Indebted to the Mafia King
Final

Eleni

The morning of my final, I pad downstairs in a whirlwind of excitement and nerves. I haven't seen anyone other than Staten Island Saints in weeks, other than the diner. I might be about to pass my first semester of college. My face is on the dark web with a bounty. I might be about to fail my first semester of college. Around and around again. Hopefully I can block it out long enough to actually pass the test.

I freeze as I round the bend in the stairs. Seb stands there, in casual jeans and a T-shirt for the first time, which I expected. I didn't expect the two other guys in normal, severe suits. "Did something change?" I ask.

Seb loops his arm through mine. "The big boss figured I'd do better undercover, just another student, so he wanted a set of distant eyes."

I frown. "So something happened."

"Yeah, I finally talked Dante into putting me in a position to get laid while I'm on the job." Seb waggles his eyebrows.

I snort, but I can't shake the feeling he's hiding something from me. Maybe it's just Dante's paranoia after the visit from his uncle, but he seemed okay when he went to bed last night.

Regardless, I let them drive me over the bridge and into the city, all the way to campus. Seb and one of the suited guys get out with me while the third goes to park the car and wait inside, either a getaway or distant eyes.

All my worries about the mafia security team melt away as I re-enter New York City air. It's humid, almost thick enough to cut with a knife, and reeks of garbage. The clamor of a thousand conversations and a million taxi drivers leaning on their horns blot out almost anything else. I take a deep breath and smile. I'm home. And I can crush this final.

Seb agrees to wait in the hallway outside the classroom I have to go to for the proctored exam. I head into the lecture hall. Professor Calhoun hands me a single sheet of paper with a small smile.

"We've missed you, Ms. Calimeris," he says. "I'm happy you could make it today, despite everything-"

"I've missed class, Professor." I cut him off, giving him a forced, but soft, smile. I take the paper and head for one of the desks.

Code a website for a small business of your choice with order functionality using HTML and CSS.

I grin. No problem.

***

An hour and a half later, I hand Professor Calhoun my test paper with the domain name written on it. I designed a website for a fictional version of The Greek Corner, the one I imagined Mama and Baba would've started if they never came to America, called Asteri Mou. Professor Calhoun nods, and I start to leave.

"Hey, wait!" someone calls.

I turn. Another girl in the class, one I've exchanged notes with a couple times, shoves her paper into Professor Calhoun's hands and races up to me. Oh, God, what's her name? Something with an "M," I'm certain. "Sorry, I get that this is out of the blue, but I'm transferring next semester," she says breathlessly. "Congratulations.” I step out of the classroom, not quite certain what this has to do with me.

"I thought it might be fun to get coffee, exchange information," she says.

No sign of Seb in the hall. He probably took advantage of his disguise to get some girl's number. There's a coffee cart on this floor of the building, the easiest place to flirt with someone very quickly. "Sure," I say. "The coffee cart down the hall? And then maybe we can sit outside."

She nods, her blonde ponytail bobbing, and I cross my fingers she gives her name to the coffee guy. Actually, if Seb's doing his job and hiding in the shadows nearby, maybe he'll ask for her number, instead. I smile at the thought.

"I heard about your family's restaurant," she says. "I'm so sorry."

My breath catches. It must have been reported on, but somehow, I didn't think anybody noticed me enough to connect me with The Greek Corner. My project felt like a love letter. This feels like a punch to the gut. "God, I always put my foot in my mouth," she says. "I totally shouldn't have brought that up. I just felt weird not saying anything, and I'm shutting up now. How do you think you did on the final?" "Good," I manage.

She nods. "Yeah, me too. Calhoun's kind of a soft touch, which helps."

I make some agreeable sound and try to scrape my brain cells back together as we round into the atrium with the coffee cart. Voices bounce everywhere, soothing my nerves. By the time we get in line, I'm almost human again. "Are you transferring to pursue a computer science degree?" I ask.

"Yep." She grins. "My mom wants me in comp engineering, but that's just too dense for me. I basically tap out at CSS."

I laugh, though I don't agree. I'd never considered computer engineering before, but the idea of pushing these skills even further sparks my interest.

We step up to the counter, and she orders first. A non-fat iced latte for Melissa. I was right about her name starting with "M". I hide my celebratory smile as I ask for a black coffee.

"But, I mean, it's hard to knock an engineer's salary," she says as we step off to the side.

"It certainly beats what I was doing before," I reply.

"Customer service?" she asks knowingly.

I glance at her sharply, but she only laughs.

"Come on, no one else hates their job that much. I have horror stories from my time in retail."

I smile, but nerves prickle over my skin. Seb isn't here, either. The crowd is thin enough that I'm reasonably certain I wouldn't have missed him, but I check again, just in case.

My gaze snags on a man who looks...different from the rest. Shinier? He's wearing sunglasses, and he has a cell phone pressed to his ear. Out of pure paranoia, I circle around to Melissa's other side.

His head follows my movements. My stomach drops.

"You know, I just remembered I actually have another class." I start backing away from Melissa. "I have to go."

"Wait, I thought we were gonna-"

"Sorry!" I call over my shoulder as I hurry into the hallway that'll take me most directly to the elevators.

It's quiet, and empty, and my heart rate starts to slow. I'm being ridiculous.

Soft footsteps rasp over the carpet behind me. I spare a glance. It's the cell phone man, but he's not talking on the phone anymore. My heart hammers. If I can just get to the elevator, he can't do anything to me. Those are always crowded. I whip through turn after turn. I don't care if anyone looks at me weird. But when I reach the elevators, they don't have the line I'm used to when my night class gets out. They're completely empty.

Someone grabs me from behind.