The skinny girl takes it."Hi.I'm Stella."She turns a pretty shade of pink, and I can tell right away that Stella is not as drunk as I first thought but very shy.
"Hi.I'm Nina."The girl on the bottom introduces herself and pokes Stella, who lets my hand drop.
I return it to the steering wheel and give them a wink."Are you, ladies, here for a wedding or celebrating graduation?"
Stella pushes her glasses up her nose."Graduation."
Graduation?I cut my eyes at them again.Are they 22?They look a lot younger.Surely they are college graduates and not high school."Where did you go to college?"
"USC."Nina offers without missing a beat.Damn.They must be 22.I look over again, sizing them up and feel ...old.Must be my tours of duty.
"First time to Vegas?"
"Yeah!"
"First day?"
"Yeah!"They giggle again.
"What are you girls going to see at the Excalibur?The Tournament of Kings?"
They laugh and high-five each other."No.The Thunder From Down Under."
"Of course," I smirk.Where else would two young girls needing to blow off steam on their first night in Vegas want to go?
Stella leans down to hear what Nina whispers, and she answers."Right?That would be fucking fly!"
I can feel their eyes staring at me.Gawking actually.I reach over to adjust the temperature."Is it warm enough for you?"
Stella says."Oh yes.I'm really warm."
"I'm getting downright hot in here," Nina says, then bursts into a new round of drunken giggles, and Stella can't help but join her.It's infectious, and I chuckle too.
As soon as it gets quiet, they resume their gawking again, and it's awkward.I keep my eyes on the road and try to keep the conversation from going any further south."What did you major in?"
Nina answers."I majored in education."
"A teacher, then."
"I bet I could teach you a thing or two."She says under her breath.
I ask Stella."And you?Are you a teacher too?"
Nina snorts, and I look at them."No, she majored in...."
Stella cuts her eyes at Nina, shooting darts, and fills in the answer."Security.I majored in security."
I can't hide my surprise with that answer.This girl weighs all of 100 pounds."Security?Really?You don't look like a badass."
A smirk plays on her lips.She is trying hard not to join her giggling friend."It's I.T.security."
"Are you a hacker?"I look back at the road.
Nina snorts again."Sort of.It's in social engineering."I cut my eyes at them.Now they have my attention.
"Social engineering?What's that?"I play dumb.
Stella looks out the window and answers with a straight face."I find and prevent perps from screwing corporate accounts up."She doesn't take her eye off the sights outside.
