The professor continued his lecture.
"... so we understand now that stories live on, reflecting nature back to nature itself. Their original usefulness has dried up, but an indelible mark has been impressed upon the child's psyche and takes root. This is how cultural entrenchment begins. The stories can surface again in popular media, taking on a new iteration entirely ..."
The professor droned on and on.
Gina's head rested on her desk, eyes glued to her notebook as her pen swiped to and fro. No notes. No diagrams. The ballpoint rolled around in lazy circles with its inky smell, doing its best to distract her from class. She should have never gone to grad school.
"Now then, are there any examples of these folk-tales you can think of?"
A student in the front row raised his hand.
"Anyone other than Jimmy?"
The pause hung for an uncomfortable amount of time. Finally, someone raised their hand. The meek little goth girl in the back row.
"Morgan?"
"Maybe the Hansel and Gretel story?"
"Yes! Exactly. Would you like to elaborate?"
"Sure. The story itself is pretty old, from medieval peasants I think. Everyone here probably knows it, but I doubt anyone has actually read the Brothers Grimm."
"An excellent example! Seems like one of you has done the reading... The Brothers Grimm did a good deal of work trying to collect and preserve those folk tales. Modern pieces make parodies and allusions to it from time to time. And that is how folk tales survive on their own. They deeply resonate with the human mind..."
On and on he talked, never seeming to tire of his own voice. Would he ever shut up? She flipped to a clean page in her notebook and scribbled some more. The rest of the class was more of the same. She begged whatever deity would listen to trigger the fire alarm or something, just so she could slip out unnoticed. Instead she was forced to wait. An entire hour went by before she was free.
"...And that, that, dear students, is why... oh shit what time is it?" He looked at his watch. "Don't be afraid to tell me if I go over next time. I know you're all busy students! Oh, and don't forget! Paper's due by midnight!"
He crammed papers and books in a bag and dashed down the hallway for his next class. Before heading to hers, Gina checked her emails. She saw the two greatest words in existence. Bold. All capitals.
"CLASS CANCELED"
Thank GOD. It was a Friday too. She could just go home and lie down. But first, she'd treat herself to an ice cold coffee.
—
One of the greatest things about college towns? Coffee shops. They're on every street corner, in every back alley, and scattered all over campus. Her favorite was on Main Street, the most popular one. But in the heart of lunch hour? One look inside and she decided it wasn't worth the crowd. She'd find somewhere else.
Her phone pulled up some places nearby, and she settled for the one on Canal Street. It was a bit off the beaten path, in the historic side of town, but the walk would probably be quicker than waiting in line. Fifteen minutes later she was between old brick buildings. Factories at one point in time, now a haven for brew houses and hipsters. As she hoped, the Cafe was much quieter here, with only one person ahead in line.
She ordered her coffee and, still recovering from her dreadful class, decided she needed a cinnamon roll too. Before she was able to leave, someone in the corner called to her.
