“Okay.” What else could Milo say?
On one hand, working with a scientist of Elio’s caliber was a privilege and it would almost certainly propel Milo to the top at Starlight, and beyond. There was no one else Milo wanted to work with, especially not one of the Mean Guys, but working with Elio? That would probably be like working on a rollercoaster and Milo wasn’t sure his nerves could handle it.
“Are you sure you want to work with me? Brad and his gang are all lousy but I can think of a few people here who might be a better fit,” he said and Elio let out a bitter laugh.
“Do you think I haven’t scoured this building for brain cells? I’ve founda fewcompetent people, but just like you, they’re keeping their heads down and don’t want to rock the boat.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Milo asked, something like a temper stirring deep in his gut. “Maybe some people just want to do their own thing and work in peace.”
“Peace, I understand!” Elio said as he waved a finger at Milo. “Andyoushould be studying what you want becauseyouhavethe potential to do something huge. But you’re wasted here and you’re wasting time!”
“I don’t know that I agree with that,” Milo said timidly, despite his growing frustration. “I’m the youngest person at Starlight because I busted my butt to get here. I skipped over a lot of things when I was a kid—school and fun stuff—so I could work at a place like this. It might not be perfect but I’m not wasting time andI willgrow as a physicist. They can’t stop me,” he said with a decisive nod. “But I won’t be rushed either.”
It was Elio’s turn to stare and blink and Milo thought he might be glitching, his jaw opened and closed and his hand rose to point, then dropped. “That’s… You’re right. My apologies,” he said and bowed his head. “Just pick something, Milo. I don’t care as long as it gives us something worthwhile to do.”
“What about…” Milo scrambled to think of anyone else Elio might accept. “What about Carmen? She’s brilliant and she’s really funny when she comes out of her shell.”
“No. I’m not working with anyone but you. Message me when you’ve decided,” Elio said as he pulled his phone from his coat’s pocket and headed for the door.
“Message you? I don’t have—” Milo’s phone vibrated in his back pocket. He retrieved it and there was a text from an international number with Elio’s contact information. “How did you—?” But Elio had left with his skateboard. “What the heck is going on?”
Milo sent his dads a text, telling them that Elio had another outburst and that they were now project partners. On what Milo had no clue, but at least he could keep an eye on Elio and stop him from getting rid of Hector or opening a black hole in Manhattan.
That was a joke. Mostly. And Milo was mystified as he took stock of his new surroundings. Thanks to Elio, Milo had a dream office to work in and the freedom to work on anything hewanted. Essentially a promotion. Why had Elio done all of that if he didn’t have a reason and somethinghewanted to study?
Only time would tell so Milo decided to make the best of it. Thanks to Elio, Milo had a safe, quiet place to just exist as a scientist. Some people might have felt a rush of ambition and pride after leap-frogging over their peers, but Milo was more intrigued by what he could learn and the answers he might find in a pressure-free environment.
“I guess I’d better get to work.”
Five
Milo’s text came just a few hours after Elio left the institute and returned tohiswork at Muriel’s. Relieved to have that matter settled, Elio tossed his phone on the bed and bit the cap off of a new red marker, approaching the board in the room he was occupying. He only used redbecause it suited his mood and he preferred to work in as little clothes as possible.
The windows and glass walls in Elio’s office could be switched from clear to frosted but hemightget in trouble if he took off his clothes at Starlight. He certainly wouldn’t beat the mad and erratic allegations. Elio also respected that other people might not want to see him naked.
He wasn’t that much of an arsehole and he wasn’t a creep.
Thankfully, Milo had found something Elio could sink his teeth into and it would help take his mind off ofwherehe was working. He was thoroughly hacked-off and ready to wash his hands of the institute after his “meeting” with Hector the previous Friday.
Furious at finding the brightest mind at Starlight cowering in a bathroom stall, Elio had confronted Hector. The older man had simply laughed and said that Ashby was an “odd duck” and that a little friendly competition was good for office morale.
“An odd duck?” Elio had parroted, planting his hands on Hector’s desk and leaning in until their noses almost touched. “Ashby is the smartest man in this building, myself excluded. Why isn’t he running his own studies? Why doesn’t he have an office?”
“Ashby?” Hector gulped and laughed shakily. “He’s…brilliant, sure, but the boy doesn’t have a backbone. They’d never listen to him.”
“A backbone?He hasa disability!” Elio straightened and stepped back as his frustration exploded into anger. “Fucking hell! What is the point of this place?” he shouted, knocking a stack of glossy pamphlets off of Hector’s desk. “You aren’t leading the way in anything but ableism, mediocrity, and nepotism. A scientist should be respected for his achievements and his abilities, not how many gift cards he can win or how popular he is.”
Hector stood and held out his hands as he came around his desk. “You’re absolutely right and if it were up to me, Ashby would be running this department. But I have to work with what they give me and maintain some sort of order.”
“This is a bloody joke! How manyadultsare working here?”
“Here, in Computational Astrophysics? We have sixty-two adults, if you count Chad and Bryan.” He gave another tense laugh. “You don’t have to worry about them—any of them,” he said with a wild wave. “Be your own department and do whatever you want! The board made it clear that they don’t care what it takes, I just have to keep you happy,” he said, then held up a finger before Elio could suggest some personnel cuts. “I can’t fire the people you don’t like, unfortunately. Some of them have parents on the board or are related to donors. They pay my salary and control the purse strings around here.”
“Fine. I’ll be my own department and I want Ashby to be my project partner.”
“Consider it done!” Hector said and held out his hand for a gentlemanly handshake.
Elio gave it a disinterested slap before he turned on his heel and stalked out of the office and kept going until he was back at Muriel’s. He spent the weekend working, stopping only to eat, shower, and for the occasional nap but he managed to drag himself to the institute for the “mandatory” Monday meeting. Instead of addressing any of the asinine behavior or bullying, it was business as usual for Hector and little would change for Milo.
