Work Text:
1. Charlie
“No, I can’t do it faster. It’s not my fault this thing runs for forever”, - Charlie says to Chris, while still looking at the calculations being processed on her laptop. The deadline is burning, and a device that she had since high school is not making it less stressful. The midterms are closing in and she has yet to do two more labs. The best one though is that she also needs to head out for a philosophy lecture, which is mandatory. No one understands why, or how this course may help a bunch of physics students, but well, Charlie wasn’t the one to let some philosophy course blow up her grades. So, with all the effort it takes to actually get her laptop from the charger and put it back in her bag, she strides out of the library with Chris in tow.
Going to do physics undergrad was basically one of the best ways to get what she wanted. And it was to do science and to not care about any writing that was not labs or papers for the conferences. Philosophy, history of physics and some other purely humanities subjects which she really hoped to get rid of. But well, never say “never”. The good thing though is that she was not alone in her misery and it gave 1.5 hours to do some other tasks so she won’t need to pull an all-nighter again. There will be all second year’s students of the faculty.
“Well, come on, Charlie. We won’t go any further if you will keep standing here like a lone tree on the hill. We’ve got only 5 minutes left. Tick-tack, tick-tack. ”
“Just because he will be there, there is no need to rush, Chris. Or are you afraid that you will need to look over your shoulder to stare at him. Whoever he is.” Though she thinks that it is pretty strange that Chris never shared who this mystical crush was. Usually she got the front row seat to all of Chris’s romantic endeavors. But maybe he got the hint and will not discuss some helpless crush on a straight guy again. Charlie got enough the last time.
And with luck they got into an auditorium when the professor was still not there. They seated themselves on the second row, just like always, but Chris still was looking around a classroom like he was searching for someone, and he was. The lecture hall was buzzing with people from all programs within the Science and Engineering department. There were physicists like Carlie and CS majors like Chris with mathematicians and all kinds of engineers in between.
“Why are we even going to the lectures anyway? It’s not like he checks attendance.” Chris asks and that’s what tells Charlie that this mysterious man of his is not there. Nearly all semester, except the first lecture, Chris was absolutely committed to showing up on this exact lecture course.
“We go here because we want to pass an exam and the professor didn’t tell us any other textbook info aside from his own lectures. So.. we need at least to record them.”
And wasn’t it strange. Others at least gave some additional reading, if the main textbooks were too hard or students wanted to read a bit more on the topic.
The lecture itself was the most uneventful thing that happened to Charlie this past week. Dr. Johansson was anyone except an interesting teacher. Charlie had an impression the first time that she was in this auditorium, that the man was teaching this course just because he lost a bet or on a dare. She will never believe that someone passionate about their subject will read the lectures this dull. They never took any notes of the lecture but the dictaphone app was full of 1.5 hours of Dr. Johansson’s reading off his presentation slides.“Will you be in the club tonight? I don’t want to even think about all this Goethe shit a minute longer.” said Chris and with that the pair got to the doors out of the lecture hall.
“I don’t know actually. Wanted to do some more work, so I will not actually drown on deadlines before finals” , - she responded and that was true. The workload was brutal even for her. And Charlie considers herself a pretty capable student.
“Come on, work won’t run away from you. It won’t kill you too to actually go to one of the parties. Haven’t seen you in any since last spring, and that was a year ago.”
“I am not a party person, and you know it perfectly well”, - Charlie retorts and this was also true. She never actually liked loud music and techno for that matter. It was giving her a headache, and she doesn't like pretty much anyone drunk.
“Yes, I do know it, but I don’t need second act of last year’s summer finals”
“Ugh, okay. I hate when you are right. Though, honestly, I do not want it either.” Summer finals for Charlie ended with a trip to a psychiatrist and a prescription of antidepressants to get her back to live a life. She never wanted an experience like that again.
“So what do you, lover boy, suggest we are going to wear?”- said Charlie while checking Chris’s ribs with her elbow.
“Why the fuck am I a lover boy? And I don’t know. I thought something classy maybe since we are going to the jazz club tonight. Managed to get the whole room for ourselves”, - his eyes lit up, and Charlie thought that it was impressive to reserve the whole room for student night, considering that now is actually a Friday night in April.
“Well, classy it is, then. When will we meet, ‘cause I have no idea where this club is.”
“I think like in 3 hours or so. The whole thing will start at 6, but I thought we can come closer to 6.30”
“Good then. I’ll see you in 3. ” Charlie said as she hugged Chris goodbye and went to her dorm to put the bag and textbooks away and change into some better clothes than jeans and Scorpions t-shirt.
After hearing that the dress code is classy, Charlie already knows what she will wear. She got her black slacks that look better with the dress shirt than with a sweater, so she rarely wears them. She also puts on black vest that leaves her tattoo on full display. If she goes out she may also do it fashionably. And at last she gets her polished oxfords out of their box and ties the laces when they are on her feet. She gets her hair in one side wave and contemplates maybe she should get it in a ponytail, but then dismisses the idea.
***
“Man, this place is packed” , - says Charlie to Chris as they push through the dance space to the bar. And it’s not that she was really surprised. Even if she didn’t want to go to these parties for nearly a year, she did remember how many people were there before.
“Well, yeah. That’s kinda the thing we were hoping to get”, - Chris answered close to her ear, because well, the people were loud and there was also live music being played by some jazz band.
“Can I get the Whiskey Sour, please”, - Charlie asks the bartender, when they finally noticed the pair, as they finished serving the last orders to other guests.
“Okay, and for you?” - says the bartender looking expectantly at Chris.
“I’ll have Negroni, thanks.”
“Well, then. They will be ready in five minutes”, - the barkeeper responds and goes away to mix said cocktails.“I don’t know how I will live through the finals”, - Charlie says as she drinks the last drops of her cocktail.
“Well, what is the worst thing that could happen?” - Chris responds and takes one of her hands in his to stop the slight trembling in it.
“I could write an awful work and I could be stripped of my scholarship, and I will never finish even bachelor’s, not to say about master’s and PhD”
“Honey, you think too much and you plan too long ahead”
“I know, but I can’t do anything about it”
“Yeah, I’ve gotten it the first time we had this exact conversation.”
“Okay, Mr. I-don’t-care-about-my-grades-I-only-do-internships, what about your plans for the holidays?”
“I’ll go to see my family, get back home and everything, really want to catch up with them. What about you?”
“I’ll do the same. Though not so eager to catch up with any of them.”, - Charlie says with a little bit of sad expression on her face.
“I am sorry for the interruption”, - says the bartender as they set some drink before Charlie, - “but here is the Old Fashioned from the woman in the far right end of the bar. Hope this is something you will like.” And with this phrase the barkeeper went back to the other customers.
“Oh my god, Charlie! You managed to get a girl while doing nothing but overthinking about exams, while you should have been getting drunk and flirting with everyone who you deem hot enough”, - Chris says in a tone too sweet, it makes Charlie want to kick him in the leg.
“What are you waiting for, take the drink and look around, find the girl.”
And with that Charlie complied and did as Chris had suggested. There were a lot of people, maybe even more than when a pair got into the club. She glances through them looking for someone. She didn’t even know who to look for. There were a few good looking girls as she sized them up a little bit, but no one even looked in her direction being too wrapped up in their own conversations. At that Charlie guessed that any of them could be the one who got her this drink. It was good looking, she might add. And after taking a sip, it was tasty too. Not too bitter, not too sweet, it was actually something Charlie might get used to drinking. And true to the bartender’s word, when Charlie looked in the direction of the right corner of the club there were a couple of people. But really only one caught her eye. Just so you know, Charlie never was a person to believe in love at first sight, but this was a damn near thing.
When Chris followed her eyesight and his eyes landed on the same group of people he said the most unexpected thing: “And here goes nothing.”