Page 18 of Ancient Obsession

Oliver finished his coffee and stood, watching as Robin leaned to grab the full latte from where he’d moved it. Once they’d grabbed their belongings, the two of them headed off across the quad.

It was going to be an interesting class.

Oliver didn’t have classes on Tuesdays, so he spent the day on class assignments and familiarized himself with a tripod he’d recently bought online to hold his phone while making videos. He’d also purchased a Bluetooth microphone, and made sure it connected to his phone. In for a penny…

Dave was working from home and helped him with the setup a bit before he needed to join an online meeting. Once Dave had closed the door to the spare bedroom where he’d set up his office, Oliver made a few short test videos. Each time he played one back, he winced and wondered how much it would cost to have his voice altered. He also needed to learn a lot more about video filters.

After stowing the tripod and microphones in his bag, he checked out what they had in the refrigerator and pantry. Hamburgers and tots sounded good and simple, so he got busy making dinner.

By the time he was lifting the burgers out of the skillet, Dave came to the kitchen doorway.

“Burgers. Mmm.”

The oven timer went off. Oliver stepped to one side of the stove and asked, “Can you get the tots out?”

“Oh my God, tots too? Have I told you I love you?”

Oliver laughed as he transferred the final patty to a plate. They each prepped a burger and scooped tots onto their plates. Oliver squeezed a generous amount of ketchup into a ramekin and set it in the middle of the table. Once they had both sat down and taken a few bites, Dave asked, “Are you nervous about seeing a mummy tonight?”

Oliver dipped a tot in the shared ketchup and thought about it as he crunched. “No. I mean, I’m imagining it’ll be kind of all dried up, you know?”

“Think it’ll be covered in bandages like in the movies?” Dave widened his eyes as he popped a tot into his mouth.

“God, I hope so. That would make for some great video, you know?”

“Does your phone have enough memory for the video?”

“I have an SSD that plugs into it.”

Dave nodded. “Sounds like you’ve thought this through. I wish I could go with you.”

“Me, too. But I think it’s going to be inside a pretty small space. I’m just hoping I don’t get there and the professor isn’t expecting us and kicks us out.”

“It was nice of them to arrange this. Sounds like you two are becoming good friends.”

Oliver dunked another tot. “We are. They’re a good kid. Way over-caffeinated most of the time, but fun to hang out with.”

“I look forward to meeting them.”

“We’ll have to arrange that sometime soon.”

Dave told him he would handle the kitchen clean up and, after they had double-checked Oliver had the equipment needed in his bag, walked him to the door. “Don’t look the mummy in the eyes. Just in case.”

“Do mummies have eyes?”

Dave opened the door and gently pushed him out onto the walkway. “Tell me when you get back tonight.”

“But how will I know if you just told me not to look it in the eyes?”

Dave smiled, leaned out for a final kiss, and closed the door.

The drive was much easier in the evening, and Oliver made good time. He parked in the lot he used during the day and sent Robin a text to let them know he’d arrived. A few seconds later, they responded they would be right out.

Oliver got out of the car and adjusted the strap of his bag across his chest. The sun was on its way down, casting long shadows. Students crossed the quad, alone and in small, chatty groups. Birds bounced around a trash can, pecking at the remains of a lunch that had missed the receptacle.

“Hey!”

Looking over his shoulder, Oliver saw Robin approaching from the other side of the quad. They walked at a fast clip, and he wondered how many lattes they might have had that day.