Page 72 of Collin: Episodes 1-3
Collin flushed. “Now I feel bad making him walk all that way.”
“He’s inconvenienced, not injured.”
“Do you always carry that thing?”
“The wedge?”
“Yes.”
“Not always. I wanted to have options today in case you needed help.”
“You think of everything, don’t you?”
“This was Émeric’s ingenious solution to a problem years ago. I merely borrowed it.”
“What if someone had seen us coming out of the room, though?”
“Then I’d tell them that one of us required a momentary bit of privacy for a medical issue, which is more than I should have to tell them.”
“Does no one really fuck with you, like, ever?”
Mr. Reevesworth chuckled, his hand sliding to Collin’s back and leading him back toward the exhibits. “They try.”
“I mean, taking over an entire bathroom, that’s a bit entitled, yes?”
“If I were to lock the door and proceed to fuck you for ten or twenty minutes, yes, I can see that being entitled, not to mention rude. A mere fifty-five seconds of necessary modesty does not bother my conscience. It’s less time than one might often wait for an open stall. Now, what else do you want to see? Remember, we can always come back. This place cannot be properly enjoyed in a single day.”
They didn’t leave until the museum closed, and even then, they lingered in the foyer, speaking with Austin and a woman named Keera, who was a visiting expert from her museum in London. In the end, Collin reminded Mr. Reevesworth of the time and their appointment with Mr. Moreau and Damian, and then they slipped outside into the wind, jackets buttoned against the chill. Austin had to let them out a service door with his work key.
It was not yet cold. Winter in the city would teach someone not to say cold before it was actually truly cold. Adjectives had to be used properly, or one would run out of them before the temperature stopped falling.
The walk back up through the vast public park and installation spaces leading up to the towering heights of the city’s financial and business district was brisk enough to keep one’s blood warm. As they were about to enter the sidewalks and accompanying noise of street traffic, Collin’s phone rang. He stepped away into the grass to answer it.
It was Alice.
He gave Mr. Reevesworth a look of apology and answered it. “Hey, sis.”
“Collin?”
“What’s up? You okay?”
“Mom’s crying. And she’s saying something about…you…college?”
“I had a concussion last week. I’m taking the rest of the semester off. It’s okay. I’m just going to focus on work and going back stronger next semester.”
“But what about your scholarship?”
“It might not cover everything since I’ll need to extend. But it’s not a loss. It’s still covered most of the last three years and will cover through the end of this academic year.”
“I thought…that you couldn’t go without the scholarship?”
“I mean, yes, when I started, but now I only have eight classes left to finish. Even if I have to work and take one or two at a time, I can do that. Especially with my new job.”
Alice was quiet for a long time. “I don’t think Mom understands. She thinks you’re quitting. Something about you not promising to finish your degree.”
“I did refuse to promise, because if I have to do something else, I’m going to. I’m not going to promise no matter what. I…” Collin rubbed the back of his head and looked away. “I’m tired. I got hurt because I was too tired. And a degree won’t mean much if I’m not healthy enough to work once I have it. If I didn’t have other options, I’d try to tough it out, but if I have better choices, I’d be a fool not to take them.”
Alice sighed. “A kid got taken out of the library on a stretcher at my school last week.”
