Eames walked the long familiar hallway to the lecture hall. Her heart raced faster and faster with each step. The recognizable voice of the man she was looking for began to fill her ears. For whatever reason, her body relaxed. Her footsteps became less frantic as she quietly entered the class through the open door. She leaned up against the wall in the back of the room and listened.
The class size was smaller than the last one. Wonder why that is? Why does it matter? Wait, that's not important. She shrugged off the unnecessary train of thought yet welcomed the distraction from the previous one. She focused in on what was going on.
"Motivation. How would you define it?" Dr. Robert Goren. The smartest and, undoubtedly, the most complicated man she's ever met queried his students. A young, brunette raised her hand. Bobby acknowledged her.
"It's what gets us to do something." There was a hint of doubt in her answer. Goren smiled slightly.
"Ok. Good." The woman smiled back. "Anyone else?" Alex saw some them visibly sink into their chairs. No doubt, Bobby saw it too. "Anyone?" Silence. No one answered. "Oh, come on, guys. You all are supposed to be my smartest class." A hue of sarcasm was evident but the intent was clear.
"Inner drive." A voice cut through the lingering silence. Goren's habitual pacing slowed to a stop. He turned ans searched for the source.
There he goes. She recognized that look. He's reading them. His eyes stopped at a blonde male sitting in the third-row diagonally to where Alex was standing. "Hm."
As he put his arms behind his back, Eames folded hers across her body. This is gonna be good.
"Interesting. Inner drive. It's a funny thing. It can swing us to do or not to do something." His pacing started up again. "To be or not to be." His faux British accent was received with snorts and chuckles. "Some people think that those who do not achieve in life do not have this 'inner drive', but what if I were to tell you, we all have it?" The same students who had disappeared into themselves during his question were now listening intently to the professor's every word and waiting for his next epiphany. "It's really just a matter of you deciding what to do with it. Whether or not you apply is entirely up to you." With that, the familiar sound of his alarm sounded and his pupils began to pack up their things. "Remember, projects are due Monday. No extensions or exceptions."
Goren was gathering up his materials into his trusty binder when he heard a voice behind him. "You still have that thing?" He smirked. He knew who it was even before he turned around.
"Yeah, I do." He was grinning from ear to ear. Eames took in his appearance. He had slimmed down and was clean shaven. His hair was shorter but his natural curl was still visible. He looked fantastic. "What can I do for you, Detective?"
Alex shook her head. "What is it gonna take to get you to call me Alex, huh?"
Bobby chucked. "Seriously, what are doing here?" There was no malice just an honest question. An understandable one too.
She sighed. "I need your help."