and we can celebrate then?”
“I’d love to! See you tonight!” said Sam and she wandered back to her room, still walking on a cloud, trying to forget that she owed everything to the book glasses.
Doctor Of Philosophy Law
March 2015
“Welcome to all Doctor of Philosophy Law candidates. It’s a new semester with some new faces, so congratulations to all of you for being accepted into our program. I warn you, it’s a very demanding one.
“I’m Professor Alexander Grasim, Head of the Law Faculty. You may research one of the following research themes on the screen behind me. Please take a few minutes to look them over.”
Professor Grasim pointed at the screen on which the following text was displayed:
Research themes:
Asian and Islamic law
Children, youth, and families
Citizenship, migration, and refugees
Commercial and international commercial law
&
nbsp; Constitutional and administrative law
Corporate, securities and finance law
Criminal law, justice, and criminology
Environmental law and climate change
Health law, governance, and ethics
Human rights and development
Intellectual property, media, and privacy law
International law
Justice, legal process, and the profession
Jurisprudence and legal theory
Labour, employment, and anti-discrimination law
Legal history
Private law: tort, contracts, equity, and property
Taxation
The noise in the room increased as the students talked among themselves.
“Settle down, please! Thank you. By now, you have all selected your supervisor or have been appointed a supervisor. Please meet with them by the end of the week before you get your teaching schedule. These timetables are not negotiable; accept them and move on.
“Teaching responsibilities are equally important to your research, so suck it up and work around them. No allowances will be made, especially for those creative PhD candidates who come up with the most ridiculous excuses. I have heard it all, people, and will not tolerate it. You have been informed.”
Some laughter could be heard around the room, but Professor Grasim continued. “Some of you full-timers will most likely complete your coursework and produce a successful thesis and graduate in less than the allocated three to four years. For the part-timers, we have timeframes for you so please check them and clarify them with your supervisor. Familiarise yourselves with your timeframes and deadlines and work closely with your supervisor to ensure that you remain on track.
“If you have any questions, please see your supervisor. Don’t come to me. I will not see PhD candidates unless I ask for you, so please don’t forget that. Also, I will meet regularly with your supervisors, so if your heart is not in it or you have reservations, then I will know about it. If that is the case, you don’t want a summons to my office. I have no problem with people changing their minds as a result of the pressure, family, or work commitments; I respect that.
“My priority has and will always be to do everything in my power, through your supervisors, to help you all get over the line if you have the desire and the drive to do so. That’s my promise. All you need to do is please notify your supervisor before it’s too late. If you can do that, then you have my full support. Good luck, thank you!”
Professor Grasim packed up his gear and headed for the door. Sam knew she had to catch him before he left. She hadn’t been given a supervisor and knew how crucial it was to get the right person. She’d assumed someone would be assigned to her. That’s what she thought the professor’s letter had suggested, anyway.
“Excuse me, Professor, about my supervisor, sir!” Sam called over the crowd to him as he walked past her on his way out of the lecture theatre.
“Sorry, I can’t talk now. I’m in a hurry. Come see me in my office in ten minutes,” he yelled back.
Precisely ten minutes later, Sam knocked on the professor’s door.
“Come in, please.”
“Thank you, Professor,” Sam replied nervously.
“How can I help you, Samantha?” Professor Grasim asked.
“I must be the only one without a supervisor. I don’t know what to do,” Sam said, her anxiety making her voice shake. This whole thing was stressful enough without this on top of it.
“Why didn’t you say that I instructed you in my official letter not to bother getting a supervisor?” he asked with a grin.
That’s what she’d thought it said but she’d assumed he must have misworded it. “I’m confused.”
“I’ll make it easy for you, I would like to be your supervisor.”
“But you just said…” Sam was lost for words.
“I know what I said, but you are exceptional, and I don’t want anyone else to share in the glory of your achievements.”
“You mean, you are taking a risk on me and no one else wants the responsibility?”
He seemed surprised at her perception and laughed but did not confirm or deny her statement. Then, with a burst of excitement, he said, “I must tell you, your methodology presentation last week left my entire law faculty teaching staff speechless. These people are the best in their field of research, so it was priceless to see someone knocking their socks off.
“Your topic of ‘Copyright Protection Laws in the Age of Data Sharing: legal challenges and responses in the context of online behavioural marketing’ was special. You left them with nowhere to go. You covered it all, and your methodology about regulatory models characterised by individual consent and the necessity of testing was most valuable and left them all with their mouths open.
“Did you notice they all walked out of the room in total silence? That has never happened before! Thank you for giving me that experience, Samantha. I will always cherish it.”
She felt her body relax. “Really? I was concerned I may have missed the mark.”
“No, quite the opposite. You intimidated them all.”
“Thank you, Professor, but that was not my intention.”
“Yes, and that’s the best part because they knew that.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Sam said bashfully.
“Well, I’m your supervisor and that’s that. Over the next month, I would like you to work out a timeframe for our regular meetings and a possible halfway mark for completing your thesis. Remember, you have three to four years to complete it.”
“I’ve already done that and more.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, looking confused.
“I mean, I have done all that and have estimated my completion date, taking in account all my data modelling testing outcomes,” Sam replied.
He held up his hands. “Okay, hold onto that for now. Email me the details and we can discuss it when we first meet. But I am curious, when do you see yourself completing your thesis?”
“Well, in half the time you specified.”
“Half of four years?”
“No, half of three years!”
“I’m sorry I asked. Never mind that now. Look, I’ll see you in a month and we can talk about it then. I have work for you to do and I’m sure you also have a life.” He stood and stretched out his hand.
“Thank you, Professor, for being my supervisor.” Sam rose and shook his hand firmly.
“It’s my honour, Samantha. I’m sure you will do me proud.”
Once outside the law faculty building, she rang Billy to tell him the wonderful news and arranged to meet him at their favourite Italian restaurant, near his place, at 7 p.m. All the way back to her studio apartment, her feet barely touched the ground. She was so excited that everything was going to plan.
Leftover quiche made for a quick lunch before she headed over to the refuge. It had been over a year since she’d visited, and she felt guilty about not keeping in touch with Sister Sue and not even leaving her a contact number.
The strain of cutting Sister Sue out of her life after everything she’d done had caught up with her and she didn’t know how to make it up to her. Knowing that the sister didn’t like accepting gifts, Sam hoped she would accept her invitation to have dinner with Billy and her.
Dinner Invitation
“Come in, please,” Samantha heard Sister Sue say after gently knocking at her office door.
She went in. “Hello, Sister Sue. Before you kick me out, I would like to apologise for my appalling behaviour,” Sam said with a shaky voice, glad to see her friend and mentor once again after all this time.
The sister looked shocked but pleased. “Samantha, darling, please come in. I would never kick you out of my office, dear. As long as I’m here, you are always welcome. Please sit down.”
She came around her desk and stood in front of Sam. “Look at you, you are so beautiful, my darling. Never mind about apologising, I was much to blame. Now,
sit down and tell me what you have been doing. I’ve missed you so much, especially our daily discussions on everyday things happening at the refuge that you haven’t had a chance to find out about since you’ve been gone.” Sister Sue hesitated for a moment before going back to sit at her desk.
“Thank you. I have the entire afternoon free for you, if you haven’t anything planned, that is?” Sam said and walked over to give her a huge hug and a kiss on her cheek.
Sister Sue held her close. “Oh, wonderful. I would love that. How about we catch up over tea with jam and scones like we used to?”
“On one condition.”
“Oh, what’s that?”
“That you come to dinner tonight with Billy and me.”
“Who’s Billy?”
“Billy is my boyfriend, and you can meet him tonight if you come to dinner,” she said with a huge smile.
“How can I say no to such an invitation? I would love to join you for dinner and meet your Billy. How long have you been dating?”
“Let’s go have some tea and scones and I’ll tell you all about it.” Sam grabbed her arm and headed for the door.
They caught up on all they had missed out on in each other’s lives since that difficult day. They also laughed and cried, reflecting on both the good times and the bad that they’d experienced in the years since Sam had moved to Sydney.
Sam felt guilty about not keeping in touch with her. She had missed Sue’s company, and Sue seemed overjoyed to see her, so she decided not to let that happen again.
Nearly four hours later, Sam left to go home and change and told Sister Sue she would be back at six to pick her up for dinner. To avoid the gauntlet of well-wishers from the refuge’s regulars, who would ask where she’d been and talk about how she’d changed, Sam arranged to meet her around the corner from the refuge.
Billy was waiting when Sam unlocked the front door and walked into his apartment with Sister Sue close behind. “Here we are, Sister Sue, this is Billy. Billy, I would like you to meet Sister Sue.”
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