There was a lull in the conversation, until Donna perked up all of a sudden.

"Kara Danvers - the college years. Well, I guess it should be 'year', singular."

Kara slowly exhaled, as Donna pulled out a printout from a folder.

"You told the U. you wanted to be a journalist who covered the fields of science. You sure made a splash in your first article for the campus newspaper. Any light you can shed on that?"

No eyeball rolls. No grimace. Still, it would be nice to introduce the girl to the game of poker. A good poker face can come in handy in so many different ways.

A Sunday afternoon at the U. A maintenance crewman, 45 or so, hauled a bag of garbage, past idle cars and empty spaces, to the dumpster. The parking lot seemed bereft of life, to quote his favorite British comedy show, as he hoisted the bag over the top. And it was, for the next two seconds.

A girl appeared, not five feet away from him. Her mouth smiled. Her eyes said, "We have things to do."

"Hi. Shahid, right?"

"Um, yes" he ventured, as she she offered her hand to be shook.

"Kara Danvers. Freshman. I'm on the fifth floor," pointing over her shoulder to the dormitory behind her. "Thursday morning I saw, uh, heard water dripping from a pipe near the shower. Somewhere between the floors. I called the school administration 10 minutes later. And again on Friday. I had a family thing on Saturday. And I was just wondering if you or somebody else had heard about it."

"Oh yes, that is on my schedule."

"You think maybe you could bump it up a bit? To say…"

Kara suddenly tossed some Urdu into the conversation. "Now? Perhaps?" …

Shahid surveyed the scene, chagrin written on his face. Water streamed from a small crack in the ceiling. A plastic storage bin (the girl's) held the flow. She had also stuffed up the doorway with her bath towels, keeping the hallway carpeting (mostly) dry. What was he, proud? Peeved? Why not both?

"Yes. That, I can do."…

Shahid balanced on a step ladder. Water was shut off. Decked out in cap and goggles, he cut away at the plaster with his circular saw. Kara stood eight or so feet away, tuning out the roar, eyes locked on the ladder. Ready to spring into a diving catch, if it came to that. Holding the darned thing would have been simpler, but Shahid had visions of her head-butting plaster and getting a concussion. "I'd be batting 1.000 then, would't I?"…

Shahid's top half was swallowed up by the ceiling, as he applied a sealant. His muffled voice came through to Kara, as she swept up bits of plaster.

"Apologies. People here tend to their little acre before trying to get something done. Easy habit to fall into. Same thing back home. All over, I suppose."

Kara shrugged. "I've seen worse."

"So…can you string together more than two words of Urdu?"

Kara spoke her words carefully: "Would you like rice or salad with that, sir?"

Shahid stepped down to look at her.

"You didn't get that from 'Lonely Planet' ."

She smiled. "Broad Street Diner. I waited tables there for two summers. Afiyah was a new waitress this year. I try to see what I can pick up. I could speak Greek all day by now. Urdu? Little bit. How am I doing?"

"Not bad. I heard worse spoken at the U.S. consulate. Say, how long-"

"Oh, depends. What did you do back home, Shahid?"

Shahid noticed the change of course. He let it sit, just long enough. "I was a professor at university. Taught engineering."

"Really? But you're like the guy in the engine room here, shov…" Her words petered out.

"Shoveling coal? Hmm, I never thought of it like that", he deadpanned. Kara suddenly found her wet, filthy bath towels of great interest.

He stepped around to face her. "I don't have to worry here about the knock on my door at 3AM. Don't have to keep watch for bulky packages, when I take my son to the market place. Things I couldn't buy at home, I get here for free."

Kara nodded. "Still, did you miss teaching?"

"Very much."

"What, no job openings for a university professor?"

"Long story."

"I'd like to hear it."

"Ah", Donna mused. "The interview heard round the world."

Kara quit slouching, and sat back straight. "I didn't quit college because of one interview, Ms. Martinez. But yeah - it helped."