However, instead of saying that verbally, he just smiled and said, "No ma'am, just doing an extra year of schooling so that I can go to college next year."
Hettie nodded approvingly "Smart move, Mr Jefferson. You know a lot of young fellers leave school too early: they think it makes them look clever and grown up, but instead their ignorance is compounded and shows itself disastrously at a later date." Mrs Rosenkrantz had a surprising command of diction for a common whore. Johannes frowned, trying to work out if he'd just been insulted or not.
Dobie then remembered Johannes' statement about knowing her. He decided to find out how much so he cleared his throat and said, "Ma'am, my friend here says that he's...well real acquainted with you."
"Oh!" Hettie smirked a little and looked the lying little toad up and down "Oh, you know me, don't you Johannes? But not as well as I know you. And by the way, Krieger was looking for you, said you were late for someting, seemed kinda mad." she feigned a sudden remembrance.
"He wha...?!" The show off kid looked around with a worried look on his face and then started to run off in the direction of Krieger's office "I gotta go! See ya later Dobes!!" he yelped as he kicked up his heels. Hettie suppressed a laugh, she didn't like that kid. She liked this quieter, more thoughtful Dobie, though.
"So Mr Jefferson, which college are you aiming for, and what are you hoping to study?..." she started to ask him, but then remembered, he might be embarrassed to be seen with her "Oh, you don't mind if I walk with you a while do you? I don't get a chance to have many interesting conversations in my line of work. I imagine your friend was delighted to tell you that I'm what's politely referred to as a 'Lady of the Evening', although I'm sure he had an impressively dirtier word for my job."
The first part of the journey is often the hardest.
Dobie was so flabbergasted at the speed Johannes took off that he wasn't paying attention to what most of the woman was saying. Now he was stuck here with a woman he had no interest other than seeing what his friend really knew about her. She then mentioned something about being a lady of the evening.
"Um...er...yeah I know what you and yeah Joh had another word for you but I don't think either are that impressive."
He was about to say that he wasn't too impressed with her but refrained from doing so. Besides he had to get to school before that bell rang. The last thing he wanted to do was to explain to Miss Bowen that he was late because he had been too busy talking to a lady of ill-repute. It would get back to his ma and maybe even Mister Wentworth.
"Well, it was nice meeting you Mrs Rosenkrantz but I gotta go. Don't want to be late for school."
After politely tipping his hat, he started off towards school, walking (not running as that wouldn't be a good look) as fast as he could.
Hettie shrugged.
Pity.
But that was her lot: the dregs of humanity paid good money to be with her, decent folks, whom she would like to spend time with, avoided her like the plague.
Well, she'd made this God-damned bed, and she supposed she'd better lie in it.
She sauntered on.
"Howdy partner! Lookin' for business?"
^^^^^
[OOC: Guess that's the end of that one!]