Find Me

## Meta

**Timing:** pre-"No One Older"

**Setting:** University of Sydney campus

## Text

Charlie grabs the books she needs for the evening from her locker and dumps them in her bag.

From the very bottom, her mobile chirps.

She sighs, digs it out.

/**CptnJEJones:** u on campus?

/**CKDarling:** yes. why?

/**CptnJEJones:** can u find me? i'm lost

Charlie rolls her eyes.

/**CptnJEJones:** think i'm walking in circles

/**CptnJEJones:** haven't seen nyone for a bit

/**CptnJEJones:** and there're trees

/**CKDarling:** gps on your mobile?

Charlie swears she can hear the face-palm.

She shoulders her bag, mobile in hand, exits the engineering building.

/**CptnJEJones:** no good

/**CptnJEJones:** says i'm IN the design bldg but

/**CptnJEJones:** i was just there and this isn't it

/**CptnJEJones:** too many trees

Charlie snorts.

/**CKDarling:** find a landmark

Five quick steps toward—

/**CKDarling:** and STAY THERE

/**CptnJEJones:** aye-aye mon capitane

—the /**teensy** grove of trees nearest the design building.

/**CptnJEJones:** k. at a place where 2 paths cross, next to a HUGE gum and there's a little pond thing

/**CKDarling:** DON'T MOVE

/**CptnJEJones:** i am a stone

She's there inside of five minutes.

"/**Charlie!**" Jackson lunges, falls to his knees at her feet. "Thank you thank you thank you!"

Charlie forces a smile off her face. "Get up, you dork." Tugs at his jacket collar.

"Let me grovel properly." Clings to her knees.

"That's enough, Jones."

"Okay, okay." Jackson heaves himself to his feet, brushes off his knees. "Oh!" Digs something from his bag. "For you!" Beams. "It's a glow-in-the-dark hippopotamus!"

Charlie accepts with an un-understanding furrow of her forehead.

Jackson greys, goes all twitchy. "Can I—"

Charlie's stance shifts to defensive.

Jackson flutters. "I thought it would be a great idea to surprise you on campus with a grand, uh, gesture, but, ah, I don't know your schedule and also—" Frowns at the plastic. "—a hippopotamus." Holds out his hands. "Can I just take it back and we forget this happened?"

Charlie's frown takes on pout-like qualities. "I like hippopotamuses." Strokes its head. "They're more dangerous than even crocodiles."

"I'll assume that's why I knew you would love it when I saw it."

Charlie huffs a laugh, nods at his bag. "Awfully full for a hippopotamus."

"Wha ...?" Jackson double-takes it. "Right! One of my old professors works here now and had some kind of emergency at a property of his by the bay so he asked me to be—" He preens. "—a 'guest lecturer' in one of his classes—kind of a last minute fill-in thing—so I showed up, talked for a while about working in the design field and it went great! And then I thought, 'Hey! This is Charlie's school! What a great idea it would be to surprise her on campus!' except I didn't have time to get a proper map ... or directions ...." Rubs his neck. "Yea." Deflates. "So, I've got a bag of models—now minus a hippo—and no sense of direction so I kinda really want to find a dark hole and hide but just now I had fantastic idea to offer you dinner as thanks for finding me and I am /**so** glad you did or I would've frozen to death before I got out of there."

Charlie rolls her eyes. "Jones, there were three paths and, like, a dozen trees. How do you run marathons without winding up in the harbour?"

Chuckles weakly. "Clearly marked routes and people giving directions at the worst turns."

Charlie sighs.

"Yea, I'm kinda useless—" Jackson ducks his head. "—but I'd still like to buy you dinner and then, maybe, thank you properly? At my place?"

A tiny frown. "I have homework."

Jackson deflates.

Charlie ribs him. "Never said I wouldn't, though."

He bounces on his toes, kisses her temple. "Awe/**some**."

.

Something prods Jackson's forehead.

He grumbles, blinks slowly.

Something glows faintly at him.

Something with disproportionately large teeth.

Jackson squeaks and jerks away, suddenly very awake.

A plastic hippopotamus leers from his bedside table.

"That's not funny!" he hollers toward the kitchen.

Charlie leans in the door, grinning. "Just wanted to see if it would make a good alarm."