I made my way around my classmates who were showering and laughing about the game we had just played. I knocked on her door and entered when called. I approached her desk filled with shame and embarrassment – not from standing there in my underwear, but because of my earlier behaviour.
I screwed up all of my courage and offered as sincere an apology to her as I had ever made. I admitted my guilt, my surprise at my own behaviour and promised I would never do anything like that again. She sat back in her chair and smiled at me – not in a laughing way, but in that way, a trusted mentor smiles when she understands what you are trying to say. Then she proceeded to scorch my ears right off my head.