Chapter 270: Dissertation Committee

The morning of Keeley's dissertation committee she looked out the window and saw the terrace covered in snow. It was beautiful but she really hoped it wouldn't hinder traffic at all.

Dressing professionally was difficult with her ever-growing belly. She ended up wearing a long-sleeved navy blue dress with thigh-high pantyhose and black flats. A pair of cheap gold dangly earrings adorned her ears to match the DNA necklace she wore for good luck.

"How do I look?" she asked nervously. Wanting to make a good impression, she had actually put on makeup for the first time since their wedding.

Aaron gave her a quick hug. "Like a future scientist. You look great. You should eat something though; didn't you say you'll have to be there on your feet for up to two hours?"

"That's what I heard."

Keeley would have to stand in front of the doctoral committee, including Dr. Kim and many other members of the genetics faculty, and defend her research. They had already received a copy of her 200+ page dissertation and had read through it so they knew the basics. They were going to ask her questions and she would have to explain herself using the visual aids she had prepared.

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Deep down, she knew she would pass. She had worked extremely hard for this moment. As long as she didn't lose her head she would be fine.

Her husband handed her a chocolate chip muffin. "Eat in the car; we need to get going. You definitely don't want to be late today."

She nodded and began unwrapping it as Aaron grabbed her supplementary materials for her. They headed down to the parking garage together. In the car she was so jittery that she couldn't stop her leg from bouncing. She needed to hold it together.

"You're going to pass this, you know," he said after several minutes of silence. "After graduation in a few weeks everyone is going to have to call you doctor."

Keeley cracked a smile. Outside of professional circumstances, almost nobody used the title when talking to people. She would be Dr. Hale inside a lab or university if she had underlings working for her but outside of that she would still just be Keeley.

Her dream was about to become reality. She felt a bit sentimental when she thought about how Aaron had been a part of the process for the last half of her degree.

It started out silly with him bringing her food. Then he saved her grade with the laptop incident. And she definitely wouldn't have been able to finish strong this past semester without his constant support. He really did care about her dreams.

She gazed at his side profile fondly. "Thanks for supporting me. I couldn't have made it through my last semester without you."

Aaron seemed surprised at the praise. He reached over and squeezed her hand. "No, it was all you. I'm only doing my job as your number one fan."

When they arrived in front of the medical school Keeley's nerves were at an all-time high. In fifteen minutes, she was going to do the most important thing in either of her lives. Suddenly the building looked much bigger and more menacing than usual.

She had been ready to get out and go on her own but Aaron parked rather than pulling into the drop off zone. He gathered her visual aids for her and held onto them with one hand while offering her the other. Taking it gratefully, she gripped it tightly as they walked in.

"Knock them dead," he told her as they stood in front of the door where the committee was waiting inside. "We'll celebrate tonight, okay?"

Keeley nodded, her heart hammering in her chest. He turned to go and she called after him, "Are you going to give me a kiss for good luck?"

He turned back with a slight smirk on his face. "How could I forget?"

He gave her a short and sweet kiss before placing a hand on her stomach. "Be sure to wish your mom luck too, babies."

She smiled. "I'll let you know how it went when I get out."

Aaron waved goodbye as he headed back out of the building. She turned and stared at the door in front of her. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself for what was ahead and opened the door.

The doctoral committee was already seated at a long table. Six pairs of familiar eyes stared at Keeley as she entered. Each person was someone she knew well.

Even though she had been Dr. Kim's research assistant the longest, she had served as a TA for two of these other professors in previous semesters. Everyone here knew her and liked her. They wanted her to succeed. All she had to do was answer some questions.

Even though they all knew who she was, she still had to go through the formalities and introduce herself at the beginning of her presentation. She had practiced this a hundred times—she could do it in her sleep by now.

"Good morning, my name is Keeley Hale and today I am here to defend my dissertation titled Using Gene Therapy with a Modified CTFR Gene as a Cure for Cystic Fibrosis."

Dr. Kim raised an eyebrow. "Hale, not Hall? I thought your name on the copy of the dissertation I received was a typo."

She coughed to cover her embarrassment. Here she was, obviously pregnant in front of people she hadn't seen in person since before her stomach began to show with a different last name.

"Yes, I recently got married."

"Oh, congratulations! Please proceed."

Keeley launched into the presentation she had prepared; occasionally pausing to give the committee chances to ask questions. Her words were clear and concise. She may have used a few too many hand gestures in her nervousness but the visual aids were on point.

She had looked over her laminated cheat cards often enough that she knew how to answer every question with confidence. All those hours practicing in the bath had paid off!

At the very end of her defense, she bowed slightly and thanked the committee for their time. They asked her to leave the room so they could deliberate. The thirteen minutes they made her wait were the longest she ever experienced.

Keeley was sweating bullets by the time they called her back in and she quickly wiped it off her forehead with a tissue before rejoining the committee.

"Congratulations, Keeley. You passed!" Dr. Kim said with a proud smile on her face.

Her knees nearly gave out in relief. Nevertheless, she kept her composure and graciously thanked everyone as she shook all of their hands. She did it! She actually did it!

Her mentor handed her the piece of paper they had all signed proving that she had completed her requirements. She would need it to collect her cap, gown, and hood for graduation.

As Keeley walked out the door clutching her paper she barely managed to restrain herself from screaming in excitement. She needed to call Aaron.