Room 302, Friday Morning

[not_a_moonie]

Alana had a long day of travel ahead of her: Rickshaw to the causeway, cab to BWI, Portalocity to Robot Kingdom, then a shuttle to Landfall and another cab to her dad's house. At home, she was registered for a couple community college classes, but she pretty much figured they'd be a way to mark time until got drafted. That was how things usually

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[rebelseekspizza]

"The books are staying, huh?"

Dante couldn't stay long: he was on his way to work. But he took up some space in the doorway while he could, watching her.

[not_a_moonie]

"The ones I could stand to give up, anyhow," Alana said, with a crooked smile. "A couple others might have ended up in my suitcases."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Shoulda brought more bags," Dante said, smiling a touch. "Could start your own crazy Earth library."

[not_a_moonie]

"Believe me, I kept the craziest ones," Alana reassured him. "But maybe I should have tried to ship more of 'em home. I missed my shot."

She shifted on the bed, patting the space next to her if he wanted to sit.

"So, what are you up to today?

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante had a few minutes. He walked on in, taking the seat she'd offered him with a sigh. "Work," he said, "Radio. More work. Then I'm meeting up with some friends."

[not_a_moonie]

"Sounds like a pretty busy day," Alana observed. "I get rickshaw, cab, airport, portal, shuttle, cab, then home. Wanna trade days?"

[rebelseekspizza]

"Do I sound like an asshole if I say 'not really'?" Dante said. Trying to look cute, yes. "You get to sleep at the end of it, though, right?"

[not_a_moonie]

"That's the dream," Alana acknowledged, flashing a brief smile -- Dante's cute look really was pretty cute. "But watch, Even will want to keep me up and have girl talk or something."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Just say 'nope, not now, sleep,'" Dante said sagely. "And don't let anybody stop you. Doesn't matter how glad they are you're back."

[not_a_moonie]

"I can blame the jet lag," Alana said. "Or -- portal-lag. Whatever you want to call it."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Culture shock's a good one too," Dante said, nudging her playfully with a shoulder. "You'll figure it out. What's up for you next week?"

[not_a_moonie]

"I registered for a couple classes at the community college," Alana told him. "Just general studies stuff. It's not like I know what I want to do with my life."

[rebelseekspizza]

"So you get out of this place and you start hitting the books right away?" Dante said. "Doesn't seem right."

[not_a_moonie]

"I had the whole summer off," Alana pointed out. "I dunno, I think it'll be nice to stay busy."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Yeah, but a summer here's just kind of its own thing, you know?"

Dante shrugged. Wasn't like he knew better or anything. Just... yeah.

"You feel ready for it?"

[not_a_moonie]

Alana shrugged back at him, not sure how to answer his first question.

"As I'll ever be, I guess," she said. "I told Ezra they might need to drag me off kicking and screaming, but I think I'm past that."