Stepping outside, she wished that she had forgotten her umbrella.

It wasn’t that she wanted to go outside without an umbrella, but more that she wanted a reason to stay in the building.

Or is it that I don’t want to get where I’m going?

She asked herself this with a quiet chuckle. Nobody could blame her reluctance. She wanted to stay, to fight, to argue, but there was no hope. They were right, and she was going to have to live with it.

They’d been so welcoming and cheerful, of course, as they were required to by state and local regulations. They carefully analyzed and considered the facts. They even offered her alternatives, enumerating their respective costs and benefits.

But it hadn’t helped. There was really only one viable option, however distasteful– obedience. Struggle had gotten her here, nonconformity had made escape impossible. And now it had been made official. They even offered her a cup of coffee.

But why the hell do… computers get to tell me who I’ll do graduate research with!?!