Wait! he’d thought, knowing it was too late.
Kaem shook his head to bring himself back to the present, realizing he was on campus now and walking down a slight slope to the physics building. He felt great, rather than worn out the way he would’ve been after going up any kind of incline in the past. I’ve been kissed and I can climb a hill! he thought. Life is good!
Grinning ear to ear, he walked joyfully into the surprisingly crowded physics lobby. As he entered, someone said, “Mr. Seba!”
It seemed as if everyone in the lobby immediately turned his way and advanced on him. Crap! I should’ve known this was going to happen from the way my email blew up over the weekend.
People were shouting questions. Some seemed to be reporters. Others wanted to go into business with Staze. One seemed to be hoping for a donation. A couple said they had amazing ideas for the use of Stade. Ideas so good they had to be explained in private.
Kaem called for their attention and reminded them he was just an undergraduate student who’d had an idea. “You should email our CEO through the Staze website. He’ll respond as appropriate.” Turning toward the stairs, he called back over his shoulder, “I’ve got to get to class!”
Some of them came after him, but with his newfound vitality, he beat them up to the classroom door, entered, and closed it behind him despite a few entreating calls.
Despite his fears, no one tried to come into the classroom behind him. He made his way to his regular seat, hoping that’d be the end of it.
It wasn’t.
When he sat and faced the front, he found his classmates turned in their seats and staring at him. As was Professor Stavros, who said, “Hello, Mr. Seba. That was quite a talk you gave Friday night.”
Kaem bobbed a nod.
Stavros said, “We were hoping to ask a few questions. “
“But…” Kaem said, upset. “I’m here to learn from you. And so are the rest of the students,” He glanced around the room, hoping the rest of the students would look as upset as he that Stavros would consider forgoing his lecture and demonstration to quiz Kaem about Stade.
Unfortunately, they didn’t look as if they’d be upset at all.
Stavros, however, seemed taken aback. He said, “Of course. Of course. Perhaps I could arrange a time for you to meet with the physics faculty so they could ask some questions? I’m sure you can understand that we’re all very curious.”
“I don’t have to prepare another talk? Just show up and answer questions?”
“Um, sure. Everyone’s seen your talk. We just want to understand your discovery in more depth.”
“Okay,” Kaem said.
He was relieved when Stavros said, “Okay, I’ll email some possible times.” Stavros turned to the e-board and began his lecture.
Kaem thought of the thousands of emails he had waiting. Everybody wanting something. How am I going to sort the ones that matter from all the garbage? he wondered.
***
Arya also walked to work that Monday. She knew Kaem would be heading to class rather than work, so she hadn’t had to plan her route to avoid him. The walk wasn’t that long and she found she did some of her best thinking along the way. She’d often come up with solutions to vexing work problems while on this walk, but on this particular morning, her thoughts kept getting distracted by the romance between Lee and Kaem. Arya had decided they deserved their chance at happiness and that she should make every effort to avoid coming between them.
And I’ll work harder to suppress my unreasonable little fits of jealousy. They’re over a man I do not want. Therefore, I should do my best not to interfere with Lee’s opportunity to seek her joy. Or Kaem’s. I may not love him but I like him well enough that I should do what I can to increase his prospects for happiness.
This started her thinking about the talk Kaem had given. She pondered the way Kaem had written and memorized the entire talk, right down to predicting how he’d have to respond to the audience’s reactions. Then he’d recorded the talk on video and used it to pick the times he’d need various Stades to dissipate. Then he stazed them so they’d vanish on schedule during his presentation.
She’d asked how he’d keep from speaking too quickly or slowly, and he’d shown her a large clock app he’d opened on a tablet. “With this on the podium,” he’d said, “I’ll be able to see whether I’m ahead or behind—”
“Because you’ve memorized your time points too?!” she’d asked, incredulously.
He’d simply shrugged.
Arya rounded the corner to the Staze building. What the hell? There were at least fifty people in the parking lot.
Arya kept walking, but as she got closer to the door, the crowd became dense enough she began having to say “Excuse me,” to push past people.
Someone spoke angrily, “Hey! Who do you think you are?”
“I work here,” she responded, tapping another guy on the shoulder and excusing herself to move past.
When she got to the front, she climbed the two steps in front of the door and turned, calling out to the crowd, “What are you people doing here?”
From the shouted responses most were people looking for jobs, but some were journalists looking for stories. She told the people looking for jobs that Staze wasn’t hiring at present but would be soon. She asked them to check Staze’s website in the next week when the company should have up a page where they could submit job applications. I hope, she thought as the majority of the people started
