Collin was still leaning on the fence post, reading from the massively thick paperback, Collection of Ancient Greek Novels, when Sam and Heather walked out of the women's dressing room in fresh outfits. Sam wore dark denim jeans and an unbuttoned bowling shirt over a tight white tank top. Heather had on a pair of low-rise True Religions and a t-shirt that showed off a tantalizing strip of her midriff.

"What were you reading?" Heather asked as Collin put his book away and slung his backpack over his shoulder.

He knew she was just being polite, but he was glad that she had started the conversation because that hint of exposed skin was threatening to consume his frontal lobe. "A novel for class. I'm taking a lecture on Ancient Greek Literature."

The three of them started walking on the track around the softball fields, heading towards the Cowell-Stevenson dining hall. A few people were playing frisbee in the middle of the expansive field. Scattered runners were doing laps.

"Oh, like the Iliad?" she asked as the trio stepped to the side to let a jogger pass.

He was about to say that the Iliad was actually an epic poem and not a novel, but Sam saved him from unnecessarily nerding-out.

"Collin is always reading something. If not for class, then it's for fun," Sam said. "Do you like to read, Heather?"

Last night, he and Sam had seen Heather walking while holding a pile of books. Sam really was playing wingman for him. He wondered what changed her mind about this whole bet he had going on with Tom. He wasn't going to split the money with her, if that's what she was thinking.

"I used to read more for pleasure, but these days I just don't have the time," Heather answered.

They turned up the path leading up to the white-stuccoed dorm buildings. A few people were playing hacky sack in the quad, others were lounging around with books. Someone called out, "Hey, Sam!"

A woman with chestnut hair cropped to her shoulders, an eyebrow piercing, and a rainbow necklace stood up and Collin noticed Sam bite on her lower lip. "Hey, Emily."

"Have you studied for that quiz in Gender and Post-coloniality?" the girl, who Collin assumed was Emily, asked, standing with her weight on one leg, her head cocked to the side.

"Not really," Sam answered. "Is that what you're doing now?"

When the girl nodded hopefully, Sam glanced over at Collin. He shrugged.

"Hey guys," Sam said, addressing Heather more than Collin. "Sorry to ditch you, but I totally forgot about this quiz and I really need to ace it."

Collin knew for a fact that Sam took all her classes for narratives and not for grades, but he just told her he understood.

Heather also nodded in agreement. "Gotta study. That's why we're here."

As Sam walked away from them, joining the girl in the grass, Collin looked over at Heather. "I'm still hungry. Please don't make me eat alone?"

"I'm famished." She shifted the weight of her backpack and smiled at him, her hazel eyes catching the sunlight, and for a moment he could see them in all their complexity: a ring of pale green flecked with gold and embedded in a sea of caramel. Then she blinked. Or a cloud moved. And the jade seemed to darken to emerald, and he noticed a speck of blue that wasn't there before. She had kaleidoscope eyes and suddenly he never wanted to look away.

But then she turned to continue on the path, and the spell broke.

Before following, Collin looked over his shoulder at Sam, expecting her to be giving him a thumbs up or mouthing some warning about not being an asshole. But all of her attention was on the girl who he had never met before.

He picked up his pace until he was walking alongside Heather. Hot Heather. Not in uniform. Not constrained by the dictate of customer-service-politeness. This was his chance.

Yet, his mind was blank.

It had been so long since he actually tried to seduce someone. Sure, he could talk it up with customers, had a knack for remembering details, and was never shy with a compliment, but this was different. He was on the hunt, and Hot Heather was his prey. He needed to get into the zone.

"So," Heather said, breaking the silence. "You and Sam, you're not, like, dating, right?"

The question caught him so off guard he choked on his spit and started coughing, his ears burning. He had to stop and collect himself.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to upset you," Heather said, misreading his reaction.

"No, no, you didn't upset me, but no. Never. Not even close. We're buds. Strictly, strictly platonic," Collin shook his head as he spoke. "Besides, she's a lesbian. One hundred percent." Avery's image floated through his mind, and he waved his hand in the air, trying to swat it away. "Lesbians don't want to date me."

"Well, that makes sense." She laughed, oblivious to what he had gone through in the past thirty-six hours. "I thought she was, but you never know."

They reached the dining hall and Collin opened the door, holding it so Heather could walk through. Then he took out his wallet from his back pocket and slid out his student ID. "I hardly ever eat on campus and I almost never use all my monthly meals. Do you mind if I swipe you in?"

Heather was unzipping her bag, presumably to pull out her own student ID, but looked up at Collin. "We hardly know each other. I couldn't let you do that."

"Please? I hate thinking of the money going to waste. I told my parents to switch to an all flexi-dollar plan, but..." he shrugged.

Heather pursed her lips, but then relaxed them into a smile. "Well, if you insist. Thank you."

Collin handed his ID over, saying he would pay for both meals. When the card was handed back, they walked over to the kitchen and each grabbed a tray, going in separate directions to find food.

When they sat down at an empty table, Collin noticed how different their selections were. He had grabbed a slice of pizza and a cup of Coke from the soda fountain. She had made a huge salad–with tofu, beats, and feta cheese on top–and was drinking water.

"Are you a vegetarian?" he asked, trying to keep any judgment from his tone.

"Not all the time," she said, piercing a beet with her fork. "You?"

Collin picked up his cheese pizza, folding the crust with one hand. "No. Just not a fan of pepperoni." He took a bite.

"Understandable."

Swallowing, Collin looked over at Heather. "So, not to be cliche, but what's your major?"

Heather let out a small chuckle. "It may be cliche, but it's an important question, right? I'm studying engineering."

"Wow," he couldn't hide that he was impressed. He wasn't exactly a huge fan of math, and anyone who was good enough at math to be an engineering major might as well be a genius, as far as he was concerned. "What made you want to be an engineer?"

"When I was a kid, I always wanted to be an inventor. I love the idea of creating something new. Designing the future, you know?" Heather took another bite and then asked, "How about you? What's your major?"

Collin took a sip of soda to delay his answer by a few seconds. "Well, while you are designing the future, I'm stuck in the ancient past. I'm a classics major. So, if you ever need some Latin translated, I'm your guy."

"Oh right, weren't you reading a Greek novel before?"

"Yes. I mean, what I was reading was already in English. I've also studied Ancient Greek, but my Latin is stronger." He smiled in what he hoped was a self-deprecating way.

A moment passed. "What kind of job do you hope to get as a classics major?"

"My parents keep asking me the same thing." Collin laughed. He knew it was an impractical major. Nothing like engineering. But this was college. Undergrad. Wasn't this the time to delve into the topics that really interested you?

"Fair enough," Heather continued unphased, "If you didn't choose your major based on career prospects, then what about it interests you?"

Collin took another bite of pizza, literally chewing over his answer before speaking. "With classics, you really can't get around the fact that you're studying a bunch of dead white guys. But, I find the Greeks and Romans fascinating. Their world was so different from our own, yet people call it the root of Western civilization. Makes me wonder about what it means to be human. What's universal about all of our experiences? I really think that by studying the 'other' we grasp a better sense of ourselves. As a trans guy, identity is something that I think about a lot."

Heather said nothing, but her brows shifted slightly as she grabbed another forkful.

"Sorry, did I totally just nerd-out on you? Ignore me if I made absolutely no sense." He wanted to disappear. Fuck the bet. This was stupid.

She swallowed, then took a sip of water. "Actually, that made perfect sense. I've never thought about history that way before."

He waited a second to see if she would say more. Maybe something about the fact that he was trans. But she didn't.

"My brain is a bit mush, to be honest. I was out dancing with friends last night. Got home later than usual." After her question about if they were dating, he omitted Sam's name.

"Oh, do you actually like to dance?" She put down her fork and pushed her empty tray towards the center of the table.

"Yeah." He looked at her quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"You don't just hit the clubs to hit on girls?"

Was she teasing him? There was a mischievous glint in her eye that hadn't been there before. Playing along, he raised his eyebrows and licked his lower lip. "I really do like to dance. Girls are just a bonus." A rush of heat flooded his chest, and he had to smile. "I'd go out tonight, but I have another early shift tomorrow."

"Me too."

Their plates were empty, and Collin had to head to his class soon. "Well, guess I'll see you bright and early, Heather." He stood. "My next class is starting soon."

"Thanks again for lunch, Collin. And maybe tomorrow I'll stop in and use that comp card you gave me. Be prepared with a recommendation." She also stood.

"Will do," Collin said, and then walked to place his tray on the conveyor belt that led to the dishwashers.

He wondered, did paying for her lunch count as a date? He doubted Tom would think so. But that was fine with him, because Collin realized that not only was Heather hot, but she was also cool, and he was looking forward to getting to know her better.