"Pre-law? That's brilliant!" She said as she tried her best to help him with all of the items he had brought to her room. But Rick had a good handle on it all, and he let him be as he set everything up. She was surprised (in a good way) at all of the trouble he had gone to giving her a proper welcome. While Alessa had come to Normalcy to get away from her life in Boston, she had to admit that it was really nice having at least one person that she knew.
Alessa had been unpacking since before dawn, and the site and smell of the pizza made her stomach grumble a bit. She had been so busy that she hadn't even realize that she hadn't stopped to eat. She picked up a slice of pizza, and took a bite. It tasted so good that she let out a small "mmm" sound in the process. She smiled sheepishly at him.
"Well, actually," she said with very little pause. "I needed a break from the fast-paced life in Boston. I was in the marathon when the bombings occurred, got a small case of PTSD, and everything sort of seemed too hectic for me at the time. So this teaching position is my sabbatical. I figure after a year or two of the quiet life I'll be ready for the emergency department again."
She took another bite of her pizza, and washed it down with a sip of her beer. "What about you? The last I saw you you were still a priest. Did something happen?"