Two chapters in as many days. Well, I do owe it to you readers. Screw that hitthepin guy for saying that I upload slowly.

Enjoy.

Chapter 15: This One's Mine

Alex sipped his coffee and typed at a school-issued laptop. It was the day after his adventure to the Murphys with Evan, making it Sunday. The day where everybody crams in the work assigned over the weekend that they should have been doing on Saturday.

He was at one of those quaint little shops you might find on any given college campus, serving you the stuff you need to keep your eyes open and your brain running. The sort of place where love often brews, both in reality and in those fanfiction pieces he sometimes likes to read.

And that is why the cultural movement known as "romanticism" fell apart by the turn of the next century". Alex hit enter and finished the first draft of his essay, stretching his fingers. They really do start to cramp up after you've been typing for too long.

For the first time in a while, he looked up and observed his surroundings. What was the name of this place, again? The Baker's shop? The Cook's? Something along those lines. Heck, where was this place? How'd he even get here? Where was his copy of the map of the campus? His mind really did go somewhere else when he worked.

"Hi."

Alex turns to the unfamiliar voice to see none other than Eliza Schyuler, standing there and smiling at him.

"Ah… hello."

"Mind if I sit here?"

Alex thanked his lucky stars. All the spots intended for one person to sit at were occupied, so he was forced to take one of those with two chairs. He'd thought it to be rude and improper, but now, it was nothing but convenient.

"Of course, of course."

She sat down and put her turquoise backpack next to his, still smiling in his direction.

"You're Alex, right?"

"Yeah. That's me…"

"I'm Eliza." She extended her hand.

Focus. Head in the game, man. "It's a real pleasure to meet you." He accepted the hand and shook it. She held it for slightly longer than expected before retreating.

"You sound like you came straight from the 1700s or something." Eliza laughed, and Alex laughed with her. She was right, wasn't she?

"So, ah, what causes you to grace me with your presence?" he replied, a grin appearing on his face as he kept up his pretense of formality.

At this, Eliza started smiling slightly less. She pursed her lips. Alex idly wondered what they felt like.

"I just wanted to apologize for my sister's behavior," she finally replied. "She can be a bit… intense sometimes."

"Yeah… Angelica, right?" Alex asked, as though he didn't really remember.

"Yes. Angie's just doing what she thinks is right. She'll grow on you, I promise."

Alex tilted his head a bit. "I don't want to sound like a jerk or anything, but she couldn't come to apologize herself?"

Eliza shook her head. "She's headstrong like that. A bit like you, I think."

Now this was a bit of a shock. "Like… me?"

"Well, yes. Like you." Eliza was smiling again. Alex felt his chest grow warm against his wishes. "Your friends, John, Laf, Herc. They're my friends, too. We went to the same high school upstate. You're all they talk about."

She knows me. Just that thought filled Alex with joy. And sufficiently distracted him so much that he couldn't form any words.

"Anyways… I do like you. At least, the you that I've heard about." She shot him a wink across the table. "I'd love to be your friend."

What's she playing at? Is she being a flirt? Is she flirting with me? "I'd love to be your friend, too," Alex replied, only barely able to keep his smile from expanding. "Could I have your number?"

"Of course!" Alex wanted to pinch himself, to see if he was in some fever-dream fantasy of some sort, but of course, he did not.

She recited it to him, and Alex sent the number a short text. Just a little "Hi." with a smiling face.

"Alright, looks like it's working!" Eliza cheerfully spoke.

"You're absolutely certain that Angelica won't murder me for this? After all, I am within ten feet of you right now."

Eliza laughed again. Alex found that he really loved it when she laughed.

"Don't worry. I'll keep you alive. I might even be able to make the two of you friends."

Alex gaped in exaggerated fashion. "Really?"

Eliza shrugged in return. "People say that I can work miracles." She stood.

"See you tomorrow, I guess. In history," Alex said as way of saying goodbye.

Eliza's eyes lit up, as though the thought delighted her as much as it delighted him.

"See you tomorrow, Alex." She walked out of the shop. Alex watched her go, still with the same goofy smile on his face.

"Well, if it isn't Alexander Hamilton."

Alex turned to see Aaron Burr, sliding himself into the seat that Eliza had just vacated.

"Looks like you've been making some forays, my friend." Aaron raised an eyebrow, waiting for a response.

"Aaron Burr, sir. Er, sir, when will it occur to you I don't have a chance with her?"

Aaron's eye twitched slightly at his rhymes. "I'm not a connoisseur, sir, but I believe that I've seen enough to infer, sir. Is she not the one you prefer?"

Alex huffed. On a normal day, he'd have the mental capacity to out-rhyme Burr, but between finishing that essay and talking with Eliza, he was spent. More coffee. That's what he needed.

"Honestly, Burr, why's it even your business?"

"I'm just asking, Alex. Sir. Am I not allowed to talk to my friend?"

"Don't you have anything better to do, Aaron?"

"As a matter of fact, no. I finished all my work on Saturday. If you're typing that essay for Washington's history, might I offer some advice, and recommend that you mention Gustave Courbet's championing of Realism, which I'm sure you remember was the counter-movement towards romanticism?"

Alex grumbled, but typed a few sentences into his essay. "It's just like you to do something like that, Burr."

"Do what?"

"Finish on Saturday. Like, live a little, man. College is more than just your education."

"Isn't the entire point of college to get a higher education?" Burr kept up his smile, but his eyes said something different. A challenge.

"That doesn't mean that you can't have any fun while doing so," Alex returned.

Burr stared intensely at Alex for a moment, seemingly contemplating him before shrugging. "I suppose you may be right, Hamilton."

"What else did you expect from me, Burr?" Alex said cockily.

"Pride goeth before the fall." Burr mumbled.

"What?"

"Nothing, nothing. Enjoy your coffee, Alex." Burr stood up and left. Alex ordered one final coffee on the go, then packed up his stuff and left. Life at King's was great. Eliza was his friend, his classes were going excellently, and there was more food and drink around in this one campus than there ever was in his entire hometown. So what if Burr was being cryptic and trying to challenge him in some strange, intellectual way? That was fine. Surely, no harm would ever come from him.

Credit to Rhyme Zone for the terrible rhymes. Credit to Wikipedia for information on Romanticism, as well as its counter-movement known as Realism. Thanks for reading, and until next time.