Chapter 57 THE ALLEGATION
Alex
“It has to be Ashley,” Alex said, staring at the email. “She’s the only one left.”
“Maybe. But how would she know to contact the university?” Elias was already typing a response. “Unless Carter told her things before his attempt.”
“Or she’s vindictive enough to try one last time.”
Elias scheduled the meeting for Friday. Two days away. Two days of not knowing what evidence they had. What allegations were being made?
“We didn’t do anything wrong,” Alex said for the tenth time.
“I know. But we still have to prove it.”
Professor Hartley called that afternoon. “Elias. I got a call from the dean’s office. They’re asking about you and Alex.”
“What did you tell them?”
“The truth. That Alex was never your student. The relationship started after you’d graduated. That I saw nothing inappropriate.”
“Thank you.”
“But Elias? Someone sent them screenshots. Messages between you two. From when you were still a TA.”
Elias’s stomach dropped. “What messages?”
“I don’t know. They wouldn’t show me. But they asked if I knew you were involved with an undergrad while employed.”
After hanging up, Elias looked at Alex. “They have screenshots of our messages.”
“From when?”
“Spring semester. When I was still working.”
Alex pulled out his phone. Scrolled through their old texts. “These are all innocent. Study tips. Book recommendations. Nothing inappropriate.”
“Unless they take them out of context.”
“How?”
Elias showed him. Pulled up a message from March.
Elias: Can’t stop thinking about you.
Alex: Me too. This is torture.
Elias: Soon. I promise.
Out of context, it looked bad. Like they were having an affair. Hiding it. Being inappropriate.
In context, it was after they’d started dating. After Elias had already decided to stay. After everything was above board.
“This is bad,” Alex said.
“This is manageable. We have timestamps. Proof we didn’t start dating until after I’d made my decision. Professor Hartley as a witness.”
“What if they don’t care? What if they just want to make an example?”
“Then we fight it. Together.”
Des showed up that night with pizza and moral support. “This is bullshit. They can’t punish you for something you didn’t do.”
“They can investigate though,” Elias said. “And investigations have consequences even if nothing’s proven.”
“Like what?”
“Like my job getting nervous. Like references being questioned. Like people assuming guilt.”
“That’s not fair.”
“None of this has been fair.”
Friday morning came too fast. Elias dressed in a suit. Alex wore the button-down from graduation. They looked professional. Adults. Nothing like the scandal people wanted them to be.
The dean’s office smelled like old books and furniture polish. Heavy desk. Leather chairs. Everything is designed to intimidate.
Dean Morrison was fifties. Gray hair. Reading glasses on a chain. She gestured for them to sit.
“Thank you for coming. I’ll get right to it. We received an anonymous complaint alleging you, Mr. Reed, engaged in an inappropriate relationship with Mr. Lee while employed as a teaching assistant.”
“That’s not true,” Elias said. “We didn’t start dating until after I’d graduated.”
“We have evidence suggesting otherwise.” She pulled out a folder. Screenshots of their texts. “These messages are from March. You were still employed until May.”
“Those are from after we’d started dating, yes. But Alex was never my student. Different sections. Different departments even. There was no power dynamic.”
“The university policy is clear. TAs are prohibited from romantic relationships with any undergraduate student. Not just their own.”
Alex leaned forward. “That policy was updated in April. After we’d already started dating. You can’t retroactively apply it.”
Dean Morrison blinked. “Excuse me?”
“The policy prohibiting all TA-undergrad relationships was implemented on April 15th. Before that, the policy only prohibited relationships within the same section. I checked.”
“How do you know this?”
“Because I was worried about exactly this situation. So I looked up every version of the policy. We didn’t violate any rules that existed at the time.”
The dean pulled out another document. Read it. Her expression shifted.
“He’s right,” she said finally. “The broader policy was updated mid-semester.”
“So we’re clear?” Elias asked.
“Not entirely. We still need to verify the timeline. When exactly did your relationship begin?”
“February 14th,” Alex said. “Valentine’s Day. We met at the campus event.”
“And you, Mr. Reed, were still a TA?”
“Yes. But we didn’t start dating that day. We just met. Talked. Exchange numbers. The actual relationship didn’t start until March.”
“Can you prove that?”
Elias pulled out his phone. Showed her the messages. The progression from casual conversation to something more. The clear dates.
“Here. February 14th. First message. Just small talk. February 20th. Coffee plans. March 1st. First actual date. All timestamped.”
Dean Morrison reviewed everything. Made notes. Her expression was unreadable.
“Who filed the complaint?” Alex asked.
“It was anonymous.”
“Can we see it?”
“That’s not protocol.”
“Even if it’s false? Even if someone’s trying to hurt us?”
The dean hesitated. Then pulled out another paper. “This came with the screenshots. An unsigned letter claiming you two were flaunting your inappropriate relationship. The students complained. That the university was covering it up.”
“That’s all lies,” Elias said. “We were careful. Discreet. And we never violated any policies.”
“Can we see the letter?” Alex asked again.
Dean Morrison slid it across the desk.
The handwriting was messy. Angry. But something about it looked familiar.
“Can I take a photo of this?” Alex asked.
“Why?”
“Because I think I know who wrote it. And if I’m right, you’ll want to see the evidence.”
She nodded. Alex snapped a photo.
Outside the dean’s office, Alex pulled up his phone. Compared the handwriting to photos he’d saved. Old notes. Threats. Messages.
“It’s Ashley,” he said. “Same handwriting. Same angry scrawl.”
“How do you have samples of her handwriting?”
“The journal Carter sent. There was a note inside from her. I photographed it in case we needed evidence.”
They went back inside. Showed the dean both samples.
“This is the same person,” Alex said. “She’s been harassing us for months. We have restraining orders. Police reports. Everything is documented.”
Dean Morrison studied both photos. “I’ll need copies of your police reports.”
“We can get them today.”
“Do that. If this complaint is part of an ongoing harassment case, it changes things.”
Back in the car, Elias exhaled shakily. “That was close.”
“Too close. But we proved it. We didn’t do anything wrong.”
“What if she tries again? File another complaint? Make up more lies?”
“Then we keep fighting. That’s all we can do.”
They got copies of the police reports. The restraining orders. Every piece of evidence shows the pattern of harassment.
Sent everything to Dean Morrison that afternoon.
At 5 PM, she called.
“Mr. Reed. After reviewing everything, I’m closing this investigation. There’s no evidence of policy violation. And given the source of the complaint, I’m flagging it as retaliatory harassment.”
“Thank you.”
“However. I need to be clear. Your relationship did cause talk. Complications. Even if it was technically allowed, it created problems.”
“I understand.”
“I hope you do. Because the university has a reputation to uphold. And situations like this, even when innocent, reflect poorly on all of us.”
After she hung up, Elias told Alex everything.
“So we’re clear? Really clear?”
“Yeah. Investigation’s closed.”
Alex collapsed on the couch. “It’s over. Really over this time.”
“I hope so.”
“You don’t sound sure.”
“Because Ashley’s still out there. Still angry. Still trying.”
“The restraining order…”
“Didn’t stop her from filing a false complaint. What else will she try?”
That night they barely slept. Both are jumping at every sound. Every notification. Waiting for the next attack.
But morning came quietly. No messages. No emails. Nothing.
Maybe it really was over.
Or maybe Ashley was just getting started.