“I’ll see you later, dad.”
Georgia ushered Keliah out of the door first and they took the elevator down to the parking lot. Keliah walked slowly behind Georgia, listening as her heels echoed around the parking lot whenever she took a step. Georgia pressed her key and Keliah heard an engine began to run. She looked to her left to see a black Porsche with a license plate reading GEORGIAGRL.
“Really Professor Kerouac?”
“What?”
“You can afford a Porsche? I may need to start teaching.”
“Get in.”
Georgia laughed. Keliah listened to the sound of the smooth engine as Georgia drove.
“You know school is that way right?”
“Mmhmm.”
Georgia calmly tapped the steering wheel with her thumb. She let her convertible top down, as it was a calm day outside.
“Okay then. I hope you’re not trying to kidnap me because I’m pretty sure everyone at the hospital saw me leaving with you.”
“Trust me, I’m not…You hungry?”
“Yeah I am, actually.”
As if on cue, Keliah’s stomach grumbled. Georgia drove them deep through the city and parked outside of a restaurant that Keliah had never been to before. It was black inside and the outside was brown. Typical eatery. It was noisy when Georgia and Keliah walked inside so Georgia asked the waiter for a table outside on the deck. The waiter took two menus and sat them at a table outside. It was nice weather for November. The sky was blue with only few ominous clouds and the city was quiet with the noise of a few cars zooming by and the chatting amongst the people sitting around them.
“Is there a kids menu I can get?”
The waitress raised an eyebrow before handing Keliah the colorful paper menu and the four-pack of crayons. Georgia stifled her laugh and began to scan her adult menu. “
You know what you’re gonna get?”
“Yeah. Grilled cheese. You can never go wrong with that.”
“Oh come on Keliah. Get out of your eating comfort zone. Order something from my menu.”
Keliah took the menu and began to study it, searching for something that seemed appealing to her. She spotted a double bacon burger and settled for it. She could splurge this once. Georgia chose the same burger as well and ordered for both of them. After the waitress brought out drinks to their table, Keliah handed hope a red crayon. Georgia raised a brow at Keliah.
“Play with me.”
Keliah put her kids meal in the middle of the table so Georgia could access the tic-tac-toe board.
“I’ll be the X and you can be the O. Older people first.”
Georgia grinned and marked her O in the middle of the board. Keliah smiled and wiggled her eyebrows knowing she was caught.
“Smooth move.”
“I know.”
Georgia boasted. Keliah placed her diagonal from her professor’s O. It went on and on and Georgia ended up winning…five times in a row.
“You cheated.”
Georgia giggled.
“Keli, how in the world could I have cheated at tic-tac-toe?”
“I don’t know, you tell me.”
“Okay, I definitely didn’t cheat. You’re just a terrible tic-tac-toer."
Keliah was about to say something about Georgia’s improper English when their food arrived.
“Smells delicious.”
Keliah dug into her burger and Georgia purposely waited to see her reaction.
“Oh my god! This is like the best burger in the world!”
“I told you.”
Keliah munched on her hamburger, table manners be dammed while simultaneously stuffing fries in her mouth
“Slow down, we have time.”
Georgia took her time eating her salad, and then ate her burger. She watched as Keliah got ketchup and mustard on both corners of her mouth. She was like a three year old at her own birthday party.
“Need a napkin?”
“Thanks.”
Keliah said with a mouth full of food. She took the napkin and wiped her mouth delicately. After washing down her burger with a coke, Keliah opened her menu again.
“So, what’s dessert?”
Georgia chuckled.
“How do you eat like this and still manage to keep a nice body?”
Shit. What the hell was in that hamburger?
Georgia would never be so forth coming about her thoughts. Georgia didn’t mean to say it like that. Like Georgia checked out her body any time she wore something that could be categorized as inappropriate to school. Maybe Keliah didn’t catch it.
Keliah grinned smugly and raised a brow.
“You think I have a nice body?”
She caught it.
“Well I mean you are on the nation’s best soccer team. I don’t think you could be a fat ass.”
Georgia blushed and pretended that a car driving by suddenly had caught her attention.
“Very true. But yes, I do have a very nice body. I don't mind you looking.”
Keliah narrowed her eyes at her professor as she put emphasis on her last sentence.
“O-Okay.”
Georgia bit her lip trying to rid her brain from displaying several vivid images of Keliah. When Keliah and Georgia were done, Georgia paid for their meal without batting an eye and her and Keliah walked around to sight see stores and window shop while they let their food digest. After an hour, Georgia drove Keliah back to the campus. Georgia parked in her teacher parking spot and turned off
