Somewhere nearish to UCLA, Monday afternoon
Jaye was getting her own car already. She'd made that decision the instant she picked up her phone and heard Mahandra ask, "And where were you all weekend? I called four times. Maybe five. I know it was about an entire hands' worth of calling."
"I was out of town," Jaye said slowly, eyeing the old woman next to her who was eyeing her back, probably thinking she was an incredibly rude girl for talking on her cell phone on a bus.
"Again? That was your excuse last weekend."
"I was out of town last weekend, too," Jaye said, but she tended to keep Jarod-related stuff on the down low just in case. Sometimes she had tact.
"Was this the same trip? I hope not, because you didn't say anything about it when I finally got a hold of you," Mahandra said.
"No, different. Jack came back into town, needed me to help him with something," Jaye said.
"Are you taking lessons in cryptic at school?"
"No, but I'm sure it's a major somewhere," Jaye said, eyeing the old woman again. She was glaring now. "Look, I don't know if I can talk about this here..."
"...And now I'm automatically assuming the worst. Do you want this, Jaye? Because you know what the worst is in my brain."
Jaye was pretty sure the old woman's eye was twitching with the effort to keep glaring.
So what the hell. "I had to help save the world by breaking into a supermarket and ripping open like, hundreds of dollars of merchandise and then we were chased by robots with lasers until the evil genius fell in love with me and we conned him," she said.
The old woman's expression changed quite a bit, and now she was doing everything possible to avoid looking at Jaye.
Mahandra was silent for a moment. "Someone's listening to you, aren't they?"
"Yep. And then we went on a trip to the 49th century. I just got back last night," Jaye said. "Ha! That's what you get for trying to listen in on my conversations!"
"Jaye, what have I told you about public transportation?"
"You meet the most interesting people?"
"Something like that. So how was class?"
"Stupid and boring. You?"
"Boring and stupid." Pause. "Want to both get into a bar with fake ID's and talk on the phone like we're there together?"
Jaye nodded enthusiastically. "I will find a happy hour."
Mahandra would be very confused when she heard Jaye talking to an elephant on a bottle of amarula at said happy hour, but after hearing Jaye's total lie about her weekend, it wouldn't be too much of a shock.
"I was out of town," Jaye said slowly, eyeing the old woman next to her who was eyeing her back, probably thinking she was an incredibly rude girl for talking on her cell phone on a bus.
"Again? That was your excuse last weekend."
"I was out of town last weekend, too," Jaye said, but she tended to keep Jarod-related stuff on the down low just in case. Sometimes she had tact.
"Was this the same trip? I hope not, because you didn't say anything about it when I finally got a hold of you," Mahandra said.
"No, different. Jack came back into town, needed me to help him with something," Jaye said.
"Are you taking lessons in cryptic at school?"
"No, but I'm sure it's a major somewhere," Jaye said, eyeing the old woman again. She was glaring now. "Look, I don't know if I can talk about this here..."
"...And now I'm automatically assuming the worst. Do you want this, Jaye? Because you know what the worst is in my brain."
Jaye was pretty sure the old woman's eye was twitching with the effort to keep glaring.
So what the hell. "I had to help save the world by breaking into a supermarket and ripping open like, hundreds of dollars of merchandise and then we were chased by robots with lasers until the evil genius fell in love with me and we conned him," she said.
The old woman's expression changed quite a bit, and now she was doing everything possible to avoid looking at Jaye.
Mahandra was silent for a moment. "Someone's listening to you, aren't they?"
"Yep. And then we went on a trip to the 49th century. I just got back last night," Jaye said. "Ha! That's what you get for trying to listen in on my conversations!"
"Jaye, what have I told you about public transportation?"
"You meet the most interesting people?"
"Something like that. So how was class?"
"Stupid and boring. You?"
"Boring and stupid." Pause. "Want to both get into a bar with fake ID's and talk on the phone like we're there together?"
Jaye nodded enthusiastically. "I will find a happy hour."
Mahandra would be very confused when she heard Jaye talking to an elephant on a bottle of amarula at said happy hour, but after hearing Jaye's total lie about her weekend, it wouldn't be too much of a shock.