text: Leo Walker drops his children off at school, but he is thinking about her. It's his morning routine, or has been since he stumbled into a coffee shop two blocks away from the school. That's where we met Anita Rosales, a twenty-something college student who works behind the coffee shop's counter. He goes there every morning now that he knows her schedule, even though it is not on his way to work. She normally wears a pair of yoga pants that fit so well that they become her second skin. She greets him with a smile, which he seldom receives from his wife at home. Every morning since their second child was born, she has resembled a cross between Gollum and Jabba the Hutt rather than the woman he married. This morning, as he gets his coffee, he thinks to himself, "If I could only have one night with this gift from God, that's all I'd need." The scenario is entirely in his head; in truth, Anita is so exhausted most mornings that she operates on autopilot, hardly seeing the customers who come in. She is programmed to take orders, make coffee, and collect money like a robot. But that really doesn't matter because he's obsessed. In his mind, he had imagined them falling in love while sharing a macchiato and making passionate love on the coffee shop floor while the other customers look on. His order has been completed, and she calls out his name, "Theo." And, despite the fact that she misspells his name and the coffee tastes like burnt toast, he tries to slip a dollar into the tip jar. For the 20th time in a row, she misses the tip, and he heads to work. Anita Rosales attends City College at night and looks forward to her Psychology 101 class with Professor Leroy Quinn. The way he says the term psychodynamic raises the temperature in the room by 20 degrees, forcing Anita to unbutton her blouse. She is aware that he is married, but that doesn't matter; all she wants is for him to get to know the real her, and he would leave his wife and make love to her in his office, which is actually a converted janitor closet, but she doesn't know this. She can tell he works out because of the definition of his muscles through his ordinary polo shirt, with biceps so taut that she begins to worry about the fabric of his sleeve being able to contain all that power. He hands back the exams when the lecture ends that night. Anita glances down and notices her "C-." She runs her finger over the grade; his pen touched this page; she'll fantasize about him again tonight, making love while he grades papers. Leroy Quinn had no desire to be a psychology professor. He had always had a sense of adventure and only took the job till he had enough money to travel the world. His love of adventure got him in trouble during his first year of teaching when he slept with one of his students. She was a teenager, only 18 years old. The temptation to prove it was more than a fling compelled them to marry a year later. Things have changed five years later, and this formerly sane, youthful taboo has started to reveal her true nature. When Leroy does something she doesn't like, she transforms into a five-foot-tall version of Sam Kinison and Lizzie Borden. Leroy can't wait to get to the gym and work off all his stress as he exits class that night. He's especially excited to see Andrew Peralta, the gym employee at the front desk. He's bought 57 protein bars, 13 protein drinks, and four t-shirts with the gym logo on them in the previous two months; the sad part is, he doesn't even like the protein bars, and the t-shirts look like they were drawn by a five-year-old unsupervised. These brief interactions, on the other hand, provide him with the opportunity to spend a few minutes with Andrew. After a few conversations, he still doesn't know anything but his first and last name. From Leroy's perspective, he is clever, intellectual, and completely swept him off his feet. Andrew will one day take him in his arms and carry him around the gym like Richard Gere in Officer and a Gentleman. They'll both quit their jobs and spend their days making love on the Caribbean's sandy beaches. Unfortunately, despite Leroy telling Andrew his name several times, Andrew still has no idea who he is. He smiles, nods, hands him a towel, and waits out the rest of his shift so he can finally leave. Leroy walks into the gym tonight, and Andrew hands him a towel. Leroy points to a protein bar and tries to strike up a conversation; "have a good one, buddy," Andrew says, blanking on the name. In college, Andrew Peralta met the woman of his dreams, Alicia Maynard. They quickly became friends, but unfortunately for Andrew, they've been friends for the entirety of their time together; friend-zoned by the love of his life. Despite several tries, he has failed at every point to move the relationship ahead. Andrew fantasizes about them fleeing to Europe and making love on trains. It's always trains for some reason; he thinks it has something to do with the rhythm of the tracks; I guess don't knock it till you try it. Andrew and Alicia go to bars, hang out with large groups of friends, and speak all the time. The bottom line is that Alicia simply does not feel the same way about Andrew. She prefers a mature man with responsibilities, as well as a family man that is loyal and loving. Andrew is simply too immature, has no regard for the future, and constantly wears those hideous gym t-shirts. Alicia Maynard is employed by a small financial firm. Leo Walker, one of her coworkers, brought his kids in one afternoon after they got out of school early for a half-day. She observed what a fantastic father Leo was and fell in love with him right away. Alicia dreamt about them making love all over the office, despite the fact that he was married. In the mailroom, the elevator, and on the copy machine. In one such scenario, a company-wide memo served as foreplay for their sexual rendezvous. Alicia spends one-third of her day fantasizing about Leo, whom she believes is a faithful husband who would only leave his wife for her.