Self

Chapter 28

“Perfect timing! I’m buried in research. Can you check if I’ve got the right stuff?” Wendy called out, peering over her reading glasses.

Yara set her things down and walked over. On the table was a book. on gene sequencing, a deep dive into the world of bioinformatics.

“Hey, you’ve got a knack for remembering stuff. Isn’t there a book in this series about genetic testing? I can’t seem to find it.”

Yara did not have a superhuman memory or anything; she just had a knack for the important bits.

She had just skimmed through the book the professor mentioned a few days back at the library. Her eyes roamed the bookshelf, and then -bingo!

“Professor, is this the one you’re looking for?”

Wendy checked the cover and beamed. “That’s the one! You’ve got eagle eyes, I swear. I’ve been on the hunt for ages, and it was hiding in plain sight.

“Hey, Solomon, come over here. This book and these papers should be plenty for your research. Take them for now, and I’ll dig around later for more.”

“Thanks a bunch, Professor.”

Solomon gratefully accepted the materials.

He was in the thick of his grad thesis and was short on sources. He had heard Professor Olson had the good stuff, so he had shown up at the crack of dawn.

“Oh, let me do the introduction,” Wendy said. “Yara’s an old student of mine, but she’s about to join the ranks again.”

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Solomon blinked, a bit slow on the uptake. “Oh, you’re gearing up for the grad program?”

Wendy chuckled and nodded at Yara. “This is Solomon, a second–year grad student aiming for his Ph.D. He’s been hitting the books hard, too. You two can keep each other company.”

Yara nodded. “Hey, I’m Yara.”

It looked like she was another one of Professor Olson’s students. With a friendly grin, Solomon whipped out his phone and added her as a Facebook friend.

“Awesome! We can hit the library together sometime and help each

other out with class stuff.”

They chatted briefly, but Solomon had to dash off to his next class.

Yara glanced at the chiffon cake on the table and plated it from the kitchen.

Wendy’s eyes lit up at the sight. “Wow, it’s been ages since I’ve had. this. Did you go out of your way to get it?”

That chiffon cake was from a legendary old bakery famous for its long lines.

Yara played it cool, not mentioning the hour she had waited. “Just passed by and picked it up.”

“Next time, you can just come without bringing anything. We’ve got everything we need here, and that place is a long distance away, not to mention the wait.”

Yara wrapped her arms around the old lady’s arm, giving her a playful nudge. “It’s no biggie, really quick.”

The professor gently tapped her on the head. “Okay, no more sweet- talking. I’ve got a couple of problem sets for you. Why don’t you give

Chapter 28

them a shot?”

“You didn’t invite me over just to make me do homework, did you?” Yara teased with a mock frown.

“Less sass, more class. I’m just nudging you to hit the books.”

“Alright, alright, I’m on it.”

Wendy watched her bounce away and smiled, feeling a wave of pride.

After spending the day at the professor’s and whipping up a delicious dinner, Yara tidied up the kitchen before heading out.

Later that night, while Yara was studying, her phone buzzed.

[Solomon: Library tomorrow? Together?]

Yara pondered briefly before texting back.

[Yara: Sure, see you then.]

The next morning, Yara walked up to the library and spotted Solomon right away, waiting by the door.

“Did you grab breakfast? I brought some for you.”

Solomon swung by the dorms and grabbed an extra breakfast combo from the cafeteria.

“Thanks,” Yara said, scarfing down the breakfast quickly. Side by side, they headed into the library.

Solomon had already got them a place on the second floor. The

elevator dinged open, and Yara was about to step in when someone zoomed past and beat her to it.

It was Xandra and her roommate.