The blue couch in frontof the TV had become their standard meetingground. As a couple, they’d become as mucha fixture as the carpet and the wood paneling. When anyone was looking for them, theyalways checked the common room first, theiractual rooms second. She’d gotten to the point where shedidn’t need his help in calculus any more, butit made a good excuse to cuddle, so she keptasking, and he kept helping. Rachel seemedto have a thing about showing him off inpublic. He enjoyed it more than he cared toadmit. Eleanor marched in from the stairwellhallway and started toward them with apurposeful look in her eye. Daniel hadn’tseen much of her lately, but he knew itcouldn’t last forever. She had to be plottingsomething. "Rachel." She looked at him. "…Daniel." Daniel was so surprised that she’d usedhis first name that he came up blank. Rachelanswered first. "Hi Elly. What’s up?" "Father’s decided to come to Boston," she said. "Really? Why?" "There’s going to be a party to celebratethat recent victory in Washington.
