After a one night stand on New Year's Eve, Lia and Derrick don't expect to see one another again. After all, she's a Harvard PhD student and he's a professional hockey player for the Boston Knights - there's no way their paths should cross again.
E...
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I wiped my hands on my trousers and took a deep breath after looking over my notes one final time.
Today was the day. I was presenting my defense to Harvard's Bioengineering department. Five years of hard work, research, and perseverance had gone into this degree, and if all went well today, I would officially be receiving my PhD when commencement rolled around in a few months' time.
Butterflies fluttered around in the pit of my stomach, but I tried my best to keep calm. I'd spent five years studying and working towards this moment. I knew what I was talking about and could, realistically, recite my presentation in my sleep. I was that well-rehearsed. I just needed to believe in myself.
After all, I had a support system of friends and family who'd all sent over encouraging messages this morning. A myriad of good lucks, well wishes, and you're-gonna-knock-it-out-of-the-parks. And if they believed in me, there was no reason I couldn't do this.
With only fifteen minutes left until my defense was set to start, I gathered my things and headed downstairs to the room I was set to present in. As the first one there, I continued to shake out my nerves, tapping my feet in a not-so-rhythmic beat, as I moved about and set up my laptop, but as the five-minute countdown ticked by, people began to file in.
Professors from the department, two colleagues I'd worked with over the years, and a few other students who took seats at the back of the room.
Thankfully, Miles was nowhere to be seen.
As the clock struck ten, one of the professors who'd interviewed me for the lecturing position straightened the papers in front of him and said, "Whenever you're ready."
I nodded, grabbing the remote control from the desk at the front as I expelled a slow breath. Turning to face the room, I saw Professor Klein give me an encouraging smile as she, along with the rest of the panel, waited for me to begin.
"Thank you, Professor," I started, before addressing the rest of the room. "And thank you all for being here. Today, I'm here to talk to you all about my research around artificial cell generation, specifically surrounding the different methods available to us for transplanting hand-crafted genomes into living cells, as well as the pros and cons to each method."
With each slide came new information; words I'd memorized to show the professors in the room just how familiar I'd become with my work. And when it came to the data, I let the numbers and charts speak for themselves. Using a laser pointer to draw their attention to the clear facts on my slides, I briefly explained the trends and outcomes, making sure not to overwhelm them with information.
I was clear and concise, gaining confidence as the minutes ticked by.
Before I knew it, I was wrapping up my presentation, recommending the same next steps to the department that Miles had just weeks ago, except I had the additional data to back it up.
