Page 14 of Lessons in Love

I exhale, hand shaking as I raise a fist and knock on the door of the lab. I haven’t gotten access to it yet, so I wait as footsteps on the other side get closer and closer. The man who greets me has close-cut dark hair and thick glasses perched at the end of his nose. His eyes crinkle at the corners as he smiles at me, and I instantly feel at ease.

“Eden, right? Come in!”

My supervisor for this project is Edward Zhao, who’s been running this specific lab for over twenty years. The number of articles that he has been the first author for is astounding and I know I’m in good hands here. We’ve spoken over email a fair few times, so I’m ready to jump right into anything that he gives me.

“We’ll do a quick tour of the lab, and then I have a couple of things for you to do.”

I nod wordlessly as I cross the threshold, and what I see almost takes my breath away.

“This is…”

“Impressive?” Edward laughs. “Tell me about it! You should have seen my face the first time I saw it. I couldn’t believe that the university would spend so much money on us.”

Recently remodeled, the lab is an exceptional space. A state-of-the-art facility, it was designed not only with scientists in mind, but also with the aesthetics. It’s tucked into an unassuming part of the old Chemistry Building. As we walk through, we’re met with a wide open room, with views of the quadrangle from above. The floor-to-ceiling windows let in so much natural light, and breathe a sigh of relief as I remember the dingy basement rooms that all the first year subjects are run out of. There’s desks everywhere, and the other people in the room all give us a wave as we pass through.

“And just through here are our mass spectrometers. Do you have much experience with them?”

The room off to the side houses some of the most expensive equipment this lab will ever have. Three machines face me, and excitement and anticipation fills me. They’re all perfect, sleek and shiny. Polished within an inch of their life. Nothing like the old rusty stuff I’m used to in my undergrad.

“Only a little. We were shown how to use them in one of my other subjects, but I haven’t had a lot of practice.”

“That’s fine. I’ll send you through some training materials today and I’ll give you a proper look sometime next week. You’ll be using them a lot, so you’ll have heaps of time to perfect it!” Edward leads us back to the main room, and I’m shown my desk. “There’s some modules online that need to be completed before you can actually start. Boring stuff, I know, but the university needs it to be done. Other than that, I’ll send you some of our previous papers and what our current one currently looks like to familiarise yourself with the project.” He pauses, fingers drumming on the tabletop. “I know it’s a lot at the moment, but once you settle in this will be a fantastic experience.”

“Thank you for all this. I’m very excited.” He nods once, and leaves me alone. There’s a pressure in my chest, but it’s not my usual stress. It’s anticipation. Finally doing something that matters. Finally doing something that puts everything I’ve learned into practice. With the work that is happening here, we can actually make a difference in people’s lives.

My initial application for this project was centred around that. The ability to have an early detection process for a variety of diseases and illnesses would be invaluable for so many people around the world, and to be part of the team that creates it would be incredible. Without further ado, I open up my laptop and get to work.

6

CHAPTER SIX

Oliver.

The library’s quiet at this time, which I’m thankful for. What I’m not thankful for is the way the words on the page before me seem to bend and wave every time I try to make out what they say. I came here to get out of the house, to find a spot where I can curl up with this book (the last one in the series, mind you) and finish it today without interruptions. My immediate assignments are done, and the pre-class work for next week was easy enough. I can take some time for myself. Only four hundred pages to go, so it should be a breeze.

But it’s not.

Every tiny noise interrupts my train of thought, from other people’s keyboards to sniffles to hushed conversation. I can’t get comfortable, no matter how I fold my body. My hand hovers over my phone, and I find myself checking it more often than I ever have before. A girl will do that to you.

Eden hasn’t left my mind for more than five minutes since we last spoke. I fear I’ll never be able to eat ramen again without thinking about her. The way she looked under the warm lights, the way her eyes glowed as she laughed, tipping her head back, exposing the columns of her neck.

We’re due to meet up for a session soon, and the time can’t seem to come soon enough. I’ve never missed someone like this. Like there’s a hole in my chest, and I barely know her.

I sense her before I see her coming up the stairs. She looks around the room for a moment before she spots me, and her face lights up. In a tight pair of black athletic flares and a hoodie, I want to run my hands up her legs to see if they feel as soft as they look.

“Hi, stranger,” she smiles, sliding into the booth across from me. “Long time no see.” There’s an ease to her today, a calmness. It makes me want to know why.

“How have you been?”

“Really good.” Eden lets out a breath, flicking a piece of hair away from her face. “My research project has started, and it’s just been fantastic. Makes me excited for next year.” Pausing for a moment, she takes my book off the table. “What do we have here?”

I laugh as I try to grab it back, but she holds it just outside of my reach. “The book I was meant to finish today, before you interrupted.” Flipping it on its side, Eden takes in where my bookmark is and then stares at me. “What?”

“There’s like…three hundred pages left.”

I shrug. “And?”

“You were aiming to read all this today?”