Ultraviolet Catastrophe

“Enough.” Max got to his feet, his eyes narrowed and angry. “Come on, Lexie. Let’s go get started on the research. The three of you can figure out what else needs to be done.”

Zella shook her head, her face hardening into a mask. Beside her, Asher still lounged in his chair, feet outstretched, but his shoulders were tense as he glanced between Max, Zella, and me. Something like guilt flashed in his eyes before he looked away.

So much for him going out of his way to make me feel welcome here.

Amy was the only one who smiled at me as Max grabbed my bag and swung it over his shoulder with his own.

“Nice to meet you, Lexie,” she said. “I’m glad we’re on the same team.”

6

Max and I made our way to the third-floor library. He pressed a thumb to the print scanner, and the door swung open. Thick scientific tomes lined the walls, but they were only there as decoration. My eyes widened as I recognized the ultra high-tech computers that made up the real core of the room. I’d read about them online. They were super-fast, super-quiet, and linked to every scientific journal, library, newspaper, and article hub in the world.

My muscles still quivered at Zella’s unexpected bitchiness, and I shoved the heavy door out of my way harder than I intended. It slammed against the wall, and the librarian glared at me, putting a finger to her lips.

I froze. Her finger was made of metal.

“A robot librarian?”

Max nodded. “Joan. One of the first-generation prototypes. She’s fantastic if you have a general idea of what you need to research but don’t know where to start. Her brain contains the entire Library of Congress.”

“Of course it does.” She looked almost human. Her face was covered with some sort of synthetic skin, and her short brown bob was neatly styled. If it hadn’t been for the metal arms, I would never have guessed she was a computer on legs.

Unfortunately, I was still too angry at Zella to be excited about it.

Max led me to an alcove near the window and opened his laptop, but I couldn’t let it go.

“What’s Zella’s problem anyway?” I asked. “What did I do to piss her off?”

Max sighed and rubbed his scruffy chin. “Zella’s the worst kind of overachiever. Her parents expect perfect grades and top honors for each module. I know they do it because they love her and want her to be the best, but it’s kind of turned her into a monster. Her only focus is grades. She’s been top of our class for three years now. Well, almost top. Asher’s been first since forever. No one tries to compete with him anymore.”

“Sounds like fun.” I was going to have to work my ass off to even manage a passing grade. “What about Asher then? What’s his deal?”

Max rolled his eyes. “Asher’s Asher. He’s a genius, and he never lets us forget it. Though it’s not like he needs to try. Everyone already knows how smart he is.” Max typed a password into his laptop. “Just a warning? He’s hooked up with most of the girls at QT in our age range. Not sure how he finds the time to date and stay at the top of the class, but whatever. He likes them cute and smart, so you’re bound to be on his wish list.”

Heat flooded my cheeks at his backhanded compliment, but Max didn’t seem to even realize what he’d said. “Thanks for the compliment, but I have no intention of becoming Asher Rosen’s next conquest.” No matter how much his smile made my stomach flip. “But wait, are you saying you don’t date?” Max was cute in the boy-next-door kind of way, with his friendly brown eyes and his scruffy beard. There had to be plenty of girls who liked him.

He shifted in his chair and looked away. “I don’t think you fully understand the joy that is QT. I’ve gone to school with most of these kids since I was five. I’ve had classes with the same thirty kids year after year. We all had a phase where everyone was hooking up with everyone else, but once we realized there was no escaping if it ended badly, it all pretty much stopped.” Max used the bottom of his shirt to polish his laptop screen and didn’t meet my gaze. “So, yeah, you could say the guys were pretty excited to hear Dr. Kepler had a daughter and she was coming to QT.”

Really? Could have fooled me. And then his words sank in. “Wait. Nobody knew about me before this? Didn’t my dad ever talk about his family?”

Max tugged at the neck of his shirt. “It’s not like he talks about much besides work. Don’t take it personally. He’s a busy guy.”

I slouched in front of one of the computers and crossed my arms as if it would stop the ache filling my chest. Not only had Dad abandoned me and lied to me, but he’d also pretended I didn’t exist.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.” Max looked genuinely concerned.

“It’s not you. It’s my dad.” I blinked back the moisture in my eyes. I was not going to spend my first day at QT crying in the library.

He nodded. “It’s tough when they’re so focused on work. My dad’s actually stationed in Oregon at another QT facility for a few months. We were supposed to go visit this summer, but Mom got called to Switzerland so I went with her.”

“I just don’t get it. I mean, they’re our parents. They’re supposed to care about us.”

“I think they do, but they get so focused on other things. I know the work my dad is doing is to make our lives better. I just wish he’d talk to me about it more often.”

I sighed. “Yeah, me, too.”

Max and I spent the rest of the day in the library working on our project research. It felt like there was a band around my lungs as I searched desperately for the information we needed on the ultraviolet catastrophe. If I could get this right, maybe it would be a step toward earning my place here. Toward showing everyone I belonged and showing myself I wasn’t broken.

I had to keep forcing myself to take breaks. There weren’t bells or class periods or even any sort of timetable for the day. It all felt a little weird, like I was playing hooky or a teacher was going to yell at me for not doing my work.

But no one bothered us. The few scientists I saw were more interested in their own research than what I was looking up on the internet. If this was what college or a real job was like, it was going to take me a bit to get used to it.

Beside me, Max yawned and stretched his arms over his head. “It’s been nice not having Zella here riding me the whole day. You’re laid back, Lexie. I like you.”