Chapter One
Katherine James, better known as Erin, or Jamie in some cases, was running very late to work. Well, very late by her standards. She noted, as she rushed through the security checkpoint at the Jeffersonian, that she still had a half an hour until she was required to present herself to Dr. Lawrence, the current head of the Egyptology department, but she had really wanted to be the first intern to look at the new shipment of artifacts that had come in last night. The fastest route to the Egyptology department was to cut across the the Medco-Legal Lab wing, using the courtyard as a shortcut to the archaeological section of the building set aside to her department. She dodged around a blond woman who was walking too fast, then turned the corner toward the Anthropology section at a near run.
"Oh my god I'm so sorry," she said as she practically bowled over someone coming out of the Forensic Anthropology lab. "Oh Zach, it's just you."
"I feel as though I should take offense to that tone," Zach said, straightening himself. He was carrying two large containers and looked very confused about something.
"I just meant that I'm glad it's you I ran into and not someone else," she explained, backtracking. "Some of those lab techs get a little rude with people not in their own department."
"I understand," Zach said, nodding. Erin smiled at his obtuse attitude. She had met Zach on her second day interning at the Jeffersonian and had immediately taken a liking to him. There was just something about him that made her feel as though she had to take care of him. Maybe it was the fact that he rarely understood things that normal people took for granted, a side affect of his high IQ she guessed. And his puppy face probably had something to do with her need to protect him.
"Hey, was that Naomi from Paleontology I saw running down the hallway?" Erin asked, putting a name to the face of the woman she had run by earlier, just a little late. "Did she finally come talk to you?"
"She did," he said, nodding, but his face held a confused frown. "I don't understand what she said though. She told me to 'Take a hint' but I don't understand what that means."
"Oh, Zach," she said with a sigh, then she reached up to pat his head, though he was almost an entire foot taller than she was. "I'll explain it to you later. But you look like you're in a hurry and I'm late."
"Right," he said, seeming to recall that he was, in fact, in a hurry. "Bye."
"See ya later," Erin said, taking off down the hallway again, this time at a slightly slower pace so as to not kill anyone she ran into.
"Ms. James, may I have a word?" Erin looked up to see Dr. Lawrence standing over her work table. She had spent all morning, and most of the afternoon, cataloging and authenticating the artifacts that they had received that day. They were really beautiful pieces, there was nearly an entire tablet of hieroglyphs, the paint colors still visible, though many of the figures were illegible now. Erin had been removing pieces of dirt and rubble that had clung to the piece, and she had jotted down her best guesses as to the symbols so she could try to decipher it later.
"Of course Dr. Lawrence," she said, carefully setting the tablet back into its protective case, and only after it was closed, removing her gloves.
Dr. Lawrence rarely left his office after he gave out the assignments to the two current interns. The department was much smaller than many of the others in the Jeffersonian, mainly because most of the people employed in this unit were off on privately funded digs and research projects.
"Ms. James, you have been employed here for nearly three years now, correct?" Dr. Lawrence asked when they were in his office with the door closed.
"Yes Dr. Lawrence," she replied, smiling. "I interned for Dr. Reilley before she retired.
"As far as I was told, you came to intern here as a grad student and were expected to finish your dissertation within a years time, the end of which would see you become a regularly employed doctor of Egyptology," he said, and Erin had to hold back the sigh.
She had gotten a hundred lectures from her parents that had started out similar to this one, about how she was taking too long in school, she should have been done my now, how did she expect to make a living if she was too lazy to do the work and get her doctorate? The list went on and on.
Privately, she thought it was very hypercritical of her parents to say things like that since neither of them had more than a high school education, and she was paying for schooling herself. What did it matter to them if she took a few extra years to finish her dissertation?
"Yes sir, that is correct," she responded, resisting the urge to shift her weight from foot to foot.
"Then can you explain why it is that it has been three times that long and you are still working as an intern?" He asked.
"Sir, I don't understand what the problem is," Erin said, trying to keep her voice polite. "I'm a very good intern, I do exceptional work for you. Do you want to fire me?"
"Not at all Ms. James," he said, and she frowned in confusion. "This is a learning facility. You are no longer learning anything from us here and we would like to make room for another student to study here. I have recommended that, once you are certified, you are offered a permanent position here."
"Oh," she said, her thoughts rushing through her head almost faster than she could recognize them. One of the main reasons she had put off finishing her dissertation was because she enjoyed working here so much and she didn't want to start over as someones assistant in some small facility, which was where most people in her field without their own money to fund digs started out. "I… don't know what to say, sir."
"I was hoping you would say something along the lines of how much longer it will take you to finish your dissertation and graduate," he said, one of his eyebrows raised.
"Of course, sir," she said, nodding her head. "I can have my dissertation subject brought to you by tomorrow for approval. If you approve I can arrange to give my presentation in a couple months."
"So soon?" He asked, surprised at the short amount of time.
"I have been working on it for three years sir," she said, sounding a little impish now. "I have had plenty of time to conduct my research in that period."
"Excellent," he said, nodding. "Get it to me tomorrow then. You may leave for the day." It was an obvious dismissal, but she frowned at the idea.
"Actually sir, if you don't mind, I'd like to stay and finish the piece I have been working on," she said, hoping she didn't sound rude.
"Very well," he said, nodding as though he had expected the request. "I am leaving, and Paulo has already left for the day. You know how to secure the place so you may stay as long as you like." Paulo was the other intern. He had started almost four months ago and Erin had never had a conversation with him that lasted more than a few sentences. He was either very private, or he disliked her, she hadn't been able to figure out which yet.
"Thank you sir," Erin said, turning to leave the room. "I'll see you tomorrow morning."
She worked far later than she had meant to on the tablet. Every time she thought she had finished, she would find a new piece of dirt to profile, or a new groove, or a new fleck of paint. Judging by the first dozen flecks and particulates she had analyzed, the tablet was authentic, it had resided in a tomb that had been recently discovered, along with the other things they had been sent with that shipment and many more things that had been kept in Egypt.
The sun had gone down by the time she decided the tablet was well enough documented that she could leave. She made multiple copies of the different variations of hieroglyphs she had found so that she could take them home to translate.
"Katherine!" She turned around in the parking lot to see who had called her, though she recognized the voice.
"Zachary," she replied, waiting for him to catch up to her before continuing to her car. "Do you need a ride home today?"
"Yes, if you don't mind," he replied. Throughout the past three years she had been trying to get him to learn to drive, and he had constantly refused, which had somehow resulted in their current arraignment. At least three times a week he would stay late at the lab and come to her for a ride home. The other days he was at the lab, when he left on time, he got a ride home with the friend he lived near.
"Of course not," she replied, unlocking the doors. "It's on my way home anyway."
"Thank you," he said, putting his own work into the backseat at the same time she did, then climbing into the passengers seat.
"You know, I'd be happy to teach you how to drive," Erin said, closing her door and starting the search through her purse, which was actually more of a backpack, for her keys. "I enjoy teaching."
"No thank you," Zach said, frowning as she started the car. "I have no desire to be in control of a ton of metal."
"Alright," she said, backing out of her spot. "So tell me about Naomi."
"I've been informed that it is what Angela calls a 'guy to guy' type of conversation," he said, frowning out the window.
"Well a females insight into relationships can be very helpful," Erin said, used to having to reason her way to things when it concerned Zach. "As you are a male you will not understand the female's point of view in the way that another female is able to do so."
"I find no fault in your logic," he said, and she allowed herself a grin."About one month ago Naomi and I slept together and since then she has not returned any of my calls. I was under the impression that calling was the proper thing to do in such situations. Today I asked her about her avoidance and she told me to 'take a hint'. When I explained to her that I didn't understand what hint she was talking about, she told me that if she explained it, it 'would no longer be called a hint'. Then she told me to 'ask my friends, if I had any'. I asked Angela and Hodgins but neither of them did a satisfactory job of explaining what the hint was."
"People who are not as intelligent as you are have their own way of speaking," Erin said, feeling sorry for Zach.
"I've noticed that in the past but usually I am able to figure it out," Zach said, his face drawn in confusion. "Hodgins told me that Naomi is avoiding me because I did not please her sexually."
"That is most likely what she meant by 'take a hint'," Erin said, simultaneously feeling as though she should laugh, and feel sorry for Zach. "People like Naomi are used to a certain type of sexual partner," she continued, trying to find a good way to explain the situation that wouldn't make Zach feel bad, though she had realized long ago that he didn't react the way most people would to such situations.
"Yes, Hodgins also informed me that what I previously thought was kinky and wild is in fact, basic," Zack continued. Erin had to really fight that time to keep herself from laughing, though it was in pity, for the most part.
"Don't take it personally," Erin said, turning onto a busier street towards Zack's apartment. "Naomi sleeps with a lot of people. I can think of four at the institute that I know of besides you. You are just not her type."
"I'm not her type?" Zack asked, and Erin sighed, trying to think of a way to explain that now.
"People like Naomi have a certain type of person that they usually gravitate to when searching for new sexual partners. Naomi's type is the kind of guy who sleeps with lots of women and does not form any emotional attachment. You are too nice to fit into her usual type, which means that she will lose interest in you faster than normal."
"Usually I am described as too analytical or too logical," Zack said with a sigh. "I've never been described as 'too nice' before. I thought 'nice' was a quality that women appreciated in sexual partners."
"Some do," Erin said, shaking her head a little. "I don't think you are too nice, just too nice to fit Naomi's usual type of partner."
"What is your type of partner?" Zack asked. Erin snorted a little, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. Coming from anyone else, that line would be consider a bad pick up line, but coming from Zack it was just curious.
"I don't know," Erin said, shrugging. "Not the same as Naomi's type, that's for sure. I dislike the jock type that Naomi seems to like. I usually prefer to be able to have an intelligent conversation with someone."
"But you think 'nice' is a good quality?" He asked, still frowning in thought.
"Yes. Nice is good. So is intelligent, romantic, and empathetic. And humor is good too," Erin said, making the turn into the long driveway up to the garage that Zack lived above.
"I tried to be all of those things in relation to Naomi," Zack said with another sigh. This one a little impatient that he wasn't understanding why Naomi hadn't thought those were good qualities.
"Naomi wants someone who has a lot of sexual experience," Erin said, giving one last attempt at an explanation he would understand.
"Oh," he said, and she felt a little bad for saying it that way. She pulled the car up in front of that garage just as she had many times before over the past three years, and waited until he got his things out of the back before putting it back into drive.
"Zack," she said, rolling down the window to talk to him. "Don't spend too much time being upset over Naomi. She isn't worth the time."
"I agree," he said, leaning down to speak into the window.
"Oh, good," Erin said, smiling. "You looked upset so I felt like I had to say something."
"I'm not upset, I was thinking actually," he said. "I have a proposition for you."
"Okay?" She said, tilting her head in curiosity. "Go ahead."
"I have come to the conclusion that I am undereducated in the area of sexual encounters," he said, and she raised an eyebrow, trying not to laugh again. His next words made her desire to laugh leave her completely. "I'd like you to teach me."
"Um, what?" She asked, knowing she had just heard him wrong.
"You seem to have a very good understanding of such situations," he began, and she was sure she looked like a deer caught in the headlights by this point. "You continuously tell me that you enjoy teaching. You just explained that your type fits someone similar to me, with a couple exceptions. Also, you are attractive, and one of my only female friends." She opened her mouth, then shut it again, not sure where to start.
"You think I'm attractive?" She asked, because that was the least surprising part of what he had said.
"Of course," he said, as though confused why she would ask. "You have very symmetrical features and your bone structure is excellent."
"Uh, well thanks then," she said. "Just to be clear, you want me to have sex with you?"
"I want you to further my knowledge in the area, yes," he said. "I have always lacked an understanding of interacting with women, and as you pointed out earlier, I think that is because I do not have a female perspective on the situation." Of course, her own words turned back on her.
"You want me to have sex with you so that you can pick up other women with better results?" Erin asked, and this time she couldn't hold back the chuckle at how ridiculous all of this sounded. If it were anyone but Zack, she would have driven away and probably done her best to avoid them in the future, but she was sure he didn't understand the situation he had put her into.
"I don't understand what you mean by 'pick up'," he said, frowning again.
"'Pick up' is another term for finding a sexual partner," she said, then sighed. "Look, I need to think about all this. Can I talk to you tomorrow?"
"Of course," he said, backing up from the window. "Thank you for taking me home. Good night."
"Night," Erin said, shaking her head as she pulled away from the garage. If it were anyone besides Zack, she would have immediately said no and not even considered it. But it was Zack. And he probably really did just want a learning experience.
The term, 'if it were anyone but Zack' had been popping up in Erin's thoughts more and more recently, though she wasn't sure why. She had always had a soft spot for him, just because of his social ineptness and puppy like qualities. And he was attractive. Maybe this wouldn't be such a bad idea. They already got along well, and as long as they both understood that there would be no emotional attachments, neither of them would be hurt by the situation. And it would be interesting. It had been a long time since Erin had had a sexual encounter of any kind, and it might be fun to teach someone the exact way that she liked things. Most guys didn't really care, or stick around long enough to find out how she liked things.
She was still thinking about how this whole situation had even occurred when she got home, which was why she almost missed the note taped to her apartment door. She unlocked the door, balancing her papers from work in one arm with her backpack hoisted over one shoulder, then grabbed the note with her other hand when the door was open. It was a single, blue shaded paper, which told her immediately that it was from her mother. Her mom always used that shade of stationary for some reason. She claimed it was more sophisticated, though Erin had no idea where she had heard that from.
She set her things down on the table before unfolding the note.
"Kathy," the note began, and Erin grimaced at the nickname that her mother insisted on calling her.
"I stopped by this afternoon to see if you wanted to get dinner with me, but you were gone, as always. With the amount of time you spend at that place I'm surprised you even bother having an apartment at all. Maybe if you put that much energy into your schooling you would have graduated by now and you could afford a place that isn't such a dump.
Love, Mom."
Erin glanced over the note a second time, then tossed it onto the table. Her mother left her a note similar to this one at least once a week. Usually on Thursday's, which was why she always made sure to work late of Thursday. Being at work was the excuse that caused the least amount of complaining from her mother. She considered telling her parents about getting her dissertation approval the next day, but if it wasn't approved that would just be cause for more complaint.
While her mind was on the dissertation, Erin hunted through her bookshelves for the subject introduction portion of her work that she could bring in to be looked over the next day, and made sure to set it on the table so she wouldn't forget it in the morning. She hadn't eaten since her late lunch that afternoon, but it was almost nine now, which was too late for her to make something, so instead she went through her end of the day routine of brushing her teeth, changing into pajamas, and laying out her clothes for the next day.
When all of this was done, she got comfortable on her bed with the hieroglyphs from that day spread over her lap. She got to work with a pen, writing down all the possible variations of each symbol's meaning, but was only able to translate a few words. The rest had been too faded to get an accurate shape of the letters. She set them on the far side of the bed, then turned her lamp off and slid under the covers. If she agreed to Zack's idea, she would have to keep her work somewhere besides the unused side of her bed, which was currently cluttered with various books, tools, non valuable artifacts, and papers from work, along with a few clothing items.
She almost got up to continue working when she realized that she had already decided to tell him yes. Maybe if she focused on her work for a while longer she would change her mind. But it was late, and she was determined not to get caught in traffic the next morning.