Page 8 of Broken Bonds

“What are you working on?” I ask, deciding just to be bold about my curiosity to see what he does.

He doesn’t respond right away, and I wonder what type of face he’s making. Curious? Pissed off? Exhausted? Perhaps even a little thrilled?

The intercom buzzes again. “It’s nothing to concern yourself with.”

“Well, is it dangerous?” I have this strange desire to push him and see if I can crack that icy exterior he’s erected, no doubt over the years.

“What do you mean, dangerous?”

I shrug, but he can’t see me. “I mean, if something goes wrong in there, could my life be in danger?”

“You’re in the middle of Antarctica. Your life is always in danger here.”

“You know what I mean.”

He releases a long sigh. “Dr. Reyes, I can’t say for certain what the risks are of my work. What scientist can truly do that?”

Oh, he’s definitely working on something dangerous in there. Energy distribution my butt.

“For the sake of my wellbeing, shouldn’t I have a right to know the risks?” I say.

There’s a long amount of silence, and then, “Just a second.”

I blink, surprised. What just happened?

I hear the click of the door being unlocked from the inside and the next thing I know, it’s opening. Not much, but enough that Dr. Pyrrhos can stick his head out and level me with an annoyed, arched-brow look.

More startling than his sudden appearance, though, is the blast of heat that spills out of the room behind him. I take a step back, caught off guard by the intensity.

Woah. Whatever he’s doing in there might be a lot more serious than I suspected.

“Do you know how to take a hint?” he growls. “Go away.”

I tilt my head and gaze at him, amused despite his obvious irritation. He’s trying awfully hard to be the big bad wolf Charlie painted him as. I have a feeling, though, that it’s mostly an act. Maybe a defense mechanism of some kind, to keep people from getting close to him.

“If you’re working on something with the potential to, I don’t know, explode, I think I should know about it,” I tell him, crossing my arms and holding his gaze stubbornly.

His nostrils flare and his jaw tightens. “Look, I think we’ll both get along just fine if you mind your business, and I mind mine. Got it?”

I frown. “I just think…”

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t disturb me again,” he snaps. “Goodbye.”

With that, he shuts the door in my face.

I blink, admittedly taken a little aback. This might take a little more work than I was anticipating.

Turning on my heel, I give him what he wants and walk away from the door. But not in defeat. Oh, no. I’m nowhere near close to giving up. In fact, I’m much more determined to convince him to be friendly to me. He thinks he can be stubborn and focus-driven? He hasn’t seen anything yet.

Aleixo

I’ve lost track of time again. Not an unusual occurrence for me, but I can tell it’s gotten quite late while I’ve been toiling away in my lab. Not only am I exhausted, but I’m starving as well. I can’t remember the last thing I ate that day, but I know it was rather early in the day. Usually, I don’t go so long without food. Sleep is one thing that I’ll readily skip out on if I am on a roll with something, but food…when my stomach demands attention, I’m usually eager to comply.

I’m ashamed to say that I was hiding today, though. Hiding from Samantha, who is already proving a greater distraction than I like. When she came to my lab and asked to know what I was doing, I panicked and was an intentional asshole to her to get her to leave me alone. It shouldn’t bother me so much, as I’m an intentional asshole to most people, but I haven’t been able to shake this feeling of guilt deep in my stomach since I slammed the lab door in her face.

It’s not like she’s really done anything wrong. She’s just being friendly, I think, and I can tell she has a curious nature, just like I do. Usually, I find such traits in others annoying, but in her…for whatever reason, she doesn’t irritate me like other people do. She unnerves me and breaks my focus, but I can’t seem to stay annoyed with her, which I find troubling.

I sigh as I clean up my lab and step out the door, ready to call it a night. Food, then sleep, and there’s no reason for me to worry because it’s so late and she had to be exhausted from her trip. No doubt, Samantha is passed out in her room and there’s no risk of me running into her at least until morning. If I play my cards right and get back into the lab before she wakes, I might be able to go the whole day without seeing her.

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