Other People
?I swear I turned it off!?
?Mrs. Johnson, I?m not accusing you of anything, but this is the second time this has happened in three days. Do you know ? ?
?How bad this is?! Yes! Yes, I do!?
The dark haired man next to her raised his head and sighed wearily. His eyes caught Norah?s and (Buckaroo Banzai!!) she looked away quickly and hurried out. That was Mrs. Johnson?s sort of office. Her computer at any rate. Norah wondered if they had discovered Billy?s ?screensaver? (what kind of screensaver alarms Dr. Banzai, hero in over eighty countries?) and then she wondered where Billy was. Wasn?t he the computer whiz? Why wouldn?t he be consulted (they always go to him first in the comics)?
?Hi, Samantha,? Norah said, but realized she was interrupting as her blonde bud turned from conversing with a tall grad-student looking man.
?Hi Norah! This is Trey. He?s going to be a freshman in the UC system next year, and I figured you could tell him all about it because you did it last year,? Samantha looked at her expectantly and the African American (so he?s a youth, then) next to her clenched his hands tighter around his silverware and gave Norah a nod. (He?s gotta be a foot taller than me) but he hunched like he was nervous or something.
?Hi, Trey,? Norah stuck out a hand.
?Um, hi,? he said.
?Which UC are you at?? she shook her head, ?I mean, going to go to??
?LA.?
?That?s great! It?s really tough to get in there, and I heard registering for classes is a bi- ?
?Hey.? Whack. Neal didn?t do this the first day, did he? But this makes twice. Hmmm.
?Hey, Neal, this is Trey. He?s going to go to UCLA, right?? she glanced at Trey though she?d heard it a moment ago. He nodded and tried to shrink further back into the chair. It wasn?t working.
?What for??
?Biochemistry.?
?Mmm,? Neal said. Samantha watched Neal like his examining French toast was a new art form.
?What do you need to know??
?Just, what to pack. Man, I already know what to pack! It?s just, my mom, you know??
?Oh, yeah. They do the panic thing. Moms are great for that,? Norah smiled. Trey started to relax just slightly.
?Totally! Mine called me every day, it was horrible!? Samantha said.
?Even worse, I think, is when they stop,? Neal contributed, starting to wake up. (welcome back)
?Oh, yeah. About half way through winter quarter, mine started calling every fourth day ? ?
?And you start sitting by the phone, waiting for them ??
?Yeah, it?s like, ?hello! I?m still here!??
?So I guess phone card is at the top of the list,? Trey asked, watching them like he wasn?t part of the show yet. Norah tilted her head.
?Yeah, get a Costco cheapie one. It?ll take you about a week to truly appreciate the Starving Student Budget Saving Techniques,? she said.
?Oh, huh.? They fell silent after that and picked at their food, or in Samantha?s case, watched Neal pick at his.
?So, what class are you taking?? Norah asked. She felt like she had to keep up a conversation, something about resolution, something like that. She remembered watching people in the cafeteria last year walk away from words, like no one else mattered like shoveling down a plateful of food. Besides, if she said something totally embarrassing, ?s?not like she would see any of them again, right?
?I?m, uh, did you mean me?? Trey pointed to himself. She nodded. ?I?m taking watercoloring. It?s?okay.?
?Who?s teaching it??
?That one guy,? he held out a hand and mimed holding a TV remote and pushing a button, ?Slow, something. Slow Motion! That?s it. Weird ass dude.?
?Is he like, really good at watercolors?? Samantha asked sitting forward in the classic ?this is the most important thing I?ll ever hear?. Trey leaned away slightly.
?N-no. Not really?not at all, actually.?
Norah smiled, ?That?s too bad. Yeah, Reno?s really good at writing, but it?s like they never got the teaching thing.?
?Makes for an interesting summer, at least,? Neal said, not like it was anything important to voice, but because it had to be said.
Yeah.
?So we?re basically going to see if we can create something from non-toxic components, that kind of have been thought of as toxic in the past, and marketforalotofmoneyandgetrich, the usual. You know.? Norah appreciated how he said ?we? like she had any say in the matter. The man she was assisting was possibly out to better the world of food, and definitely out to better the state of his bank account. That was fine with her; she got a salary either way.
Theobromos, or Theo for short, had set her up take whatever notes he dictated, as the lab was too small to have two different experiments going on at the same time. She wondered at (a lot of things) his choice of name. She knew Theobroma meant food of the gods, and was the technical term of chocolate, and that Theobromos was the term used in the Company novels by Kage Baker, maybe it was the 'guy over-inflated ego' her older sister had gone on about? She watched while he hopped from one station to the other, adding a little of this, little more of that, never settling for longer than half a minute.
He stopped.
Just froze, like time stopped or lipids solidified. Okay, bad imagery, and a bad texture in her mouth now.
?Um, is something wrong?? she asked. He turned and looked at her, studied her for a long moment long enough that Norah began to worry (classic you don?t belong here) she tried to think of what else she said that could have upset him beyond ?Uh-huh? and ?Yeah, got it?.
?We need an idea.?
?Beg pardon??
?We need an idea if we?re to create a product, right??
?Yeah,? she said, and resisted the temptation to demand what they?d been doing for the past hour. But temptation is a strong thing and she asked, ?So what was that??
He glanced over his shoulder. ?Well, in about two weeks it?ll be a pretty fine root beer.? She Looked at him and he grinned sheepishly. ?Just kind of wanted to take the newbie for a ride.?
?Thanks,? she said a little colder than she intended. He shrugged. He pulled up a stool and slung one leg over the top and pulled himself up.
?So! Any ideas??
Norah leaned back against the workbench and contemplated Theo. He was maybe early thirties or something, not really that much older than her, when you got right down to it. Yet, he was asking for her input (grown-ups don?t do that) (hush up! I?m a grown-up now, too, dammit!) like it would matter. She looked at the notes, for a pretty fine root beer and thought toxic non toxic. Sooo not a palindrome.
Toxic.
?Glow in the dark necklaces,? she said, surprising herself.
?Hmm?? he looked up.
?You know, those stupid things they always sell at concerts and like, wherever people have money??
?Yeah, what about ?em??
?Well, they?re toxic.?
?Yeah, so??
?So you want a non-toxic toxic thing, and what if we made a glow in the dark edible?something??
?Yeah?Hey, yeah! Glow in the dark, cold to preserve the properties,? his voice trailed off as he started tapping at the laptop behind him. Norah didn?t know a whole lot about glow in the dark, except that they sold ?glow worms? behind the counter at the store her sister had worked in at Universal City one summer. Glow worms being glow in the dark condoms and the thought made her blush (ouch can you say virgin?).
So, according to Theo, glow in the dark needed to be cold. She knew that once you activated the necklaces, they only glowed for so long until they ran out, no matter how much light you exposed them to. So it would have to be a one time deal, something that?s packaged individually, and cold.
?Popsicles?? she asked. Theo stopped typing.
?Glow in the dark popsicles.?
?Y-yeah.? He didn?t say anything for a few minutes, and she started to worry that it was a stupid thing to say and dammit she wasn?t ready for this intern stuff and maybe labwork isn?t for her ?
?That?s it.?
?What?? she asked.
?That?s it. That?s perfect. That?s it!? he said, spinning around to face her, ?Hey, kid. Want a bonus??
Lunch came not too soon after, and Norah strolled toward the cafeteria smiling and kicking out her knees like a lazy sprawl and almost didn?t notice Billy trying to get into his room. Except that she ran into him.
?Oof!? she said. Suave.
?Hey! Oh, hey, it?s you,? he said. He held a file folder of papers in one hand and tilted them toward his chest like they were secret.
?Uh, hey,? she said. ?What?s that??
?This?? he asked casually like it wasn?t some huge secret which was a definite giveaway.
?Y- hey, did your screensaver game thing work? Because Mrs. Johnson was freaking out this morning.?
He started guiltily, ?She was??
?Yeah, and Dr. Banzai was there, too.?
Billy closed his eyes, ?He was??
?Yeah. So maybe you?d better undo what you did and see if that makes it better.? He didn?t say anything, didn?t move for minute, so she added, ?what are those??
He opened his eyes and looked at her. Then he opened his door and motioned for her to enter.
She?d been in guys? rooms before, even with the door closed, but usually there were more than just two people in the room. This was somehow more clandestine then those meetings, a little (lot) more serious.
?I, uh, got offered some money for my skills. You know, as a hacker.? She nodded. Wasn?t that why he was here in the first place?
?It was actually a hell of a lot of money, from a tabloid.? She looked at him.
He was looking back at her, waiting for some kind of judgment.
?What did they want?? She looked at the wall, a poster of Good Charlotte next to Wheezer, next to an Institute group picture.
?They just wanted some background information on some of the people here?heavily classified information.?
?And??
?And, that?s it,? he sighed.
?No,? she said.
?Huh??
?No, that?s not it. What?s it is what you do with this stuff. Is it too late??
?Well, yeah, I already hacked and got the stuff, it?s right here!?
?No. I mean, is it too late? Did you already give the stuff to the tabloid??
He hesitated, ?Not yet. I wasn?t sure??
?About what??
?Anything,? he settled on the geometric comforter, tucking one leg under himself. ?This place is my home, right? They like me here, treat me like I matter. And?I think I just ruined it.?
?Maybe. Maybe not. Seems to me that Dr. Banzai and his lot are pretty forgiving. Didn?t Perfect Tommy once call out a strike team on a bunch of kids??
Billy grinned, ?Yeah.? He cleared his throat, ?So, you?re saying I just confess, and everything?ll be okay??
?No. Nothing?ll ever be okay again. They?ll take forever and again to trust you like they did before, but you gotta do something,? she tucked her hands into her jeans pockets, ?I dunno. Burn the papers, probably with them watching, beg for forgiveness, you know,? she gestured with an elbow, ?the usual.?
?Mm,? he nodded, not looking at her, or anywhere, really, just thinking.
??Kay, so?I gotta get to lunch,? Norah said.
?Huh? Oh! Yeah,? he stood up, ?uh, thanks.?
?Yeah, no problem,? and she left.
Later, lying on her bed with all the lights out, listening to the sounds of the Institute late at night, she wondered about certain things. Norah?s previous highest life aspiration had been ?to become a hermit? because, well, people are stupid. And sometimes, she had to concede, so was she. But sometimes, they weren?t so?bland. Predictable. Dishonorable. Billy would stand up and be counted ? for what, she?d have to ask him later, but at least he?s trying. Hell is other people, her sister had been fond of saying, and Norah had agreed. Hell is other people, but only if you make it that way.
Then she stopped because it was getting so profound she figured she shouldn?t have had that extra trip to the dessert bar with Samantha, giggling and falling over one another over the thought of Neal trying to explain she couldn?t remember then but it had been so funny ? so this was supposed to be a horrible summer. But it doesn?t have to be that way.
And with that, she fell asleep.
