Office Hours, Monday, July 28

[tyler_gone]

Ring. Ring.

Tyler was confounded to notice his desk phone ringing when he got to his office. Almost no one had the number, and the people who did didn't seem likely to be calling at 9 a.m. on a Monday

"Durden," he answered suspiciously as he picked it up.

"Hello!" The voice on the other end caroled. "Thisssss is a singing telegram for Tyler Durden from Marla Singer!"

"I thought telegrams were in person," Tyler pointed out.

"They normally ah-are, but your island is not where the address said it would be so your wife gave us permission to deliver it over the phone!" the woman sang, clearly improvising a melody as she went along. "The message is, Good morning to you, good morning to you, you're sti-ill an asshole, please caa-all your lawyer." She sounded vaguely embarrassed, and stopped singing when she was done with that catchy number. "I wouldn't normally sing a swear, sir, but her order was very emphatic."

"I'm sure it was," Tyler said dryly. "Thanks."

Hanging up, he closed his eyes and swiveled in his chair before starting work on an email to Marla. Divorce in progress or not, she could at least tell him what fresh hell he was getting into before he made contact with the shark.

Comments

[tyler_gone]

She might not need notes, but he did; he neatly printed the formulations of the explosives he recommended on the sheet of paper and slid it across the desk for her to take if she wanted.

"You aren't planning on going with it, are you?" he had to ask, swallowing. River was a high price to pay, even if she was saving the world.

[moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com]

"No unnecessary causalties." No, she wasn't planning to, but then plans could be unpredictable. She picked up the sheet, folded it neatly and slipped it into her pocket. "How long will you stay?"

[tyler_gone]

"Hey, if it's you, it's an unnecessary casualty by definition," he said quietly -- the closest he would let himself come to lecturing.

Her question startled him, and he spun away in his chair slightly. "I don't know. I thought I could just stay the summer and take a break from real life," he confessed. "But turns out I really like teaching, and I love this crazy place. I might re-up for the fall and see how I feel in January."

"You have to go in a few weeks, don't you?" He sounded almost shy.

[moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com]

His concern made her smile and she let out a giggle, but at the question she turned serious. "My time here is coming to an end." There was sadness in her voice, and she paused.

Then, hesitating slightly, she asked: "Have you ever flown a spaceship?"

[tyler_gone]

Tyler's eyebrows shot up, and he said, apologetically, "I can drive a car. That's about as advanced as I get."

[moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com]

"I have a spaceship. I can fly it." He had helped her when she asked him and been happy to do so. This was the only thing she could think of offering in return.

[tyler_gone]

Somehow, Tyler still spoke River at a near-fluent level, and he detected the offer in her tone. "Were you thinking about maybe showing me?" he asked, trying not to sound too eager.

[moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com]

She smiled. "If you like. It was built by squirrels. I keep it in the junk yard." Of course, hiding emotions in his voice was of little use around River. It made her happy that he liked the offer though, and she appreciated that there was no need for complicated explanations.

[tyler_gone]

"Squirrels don't strike me as the best engineers," Tyler said skeptically. "Especially the ones here that drink rum all the time. You've been up in it and it's safe and everything?"

It was not a no.

[moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com]

"Safe," she said firmly. "And I'm a good pilot." The tone in her voice made it clear questioning that might not be a good idea.

[tyler_gone]

"I was questioning the squirrels, not you," Tyler pointed out.

Then, with a smile: "Sure. I would really like that. I teach Friday and I'm here Monday, but any other day works except probably not the weekend because I don't think our availability lines up at all, plus I'll be 5 this time. What's your schedule like?"

[moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com]

The smile was returned. "Work at the hotel Fridays, TA for Kerrigan on Tuesdays. Otherwise, nothing. Just call me when we can coordinate availability."

[tyler_gone]

"I'll do that," he promised. "And good luck with your ..." he gestured to the device. "Project. Let me know how it goes." If she could.

[moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com]

Another smile. "Thank you," River said quietly, turning off the holographic model and slipping the device back into her pocket. She turned, heading for the door.