A round of applause welcomed professor Kroll as he stepped to the podium. He pushed his thick oversized glasses up his nose and coughed into his fist, as if asking for attention.

Meanwhile
Place: Los Angeles, CA
Time: July 29, Friday

A week passed with no news from Alice and Tina was getting worried. Dana mentioned earlier that Alice texted her when she got to Portland but since then she heard nothing. Tina wanted to give Alice time to reach out to them, knowing that she was probably too busy snooping around. She also knew that if there was anything urgent she found out about at the lab, Alice would contact them. Friday finally came and they both got off work early so they wouldn’t miss Alice’s call.

Bette was already home, making dinner, when Tina walked in and smelled the aroma of onions and mushrooms. “What are you making? Its smells absolutely scrumptious.”

Bette turned towards her as she stirred vegetables in a fry pan. “Oh, nothing special. Pasta with veggies.”

“Well, whatever it is, it’s delicious,” Tina smiled, as she kissed Bette on her lips, savoring their taste and softness for a moment. “Let me change and I’ll help.”

They moved around the kitchen effortlessly, like it was a dance they perfected over the years. Bette brought a spoon to Tina’s mouth so she could taste her homemade tomato sauce and Tina nodded appreciatively. She opened a bottle of organic Cabernet Sauvignon made at the local winery and poured them both a glass.

Dinner served, they sat down on the outside patio. The evening was unusually breezy for the end of July in Los Angeles and they decided to take an advantage of the nice weather. “This is delicious, Bette,” Tina remarked. “When did you learn to cook like this?”

“I just sort of taught myself,” Bette shrugged. “We had servants growing up and several cooks. When I was back home, I watched our cook when she prepared some of my mother’s favorite dishes.” Bette looked at Tina and smiled, “But to tell you the truth, early on, when I first came here and I had learned what an amazing invention your television was, I ended up watching a lot of cooking shows…”

Tina laughed, “I wish I had more time to watch them and learn more. I actually love cooking, there’s just not enough time. Who was your favorite?”