Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans or AOL.
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You've Got Mail
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Chapter 2
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For her entire time at MIT, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Kori Anders studied. She had to adapt to a new culture, make up for a lack of a basic foundation in calculus, a lack of the skills of critical thinking and a lack of a the mastery of the English language. In spite of these deficits, she worked hard and completed her coursework for her Bachelor's of Science within the usual four years. Not only did she complete her course of study on time, she excelled among a group of some of the greatest young minds in the world. Although it was her intent to study science anyway (she was at MIT after all), her love for physics surprised her as much as it did everyone else and she knew she found the field she wanted to work in.
Kori wasn't quite sure if she wanted to teach or do research within the public or private sector, but there were plenty of options. To be in astrophysics and aerospace technology, she knew that she required a graduate degree. She could have stayed at MIT but found New England harsh, both in its weather and in its people. Her homeland of Tamaran was warm, it's people gruff at times but somehow friendlier.
Stanford offered arguably the best astrophysics department in the US and although the weather wasn't perfect for her in Stanford, CA (oh, if only Hawaii offered a top flight – as it were – aerospace technology school) it was a vast improvement over Cambridge, MA. She found the people friendlier as well.
Kori wanted to keep her options open for a career after earning her PhD. She didn't want to be locked into a future employer who was paying her way. That meant self-funding her degree with loans, stipends, fellowships, teaching and part-time work. She wanted to borrow as little as possible so she chose to cover her living expenses and some of her meals as a 'graduate fellow-in-residence' at a freshman dormitory. She also did some research for one of the physics professors and was also his teaching assistant in fluid mechanics, conducting twice weekly sessions with smaller groups of students divided out from the lecture classes and running their weekly laboratory sessions as well.
This left things pretty much covered except for spending money and two meals a day. The strategy of attending all the free lectures in the evenings that serve wine and cheese can only get you so far.
Kori's roommate Donna Troy was getting her graduate degree in photography at Stanford and was assigned to be Kori's roommate at the dorm the previous year and they had remained together for this, their second masters' year. They had quite a nice set up there at the dormitory: two bedrooms, a kitchenette, a living area and a bathroom. They were there to support and counsel twenty-five undergraduates, but beyond the first few weeks, Donna and Kori were needed less and less by the underclassmen.
Luckily for Kori, she had a roommate who was working part-time as a photographer. Donna saw Kori's beauty, something Kori did not really recognize yet. Contact lenses, a bit of a delayed 'development' and growing her hair out, all of sudden, Kori was stunning. Donna convinced Kori to let her take some pictures and from those, Kori landed a modeling job in a lucrative print ad for St Pauli Girl beer. Kori took the job because it a) paid extremely well and b) she felt she'd be fairly unrecognizable from the picture itself: her hair was temporarily dyed blond, she was heavily made up and she was dressed in the traditional sexy Bavarian barmaid's outfit. The money meant that Kori would not need to work beyond her teaching and research at all for the entire year or more, even after insisting on giving a portion of the money she received to Donna for finding her the job.
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Richard got home from the Elbow Room and sat down to review the personals ads. He was a manager by profession, hiring people for the aerospace and automotive research divisions of Wayne Enterprises. It started out as a bit of a compromise job for him, marrying his interest in management and technology but unable to find which one would truly be the best fit, he gave this a try. As much as he would have wanted to be a top engineer, some people just had more skill and talent in that area than he did. As it turned out, he could figure out a persons strength's and weakness instantly. He could visualize how a group could come together as a team and was excellent at finding the right person for the right job. This 'compromise' job he was placed in, well, he was nothing short of brilliant in.
As for the task at hand, finding a date through the AOL personals, he needed to looks at it the same way: he needed to find the right woman for the job. All he needed was a girl who would agree to go out with him, agree relatively quickly, have enough in common that she'd last the duration of the date, but not enough that she'd try to hang on to him. Maybe someone who was only looking for just a date (as in singular) like he was. Maybe someone that did not appear attractive. Maybe someone new to the process: not picked over or not cocky enough to pick and chose from her would-be suitors.
It crossed his mind although he dismissed it immediately: maybe someone he really could like, a better match for him that Babs, someone with whom he could have a fresh start and a long term relationship with.
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As it was up only for a very short time, Dick zeroed in on Kori's profile. Well, he didn't know it was Kori's profile, he knew her as Starfire. Up for a few hours, she was likely to have had only a few hits yet. Perhaps she would agree to a date right with him off the bat, beginner's luck as it were. It described the woman he wanted – she was unusual and didn't appear that attractive from her picture playing the Gorkapipes of all things, her puffed out cheeks from the effort of her circular breathing marring her features. Her educational background on the other hand was great and beyond what he would have hoped for. Not only could he have an interesting conversation with her – well, potentially they could have an interesting conversation – but she was in Astrophysics, something he knew something about. Most PhD candidates in that field have jobs lined up upon admission to their programs. Lucius Fox, Dick's boss, would be thrilled to have access to those students, especially if she was at a top school like Stanford. What if there were any candidates to woo away to Wayne Industries? He would be as golden as he is supposed to be. The idea of the date was suddenly very palatable. With the work angle, it was a win/win situation.
And he was such a sucker for a redhead.
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He didn't looked to anyone else. He had the candidate he wanted, and reviewed her profile again:
SF seeks SM for one date, maybe more
Red Hair
Green Eyes
5'9"
121 lbs.
24 years old
College Graduate with BS Physics, pursuing graduate degree in Astrophysics
Employed part-time
Enjoys music, dancing, food, friends
Dick surfed a few news sites and stayed logged on and was disappointed to see that Starfire was still not signed in. He started to type an email. He had to chuckle, he felt a twinge of excitement, something he was devoid of, as he was of all feelings, for weeks now. Maybe Wally and the guys were right, it would be good for him to meet someone. But was it best for him to go about it this way?
In writing her email, he kept it concise:
Starfire:
I saw your profile and I am intrigued. I hope you'll email me back or we can IM.
As for me:
Black Hair
Blue eyes
6'
185 lbs
27 years old
College Graduate – BS Engineering
Employed Full Time as Hiring Manager in an Engineering Division of a Multinational Corporation
Enjoys sports and fitness, dining out, music, friends
It appears that we have similar professional and personal interests and I would love to hear back from you.
Call me Nightwing.
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Kori logged on. Her Starfire mailbox had 17 responses after only a few hours. Fifteen had responses that were either too suggestive and/or from men with names like 'likexxx2lixxx'. One was from a man that went on to explain at great length that Kori was going straight to hell, one that she could easily ignore.
The 17th was from Nightwing. Well, that narrowed it down.
His email and his profile seemed fine. There were no red flags. In fact, although there wasn't great detail, they seemed to have a great deal in common. Kori saw that he was on and wasn't sure if she should send an IM, but it didn't matter. Nightwing IM'd her a minute later.
Nightwing: Hi
Starfire: Hi
Nightwing: Can you talk?
Starfire: Yes
Nightwing: How are you?
Starfire: I am fine. How are you?
Nightwing: Good.
Starfire: Thank you for the email.
Nightwing: You're welcome, I like your profile.
Starfire: You did?
Nightwing: Yes. Dick chuckled. This was an odd conversation. He wondered if he she just call her or see if she had a mic.
Starfire: I like yours as well.
Nightwing: Thank you. Have you gotten many responses?
Starfire: A few. Kori thought if she should be upfront about the type of responses and she decided to. She had trouble with lying. Mostly because she was bad at it.
Nightwing: Oh. Do you have any dates set yet?
Starfire: No. Your email was the only acceptable one. In fact, I found it necessary to block the user names of the others from my account.
Nightwing: Really? How many did you have to block?
Starfire: Yes. I had 17 responses so far and yours was the only one I have not blocked.
Nightwing: Please don't block me.
Starfire: Please do not give me a reason to.
Nightwing: This seems weird to IM each other and I'd like to talk to you. Do you have a mic or can I call you?
Dick felt an odd need to connect with her, an urgency to make a date with her. Perhaps it was his competitive streak. But he thought that it might not just be for the bet.
Starfire: I do not have a mic. I guess it is alright if you do the calling of me. My number is 555-1231.
Nightwing: Great. Call you in a few.
Starfire: Glorious!
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Dick picked up his cell to call. If she turned out to be crazy like that girl Kitten Moth was, he could always change his number. It was much easier than a restraining order.
He found he was actually nervous. And then he realized he didn't know what to call her. What was the protocol for that anyway? He figured he'd find out. He dialed and it rang once.
"Hello?"
He was surprised by her voice. Very sweet, feminine, maybe innocent? He liked it. "Hello... Starfire?"
Kori giggled, "Yes, that is my screen name but please call me Kori. Shall I call you Nightwing?"
Dick chuckled, "Nah. I'm Richard, my friends call me Dick." For once in his life, someone under 55 didn't snicker at his nickname.
"Well, it is a pleasure to speak with you, Richard." Kori said, a purr to her voice that Dick liked. A lot. And he did like the way she called him Richard, too.
"The pleasure is mine, Kori." Well this is going well. "Your profile says you are a graduate student?"
"Oh yes! I am getting my PhD in Astrophysics at Stanford!" Kori was thrilled to be in the program. She wasn't an intellectual snob in any sense, but she was aware that she was in a top notch program and was very thankful to be there.
Her enthusiasm was contagious. Even if he wouldn't ended up being attracted to her, he knew she would be fun to meet and also fun to be around. And she was at Stanford, that could help him at work.
"That's a wonderful program, Kori."
"And you are an engineer?" Kori asked, remembering his profile.
"My degree is in engineering, yes, but mostly I work with the technical staff as a manager. I also am responsible for the some of the hiring for my company. In fact I am very interested..." Dick's voice drifted off when he heard a noise from outside his room.
"Richard?"
He growled under his breath.
Dick could hear the 'song stylings' of the worst barbershop quartet in the history of barbershop quartets, a very drunk Roy, Gar, Vic, and Wally were coming down the hall toward Dick's room singing the Bee Gees' How Do You Mend a Broken Heart? Loudly and out of tune.
...How can you mend this broken man?
...How can a loser ever win?
...Please help me mend this broken heart, and let me live again...
"Richard?"
"Sorry, Kori, uh, my friends have come by uninvited."
He covered the receiver so she couldn't hear them or his swearing for a moment as he figured what to do.
Finally, he realized they weren't ever going to shut up if they caught him on the phone with his AOL 'Love Connection'.
"May I call you back?"
"Certainly."
"I'll call you in a little bit, Kori. Thanks."
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"You guys suck, do you know that?" Dick said his head in his hand, the four drunk 'men' piling into his bedroom.
Just then Alfred appeared at the door, "Master Dick, my apologies, I was in the laundry when the young masters apparently let themselves in."
"No problem Alfred. The Young Master(he added softly so only they could hear)baters know better. Thank you. I will deal with them"
While Dick's attention was with Alfred, Wally's was on the computer.
After Alfred left, Wally spoke up, "My, my, my, what do we have here? Have we already set our sights on some poor, young unsuspecting lady? Let's see..."
"If you know what's good for you, move away from the computer," Dick said moving toward him.
"Nightwing! That's your screen name!" Wally exclaimed.
"Out, now!" Dick growled.
Unfortunately, Vic and Roy held Dick back and he could only watch as Wally sat down in front of the computer, Gar at his side.
"Oh, its open to a profile. Starfire, huh? Oh, and an IM too!" Wally said with glee. "You were on the phone with her, weren't you? Already? You aren't wasting any time!"
"Dude, there's her picture!" Gar said, and there was a pause... a long pause... and then laughter. "I knew you like red hair Dick but come on! Dear Lord, she's a physicist! And are those homemade bagpipes?"
"They're Gorkapipes." Dick felt suddenly very... protective of Kori.
"Oh, Wally, look at the IM, write down her phone num-" Gar was tackled by Dick who had found the strength to break away from Vic and Roy.
"Out of here, all of you!" Dick yelled.
"Come on man, we're just havin' some fun with this." Vic said.
"I think he wants to have fun with her," Roy said with a smirk. Dick again felt protective of Kori.
"It's just a bet and now we see what, I mean who, he's betting on." Wally said.
It was only a bet... Why does it seem like more? "Get out guys," Dick said in an icy tone.
"Back to your phone sex?" Roy asked with a waggle of the eyebrows.
"Get. Out. Now." Dick shouted and his friends finally complied.
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Dick took a few minutes to cool down before he dialed Kori back. No answer.
He felt... dread? Guilt? Was he deceiving her? He found he liked her. He wished she had been there. How fair was this going to be to her if it ended up just being for the bet? He left a quick message with his number and went off to take another shower.
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His phone was flashing when he got back.
"Damn it" he muttered and dialed.
Kori picked up after ½ a ring, "Hello?"
"Kori?"
"Richard?"
They both said, "I'm sorry," at the same time and laughed nervously.
"Ladies first, although I can't imagine what you have to apologize for," Richard said sincerely.
"I was not here when you called back. For that I apologize," she explained.
He smiled, the altercation with his friends now a long ago memory, "That's okay, I shouldn't have had to hang up in the first place."
"Well, perhaps you have a funny story as I do. The freshmen on my floor were having a water uh, balloon, is it ? – fight. Or did they call it a war? I do not recall. Regardless, I believe the stress of their second hourly examinations are getting the better of them." Second hourly tests the material covered in the first 2/3 of the semester as opposed to a midterm examination.
Richard chuckled. So she lived in a dorm. Also, he had suspected that between the Gorkapipes, the slight accent and some unusual word usage that she was Tamaranian and he was pretty certain now. He had actually visited there quite briefly, of the many unusual corners of the world his adoptive father Bruce Wayne had taken him. Another thing they'd have to talk about...
"So you broke up the water balloon fight?" he asked.
He wished he could she her doing that, he wondered if she got wet and then couldn't shake the image... she did list a nice height to weight ratio... did she have sexy curves?
"Yes. The students were not pleased and I regret that it is one of my responsibilities," she said, her voice sounded a bit weary.
"So you are an RA, a residential adviser?"
"We are called Graduate Fellows-in-Residence here at Hardt House, but essentially yes."
"Do you like it?"
"I do, although I must say that it requires much less effort than I anticipated. The students are most independent, I dare say more than I was at that age in many ways. It is mostly the breaking up of raucous activity as I did tonight that comprises my responsibilities rather than the counseling of the students at this point in the academic year.
"I do have the most wonderful roommate here and a lovely apartment. We have no rent that we are responsible to pay and are allowed to eat one meal a day in the cafeteria downstairs at no cost and there are activities and we are right near our classes and laboratories and... and I am doing the babbling, I apologize."
Dick chuckled. Even if she were even average looking, she'd be a fun to date... maybe... How superficial am I?
"No, Kori, it's fine. Please go on."
Kori felt herself blush. She did tend to prattle on when she was nervous.
"Well, that covers my living here at the university. I am finishing my masters' and will go right into my PhD this summer. I'm a teaching assistant for a fluid mechanics course also and do a bit of research for the same professor I TA for. But I have done all the talking. May I ask what happened that you had to end our phone call earlier or is it a private matter?"
Dick chuckled again. He was letting himself like her more and more. "A private matter, no. My friends came by to, well, how can I put this? - they came by to tease me about using the personal ads to meet someone." It wasn't a lie.
"Oh, so your friends know that you have looked at the AOL personals?"
"Yes. Do yours?"
"Yes. Actually, my roommate insisted that I give it a try. I recently had a break up."
"That's basically what happened to me. I had a break up and my friends said I was unhappy and wanted me to try the personals." He left out the 'lost a bet' part – he imagined that would not go over very well.
"Oh, I do feel better about it then, if you tried it as well."
"I feel better that you tried it as well." There was a pause. It's not like Dick Grayson ever had trouble asking girls out before, but Kori, well, she seemed different. "Would you be free to go out tomorrow night?"
Kori suppressed a squeal. Richard seemed so nice, and this was so painless! "I would love to."
"Early dinner, maybe a movie, then dancing?" Just in case, get everything done and over with for that stupid bet.
"I believe the dinner and movie should be fine. The dancing may be a problem, I do have my section to teach on Thursday morning, but can we see?"
"Sure," Richard replied, smiling. It wasn't exactly what he needed to do to fulfill his obligation to Wally, but then again, Kori was a lot better of a perspective date than he expected to find in the personals. "Can I call you tomorrow once I've made the arrangements?" he asked.
"That would be glorious!"
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Kori was so excited when she hung up. She wondered what he looked like. Was he handsome? Was he nicely built? He was smart. He was kind. She went to her computer and pulled her profile. She could always put it up again if Richard was not someone she wanted to date. She sent off a quick text to Donna who was at a play with her fiance Terry, although Donna probably wouldn't read it until after the curtain went down later that night.
She was almost too excited to sleep, but needed to. She was tired from teaching the early morning Tuesday session of her fluid mechanics class and everything else she had done that day. She did her best to ignore the noise in the hall – as best she could tell, the balloon warfare was over but the stressed out students were just relieving, well, the stress.
Sleep would come to her eventually, but until then, she thought about Richard...
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To Be Continued...
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Thank you for reading and please review!I realize that Gotham is supposed to be in New York and that in the first chapter I had the guys play on the Gotham softball team. (BTW Ivy Town is when The Atom is from) but when I was researching top Astrophysics programs with top Fine Arts/Photography programs, I decided on Stanford (I'm allergic to Princeton although I tend to send Dick there). I actually have visited there when my friend was getting her MBA there. I know I could make stuff up, it's just easier this way, at least for me.
As a graduate student, I tried the free wine and cheese during the various lecture series. I swear that ever since not knowing where your next meal is coming from as a 'starving' grad student, I've had to struggle a bit with my weight!
LJ
Star of Airdrie
