Who: Ezra Fitz and Tinkerbell When: Late September Where: Ezra’s Office What: Coffee Delivery Rating/Warnings: Low/None Status: Complete
Tink hadn’t seen Ezra in a little bit, though they’d texted back and forth some. She thought she’d check in on him, as Tink was a ridiculously awkward person and she could use all the friends she could get. So, coffee in hand, she headed to Ezra’s office to say hello and wish him luck to the beginning of the school year.
Hopefully he wasn’t teaching a class or anything. She headed to the English department at UCI (wow, this school was freaking huge. O_O) and then was pointed toward a back office where she thought she could hear voices. She headed in that direction and poked her head into the open doorway.
Ezra was finishing up with a student who needed clarification on an assignment. He was being more stern than usual due to the bad mood he had been in ever since his birthday. But these students also needed to learn how to do things for themselves. They were supposed to be adults now, they couldn’t come to him for every little thing.
Just as the student was leaving, Tink popped her head in. It honestly brought a smile to Ezra’s face. He hadn’t seen her in awhile. “Hey,” he greeted standing up from his desk. “Did we have plans today?” he didn’t remember making any. Maybe he was starting to lose his memory too.
“No,” Tink answered honestly, as she stepped past the retreating student and into Ezra’s office. She glanced at the kid, then back to the professor, smirking softly. “This is crazy. I’ve never been on a university campus like this one before.” She said, and held out the coffee cup to him. “I just wanted to wish you luck to the start of the new year.”
“You can go,” Ezra said to the student back in that stern voice. The guy scurried off and Ezra turned his attention back to Tink. “It takes some getting used to,” he agreed. Even Ezra found himself wandering the enormous campus sometimes not quite sure of his whereabouts. “That was thoughtful of you. Thanks,” he said accepting the coffee. “I still have office hours but students barely ever come in,” he offered as his way of inviting her to join him for a bit.
"Yeeeeeeah," Tink stretched out the word as as as as as as she stepped around the chair opposite his desk. Then she sat. "I dunno, you're an awesome teacher and all? But I'm not the kind of student who would use office hours, anyway." She gave him an apologetic smile.
"Most students aren't," at least that from his experience. There were a few exceptions though but it was still rare. "And when exactly have you experienced my awesome teaching skills?" he joked sitting back down in his desk chair.
“Oh, well, I haven’t so much.” Tink and Ezra’s interactions had mostly been because of Ezra’s car, or chance encounters at local cafes, or meeting for drinks. She’d never had the pleasure of attending one of his classes. “But I can tell. You’ve got that teacher… thing.” She said, lifting a hand and waving it in his direction.
An amused grin appeared on Ezra’s face. “That teacher thing?” he took a sip of his coffee. “I suppose I chose the right career then. It would be a shame if I tried to be a doctor when I don’t have the medical thing,” he joked.
Tink laughed brightly--like a bell jingling on the air--and shook her head a little. “Yes, definitely a good thing you’re a teacher and not a doctor. The medical thing isn’t your thing.” She lifted her coffee for a gulp, then set it down on his desk. “What are you teaching your students, anyway? Something highly academic?”
“Your basic English and writing,” he shrugged taking another sip of his coffee before setting it back down on his desk. “One of my classes is reading The Bad Seed. Have you ever read it?”
“Ah, so… the ABC’s. I get it.” Tink teased him. Sure, she knew how to read and write. She didn’t do it a lot and almost never for fun. She’d much rather pull machines apart and put them back together again. “No, I’ve never read it. What’s it about?”
“Yes,” Ezra replied with a smirk. “That’s what we teach here at UCI. The alphabet.” He picked his cup back up taking another sip of his coffee before setting it back down on the desk. “It’s about a mother realizing her daughter is a murderer,” that pretty much summed it up. “You should read it, it’s one of my favorites.”
Tink laughed. “I’m glad someone’s teaching those slackers the first steps toward reading,” she teased. Then she nodded to his question. “Did they make a movie out of it? Because movies I can do.”
“Yeah there’s a movie. I still recommend the book.” Sure Ezra loved a good movie as much as the next guy. But there was just something about reading a good book. There was also the fact that elements seemed to get lost in movies too. “How are you though?” he asked Tink with another sip of his coffee. “Lots of cars need fixing?”
“I’m good. Anders moved back in, we’re happy again. Though there’s still some really weird Dream shit going on.” She shrugged, then lifted the coffee cup to sip from it. “Oh, yeah, I was doing this promotion thingy, including tire rotation and brake inspection with every oil change? And it brought in a ton more business.”
“Weird dream stuff?” That could mean a lot. From writing a book to switching genders. But Ezra wouldn’t pry. “Ah, good idea. Hopefully you got some repeat customers from it.”
“Yeah, it’s a long story,” Tink replied. She shrugged her shoulders gently, fiddling with the sleeve around her coffee cup. “Most of the customers who take advantage of my deals are ones I’ve already got, but I did have a few new folk come in with their cars. The more the merrier, I always say.” She gave him a smile. “Speaking of, aren’t you due for an oil change?”
He got the whole long story issue. From his experience dreams tended to do that. “I didn’t know about the deal or I would have come in,” he took another sip of his coffee. “Because yes I am due for an oil change, but now that I know I missed out on the deal I might just have wait until your next one.”
“I think I can extend the deal for a couple of days if you promise you’ll bring your Camry in.” Tink smirked softly as she lifted the coffee to sip from the plastic top. “Because I’m not sure when the next one will be.”
“I can do that. Tomorrow?” Why not? He had the time, he might as well get his car taken care of.
“Tomorrow sounds great.” Tink said, and pulled herself up from the chair. “I should let you get back to your professoring.” She grinned brightly. “Helping to shape the minds of the next generation and all that.” She said as she skipped toward the door. Her wings stayed hidden under her clothes, though. “But I’ll see you tomorrow!”