Blamed for Speaking Up

Nora is two years into her master's program, hoping to transfer into the PhD track. When her advisor, Dr. Lawson, calls her to his office to discuss her thesis, she follows him upstairs, unwilling to offend the man who controls her degree. Inside, he shuts the blinds, closes the door, and moves his chair beside hers.

His hand slides from her shoulder to her waist, and when she tells him to stop, he pins her against the desk and assaults her. Afterwards he offers her a fellowship spot and a co-first authorship, warning that speaking out would ruin them both. She smashes a glass mug into his face and locks herself in the restroom, where she calls 911.

Before the police arrive, her junior lab mate Sarah and two others break in. Sarah slams her against the sink, furious that Dr. Lawson's arrest would destroy her Harvard application, while a senior student offers five thousand dollars to drop the charges. Nora wipes the blood from her mouth and opens the voice memo app on her phone.