Watching Star Wars.
The new ones?
The old ones.Though Eva hadn’t seen the new ones, either.My mother tried to get me to watch them when I was younger, but I wasn’t interested. I promised to give them a try. She thinks it’s a tragedy I’ve never seen them.
You’ve never seen them?Molly seemed as outraged as everyone else always was when Eva admitted that fact.That is a tragedy. I don’t know if I can continue talking to you.
Eva rolled her eyes, hoping her mother wasn’t paying too much attention to her reaction. Eva glanced up, but she was still staring, transfixed, at the screen, and Eva realized she had no idea what was happening in the movie. She was sure she’d never seen that character before.
Oops.
Oh well. There was nothing she could do about it now—she wasn’t going to ask her mother to rewind, unwilling to risk being asked what had Eva so distracted.
I never took you for a movie snob,Eva typed, accepting she still wouldn’t be able to contribute to a conversation aboutStar Warsin the future and tuning out the sound of dueling lightsabers.
It’s a classic.
Eva bit back a scoff.No, a classic is something like Gone with the Wind.
Ah, you like boring movies. Gotcha.
It’s not boring!
It’s like four hours long.
We’re going to have to agree to disagree.
I agree you have terrible taste in movies, yes.
Eva snorted, trying to fight the smile pulling at the edges of her lips. Despite her reservations, she couldn’t deny Molly made her feel happier than she had in a long time.
She hoped like hell it didn’t come back to bite her on the ass.
* * *
Eva was happy to see Carly in attendance at her next science club.
It would give Eva an opportunity to raise the issues Lily had brought to her the other day, a chance to dig down to the root of the issue and find out if Carly needed some extra help and support.
“Welcome, everyone,” Eva said, once most of the seats in her class were filled. “I’ve got a couple of activities planned for you today. As you can tell from the microscopes around the room, we’ll be diving into cell biology today. First things first—do we have anyone in here who’s squeamish at the sight of blood?” A few pairs of wide eyes stared back at her, but no one raised their hand. “How about any vegetarians or vegans?” Two hands shot into the air, and Eva nodded.
“Today you’re going to be making blood smears. These are used to look for abnormalities in blood cells. If you’re interested in working in a pathology lab in a hospital, this will be something you’ll be carrying out frequently. Now, I didn’t want to try and get permission slips to let you stab your own fingers for your own blood, so I’ve gotten some sheep’s blood for you to use, instead. If that’s going to be a problem for anyone”—her gaze flickered to the two who had raised their hands—“then let me know, and we can find something else for you to do.”
Neither of them came forward after she’d given out the instruction sheets, so Eva let them loose, trying her best to ignore the squeals of disgust as she handed out small vials of blood to each pair.
“The sheet says a drop, Mo,” Eva said when she saw one microscope slide dripping onto her desk. “How many did you put on? Ten? Clean it up. Now.”
Mo scurried off, and Eva was glad to see they seemed to be the only group who couldn’t follow the simple instructions.
Eva watched upturned noses turn into fascination when they looked down the microscope lens, some of them identifying the different types of cells without her assistance. It was what she loved the most about teaching—taking something seemingly foreign and making it accessible, watching interest bloom across their faces, feeding into the insatiable curiosity that a lot of kids held.
Eva wished she could do more lab work in her regular lessons, but the syllabus—and her budget—didn’t allow it.
“Who can tell me the different types of white blood cells?” Eva said, once they’d all taken turns viewing the slides they’d made. Carly’s was the first hand in the air.
“Lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, eosinophils and basophils,” she said, without hesitation, and this was the girl Eva was used to, one brimming with enthusiasm and knowledge, not one who was unfocused and apathetic. At least, Eva mused, it meant there was hope. Carly was still in there, somewhere. Eva just needed to find a way to help Lily bring her out.
* * *
