XLIII

Abby had just begun to settle into her new office after the chaos of opening up the labs in the makeshift buildings had begun. It wasn’t long after the firebombing and she still wasn’t sure who she was working with. While she and several other employees of the lab had either kept their jobs or been offered new ones several employees had received no such guarantees. In fact, two had been let go on Tuesday with no explanation that Abby had heard. She was worried, but not overly so as Dr. Jockner had specifically reassured her about the future of both her position and the lab itself. Therefore she kept working as best she could and tried to project an air of stability when working with less sure colleagues.

Shortly before Abby was supposed to meet with her coworker Maggie her phone rang. She was tempted to ignore it and go straight to lunch, but then the caller ID display resolved (some of the equipment had been salvaged from the ruins functional, or mostly so) and she saw that it was Dr. Jockner’s cell phone. Though she was tired and ready for some food and relaxation Abby forced a cheerful tone and picked up the handset.

“Yes, Dr. Jockner. What can I do for you?”

“Actually quite a bit Abby. You’ve been doing a great job at the lab, but I need you to run down some field work for me. Can you meet me at the architect’s office in twenty minutes?”

“Yes, on the corner of Chestnut and Vine, right sir? J. Farnsworth and Associates?”

“That is exactly the place Abby, I’ll meet you there in twenty then. Thank you.”

As was normal for him Dr. Jockner hung up abruptly, not giving Abby time to say anything else. With a sigh, after all she thought characters in stories always sighed when they received such news so why shouldn’t she, Abby called Maggie and cancelled their lunch date. On her way out through the muddy parking lot Abby glanced at her watch and realized that if she hurried and “kept up with the flow of traffic” she could swing through a McDonald’s downtown and grab a bite to eat. Fast food was definitely not her favorite, but it was better than nothing she rationalized.

* * *

Abby fervently hoped that she would never again have to go through a day as hectic as the previous twenty four hours, in which she thought she might have slept as many as two hours altogether. At the architect’s office Dr. Jockner had explained that a couple of the lab’s current benefactors and several potential benefactors were concerned about the quality of the staff. Of course the director assured Abby that he had every confidence in her, but she could tell that he said this mainly to reassure her and not with complete confidence. He went on to explain that one of the new benefactors wanting to sign on to lab sponsorship was Dr. Dean Riker, president of Mammoth City’s Titan College and owner of the fast food chain Island Burgers, which he added, was very successful against all competition in the valley. When he said this Abby felt slightly guilty for stopping at McDonald’s, until she firmly told herself that it didn’t matter and she couldn't have known.

Dr. Jockner had gone on to explain that in exchange for his patronage Dr. Riker had requested that the lab recruit first from Titan College’s chemistry students. He had also offered reduced tuition, and Dr. Jockner said that the lab would make up the difference, to current employees who would pursue accelerated degrees through the institution. Being quite loyal to her alma mater Mammoth University Abby had never imagined that she would become a Titan, but when Dr. Jockner explained that he not only wanted her to pursue her graduate degree at Titan but to head up the lab’s recruiting of students she could hardly refuse. Additionally if she were called back to the lab at times she could complete some coursework on-line and make other arrangements.

The only catch had been that Abby needed to move immediately before the end of finals week so that she would have her recruitment office established before the students left for break. Therefore with the help of Maggie and several other colleagues she had packed her essentials and crammed them into the back of her car. She knew that she would be able to return to Daze Springs as necessary, but Abby didn’t really want to forget anything so she had spent the night before packing instead of sleeping and only the infusion of a pot of coffee had kept her sane while her friends helped her load everything into her small car and attached U-Haul trailer.

Stifling a yawn Abby decided that she’d gone without food long enough. Only twenty minutes before she had dropped her trailer off at her new apartment on the edge of the Titan campus, but she didn’t feel like unpacking on an empty stomach. So she had wearily turned back onto Elephant Street and started looking for an eatery that was still open. Finally she passed 42 Street and spotted an Island Burger. It was rather rundown, but more importantly it was open, so she pulled into the parking lot. Aside from an elderly couple in a side booth the restaurant’s only other customer was a young man in a Mammoth U sweater, only a couple years younger than Abby. At first her gaze just drifted past him then she looked back. Despite his disheveled appearance he was rather cute she decided. He looked rather upset, but perhaps a conversation would help to wake her up. After ordering the Island’s signature Dharma burger with large fries she sat down in front of the young man.

“Hi, I’m Abby.”

Running his fingers through his hair the apparent student looked up with red eyes. “Oh, hi. Um…Dennis, Dennis Brown. Do I know you?”