This was the first time he’d treated her like a human being and not an office slave. Putting on a serious face she replied, ‘Nothing, Charles.’ ...he climbed into the SUV and he shut the door behind her. After the initial awkwardness the date proceeded nicely. The drive to the restaurant was cordial. Charles asked Heather about her family and her days at WTAMU. He didn’t mention work a single time. Heather was unable to ask him any questions because he shot them off like missiles. The same. .” My finger stroked my mustache. “The only symbol that is not on any of the doors is this one...” I stepped upon the glaive shape that served as the apex to the Mural of Enlightenment. Depressing it caused both it and the elemental circle to flash, then shut down with a sizzling crackling noise – a clear sign that that was not the right pattern. But I had reset the symbols – none glowed now. “There is only one step which begins a journey...” I said, recalling the cantos. “Second verse. The. We went through the doors into the kitchen where there was a long counter stacked with plates and bowls, knives and forks, and a long line of serving bowls filled with eggs, bacon, and many kinds of bread and jam, waffles, and big tubs of butter. It was obvious what to do. I took a tray and a plate and went down the line. I took lots of waffles and loaded them with syrup and butter. Using a set of tongs, I grabbed a handful of bacon. The other girls had taken much less, I noticed, and had. Since neither Danielle or I were in any shape to drive I offered to pay for a taxi, but Danielle suggested that she should stay the night at my hotel room — it would be easier for her to get her Mini Cooper in the morning. One thing led to another, and that’s when it all began. We weren’t stumbling drunk, just a little too buzzed to drive safely or legally. We went back to my hotel room, where I gave Danielle a T-shirt of mine to sleep in. I offered to sleep on the couch, but she insisted that.