"Mr. Jones," Professor Williams said as he stood up from his seat in the auditorium. The bell had rung, and class was out for the day. Alfred was already among his fellow classmates in a line going out the door, but his sky blue eyes diverted to the professor, who was staring at him with a form of reluctance in his face—Professor Williams took the dean's advice and used it to his advantage and for his own benefit, and he was going to tell him about the archaeology program at the university.
"You wanted to see me, Professor W?" the young man asked, walking toward the middle-aged man rapidly. "What did I do now?"
"You didn't do anything, Alfred," Professor Williams told him. "Also, please refer to me as 'Williams.'"
"Alright, alright," Alfred sighed, nodding his head as the man continued. Before he could speak, Dean Gregory came to the classroom and stood in the doorway, happy that the professor took his advice in informing the young man of a great opportunity to pursue his dream.
"Good afternoon," he said, walking in slowly with his hands tucked into the canary yellow slacks that matched his suit jacket. "Professor Gregory, Mr. Jones, it's nice to see you both. Alfred, I saw your speech in class today."
"I know. I saw you in the audience with this fine fellow," the young man said, schmoozing as he gestured to Professor Williams.
"Yes, about your speech," Dean Gregory continued. "It was very…uh…insightful! Yes, insightful!"
"Really?" Alfred asked, assuring that he really did do a good job. The professor looked at the dean blankly, but in his dark brown eyes, uncertainty was visible. "Thanks, dean! I'm glad I could enlighten you. In fact, I got straight-A's in my high school history classes!"
"We get the point, Mr. Jones," the professor said, as if he were trying to shut him up before he could start talking with a large amount of meaningless words.
Alfred F. Jones was nineteen years old, but had the maturity level of a ten year-old boy, at least to Professor Williams. His childlike appearance also conveyed this to anyone who would come across him in public. He had a darker shade of blond hair than most, and his eyes were the color of a clear sky at daybreak—they were so blue they were noticeable from just a few feet away. At five foot-nine, Alfred was handsome, but his looks only charmed because of their childlike wonder. As jovial and well-meaning as he was, he tended to get in trouble for pranks or his nonchalant, carefree attitude.
"Alfred, your professor and I have discussed something about your future," the dean said. With this, the young man looked at him with worry. Oh no, he thought frantically, am I on academic probation? Are they kicking me out? Oh, wait Alfred! Think positive! Maybe it's a good thing he's going to tell me? Oh God, I better listen!
"Yes, dean?" Alfred asked nervously, his heart beating rapidly in his chest as his palms grew sweatier by the minute. The dean looked at him with a serene expression, intriguing the young man even more about what he had planned to tell him.
"An archaeologist. Is that what you want to be?" he asked, moving closer to the young man. Alfred showed his
pearly, white teeth as he smiled at the thought.
"YES! Yes, I do! It has been a lifelong dream to travel and discover things!" he answered excitedly.
The dean giggled at his anticipative reaction as he walked to the professor's desk, picking up the fresh copy of the daily Washington Post. He unfolded it and flipped to the World Events section, turning to the recent event about how a group of archaeologists led by the renowned Walter Meyer, whom Alfred admired so much, discovered the tomb of an ancient Chinese prince near the Yangtze River. Black and white photos of some artifacts were shown in the newspaper, as well as the prince's corpse covered in a suit of pristine white jade.
"Hmm," the dean began. The professor just stared at his co-worker, then at his student. "Meyer Unearths Ancient Chinese Tomb Near Yangtze," he said, reading the title of the article on the top of the page, looking at Alfred with a smirk.
"Yes! Walter Meyer! I know who that guy is! He's my idol!" Alfred said frantically with excitement. It faded within a matter of seconds. "Wait, what does he have to do with my future?"
"Mr. Jones, Dean Gregory thinks you should…" Professor William's reluctance and pessimism got the best of him, but he still continued. "Well, we think you should join the university's archaeology program!"
Alfred's eyes widened and his jaw dropped, his smiling mouth showing his great satisfaction. He began to look at Dean Gregory happily, walking up to him and placing his hands on the man's large shoulders.
"I…what? Repeat what you just told me!" he commanded.
"GeorgeWashingtonUniversity is having an archaeology program, and I, well, we think you are a good candidate for the trip to China to learn more about the artifacts and possibly help with finding more!" the dean said. "It'll be so good for you, considering you are an…enthusiastic history major here." The professor could not believe he was letting someone like Alfred just go to Asia when his grades were on the brink of failure, but he knew that he'd feel better without him and his annoying behavior. Still, he just played along with the charade that gave Alfred the impression that he deserved it.
"Wow! Seriously! I'll meet Walter Meyer?!" he exclaimed.
"Yes, I believe so," the dean replied.
In an ecstatic frenzy, Alfred wrapped his arms so tightly around Dean Gregory that he began gasping for air. The young man, however, laughed and didn't pay any attention to his signal to let go.
"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Alfred squealed, hugging the man even tighter. Professor Williams walked over and tapped the young man on the shoulder, and promptly, Alfred let the dean go; he was breathing so heavily for a few moments, but then he continued talking.
"I'm sorry, dean," he told him. "I'm just so excited!"
"It's alright," Dean Gregory told Alfred. "Well, I guess I should tell you that there will be others on the trip."
"Like who?" Alfred questioned, eager to hear more.
"There are candidates from here, England, France, and Russia. Do you know Matthew Williams?" he replied.
"Yes! He's my roommate, actually. We are friends, but nobody really notices him," Alfred told him.
"Oh," the dean said, raising his eyebrows. "Well, the plane leaves on June 25th, and the trip is for four weeks."
"Cool! I can't wait!" the young man said, walking away from the two men. "I'll see you tomorrow!"
As the young man left the classroom, Professor Williams slowly approached Dean Gregory with ginger slowness. Their eyes met, and the professor looked at the dean strangely.
"Are you sure about this, Dean Gregory? Seems as though the kid has lost his mind," the professor said with sheer reluctance.
"Yes, I am. He'll be out of your hair in no time!" Dean Gregory replied.
Meanwhile, Alfred had already exited the building and met up with roommate and friend, Matthew. The two were alike in appearance—Matthew also had dirty blond hair, but his eyes were a darker shade of blue and they were as less noticeable as he was. Though he bore a kind heart, Matthew had a shy demeanor due to the fact that everyone ignored and misunderstood him. If he was in his college classroom among a bunch of classmates, he wouldn't be noticed even if he raised his hand to speak. Alfred always tried to encourage his friend to get more involved, and also, in order to be a good friend, he always did his part to introduce him to a group of people even if they failed to notice his presence afterwards. Now, it was one in the afternoon, and the two were hungry for lunch.
"Hey, want to stop by the burger place? They have a lunchtime special! You can get three double-pound cheeseburgers for two bucks!" Alfred said with excitement as he nudged his friend's arm persuasively.
"No, I'd rather have pizza or soup," Matthew said in his calm, soft-spoken voice. "Can't we just go to the pizza parlor?"
"No, I don't care for pizza! I could live off burgers for the rest of my life," the folly young man responded, disagreeing with his friend.
"Eh, what if there are other things to eat at the burger place? Like chicken tenders? A sub? Or even a seafood dish, even?" Matthew suggested, trying to sway Alfred from his obsession with burgers.
"Nah, get what you want," he said, pulling out money. "I'll get what I want."
Gus' Burger Stop was one of the most popular hangouts in their part of Washington, DC, where GeorgeWashingtonUniversity was located. Besides serving the best burgers in the city at affordable prices, they served other delectable dishes and even had a small arcade area where Alfred and Matthew would spend two hours a day to amuse themselves after the day's classes ended. Upon entering, the two sat at the busy counter, and were approached by the waitress, Ruby.
Ruby, her real name being Wilma Blair, had been well-acquainted with Alfred and Matthew, and she always knew about Alfred's obsession with burgers and soda. An African-America woman in her late forties, she had smooth brown skin with her black, coarse hair always tied in a tight bun. Everybody called her Ruby because of her outfits—her work uniform consisted of a bright red dress with a white frilly apron over it for aesthetic purposes. She smiled upon seeing Alfred, and took out her pen and pad of paper to write down their orders.
"Well, if it ain't The Hero! What can I get ya today, sugar?" Ruby asked.
"I'll have the lunch time burger special," Alfred said with a smile. Matthew was yet again unnoticed in this crowded burger place.
"Hmm, three double-pound burgers," Ruby said, jotting it down on her pad. "Can you handle it?" Alfred laughed, understanding her joke—she knew he loved burgers a lot.
"Hell, I scoffed down seven in one sitting once," he reminded her. "And I'll have a large soda with that, if you can."
"Oh, yes I can," she answered. Matthew tapped his friend's shoulder and he turned around—Ruby finally noticed him sitting there.
"Oh, yeah! Your friend! I'm sorry, Hero!" she said, giggling with embarrassment. "What can I get you?"
"Uh…a medium chicken tenders with a medium soda," he answered.
"That's all?" Ruby asked.
"Yes, thank you," Matthew said.
As the waitress walked to place their order slip on the spinner to the kitchen, the two waited for their food to be served to them so they could take it to an empty booth seat. Alfred's excitement grew, his mouth watering as he smelled the aroma of the juicy beef, tasty cheese, fresh lettuce and ripe tomatoes in his burgers as Matthew took his food. Luckily there was one booth seat left—all the rest had been taken up. Upon sitting, Alfred began devouring his burgers as if he were a wild dog. In fact, he always ate like that, much to the dismay of others. Sometimes, he would stop in before class and pick up a burger or two to eat in the middle of Professor Williams' lectures, leading to him being lectured himself for his unhealthy habits and unconventional eating times.
"MMMM!" Alfred said, moaning as he ate his food. "So good!"
"Alfred, do you ever concern yourself with your health?" Matthew asked. "In my biology class, we're learning about fats. Don't you realize you could get a heart attack if you keep eating the way you do?"
"Nah, I'll be fine. I just need soda to balance it out, that's all," he said casually, sipping some Coke from his straw.
"Coke? Really? Alfred, you're not going to reach thirty if you keep eating like this," Matthew protested. "I only tell you because I care."
"Don't worry. I'll be fine," Alfred said. "Besides, I have never gained a pound from all the burgers I eat. I'm happy."
"It's a wonder," his friend said with a sigh. "You have great metabolism."
"Thanks, dude," Alfred said. "Hey, so the dean pulled me aside today about an archaeology program at the university. There are a couple of guys from around the world who are going to China."
"Yeah! I'm going on that trip. I was picked," Matthew said.
"He told me, and I am SUPER EXCITED! We get to meet Walter Meyer! He was the one who discovered Celtic burial grounds under Stonehenge! Can you believe it? Maybe I can drop out of here and become a real archaeologist like him, working by his side and going on adventures with him," Alfred said, his mind going in a daze.
"Um…yeah," Matthew said, taking a few bites of his food.
"I'd love to meet him. He's literally the best archaeologist ever!" the young man added.
"I don't know, though. No one will notice me, and no one will even care too look for me if I am not on the plane," his friend said with apprehension.
"Dude, it'll be fun! Hell, it's a wonder Professor W is letting me go. My grades suck right now," Alfred said. "But I'm still taking the opportunity. At least the dean likes me. We'll have fun, man!"