and wanted to chow down before I had to go to work. We had started a really exciting project on Wednesday, so I was really pumped to get there and see how it had gone so far. Dr. Wills, my supervisor, was brilliant, and his insight into the human body was just amazing. He was trying to work on some new combinations of proteins and cells that dealt with cancer, burning to be the first doctor to find the cure. Weren’t they all? But out of everyone I had ever met, I figured Wills could do it. He really inspired me, and made me want to be better scientifically than I had ever been before, as well as made me think I could go further and do more, despite being a woman in a typically man’s field.
'Hey, hag.'
'Good afternoon to you, too, Chris.' I muttered as I passed him in the kitchen, him sitting on his butt shoving crackers slathered with peanut butter, sprinkled with pickles. I looked at it, grimacing. 'God, that’s gross. Can’t you eat like a normal human being, you freak?' I opened the fridge to see what I could quickly get my hands on.
'You should try it. Here.' I turned to see him extending his hand to me, a work of art ready for me to eat. I looked at him, his brown eyes serious, then my gaze dropped to the snack.
'If I die, you’re dead.' He glared as I took the cracker, bringing it up to my nose. The smell was awful. But, like the champ that I was, I popped it into my mouth. I chewed thoughtfully as all the different tastes mixed and intermingled in my mouth; just a regular party in there. 'Interesting,' I said, sucking some peanut butter out of my molars with my tongue. I grabbed two more snacks that he had just made, and hurried out of the room as I knew he’d chase me.
'Give those back, you freak!' He chased me up the stairs, his long legs allowing him to close the distance between us until he caught me, just about to slam my bedroom door shut. With a mighty grunt, he shoved it open, and me against the wall. Squealing like a child, I tried to hide the crackers in my hand behind my back, knowing I was getting peanut butter all over me and my clothes, and the wall, I imagined. 'Give it back,' he grinned, reaching around to grab my wrist, bringing it up and pinning it against the wall.
'No!' I croaked, laughing so hard my strength was waning, and he was a strong little bugger himself. At fifteen he was already taller than I was. He grabbed my claw-like grasp, roughly opening my fingers until he had the mess snack in his hand.
'Ha!' he called triumphantly. I looked at his treasure, grimacing.
'That looks so nasty. You go, boy.' He looked at it, then at me, then back at the cracker with an evil grin. 'Chris, I don’t know what’s going on through those marbles in there, but don’t you dare.' He looked at me, his hand coming closer to me. 'Christopher!'
Squish!
I heard the garage door open as I washed my face, careful to avoid my eye. Good, I’d get to work on time now that mom had the car back. I had already scrubbed my wall, a nice brownish/greenish stain there. I just hoped mom never looked too closely at the paint there. Maybe I’d touch it up over the weekend.
Clean and changed, I hurried downstairs, my jacket in my arms.
'Hey, honey.' My mom said, laying on the couch.
'Hey. You okay?' I sat on the coffee table in front of the couch, my hand on her arm. Her eyes were closed.
'Yeah. I just have another one of those damn headaches.'
'Hold that thought.' I stood and hurried up the stairs to grab a washcloth and ran it under cold water, then grabbed an Imitrex pill, hurried back to her. 'Here. Sit up a bit.' I handed her the coffee cup that she had been drinking from and the pill. She dutifully took it, then laid down again so I could put the cold cloth over her eyes. 'I have to go to work, mom. I’ll be back later.'
'Okay, honey. Have a good night. I love you.' Her voice was groggy as she started to go to sleep. I kissed her forehead, the wet washcloth a bit of a shock to my lips, then stood, pulling the curtains closed as I left the room.
Dr. Wills looked at me, his blue eyes crinkling as he smiled at me. 'Excellent work, Andi.' He gazed back into the microscope. 'I don’t know how I missed that mutation.' I was beside myself with happiness. I had so much respect for this man, working in the science field for nearly twenty years, and I had noticed something he hadn’t. Wow. What a thrill.
We had finished with our testing earlier tonight, so I had asked him to show me what he was working on himself, his own private research. It had been so exciting to see the slides he had made from different patients who had cancer of various types. The mutation and breakdown of their systems were unbelievable. I was so inspired, yet again.
'Well,' he glanced at the wall clock. 'It’s getting late. What do you say we call it a night?' He turned off the microscope and smiled at me. I nodded. He pushed the lab coat off his shoulders as he headed for his office. I watched, standing where I had been, his confident, happy swagger of what he and I had discovered tonight. Wow. I wanted to be just like him.
Shaking myself out of my reverie, I started to close up shop for the night, putting things away and turning machines and equipment off.
'Have any plans for the holiday break, Andi?' he called from his office.
'Not really. Does sleeping count?' I called back as I put my jacket on. I heard his chuckle, then he appeared, closing the office door behind him. He wore his overcoat and briefcase.
'Well, would you be interested in helping me out here in the lab?' I looked at him in shock, my mouth hanging open.
'Really?' He nodded.
'I think you’d be great help to me in my work.'
'Yeah, I’d love to.' He smiled at me, those eyes twinkling under heavy, dark brows that had just the slightest bit of gray in them.
'Wonderful. Well, we’ll see you Monday.'
Dr. Wills and I went out different ways as he was parked in the underground parking garage. I nearly skipped to my car, so excited at the prospect of working with him on his research. Pictures of what we could accomplish together flew before my eyes, huge dreams. Larger than I.
I drove home with a new sense of worth and power, and my love and passion for science was larger than ever before. I felt a definite sense of accomplishment today, like I’d changed someone’s life, somehow. I knew that all this thinking was young and puerile, but damn it felt good.
The snow had begun to fall again as I pulled into the garage, glad to be off the streets as they got more icy. There were some nutty drivers in Minnesota.
'How’s mom?' I asked my brother, who worked on his homework while watching TV. I never understood how he was able to concentrate on both at the same time.
'Bed. Her headache didn’t go away.' He turned the page in the text book he was pouring over, not even looking up at me.
I headed upstairs, only to stop when I heard the doorbell.
'Door.' Chris called to me. I glared at him, but it was lost to the top of his head. I walked over, flipping the porch light on as I unlocked the front door. Haley smiled at me.
'Hey.' She said when the door was open.
'Hi.' I said, surprised to see her.
'Busy?' I shook my head. 'Good. Come on.'
'Um, where?'
'I’m taking you to dinner. Come on.' Without another word, she turned around and headed to her car, which was parked in the driveway. She must have been practically following me here.
'Tell mom I’ll be back later.' I said as I hurried to grab the coat I had tossed on the couch. He just grunted acknowledgement, and kept studying. I headed outside, pulling the door closed behind me.
Haley pulled out to the street, waiting for a car to pass before heading out.
'So how was work?' she asked, glancing briefly at me.
'It was good.' For some reason I didn’t want to tell her about it, somehow feeling she’d think I was even more of a science geek than she already did.
'Good. I was waiting for the stop light on Merrideth when I saw you pass, heading home. I figured my timing
