Me Tarzan, You Jahne (BWWM)

I

"Increasing concern and demand for biodiversity conservation nation wide has risen from substantial contemporary declines in biodiversity at various spatial, temporal and biological scales" the world renowned professor exclaims to the lecture hall of half dead students.

Jahne leaned against the doorway continuing to listening to him rant on...he'll be done shorty she thought to herself as she looked down at her watch. She looked him over as he waves his hands in an effort to restore passion in his bored students. His salt and pepper hair that matches the salt and pepper mustache is neatly combed back and his green eyes are wide behind his spectacles. He pushes his slipping frames up the bridge of his nose as he turns this way and that way pointing to charts and graphs.

"Scientific evidence proves that biodiversity does not merely respond to environmental changes but is also a predictor of various ecosystem functions and services that are essential for sustaining human welfare" Professor Roberts exclaims with the passion of a child telling his parents about his favorite super hero. Just as he's going to continue on his rant that is probably no longer apart of his curriculum, the class is saved by the bell.

The blaring noise from his phone shocks the students out of their haze and half dead state. Jahne covers her mouth to keep her laugh from revealing her location at the back door. Professor Roberts looks back to his phone in shock. He must have forgot that his phone was there in the mist of his passionate speech. He hurriedly tries to shut off the noise with a couple failed attempts before turning back to his pupils with reddened cheeks.

"My apologies, it looks like my time with you all is up. I might have held you back from your daily activities if not for my daughter putting this alarm on my phone" He gives a roll of his eyes shaking the phone he always seems to conveniently lose or forget.

"You all are dismissed and remember your dissertations are due in two weeks time." He yells over the scrambling crowd of students gathering their belongings and making a run for it. When the class is mostly clear of students Jahne makes her way down the steps with crossed arms.

"I figured by now you'd be used to that alarm on your phone" Jahne says as she approaches him at the board where he's wiping off todays lesson. He jumps in shock placing his hand over his heart. A smile comes to his face when he turns to her.

"I told you I don't need an alarm during my teachings" He says with an exasperated sigh. Jahne shakes her head at his lies. He picks up his briefcase and begins packing it with papers. Once he's done he closes the leather case and hooks his arm out for her to take which she does.

"Remember the last class you had before I set that alarm on your phone dad" she asked him with a raised brow. He looks at her with fake confusion, thinning his lips with a shake of his head.

"I don't recall what your reference is to" He says as they take the exist that leads to his office in the Ecology department. She gives him a hip bump knowing he knows what she's talking about but she plays along.

"You kept the class over an hour because you were just oh so passionate about the preservation of rainforests" she reminds him of knowledge he already has.

"That was a VERY important lecture my dear" He exclaims giving her a look over his spectacles. Jahne laughs at his seriousness. Her father was almost fanatical about his studies as an ecologist but there's a reason why he's world famous in his field. He's damn good at his job and definitely knows what he's talking about. Usually his predictions about what will happen due to certain behaviors in the environment are spot on.

She waits for him to unlock his oak wood office door admiring the etching of his name and title in the oak. She was extremely proud of her father to say the least. Esteemed researcher with numerous publishings in scientific journals. She looked around his office after his door is opened. Walking to one of his book and award shelves she looks over the multitude of awards he's accumulated over the years including the Noble Peace Prize. Her mother would be proud. She sighs as the thought passes through her head.

She walks away from the shelf and to his desk where the picture she can never stop herself from picking up sits. Per usual she picks up the frame and examines the photo inside. It was 10 years ago when Jahne had just graduated high school. She wanted to go to the San Diego Animal Reservation...yeah wild a 17 year old wants to go to an animal reservation as a graduation gift. She was holding a baby tiger, the vets there knew her dad and were fans of his work so they let her help feed a couple of the babies.

She smiled down at the smiling faces of her dad, mom and herself. They meant the world to her and they were all she had. They would go to the ends of the earth to make her happy. It was their last happy family memory before her mom got sick. Some rare disease that no one had experience treating nor had a treatment or cure for. They traveled the world looking for the best doctors to help her to no avail. By the end of year two of her being sick there was nothing left to do but ease her into her passing. It was the hardest year of Jahnes life and she was at the height of her depression watching her mom slip away and her father cry every night because he couldn't help her.

Feeling a hand rest on her shoulder she looks up to see her father looking down at the picture with a sad smile. "I miss her too sweet pea" he whispers placing a kiss at her temple. She placed the picture back down on his desk.

"I was just thinking of how proud she would be of all your accomplishments. She would've baked a thousand celebratory cakes" Jahne laughs at the thought of how she would bake a cake for everything and anything.

"Me?" He questions as if shocked. "What about all your many accomplishments oh she would cook a buffet just for you and no one else could eat one bite of it" He laughs. She smiles because he's absolutely right.

Her mom is the one that really pushed her to pursue her dream of working as a zoologist. She loved ecology like her father but she had a special place in her heart for animals and not just the study of them. After she got her degree she went on to work at the same animal reservation and have loved it every since. Her mom spent 12 years in Africa working at an animal reservation as well so it felt like she had a piece of her with her when she would go to work knowing this was her passion too.

Her dad holds out his arm in a hook again for her to take. He grabs his coat from the hook after she hooked her arm through his and leaves his office. "I'm in the mood for greasy food; what about you sweet pea" Her father says as they make their way through the windy fall weather to his car.

Her face lights up before the words fall out of her mouth. "Torreys" Jahne says squeezing his arm in excitement.

"Torreys it is" he says as they hop into his car.

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Hello Beautiful People!!

I hope you enjoyed the first chapter!!

Don't worry it'll pick up in the next few chapters but I like to establish a background of my main characters ya know add some substance! A little spice and something nice or whatever the powderpuff girls said...

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Until Next Chapter...Toodles!!