They walked in comfortable silence to the coffee shop. Trent had brought his guitar and after getting their coffee and pastries from the all too perky student than worked at the counter, Daria led him to a nice area of the campus common that she and Jane had discovered. They would often go there when Jane visited her; Jane bringing a small, portable easel she had acquired, or a camera. Daria would bring a book or notebook and the two would lounge in the grass, talk and people watch.

It was a freakishly nice day for November, and after they settled themselves under some trees, talking in brief interludes about what was happing back in Lawndale, Daria got around to slipping off the jacket she had put on before leaving the dorm. Trent had seemed unfazed by the cool air; 'Not that much fazes him anyway,' Daria reminded herself, amused.

After a while, Trent started absentmindedly strumming at his guitar. Daria quietly sipped her coffee. When Trent paused after playing a decent selection of music Daria broke the silence.

"Is that a new song?"

"Kinda," Trent replied, adjusting the tuning on his guitar slightly. "I haven't had any inspiration for lyrics yet. Some things just take time to get right."

"So I'm guessing you still haven't decided on a new name for Mystik Spiral."

"Not yet," Trent said, offering no more. He said nothing for a moment, and then looked at Daria curiously. "Have you ever played a guitar before?"

Daria was surprised by the question and took a second to recover. "Uh... no. I have no musical talent."

"How do you know that if you've never tried?" Trent asked, sitting up and placing the guitar in her hands before she could protest.

"But I don't even know how to start." Daria said, looking blankly at the instrument in her hands.

"I'll show you then. You have no excuses not to try it." Trent said, moving to kneel behind her.

"Give me a second; I can think one up." Daria replied, feeling his arms reach around her, taking her hands and placing them on the guitar. Guiding her hands with his, Trent helped her strum out a few clumsy notes of nothing in particular.

"See, it's not so bad." Trent said from over her shoulder, his voice amused.

Daria knew her face must be burning. 'Damnit,' she thought 'Why the hell do I have to turn red every time he's near me?"

"Hey Daria!" The bright voice broke suddenly through Daria's thoughts and she felt Trent let go of her hands and move away slightly as a bouncy brunette jogged toward them across the grass. Daria felt a strange mix of relief and disappointment at the loss of contact.

The young woman was standing over them now, smiling brightly. She eyed the guitar in Daria's hand. "I didn't know you played the guitar."

Daria had forgotten all about the instrument, until this comment. She quickly handed it back to Trent saying, "I don't. I was just reaffirming the fact that I have no talent." Then, knowing that the woman was waiting for introductions she grudgingly obliged. "Trent, this is Nicole. She's in my English class. Nicole, this is Trent. You remember my friend Jane? This is her brother."

"Jane's brother? With the band right?" Nicole asked innocently, although Daria noticed that she was appraising Trent with her eyes. Daria registered that she was surprised at the flash of jealously she felt at seeing this.

"Yeah, Mystik Spiral." Trent replied. "We're playing at a party here tomorrow night."

"Awesome," Nicole cooed. "Maybe I'll see you there. Are you going to surprise us all and show up?" She added, looking at Daria.

"If I told you now, it wouldn't be a surprise." Daria replied, making Trent chuckle. Nicole laughed as well, albeit a little too heartily for the comment, making Daria inwardly cringe.

"Well, I better get back to my run. It was nice to meet you," Nicole said to Trent, in such a honeyed voice that Daria wished they lived closer to bear habitats. They shook hands and Nicole began her jog again. Daria looked up at Trent, who was watching the retreating figure with an impassive face. Daria was fighting the stab of jealously again, until Trent looked at her, inclined his head toward the disappearing ponytail and asked "Sorostitute?" using her reference of the day before.

Daria almost smiled, and quipped, "Yeah, Alpha Omega Slut or something." She looked at her watch. "Damn, we've been gone almost three hours. You think the love birds are up yet?" She asked.

Trent shrugged. "Who knows? If they're not, we could always fix that."

"Yeah," Daria added, letting her Mona Lisa smile show. "I mean, if you're up at this hour, anything's possible right?"

Trent laughed, which inevitably turned into a hacking cough. When the coughing subsided they both rose and collected what they had. Daria picked up her jacket; Trent picked up his guitar and drained the last of the coffee, which Daria knew had to be cold. 'Nope,' she thought again. 'Nothing fazes him.'

"Its funny," Trent mused as they started back toward the dorm. "I never thought of you as making friends with the sorority types."

"If you call collecting cash in exchange for helping them revise papers and not fail their classes, then I have a lot of friends you'd never picture me with." Daria replied.

Trent smiled and gave a nod of understanding.