Chapter 2

The night treated her terribly. That dream kept with her through her shower, breakfast, and the first cigarette of the day. Sophia looked at herself in the mirror. I look like I haven't slept in a year. she pulls at her lower eyelids and leaned over and splashed her face with water from the tap. She reached for a towel and dried her face, sighed and walked out, grabbing her keys.

She walked briskly to her car and stopped, looking at the motor cycle next to her vehicle. She looked about and there he stood. his tight jeans, threadbare, well worn and faded from the years hanging from the hips. he wore a fashionable button up shirt, which hung from his shoulder and his sculpted chest perfectly. He looked like a model, the dark hair, the green eyes which he hid when he slipped on the dark. wraparound shades. He grinned and nodded, then he sat on the bike, chuckling. Sophia blushed, in embarrassment. She had been staring unabashed. The rider pulled the bike back, turned the engine over and headed off, Sophia shook her head, and crawled into the driver's seat. As she turned on her car, her stomach gurgled. The queasy turn of hunger suck and only one thing hit her mind... " Denny's..."

Traffic didn't hinder her at all as she whipped through the roads heading out to the family restaurant. She looked at the time and smiled, lucky her, she had plenty of time to eat before she had to get to class today. within a few songs on the radio, she found herself pulling into parking lot and getting out of the vehicle, she moved off to the front door, around a rather large eyesore of an SUV.

And she stopped. Before her stood the same motorbike that was parked at her apartment complex. her heart soared into her throat to give room for the butterflies emerging from their chrysalis in her abdomen. It can't be! She walked by it and entered through the door, the fragrance of the diner filled her nose invitingly.

Her eyes scanned for an empty booth or table, but alas there was nothing, and the hostess whisked her off the the counter, right next to the strange man from the apartment complex, and being a regular, her coffee was there without ordering. The man pushed the sugars next to her coffee.

" You know, I thought it was the man usually stalking the woman, I'm flattered." His baritone voice was warm to her ears and she felt her face blush a little. "Name's Roland, by the way."

She finally got the courage to look up into his face, her eyes caught his and the butteries went into a fit of flurried desperation trying to tear themselves out of her. " I.. I'm Sophia, Nice to meet you, I guess."

Roland gave her an incredulous eyebrow, then chuckled at the blush and the stare right into his eyes. " Only guess? By the look in your eyes, I would say that you are finding our meeting very pleasant. Even if it is awkward, wouldn't you say, Sophia?"

It took her a few moments to break away from that eye-lock. once it was, she could feel his yes on her while she put the creamer and two sugars into her coffee, and was stirring it. She heard him sigh and return to his menu and the last few drops of a soda in his glass as she made up her mind whether or not to continue speaking.

She grabbed a menu and felt brave, " So? What looks good to you, Roland?" He peered over to her from over the side of the menu and smirked, "You know? I haven't really thought about it a lot, yet. I am completely torn Between eating Breakfast, or whether to have a sandwich or heaven's forbid, a burger with some seasoned fries." he winked playfully, " I prefer to shatter any conventions I can manage to find, you know?"

Sophia sat there with her own smirk on her face, " Then You're no help to me at all, I guess." And she continued the pursuit of the craving's end which her mind refused to even consider didn't exist on the pages of the hallowed Denny's menu.

Roland set the menu down and smiled brightly as the waitress brought him a new glass full of soda and looked over at Sophia. " You know I think that you must try it, at least this once.. Break with tradition and come right to the dark side and have yourself something further in the menu. I promise, you'll have a good time with it, and even if you don't? You can always have the usual tomorrow, right?" With a wink, he turned the pages to the sandwiches and the dinners.

Sophia's eyes latched onto something and the stomach begged for it. She looked up and the waitress smiled, waiting. Sophia didn't even take a moment to reconsider, " I'll have the cheeseburger with onion rings? And can i get a coke?" Roland chuckled, " Make that two." the waitress took the menus and with a quick " Just a minute" they had their sodas and were laughing over the simple silliness of having dinner for breakfast.

" So, tell me Roland," Sophia inquired, "What do you do?" Roland sipped the soda out of a straw, which looked very juvenile considering the suit. She sat there watching the place, listening to Roland answer her questions and she found herself answering every question he could ask while they sat there, drinking their sodas and waiting on their unconventional breakfast.

Soon enough it arrived, and the conversation fell into the sounds of masticating bliss. Seasoned fries slowly disappeared from their plates and the rest vanished, filling their stomachs warmly. When finally they were finished Roland leaned back slurping the rest of his soda out of the bottom of the glass in front of him, then he spoke.

" So... What is your plan for the day? Work?"

Swallowing quickly and washing it all down with a quick sip, Sophia answered, " Well, actually no, I got to get to class in a little bit."

"Oh! A scholar! What is your major?" Roland grinned, and leaned in for the answer. Much to the embarrassment of Sophia, who simply sat there for a moment, her major was oddball and to really what she would ever consider to be noteworthy.

" Anthropology, Mostly dealing with languages, in particular, Sanskrit." Modestly spoken, Roland chuckled a little, reddening Sophia's cheeks. "What?"

" Oh, it's nothing, really, nothing to do with you, Sophia, it's just you don't meet many people with the discipline to sit through and learn a language that hasn't been really spoken for a good five hundred to a thousand years. Hell, even in India, they merely know it to translate things like the Karma Sutra and such."

Dejectedly, she slumped in the stool and shrugged. Roland saw this and quickly retraced his steps. " Oh, no, you don't understand, I think it's great, Really!" Roland grabbed her shoulder and rubbed it, hoping to return the life and humor back into his new companion. Seemingly, for a moment it looked like it would work. Sophia, though, stood and picking up her ticket walked for the Hostess behind the cash register, paid and left Roland sitting there, kicking himself for the lack of tact he possessed. It took him another soda before he got up himself, and left the restaurant.

Roland was forced to raise an eyebrow, leaning on his motorcycle was Sophia, arms crossed and sunglasses in place, an emotionless expression plastered on it as she looked him up and down. Roland put his wallet back into his back pocket and walked toward her.

"I thought you were going to class."

" I was, my keys are in the ignition and the doors are locked."

Roland smirked and tilted his head, " That's a predicament, you didn't think to go inside and use the phone?"

Her face darkened a little. Irritation spewed from her mouth as she bitterly replied,

" I have a phone, and I tried to call a locksmith, they say they can't get out here for a good hour, at least., alright? I don't know what I am going to do."

Roland nodded, his mind wrapped in thought for a moment before he finally moved to his bike, pulled out the spare helmet and held it to Sophia. " C'mon, I'll give you a lift."

She took a step back, " What?" She looked at the helmet like it had burst into flames. The look made Roland laugh, " What in the world is wrong with you? You wan tot get to school or what? I can get you there, you want to get there, and I got a spare brain bucket... Let's go, I know where the schools are, which one you at? Community, or the Biggun?"

She slowly took the helmet, " CCSN, The campus on Charleston." Roland nodded and put his helmet on, swinging his leg over the bike, and hitting the ignition. " Alright, get on grab tight and let's go." She obeyed quickly, looking down to make sure her feet got onto the pegs right as Roland backed the bike up smoothly before gunning it back into the flow of traffic, away from Denny's. Sophia took one last look at her shrinking car before putting her focus onto the man sitting in front of her, and the road that raced beneath her feet.

She'd ridden motorbikes before, her father and mother rode them all her life, the feeling was old hat, but still cave her a thrill, if it wasn't for the fact that the only motorbikes that had radios were those nasty car-on-two-wheel behemoths that the really lame ride, she'd probably take to them as well. The vibration of the engine the fluidity of the road's embrace on the wheels as the bike tilts in a turn, the noise of the wind as it takes hold of your body. Pure exhilaration, it always reminded her f her father, an old army vet from a war that wasn't, and battles that weren't there. He came back to spoiled fruit being tossed at him and a motorbike waiting. He couldn't understand what people wanted from him, she remembered from his stories.

HE didn't want to go, but he was an athlete in school, when he got out, the government called his number, and he served there until he was shot in the leg and they sent him back. At nineteen he went to work as a mechanic. Did all the crazy stuff the sixties were about and that he didn't want her to be about. Strange what age does to you, isn't it? He grew his hair long, lived in San Fransisco, was a party animal, according to mom. She would know, too. That's when they met. They lived together since the first day they met and they haven't left each other's side ever since.

Her mom spoke of working a magic spell to keep her daddy in check. Her dad just said he was too old to try and break in a new woman. " Why get a puppy, when the hounds mouth is still soft". Mother hated Dad's little quips. But they were inseparable, had a mess of kids, too. Most of them got crazy names, her oldest sister, Harmony was born nine months after Woodstock. Dad liked to call her his "Souvenir". All together Sophia had eight siblings. She was the youngest.

Her mind was pulled back from reminiscing by a jolt, a branch laid behind them, Roland had just wretched the bike around it at breakneck speed. Sophia scowled, trying to place how in the world he made that turn at the speed they were going, with a passenger. She simply shook her head and rested against Roland to escape the hot desert wind racing by. Before she knew it they were pulling to the parking lot in front of the building. Roland parked with little to no thought about it.

With that the engine was silenced, and in that silence, Sophia climbed off, removing the helmet and lowered it to the seat, looking at Roland who was removing his as well. " Where are you going?" Sophia was a little confused, it was a ride.. not an invite... But Roland smiled, " Hun, I got on old friend that works here, I figured, since I was here, you know, I'd stop by, see if the boy had lunch plans, or what have ya." He winked and shrugged, pulling out his ponytail and redoing it quickly before returning the dark shades to his nose, and stuffed the helmets into the saddlebags. " so, Sophia, mind if I walk you to class?"

Sophia looked the man over real fast. Just met him, but he acted like they were old friends, or more. The act was strange, more over, the attitude was easy to get lost in. something was different. Something was- " yeah, sure. C'mon" inviting.

Her class wasn't really that far away, only a flight of stairs and a coupe of doors away from the front entrance. Roland smiled as she entered the classroom promising her to be there when she got out, ow else was she going to go back and get her car? She accepted the help and was a little worried about what he wanted in return, but Roland seemed to be simply a kind man. Whether there was an ulterior motive or not, it didn't seem to really matter to her. What mattered was that he was willing to help and she could use it. Besides, it was fun riding on the motorcycle. She entered the classroom and scanned around, only the professor was there, sitting at the front desk, the room itself wasn't really a classroom like you'd have in a high school, it was a half moon, with rows of tables encircling it, each level raised a little higher and higher, much like a theater. An auditorium setup, if you will. Something that made Sophia chuckle inwardly when ever she stepped into these classrooms.

The instructor sat at his desk, reading a hefty book. He was younger than most of the instructors she has had in her time at the community college, but he was also one of her favorites, Professor Dupree taught philosophy here. His methods weren't what you would call orthodox. He constantly pushed the students to think more for themselves, to be their own philosophers. He looked up from his book and smiled. " Sophia! Attending class today? What a surprise! " He put his book down and stood with a warm grin, but before Sophia could respond, his cellphone rang and he snorted, " Excuse me, one moment.. "

She smirked and settled into her seat, pulling out her folder and a pen to take notes as the professor left the room, talking excitedly into his phone. This wait brought with it the erst of the student body attending this professor's class. A grand total of ten people. This, of course was the most advanced philosophy course offered at the College, and it seemed difficult to get the professor's permission to enter it. It meant, not only plenty of leeway with assignments, but a very tailored curriculum. The syllabus simply stated " notebook, pen and Open Mind." To this day that is all she needed.

" Guys!" the Professor shouted as he entered, " I have great news, you are free from listening to me babble for the day, I have something far more interesting for you. And dare I say it, much more entertaining." He paced in front of them with an inquisitive look smeared across his brow. " As you all know and have definitely devised, I believe that one must see things from many different views if we are to understand anything. " he smiled broadly " So, today is a test of your minds. A test of your imagination. Most of all it is a Test you will actually be graded upon."

"Today I have a friend that has shown up to visit, and since it comes right in time for the Lesson of the Day, I have asked him to come and speak to you all about perception. About reflection of ourselves and the interpretation less than ordinary. " Sophia looked at the door, her stomach alight once more with the butterflies of nausea, " So, students, I have the honor to present to you, Mister Roland Xavier. He walked to the door and opened it. To Sophia's regret, there he stood in the doorway, his clothes seemingly freshly ironed and sewn with him inside. His walk was drunkenly confident and his eyes seem to bear through each of the students one by one.