“Matty, you’re up.” Professor Chertok waved him forward.
Matty inserted the flash drive into Marathon. He shook out the nerves from his fingers.You’re Matanga fucking Kapoor. You have a competition to win.Coop’s words echoed in his mind, causing him to crack a smile amidst the pressure.
“There are millions of people in the world who want to live independently, but because of injury, disease, and paralysis, they are unable to. With a service robot like Marathon, they will have a way to live by themselves safely.”
“Obstruction,” Marathon said to nothing in his way. The audience laughed at the glaring mistake, a mistake that should not be in this program. Matty talked to distract from that minor glitch.
“Eventually, robot service dogs like Marathon can check for items in their path, pull items from high shelves, help people pay bills.”
Before Marathon could pick a backpack out of the way, his arm shot up so fast that nearby students had to duck. Marathon beeped wildly and loudly like a smoke alarm on a sugar high.
“Obstruction. Obstruction. Obstruction. Obstruction.” Over and over he said it. He waved his arms wildly like windmills. Linh screamed and dove under the table to avoid getting hit.
“It’s coming this way!” An audience yelled as Marathon headed right for them.
“What’s going on, Matty?” The professor squatted to get close to Marathon to shut him off, but the machine’s arms were too fast. The professor hopped backwards and tripped over a chair, inches away from Marathon’s swing.
People screamed and ran outside. Others cowered behind desks as Marathon’s arms picked up speed. The arms rammed into the walls and whiteboards, spewing material in all directions. A desk flew against the chunked-out walls. Marathon was at the center of his very own tornado.
Matty watched the chaos in horror.What the hell was happening?
Kelvin did an army crawl, slithering under Marathon’s rotating arms.
“Be careful, Kelvin!” The professor yelled. He scowled at Matty, whose throat went dry with fear and shock. His academic career was going down in arm-waving flames.
As Marathon’s arm swung, Kelvin slammed the door on it, locking it in place. Marathon buzzed and beeped and rattled against the door. Kelvin yanked the flash drive out of Marathon’s head. The robot went to sleep just as fast as he had gone crazy.
People stood up and caught their breath. And then they all turned to Matty. They were a wall of glares and scowls. He doubted he would get a round of encouraging applause like Linh had gotten. He stared at Marathon, hurt. He thought technology wasn’t supposed to let him down. Only people.
Chapter 31
Coop
Coop wentthrough the motions of class, but nothing could shake his funk over Matty. Fucking emotions. Fucking love. Fucking Kelvin. Not even going to the gym for extra-long workouts gave him the necessary endorphins to overcome his pain. He kept wondering what he would’ve done differently, if anything. A relationship built on lies was probably doomed from the start, but Coop kept coming back to Matty. Maybe Rafe was right and he should’ve been upfront with Matty.
Come Friday night, Coop thought going to a party with Maria could take his mind off Matty. She didn’t have to beg when she contacted him again. Coop accepted right away. He was desperate for the distraction.
“He got back with his ex-girlfriend, but he keeps flirting with me and sending me all these texts…”
Coop was only half-listening as he beelined to the drinks table. He mixed himself a badly-needed drink.
“What are you making?” Maria looked at his glass incredulously. “Vodka, whiskey, Sprite, and orange juice? That sounds gross.”
He gazed at the glass. Without even realizing it, Coop made himself a sunshine bomb. It looked rough and had a harsh taste at first, but then there was a sudden burst of sweetness. Just like Matty.
“There he is.” Maria shifted her eyes to three o’clock. Coop didn’t bother looking. His glass was stuck to his face like an emergency mask on an airplane.
“Let’s sit on the couch and let him stare at us.” Coop flopped on the cushion, nearly knocking two girls off. “Sorry.”
The alcohol couldn’t hit his head fast enough.
He put his arm around Maria, and she played the part, curling into his shoulder. Coop sat there like a corpse.
“Are you feeling okay? Do you need to go back to your dorm?”
“I’m fine.” Coop stifled a burp and finished off the last of his sunshine bomb. He was going to stand up to get another, when Maria’s dream guy strolled up to them.
“Hey, Maria.”
