Isaac Goes To College

[Jake Cornwell]

It was his turn to laugh at what she'd said.

"Sure, there's things I like. Warm weather, college football, ranch work, training horses. It just so happens that cold weather and shopping are two things that fall in my list of dislikes."

He had noted her compliment, but also saw how embarrassed she seemed by it, so he let it slide without any kind of acknowledgment. That wasn't to say he wasn't bolstered by it, though.

"If you're so defensive of shopping as a 'leisurely activity,' " he said, stressing those two words with a near scholarly accent, "then why don't you help me pick something out on Saturday?"

[Adrianna Daye]

She didn’t even pause to consider the pros and cons of trying to block out that much time away from the movement. She could not remember the last time she’d gotten an offer to go shopping with someone… or the last time she’d gone shopping period. She smiled a broad smile.

“That would be fantastic, maybe I’ll pick up something to wear as well. It’s been a while since I’ve been out there. Were do you want to meet on Saturday? Or I can pick you up where ever.” Excitement bubbled up in her voice.

Isaac may be dreading the thought of going shopping but she was already day dreaming of a new black dress, and spending an entire day with Isaac wouldn’t be too bad either. He really did make her feel much more human than she likely ever had.

[Jake Cornwell]

Her response was so delighted, so quick, that he couldn't help but laugh again, nor could he stop himself from reaching out to muss up her hair like he had seen her do a couple of times since they met that afternoon.

"Sounds good. I'll be your Ken doll, just nothing too out-there, okay?"

Dropping his hand, he snatched up the rest of his muffin and popped it into his mouth. "Feel free to dig in," he mumbled against his shoulder, pointing at the muffin he had passed over to her side of the counter.

[Adrianna Daye]

Adrianna tried to fight the blush rising to her face down, and was pretty sure she managed. She tried not to think anything of the quick, playful touch but in trying not to she did. She really hoped that this weekend with Isaac would work out, that she could really be friends with him. She couldn’t believe how much she’d grown to like him in a mere couple of hours. It felt like she’d known him for so much longer.

She looked at the muffin he had pointed too, picked it up and took a bite. It wasn’t half bad. She stole a glance at him and was hit with a quick pang of yearning. His life must be so nice, so human. Though Adrianna was human herself, she was also a witch, and in no where near normal circumstances. She wished that she could know what his life was like.

She realized she has looked on for a little longer than she had meant to.

“Nothing to extreme, I promise.” She said with a grin. “So I figure we could go to the Lloyd Center. Do you know how to get there? If not I can pick you up here.”

[Jake Cornwell]

Right as she asked him a question, he had raised the cup of cocoa to his lips. Taking a quick sip, he set the cup down, shaking his head and spreading his hands out slightly.

"I'm brand spankin' new here, but I've got some maps in my truck. I should have an idea where the mall is by Saturday, if you want to meet there?"

The prospect of spending a day with someone and doing something other than just slowly wheedling information out of them was nice, truth be told. He didn't know if Adriana actually knew anything about the demons of Portland, but from his experience, her type (quiet, overlooked, low self esteem - the classic introvert) tended to see more, and thus know more, than others.

It was a pity, too. He felt comfortable around her already, but if she ever found out that he had an ulterior motive, would she forgive him? Probably not, and he couldn't blame her.

Crumpling up the empty muffin bag harder than he needed to, he could only blame the entire situation on his family. They were the ones pushing him to do this, to live two separate lives with two different sets of morals, while preaching one thing and doing another.

Sometimes he wished he could just disappear, drop off the face of the planet as Jake Cornwell AND Isaac Smith, and be his own person for once.

He was pulled out of his watch when he overheard a couple behind them talking as they walked past the counter. "...almost 3 o'clock, we could go see what's playing at the theater tonight.."

"Oh, fudge," he said, looking at Adrianna. "It's almost 3 o'clock, I've got to get to class."

On the corner of her muffin paper, he scrawled down his name - Isaac - and a cellphone number. The area code and prefix, if looked up, would come up as Knoxville, Tennessee. It wasn't hard to request another state's area codes and prefixes from cell phone companies.

"Call me? We can set up the details later."

[Adrianna Daye]

“Oh my Gods!” Its 3o’clock already! Oh I am so late.” The words slipped out of her mouth before she could contain them and she frantically gathered her things up. She should’ve been at Leonardo’s hours ago. She had never been late before. God, were people going to be disappointed if she were late?

Her heart was beating a mile a minute. She hoped that no one would be there when she arrives. She threw everything she had with her in her bag, before remembering Isaac. She grabbed his number, ripped and pulled out a card with hers on it and handed it too him. “I’ll give you a call, or you can call me. I got to run. It was nice meeting you.” She said with a quick smile before throwing her bag over her shoulder and dashing out the door.

Her head was reeling by the time she reached the car. She was probably over thinking things but that never mattered. She couldn’t believe she’d let time get away from her like that. She cast a look back at the college before she climbed in her car

…It was worth it.



(Continued in A little Late)

[Jake Cornwell]

And he thought he was the one who was supposed to be in a hurry. Unable to do anything else for a few moments, he just sat swiveled on his stool at the window-side counter, watching her scurry and hurry like Alice's white rabbit.

Taking the card from her, he chuckled and waved.

"Talk to you later, Adrianna."

As the door shut behind her, he smiled to himself.

Nice to meet you.

* * *

Several hours later, Jake lay awake on top of the sheets, the motel heater cranked, lights off and curtains open so he could see the snow swirling down in an endless effort to coat everything in sight.

Arms folded behind his head, he thought that maybe Adrianna was right about cold weather. It wasn't half bad so long as you were inside with the heater cranked up to 75f.

For a time he thought of their meeting earlier, and about how Saturday was going to go. Inevitably his thoughts turned to darker matters, like the real reason he was here and what would soon happen in Portland.

But as he watched the falling snow, other thoughts tried to surface in his mind.

Thoughts of the last words of a dying woman who held on to his wrist; thoughts of a different path, one that led to redemption.

As he watched the falling snow, he said the word aloud. "Redemption." Something about it rang true. Something about it felt right.

(Ze End of Ze Thread, Thanks for reading!)