xp_logs | Angelo and Lorna, middayish

Angelo and Lorna discuss the future, then say early goodbyes.

Angelo hadn't forgotten Lorna was leaving, even if he hadn't said much about it. Apparently deciding now was the moment, he glanced at her sideways as he warmed down and asked casually, "So when're you headin' back to the real weather?"

Lorna finished off her water bottle and nodded, "Real weather at least part time. It's Berkeley but at least it's almost civilization, right? My flight's Thursday. I can't decide if I'm anxious, nervous or excited. Maybe all three." She tossed the empty bottle into her gym bag and tugged the ponytail out of her hair, running her hands through it. "I feel kinda bad, cutting out before the end of the school year like this but Dr. Wenk wants to get started immediately and everyone else in the program was available."

"Hell of a chance, right?" he offered with a crooked grin. "You'd be stupid not to take it - an' hey, it's not like you're leavin' the teachin' job empty."

"Not this class anyway and yeah, the geology students are pretty much in revision and cramming mode anyway. Cooking was more complicated but hell, they've needed to hire a dedicated staff for the kitchen anyway so that was more just a case of getting the budget okayed." Lorna shrugged, "Doesn't really make me feel less guilty about it."

"That's just 'cause you care", was the more serious response. "As for the geology, I'm not gonna pretend I know a thing about it, but I could probably work off your notes well enough to deal with a crisis if it comes up, if it makes you feel better?"

"Nah, it's okay. They're getting a sub and I'm going to attempt to talk Alex into offering a study group. That's the nice thing about studying the same thing, I know perfectly well that he's capable of doing it around his schedule." Lorna bit her lip, thinking about other things involving Alex and momentarily regretting bringing him up at all. "Anyway, enough about that. What's going on in your life?"

"Ah, pretty much same old", he said with a half-shrug. "School, Elpis, trainin'... 'manda, usually, but not when she's off in England. Should be back soon, though."

Lorna bit back a remark about Amanda and nodded, "That's all good stuff. I forget what you're studying exactly?"

"Pre-law, kind of", Angelo told her, brightening. School was one of the few things in his life with very little potential to go wrong. "History courses, languages, philosophy... whatever I want that'd be useful, basically."

Lorna grinned back, entertained by his enthusiasm and understanding it at the same time, "Who'd have guessed it, right? Valley girl and cholo making good on the East Coast. Someone ought to make a movie about it. Not that anyone would believe it."

"Hell, I don't believe it myself, half the time. Keep half-expectin' to wake up an' be back in LA." He smiled. "But yeah, law's the thing. Get to help people one more way."

"This school, man. What the heck is wrong with it that so many people are just killing themselves throwing themselves on various live grenades. Law and the team and Elpis...if it was just you, that's one thing but I swear, half the school's like that." She smiled, because it was a compliment. "Me, I'm just looking to get my life together."

"Makin' up for lost time?" he suggested easily, but the words were serious. "Got a lot of it to make up, an' all. Gettin' your life together's a pretty good goal, too - but you just watch the Annex don't come suck you right back in."

"God knows it's been derailed enough times. Sometimes I think about that other life, from the dream that Glorian dude gave us? I was such a different person. It's the way I always thought life would turn out. Tell you the truth, I never really planned on graduate work in the first place, let alone the whole saving the world in leather jumpsuits bit." Lorna shrugged, "What do you see yourself doing five years from now?"

"Five years closer to qualifyin'", he said thoughtfully. "Still with Elpis, most likely. Don't know about still with the team, a lot could change in five years, an' there's only so much time in the day whatever it looks like now. What about you? Want to do somethin' with the geology?"

"Hopefully on location someplace up to my eyeballs in research. Maybe pulling together a book. Definitely with a Ph.D trailing my name." She looked a little wistful, "I'd like to have a house, I think. Get married."

"Married, huh?" Angelo asked, grin turning sly. "Got anyone in particular in mind, or just married in general?"

She wrinkled her nose at him, "Whatever you're thinking, no. But a lot can happen in five years and I'll have a whole new social pool to meet someone. That's why you go to college, right? To find someone and get married? Or is that just what you do if you went to Catholic school?"

"Wouldn't know. I can tell you I'd've been married to Alejandra a long time ago, if things hadn't changed, but that was then an' it wasn't anythin' to do with school. I always kind of thought the point of college was a degree", he added teasingly.

"Okay, so just a Catholic school thing then," Lorna laughed, "Degrees are secondary when you're planning on being Mrs. Dr. Someone, after all." She shook her head and glanced at her watch. "I need to run. I've got office hours set up and I want to make sure I have time to get all my kids set in their final projects."

Angelo nodded, then impulsively stepped forward to give her a quick hug. "Guessin' you're gonna be busy from now to Thursday, so that's for then. Be sure to call, yeah?"

She hugged him back, tight. "I so will. I'll need someone who can understand when I complain about Nor Cal, don't I? Take care of yourself, Ange."

"You too. Go get that normal life, set the rest of us an example."