He was relieved that she had offered to help him, he knew he needed it in this one class. He had another class afterward, then went to the library to do some studying, and stopped to eat dinner in a diner, before his appointment at the assistant professor’s house at nine. He arrived at her building five minutes early, and it was freezing outside so he went in. The building smelled of urine and cabbage and cats, and he rang the bell and took the stairs to the third floor two at a time. Seeing the building made him realize how little money she must make at her job, and he wondered if he should be offering her some kind of tutoring fee for helping him, but he didn’t want to insult her. He rang the doorbell, and he could hear children laughing inside. Apparently they hadn’t gone to bed on time, and Pattie looked flustered when she opened the door to him. She was wearing a pink V-neck sweater, jeans, and bare feet, and her long curly blond hair made her look younger than she was. And the little girl standing just behind her looked like a miniature of her, with ringlets and big blue eyes.

“This is Jessica,” Pattie said formally as she smiled at him. “And she doesn’t want to go to bed. She had cupcakes after dinner, and she’s on a sugar high.” She was seven and the cutest kid Ted had ever seen, and as he talked to her for a few minutes, her brother Justin whizzed past them, “faster than the speed of sound,” he said as he flew by. He had on a Superman cape over his pajamas, and Jessica was wearing a pink flannel nightgown that looked well worn.

“It’s my favorite,” the little girl explained, and then followed her mother and Ted into the living room, where Justin flew over the couch and landed on the floor with a loud thud.

“Okay, you two, that’s it. Ted and I have to do some studying, and I don’t care how many cupcakes you had, it’s time to go to bed.” It was already an hour past their bedtime, and the living room looked a shambles, with toys all over the place.