compsci | i think that's beautiful. pieces solving a puzzle.

i won't say no if you pack the wagon with snacks

[ Ah, to be young and a college student again. He remembers having hollow legs, too. ]

Any particular requests? Don't say cereal.

i don't know what you have against honey nut cheerios

[ they're delicious, they're easy to eat one-handed, they don't make a mess if she drops them in her lap instead of her mouth... they're god's perfect late-night hacker snack ]

how about chinese
don't go out of your way, though

I have nothing against honey nut cheerios. My two-year-old nephew loves them.

[ He's just saying... ]

Anything in particular?

that's because he has good taste.

[ just saying!!! ]

egg drop soup and something with a ton of noodles
the spicier the better

[ she learned to like spicy food as a kid because it meant nobody would try to steal off her plate. who knows if mr upstate-new-york will follow those rules. ]

I'm pretty sure I'm his favorite uncle, based on how happy he is to see me every time we hang out, so I'm going to agree with you.

Alright. I'll put it on the list.

[ Matt feels like he can handle a pretty decent amount of spice, but she's right, he is a White Dude from the country, so she may disagree with him. We'll see what the Chinese restaurant employees think. ]

well, good. because you're my favorite, and i'd hate to have to tell a two year old to get his shit together.
what else are you getting?

[ he did say list. he invited this question. ]

It's a good thing your data is incomplete, I'd hate for you to realize I'm actually the least interesting Robertson brother.

For snacks?

[ Currently his list is egg drop soup, spicy noodles, and honey nut cheerios. ]

I'm trying to think of things that aren't too messy but can still be eaten one-handed.
So far it's mostly chips.

i'm sure they're very nice [ anyone related to him must be nice ] but i don't think the other brothers would fit my criteria.

[ chips are good, though. she likes chips. ]

i have popcorn. and a tray of brownies from one of the units for sale downstairs.

[ daisy, you aren't supposed to go to open houses just to steal their snacks... ]

I'm curious, what's your criteria?

[ He's not terribly worried about Daisy deciding to like his brothers more than him; for one thing, she doesn't know them, and for another, they're all married. Happily married. He's married too, but...it's complicated.

He stares at his phone for a minute, trying to parse that sentence. ]

Daisy, did you take a tray of brownies from an open house?
Like, just the brownies or the tray they were baked in too?

well, they're kind of missing the whole 'must be exceptionally good at reading poetry' bullet point.

[ they're also not into her. ]

i didn't take the baking tray!

[ she doesn't know how to bake. ]

they were on a plastic platter from the dollar store. it still had the price tag on it.

They could be better at it than me, you don't know. They're not, but they could be.

[ They're also a lot closer to her age, especially John, who's only twenty-five.

He's trying not to think about the fact that he's seeing someone who's younger than his youngest brother. That's a little weird, right? ]

Alright. I was a little concerned there for a minute.
So you got unattended brownies and a dollar store platter. Good move.

i doubt they would have read a scandalous poem to me in front of the entire lecture hall, so they probably lose points there.

[ still probably the hottest thing she can think of by a solid mile. ]

why would i steal a baking tray? i don't know how to bake.

In my defense I was reading that to all of my students.
...Which isn't much of a defense. But it is on the syllabus!

[ He can read her something a lot more scandalous, later, if she enjoys it so much. ]

I don't think it's too hard, you just follow the recipe printed on the box, right?

do you usually make eye contact and growl when you're reading to your students?

[ yes, please ]

and are you offering to make me brownies?
because i might be persuaded to repay you very enthusiastically if you are.

I didn't!

[ He totally did. ]

Sure, except that you just told me you don't have a baking tray.
So it'll be kind of difficult.

you one thousand percent did
i'm not complaining, btw. it was hot.

[ gently... fans his ego... ]

i can always steal the tray next time.

If you liked it so much I can think of some others to read to you..

[ Keep going, he definitely likes it more than he probably should. ]

They tend to sell them at stores too, you know.
You don't have to wait for another open house.

i'm surprised you haven't read them already.

[ that's not a no. ]

where's the fun in that? making a brownie tray disappear and then somehow reappear a few days later is like being a sneaky, baked goods making ghost.

Maybe I'm saving them for a special occasion.

[ He'll have to pick a good one, now that he's talked it up so much. This might be difficult. ]

Well, it is the spooky season.

oh, a special occasion, huh.
like what?

[ there aren't a whole lot of special occasions in the spooky season, professor. halloween doesn't count, that's just an excuse to dress up slutty and get drunk in college. ]

I was thinking of pulling one out the next time I'm trying to seduce you in front of thirty 18 year olds.

[ Yeah, he's going to be a Responsible Adult and stay in on Halloween so he can hand out candy to his neighbor's kids. She can go have fun being young and hot in a silly costume. ]

how about friday?

[ she's teasing. that's probably not on the syllabus, anyway. ]

Absolutely. Say, three pm?

[ He finishes teaching at two-fifty. Ten minutes is plenty of time to get back to his office and press her back against the door again. ]

wouldn't miss it for the world.

[ who needs an audience, anyway? ]

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asyndeton - 2019-10-13 02:35 (UTC) - Expand

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compsci - 2019-10-13 02:53 (UTC) - Expand