The Professor

“No, no, no, no. Vanessa said it was going to be women who would be competing! I don’t swing that way!” Dan stood up in a panic. Meanwhile, Cody snatched the pamphlet from Yoichi’s hands and began reading.

“Huh, what are you guys talking about?” Asked Victor, who was still confused.

“You are on a reality TV show where you will compete against one another to earn Darlin’, here’s love and affection,” Vanessa explained as she popped back into existence and hung off Dan’s shoulder.

“What!?” It was Victor's turn to stand up and yell.

“Inside voices now. It was in the pamphlet in y’alls room. Which I see Mr. Grumpy is now reading.” She said as Victor looked toward Cody, who had a hand on his forehead and was breathing heavier.

Dan shook off the host and turned toward her with a manic look. “This isn’t what you described at all, Vanessa.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Have you no faith?” She said while wagging her finger back and forth. “Don’t worry, Darlin’. You’ll be getting your harem of pretty girls soon enough. For now, however, please sit your butts back down and get ready to smile at the cameras.”

Victor took a second to sit back down but eventually felt compelled to. Meanwhile, the redheaded host gently pushed Dan back into his chair and sat on his lap.

“There, now that calm ya?” She said with a gentle smile.

Dan felt a bit surprised but inevitably just went with it. “I, uh, guess.”

“Good.” She nodded her head and turned to look back at the invisible cameras.

“Welcome back to Harem Hotel." Vanessa singsonged as she gestured to her new seating arrangement. "As you can see, I found myself a new place to sit while y’all were gone. It’s mighty comfy, but soon enough, I must share it with the others. But for now, let’s continue introducing our contestants."

‘I hope she didn’t mean the guys would be fighting over my lap… ‘ Dan lamented. ‘Pretty girls, Dan. Pretty girls, she said.’

Vanessa pumped her fists in the air as she continued. “Our next guest has a history with Dan, making their views a bit negative towards our lovely Master. This person taught Dan and Yoichi at the university where the three met, though Dan here was always a bit of a class clown, which rubbed this stern fella the wrong way. I suppose almost thirty years in military service will do that to you. Please welcome Dr. Kaiden Malone!”

‘Oh no, Dr. Malone hated Dan.’ Yoichi snickered. 'This will be fun!'

**********

The chattering that filled the restaurant was beginning to get to Dr. Kaiden Malone’s head. He was never good in highly populated places, but when his daughter wanted to do dinner at one of these places, there was no telling her no. The greying blonde professor had rushed here after his office hours wounded down, not having a chance to change out of his usual teaching garb.

‘That child is twenty minutes late again… I know she didn’t get that from me.’ The older gentleman frowned, waiting in the lobby of the expensive Greek place that his daughter picked out. ‘I swear her mother tells her to do everything she knows I hate…’

Not long later, a 24-year-old brunette wearing tight clothes he would never approve of came strolling into the venue. As she saw Kaiden, she quickly ran over to him to give him a hug. “Dad!”

“Hey, Sweetie.” Kaiden hugged his daughter Jess while kissing the top of her head, his previous annoyance evaporating in the familial love.

“Sorry, I’m late. I forgot that I had a date tonight, so I had to cancel on him.”

Papa Bear instincts kicked in. Kaiden's eyes sharpened. “Oh, is it someone I know? Should they complain, I may be able to smooth it over with them.”

“It’s just Dan. You know, Whitaker. He always understands when I cancel on him, so no worries.” Jess said with a laugh.

Kaiden let out a sigh. ‘I know I may not like the kid, but I’m starting to feel bad about how she treats him.’

“You know you should stop playing with him." The father sighed. "Didn’t he want to get serious with you?”

“Oh, please. Dan is just a fling. He knows that. Now come on, I’ve been dying for Greek like all week.” The young woman brushed off her father's concern and led him further into the eatery.

‘You haven’t changed… Where did I go wrong with you?’ Kaiden once again sighed.

Once the father-daughter pair finished dinner, the two parted ways. Kaiden had a feeling that she’ll just find some party to crash with her girlfriends, but he knew there was nothing he could say to change her ways. She’d just have to learn it herself.

The drive home was uneventful, and as soon as the 50-year-old man entered his home, he was instantly greeted by his Labrador Rusty.

The man leaned down onto his knees and scratched his loving partner in crime. “Hey buddy, I’m glad I have you to welcome me home.”

As great as having his best friend greet him at the door, he couldn’t help but reminisce about a time when he would come home from tour and be welcomed by the loving arms of Joanna, his ex-wife. The two were high school sweethearts, but years of military service caused a rift between the two. Even having a child together wasn’t enough to keep them together. A few years after Jess was born, the divorce put the final nail in their marriage's coffin. It wasn’t until he was in his late forties that he formally retired as a Second Lieutenant and used his benefits to get a doctorate in Business Administration. Once that was out of the way, he landed a simple education position as a professor at the local university. One that his daughter would eventually attend.

Kaiden moved into the living room and sat on his reclining chair while Rusty sat beside him. Instead of turning on the TV like he normally would, he couldn’t help but think about how Jess talked about Dan.

Dan was a class clown in his Intro to Business Ethics course in his second year of teaching. He’d normally forgotten about the student by now, but the fact that this student was also “dating” his daughter made him memorable. According to his daughter, they were always flings that went nowhere, but if that was to be the case, why was she still hanging off of him all this time later? The kid likely can’t move on with his daughter toying with him so much.

The professor decided. ‘I’ll have her stop for good next time I see her. It’s unhealthy for both of them.’

With that thought, the aging man reached for the TV remote, but nausea overtook him. Rusty barked and whimpered but could do nothing to help his master. The barking faded as everything went silent.

**********

The elevator doors opened as the jazzy theme music welcomed the former military man to the set. The aging visage of the muscular veteran professor looked sternly at the group of people sitting on the stage as he thought about all the information he had just read before coming up here. Though, seeing Dan with a pretty girl on his lap changed his thought from earlier.

‘Maybe he’s not holding onto Jess’ affection after all.’ He thought to himself with a raised eyebrow.

“Welcome, Kaiden! Please take a seat on the other end of the couches. Some tacos might be left for you if the others didn’t devour them all.” Vanessa requested the man. As she said this, the professor simply nodded and sat beside Yoichi, who waved at him while eating one of the last tacos in the bag.

Dan was flabbergasted by the sight of his former professor. He could somehow fathom everyone else being there, but him? The Professor who hated him for dating his daughter? His head was spinning.

By this point, Cody had finished reading the pamphlet and kept his head down. Meanwhile, Victor took the opportunity to read through the pamphlet himself in an attempt to keep in the loop of what was happening around him.

“That makes five!” Vanessa cheered. “Let’s move on to welcome our sixth! This person has actually never met Dan in person but thinks of them as one of their closest friends. It’s only around Dan they can be who they really are. Please welcome Matthew Bauer!”