Rubies And Wine

V-8

I ride the bus to the campus again. Yuri is on there so I decide to take my seat beside her.

"Hello, Yuri," I say confidently.

She raises a brow with a slight smile. "Is that you, Ms. Emily?"

"Sure is," I laugh due to her enthusiasm.

"How are you, my dear? What has happened since we last spoke?"

"School is going well, nothing really new at work, and as for--"

"Dear," she cuts me off while raising her hand. "Work always goes well. School always happens. Give me a real story. Tell me about that fella of yours or your friend. Surely something must have come about."

I laugh at the hint of sass in her tone. "Well, Drew's friend, Leo, the guy Suzanne is with, just went to training a couple of days ago."

"Is he far off?"

"No, he's on a ship docked in a harbor a little off downtown. It's just that he can't get in touch with Suzanne that much."

"The poor thing must be torn by that. Did he give her any parting words?"

"Nothing too extravagant. Just a chess piece. You know, the one that looks like a horse. He told her to hold the knight close to her and her knight will come to her."

Yuri lets a high pitched awe escape her lips as I can see a hint of light come into her blank eyes. "I think I'm right to assume she hasn't let that piece go then."

"You're right. If I don't see it in her hand of in the pocket of her jeans, I'm almost certain she has it tucked away in her bag."

Yuri smiles once again and lets a brief pause come over us as I hear the faint sound of cars zooming by and 2000s pop songs playing over the bus radio. "I'm sure she appreciates it. Now, what about that Drew fellow of yours?"

"He's okay. Leo was his best friends so he still wishes he was around. But, Leo left enough for his share of two months rent and there's still three more guys in there for him to romp with."

"And he also has you?"

"Yeah." I consider bringing up what happened at The Keynote a few days ago. Should I tell her I think my college professor, who I'm gonna be faced with in a few moments, screamed and thrashed around at my work in the middle of the day?

Before I can decide, Yuri stands and extends her cane. "Well, sweetie, I believe this is my stop. Take care of yourself and your friends and don't fall asleep in class." Her tone sounds like a mother as she walks down the bus aisle. "Have a good day, hun."

"You too," I say back to her before she's off the bus and I'm alone with the collection of numerous strangers.

===========

I arrive next to the door of the lecture hall and wait as always for Mr. Birman to come down the hall and unlock it for me.

Soon enough, without me having to wait too long, Birman comes my way with his steady and sure pace. Something about him is, well, different. His expression is the same as always but it doesn't seem right. His eyes seem dimmer and his stature seems weaker. I can't pinpoint what it is but something is off.

"Bi-Birman," I say as I prepare myself for any reaction.

He just pulls out his key with the black 'x' and doesn't look in my direction. "Yes, Ms. Lage."

I pause for a second as the door swings open. "How are you doing today?" Nice one, Em.

"Fine, Ms. Lage," he says brashly before entering the room. "And yourself?" He ask while making his way to his desk and placing his bag down.

I take my usual seat. "Alright, I've just been working and studying the last unit."

He unlocks the drawer and pulls out his belongings and places them onto the desk as in their predetermined space. Birman is nothing if not organized and consistent. "Where do you work?"

Crap. "The... The Keynote Diner. Just this little place where they have the servers perform musical numbers as they wait tables.'

He just nods. "I know that place. I actually have been there a few times. I actually went there not too long ago."

I question if he's going to admit it or if he knows I was the one singing while he had his little episode. "That's nice maybe you ran into me."

He changes the subject. "Did the sub professor finish the unit on brain develop--" He pauses as he holds the picture of his girlfriend. He almost turned into a statue as his eyes dart from on place of the photo to another.

"Mr. Birman?" I question as my concern for him grows.

After another second or two. He yells and slams the photo back into the drawer. I heard the fram snap and the grass shatter from my seat as I jolt up. His roar echoes and as it fades away, all that's left is Birman breathing heavily. He looks up and sees me staring at him with a glimmer of fear. He quickly changes his posture and breathes in. "I'm sorry you had to see that, Ms. Lage," he says once again steady and sure. He shuts the drawer calmly and whips his hands on his button down. "I must have forgotten to take that out of there."

"Is everything okay, Mr. Birman?" I try to not let my fear show. Don't anger a madman, Em.

"I promise you, there's nothing wrong. I just need to move past this incident."

I take a breath and wonder if I should continue. "Wasn't that your girlfriend?"

"It was. And ex is more accurate."

"Oh. I'm very sorry."

"No, it's not your fault. It's that music theory instructor, Mr. Olence's. I wanted someone to spend my life with. She wanted someone she can screw on top of a piano." He lets out a shaky sigh. "However, that's personal matters that I shouldn't be bringing up in a place of study. Now, did the sub professor cover all of the unit on brain development and infancy?"

"Yes," I say softly as I attempt to not anger him in any possible way.

Soon enough, the other students come in. All completely unaware of the dark side of Birman I just witnessed firsthand. I suppose everyone has skeletons in their closets. Or broken glass in their drawers.

===========

I soon return home after work as I throw around the scene I witnessed back in class. Is Birman fit to teach? Am I right to judge him? Should I tell someone?

However, all those thoughts go out the door once I open the apartment door and see Suzanne asleep on the kitchen bar. Her cell phone in one hand and the chess piece in the other. Judging by the pool of drool coming from her mouth, she's been here quite a while.

I go to her side and lightly shake her. "Suze?" I say hushly. "Suze?"

With a slight movement and a muffled groan, I can tell I'm getting her up.

"Come on, Suze. Go to bed. I'll help you over."

More mumbles come from her mouth as she slowly stands and walks to her room. I stand by her side to make sure she doesn't hit a wall on her way there. In one of the mumbles, I hear "Leo."

"Leo will call later, hun. He wants you to be comfortable and get some rest. You're almost there."

She flopped down onto her mattress and her red hair fanned out. I gingerly roll her over and pull her covers over. Before I go, I notice the chess piece dropped on the floor from our walk over. I pick it up and place it on her nightstand facing Suzanne.

"Keeping on eye on her, Leo," I say before leaving and heading to bed myself.