Page 62 of The Scientist

“Don’t forget roommates as well.” I smiled sweetly at Stuart. He shielded my mom from the middle finger he was giving me behind a napkin holder.

“What about you, Alexsander?” she asked. “Did you always know you wanted to be a scientist?”

“Yes,” he nodded. There was a chord of intensity in his voice as he said, “I’ve always been someone who was sure of what they wanted.”

His eyes shifted to me, and our gaze locked for a brief moment. In those few seconds, I felt the overwhelming urge to reach over and touch him. If we’d been sitting on the same side of the table, I don’t know if I would have been able to stop myself. I got lost looking into the clear brightness of those whiskey-colored eyes that seemed to burn even brighter behind the lens of his glasses. He blinked rapidly, and I snapped out of it, suddenly finding the lid of my coffee cup fascinating.

“Well, you two have that in common,” my mom said as she scrutinized us both. “Hadley knew from a very young age that she wanted to be involved in music.”

I turned to her and smirked. “I may have had a little encouragement along the way.”

My mom laughed. “That’s true. My husband, James, was teaching her to play the piano before she could even walk.”

“Probably should have stuck with the basics before moving on to piano playing,” I said. “I still struggle with not tripping over my own two feet.”

“I couldn’t tear you away,” she said, smiling. “Not that I wanted to. Even at that age, it was clear you were gifted.”

I chuckled. “Your opinion might be a bit biased.”

“It absolutely is not,” she said defiantly before turning to Lex and Stuart. “Has she ever played for you?”

“No, but we’ve heard her sing,” Lex said in a low voice. I glanced over to see him looking at me in a way that made me feel… edgy.

“Isn’t she incredible?” my mom said proudly. “You should have seen James and I’s faces when our five-year-old belted out“Proud Mary”in perfect pitch one evening after dinner.”

“‘Proud Mary?’” Stuart gave me a questioning look.

“What’s wrong with that?” I asked.

“Nothing. I just can’t think of many five-year-olds who are into soul music.”

“My dad loved it,” I explained. I can’t remember a time when there wasn’t music playing in our house growing up. He especially loved classic rock and old R&B.

“Are you boys into music at all?” my mom asked them.

“Actually, Lex is a huge Cher enthusiast, and I happen to be a big fan of dubstep,” Stuart said. “Have you ever heard of Skrillex?”

“I can’t say that I have,” my mom said, sounding genuinely interested.

“Did Hadley get any of her musical abilities from you?” Lex asked, interrupting Stuart before he got carried away on a dubstep tangent.My name on his lips had some unmentionable parts of me standing at attention.

“Oh no! I wish.” She guffawed. “No, I was the odd man out in my house. Hadley got all her talent from her father. He was an amazing singer and musician. It’s the reason I fell in love with him… Well that, and he was great in bed.”

Stuart nearly had a spit-take as he grabbed a napkin and started coughing up the sip he’d just taken. I laughed, shaking my head. I looked over to see Lex smiling as well.

When Stuart finally recovered, he asked, “How did he die, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Drug overdose,” she said as casually as if she were announcing the time. They both froze mid-sip and were looking at me, trying to gauge my reaction, but I was used to this. She wasn’t ashamed of anything. Lex already knew this piece of information, but he appeared tense as his eyes worked over my face.

“He was really a remarkable guy. Very talented. And the kindest man you could ever meet… but he had his demons,” my mom continued despite everyone’s uncomfortable reaction. “James was a great husband and an even better father. And there was no one he loved more than Hadley. He would have done anything for her.”

“Except quitting drugs.” It slipped out before I had the chance to think about what I was saying.

“Shit… sorry guys,” I said when I saw the looks on their faces. It was a stupid thing to say. I wasn’t sure I even meant it. I think I was still feeling off after the disagreement my mom and I had earlier. We rarely argued and talking about my dad now felt likewe were picking at the wound we had opened earlier with the New York discussion.

“Don’t worry about it,” Stuart said, waving me off.

Lex didn’t say anything but was looking at me with his eyebrows pinched together, seeming concerned.

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