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The first night I noticed her in class my attention was caught by her extremely short skirt and extremely short hair. Then I noticed her pale skin, glowing the more for the dark hair and the startling blue eyes. After a couple high school crushes on them, I was especially susceptible to blue-eyed brunettes. After class,we were standing next to each other, nose-to-nose with our reflections in the window, watching the bus stop through the rain. We exchanged invisible acknowledgement of each other’s presence. I glanced at her to confirm and then quickly looked back across Nineteenth Avenue. I knew I would have to speak first. “Uh, how… do you like… that class?” “I like it,” she answered, looking up at me but not lifting her head. She was short and perfectly proportioned; I was tall, gangly, and hunched. She added to her answer, with an impish grin I would come to savor, “I don’t think I’ll read any of the books, but the ideas are interesting.” “Yeah, I know what you mean. This is I think the third time I’ve been assigned Plato’s Republic, and I still haven’t read it. Are you a philosophy major?” “No. Anthropology. Are you a philosophy major?” “Not exactly. I just sign up for what looks interesting at registration. Most of my classes are in philosophy though.” I liked her a lot, and because of it choked. Now anything I said was a stall until the charm arrived, until the snappy repartee forced its way out of my mouth, as in movies. Of course, it never did. In the meantime, my conversation would resemble questions on a census form. But then I noticed a copy of Jude the Obscure among the books she hugged to her chest. I asked, “You into Hardy?” “Yes. I love him. I’m going to read all of his books. Do you like him?” “Yeah. Especially his poetry.” “I haven’t read it yet. . . “ Our bus splashed to a stop across Nineteenth Avenue. Everyone bolted out the door and stampeded across the street. She and I were among the first to reach the bus so there were plenty of empty seats. I stood behind her as she slid into one. I paused. She glanced at me. I accepted the invitation and sat beside her.
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