Free Personal Jurisdiction by Diana Minot

everything, even though she’s closer to thirty than twenty!”
    “I think she talks about that all the time because it makes her feel insecure, not because she’s proud of it.”
    “Maybe.” Whitney was feeling drained, which was the opposite of how she usually felt at the end of a shopping trip.
    “Look,” Jamie said, “Regardless of where you or anyone else here went to school, or how much money anyone has, you fit in here. You’re smart, and you worked hard to get here. You’re a piece of this big puzzle.”
    “Okay,” Whitney said, although she was not truly convinced. She was also not convinced that Ben would be comfortable dating someone on such a different rung of the social ladder, but she did not feel like discussing that with Jamie.
    “Come on,” Jamie said setting down the shirts she had been holding and rearranging her giant shopping bags on her arms. “Let’s go get some frozen yogurt. My treat. I can finish this shopping another day.”
    Whitney started to protest, but Jamie held up her hand.
    “Nope, no arguing. I’ve dragged you up and down Michigan Avenue. You’re letting me treat you to frozen yogurt.”
    Whitney smiled and shrugged, then followed Jamie out of the store to go search for a frozen yogurt spot. As they stood in line, Whitney glanced at her phone to see that she had a text from Ben.
    Good Lord, does your head hurt as much as mine does today? It was worth it, though. I had a great time last night! See you in class tomorrow?
    Whitney felt her heart leap. Maybe, just maybe, Jamie was right and she did fit in. Maybe she should not dismiss the possibility of a relationship with Ben so quickly.
    Had a great time, too! See you tomorrow! Whitney smiled as she dropped her phone back into her purse and started scanning the frozen yogurt flavors.

Chapter Eight
     
    Whitney did see Ben the next day, and every day that week, but he gave no indication that their dinner and study session had meant anything romantic to him. He teased Whitney about studying with her again so that he could mooch off of her snack stash, but he did not attempt to make any specific study plans. Ben was one of the best-looking students at the law school, and Whitney was not blind to the efforts of more than one girl to catch Ben’s eye with perfectly coordinated outfits and flirtatious banter. Elise’s warning to snatch Ben up before someone else did nagged at the back of Whitney’s mind, but Whitney still held back. Her hesitation stemmed partly from pride and partly from fear.
    The weeks wore on, and, as September shifted to October, everyone’s mood was beginning to shift, too. The excitement and newness of law school faded into a resigned existence of nonstop studying. Elise, Jamie, and Whitney spent most of their days huddled around one of the law school’s many study tables. Whitney had still not fallen victim to Professor Neals’ ruthless questioning, but she almost wished he would call on her in class so that she could just get it over with. Sometimes, she actually missed the days of sitting in a conference room and staring at badly formatted PowerPoint presentations. At least her old boss did not get a thrill from publicly humiliating her. The only one unafraid of Professor Neals was Lincoln. Several times a week, Lincoln would jump in to offer his thoughts on a case when Professor Neals finally decided that whichever poor student he was interrogating was hopelessly confused. Lincoln was always furiously typing on his laptop, whether he was studying assigned reading between classes, or transcribing every word a professor spoke during class.
    With midterms looming, Lincoln’s prediction about the state of dress among the first year law students proved accurate. Whitney felt less out of place now, as designer dresses and pricey shirts gave way to comfy jeans and hoodies. Granted, some of those jeans probably cost more than Whitney’s clothing budget for the year. But even expensive jeans somehow