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antique lamp, decorated with little antique chandelier crystals on the shades’ edges. Creed must’ve saved the lamp from the old apartment and stored it all that time. But it was a hobby from so long ago. Three years ago .
    Could there be pleasure in that again? Could there be happiness within a lonely little sphere, without the man who once made it so happy? Knowing what companionship felt like, was it possible to go back to being alone? And feel any level of contentment? That’s the problem with being in love; if your heart’s been there, it wants to go back.
    “I was alone once,” the words came out, “and I know I can do it again. But now that I’ve felt what it’s like to not be alone, it’s hard to go back. I don’t want to lose him. But I’m afraid I already have.”
    “Your faith must overcome your fear.”
    “I’m not truly afraid, Professor. I’m just . . I’m—”
    “Well then, hope must overcome whatever your feeling right now.”
    “How can I have hope? They’re engaged. He’s going to marry her. He loves her. What’s there to hope for?”
    “Answer this question for me, will you? Does the sun rise every morning?”
    The question was ridiculous. “That’s rhetorical, right?”
    “Just answer it.”
    “Yes.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Of course I’m sure. I’ve seen it with my own two eyes.”
    “But surely it’s the earth that moves, not the sun. So does the sun really rise? Does it ever change position?”
    It was a point, albeit an obvious one. But why ever did someone coin the term ‘sunrise’ anyway? It made no factual sense. Sun-shone or sun-reveal would have been more accurate. But what did the sun have to do with the current situation?
    Professor went on, “Sometimes what we see is not really how things are. So how can we find out how things really are, or in your case, what is right for everyone involved?”
    “Sometimes we can’t,” the words surfaced after they were thought through. “Not everything in life turns out the way it’s supposed to. Especially when it comes to relationships.”
    “I suppose not,” Professor agreed. “However, I have found that one way to seek if something is as it should be, is to first hope in it. It’s the act of trusting, or the leap-of-faith some refer to.”
    “Are you telling me that simply hoping Nick doesn’t marry her will make it happen? If that were the case, not only would they not be engaged right now, they’d be archenemies.”
    Professor chuckled at the sarcasm. “This is what I’m telling you: Trust your heart.”
    It was gentle advice. Mild. Feasible. Professor always knew how to lead the way to safe and pleasant places.
     
    *******

    By the end of the school week I was well into the swing of things with my four classes of Statistics, Physiology, Communications, and Health. There was a funny guy named Bart who sat next to me in Communications class and called me “ Scottish Heather” . We’d become fast friends. He was rail skinny, dressed like a hardcore skater, had a cute smile, and was hilarious which made for fun conversation.
    It was great to have a class with Liz. If she hadn’t taken a break for two years to work full-time and earn some money, she would have been long gone and graduated. And what a godsend that Professor was still on staff as an academic counselor. While Liz was a skillful empathizer, some things could only be discussed with the older and wiser, or, in Professor’s case, the father-figure type.
    He’d reminded me of who I used to be, “a warrior” he’d said. Funny, at first I didn’t remember myself that way. The “coma me” was insecure and skittish. But now that Professor had jogged my memory, he’d brought to mind a different girl. A girl who was a little more grounded. A fighter inside. Someone who’d trudged through a crappy past, and stayed positive through it; who’d lied about that past not because she was embarrassed by it, but because, frankly, it wasn’t