The Genius

by Elin Peer

  “I’ll have to spend some time in the Motherlands, but it would be practical to have a base here in the Northlands that I could return to when I’m here.”

  “How often will that be?”

  “I don’t know. It depends on what projects I’m working on. If I can work from here, I’ll do it, but it might not always be the case.”

  I wanted to tell her to stay with me, but this was Shelly and limiting her would be selfish, so instead I muttered a low, “I understand.”

  “Are you serious about working two jobs?”

  I nodded and released her hands, my eyes following a leaf that was floating down the stream of water.

  “Then I have a job for you.”

  I raised my gaze and met hers. “What kind of job? If you’re going to offer me money to help you with your research, don’t! I’m not taking money for sex.”

  She laughed. “That’s not what I was going to suggest.”

  “Good, because that would have been fucking offensive.”

  “Advanced Technologies pay an Nman to be my protector. He’s always on stand-by for whenever I need him, which isn’t very often since I stay at the office most nights. I could ask Charlie to hire you for that job instead.”

  “Shelly, no…” I held up both hands. “You’re carrying my child. Of course, I’ll protect you. What kind of man do you take me for?”

  “Someone who is smart enough to let Advanced Technologies pay him for something he would do for free.”

  “But what if I’m at the school and you need to go somewhere?”

  “We’ll figure it out. I’m sure you have friends who could step in if there was an emergency, but I don’t think it’ll be an issue.”

  “They would really pay me to protect you?” The concept was so strange to me that I needed her to confirm it again.

  “Yes.”

  “How much are we talking about?”

  “I don’t know, but anything helps, right?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  “How much does Storm pay for the room now?”

  “Two hundred a month, but you wouldn’t have to pay anything. I would be delirious if you’d move in and let me be close to you and our child.”

  “Two hundred?” Shelly angled her head. “I’m no expert on Northland money, but that sounds very cheap. Is it because he’s your friend?”

  “No, it’s the normal rate.”

  “It can’t be. I’m paying six hundred for my room and that’s only a bit bigger.”

  “Do you have your own bathroom?”

  “No.”

  “Do you have a view?”

  “Yes, but it’s nothing special.”

  “Is the location exceptional?”

  “No. I don’t think so.”

  My face split in a grin and I elbowed her. “Some genius you are. You’re paying triple the rent and you had no idea.”

  “I was told it was a reasonable price to pay.”

  “By whom?”

  “By personnel.”

  “Who’s that?”

  “That’s our human resource department. They set it up for me. One of the ladies working there is the sister of the woman I’m renting a room from.” Shelly closed her eyes the minute she said it and spoke on an exhalation: “Which of course explains the high price.”

  “What about the hired protector? Is he connected to that same sister you live with?”

  “Yes, he’s a friend of her husband.”

  I kept laughing. “Let’s hope he’s getting paid triple too.”

  Shelly frowned. “Stop laughing. It’s not very nice of them to trick us like that.”

  “Hey, people do what they have to as long as it serves their agenda. You tricked me too and that’s how we ended up in this mess to begin with.” I held up a hand when she got that frown line between her eyebrows again. “I’m gonna stop you before you apologize again. It’s getting old.”

  “Okay.” Shelly licked her lips and looked down. “It’ll take some getting used to. The idea that I’m going to be someone’s mom.”

  “I get that,” I said and tucked my hands under my thighs. “How do you feel about me being the father of your child?”

  A shy smile flashed across her face and it instantly soothed my soul. “I never thought about having children or being roommates with a man, but if it had to happen, I would want it to be with you.”

  My eyebrows rose up. “Yeah?”

  She nodded. “Maybe then my child will be athletic and socially competent.”

  I gave her a bright smile and she returned it with humor playing across her face.

  “Plus, you’ll bring some balance to the IQ, which is good.”

  ”Hey.” I bumped her shoulder with my arm. “Keep telling yourself that you’re the smart one. I’m not the one paying triple rent here.”

  We laughed together and for a minute we sat dangling our feet and smiled.

  “Somehow, I think we’re going to make this work,” Shelly pondered out loud. “We’ll find our own version of a family unit.”

  “Does that unit include sex between the parents?” I asked her with hope in my chest.

  Shelly squinted one eye closed when a sunbeam hit her face. “Would you like it to?”

  “Is that a trick question?”

  “I don’t know. I had the impression you were done with me.”

  I opened my eyes and mouth wider in a look of complete bewilderment. “What the hell gave you that impression?”

  “You always said that it would end when you went to the tournament.”

  “That was then.”

  “But you went.”

  “And I came back.”

  “Because of the pregnancy. Not because of me.”

  “What? You’re the one who is pregnant. You can’t separate the two.”

  “Yes, I can. You wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t because of the baby.”

  I pushed off the rock and jumped down to stand in front of her with my bare feet in the water. “Shelly, you were the one who told me you had all the research you needed. You were done with me before I left. You never gave me a chance to tell you that…”

  She looked down and cut me off. “Can we not talk about this right now? I’m trying to take in that I’m pregnant. It’s enough for one day.”

  “All right. I’ll talk to Storm and see when he can move out. You talk to your work and ask them about making me your protector.”

  Shelly tried to get down but was unsure how to, so I held out my arms to her. “Careful,” she warned. “Don’t drop me or we’ll both get wet.”

  “When can we tell people about the baby?” I asked with suppressed excitement.

  “Can we wait some months at least? I’ll have to tell my family before anyone finds out.”

  “What do you think they’re going to say?”

  Shelly leaned her head back and looked up at the white clouds. “They’ll say I’ve lost my mind.”

  Her words worried me. “You’ll still move in with me, right?”

  With a tired smile she gave a small nod. “If you think I’ll let others’ opinion of me dictate how I live my life, then you underestimate me. I’m used to people seeing me as crazy, eccentric, odd, awkward –take your pick.”

  “My pick would be a unicorn.”

  Her eyebrows rose with a look of surprise. “Isn’t that a horse?”

  “Yes, but the most rare and beautiful one there is. It’s magical.”

  “I don’t believe in magic.” Shelly yawned. She probably hadn’t slept much last night either.

  “You’re tired. Do you want to go back to my place?” I asked, hoping to spend more time with her.

  “I’m just overwhelmed by the whole thing. This wasn’t in my plans and I don’t think I’ve fully understood it yet.”

  We were still standing in the stream letting the water run over our bare feet. “Yeah, me too. Once your belly starts growing it’ll be easier to understand and maybe then you’ll be more excited a
bout it.”

  “Yeah, maybe when the initial shock subsides. It’s different for you. At least you always knew you wanted children. I hadn’t thought about it until you came in me five weeks ago.”

  “But you’ll love our child, won’t you?”

  “Of course I will.” She reached up on her toes and touched my face. “And I’ll love you.”

  I was so stunned by Shelly’s unexpected words that she had started walking back the way we’d come before I kicked into gear.

  “Do you mean you’ll love me because I’m the father of your child or will you love me for real?”

  Shelly kept walking. “The two are the same.”

  “No, they’re not. Would you love me if there was no child?”

  She cast a glance over her shoulder. “Ah, so we are asking each other the same question. I asked you if you’d be here if not for the child and now you want to know if I would love you if not for the child.”

  “So what is your answer?” I asked.

  Shelly climbed up a group of stones to where we had placed our shoes.

  “Shelly, do you love me?” My arms were spread out and my head leaned back to look up at her.

  “I do.” It felt a little flat since she was putting on her sandals and didn’t look at me.

  Unsatisfied, I climbed up to her, brushed my hands off on my pants, and rose to my full height in front of her. “Why do I sense there’s a ‘but’ in that sentence?”

  “Marco, I’ve always liked you.”

  I stepped closer. “Just tell me if…”

  With a hand to my mouth she silenced me. “Please, Marco, I’m exhausted and need some time to digest this whole thing.”

  I stood back watching her walk to the drone while I put on my shoes. She said she loved me but there was no indication that it was a romantic kind of love. More like she’d just realized that we were related and now she felt obligated to love me as her kin.

  Make her fall in love with you.

  Never had I craved anything as much as this. I would find a way to convince her to accept me as more than her roommate. She was carrying my child. Whether Shelly understood it or not, that made her my mate.

  CHAPTER 21

  Promises

  Shelly

  “Mom, if people knew how you live they wouldn’t take you so seriously,” I said and took a look around her kitchen, where colorful furniture were mounted on the wall in ways that the people who built them had never intended. A dresser hung on its side, the drawers converted to narrow pull-out shelves and its legs horizontal with pans and pots dangling from them. Next to it a beautiful glass cabinet hung upside down with plates stacked on what had been intended as the underside of the shelves.

  My mom smiled at me, her dark hair flat against her forehead and just long enough that she could tuck it behind her ear. “Shelly, life is supposed to be fun – you never understood that, did you?”

  “I’m fun.”

  “You’re quirky, that’s not the same thing.”

  Stabbing my fork around my salad I wrinkled my forehead. “How could I not be quirky? I grew up in a house with shoes and chairs glued to the ceiling.”

  My mom looked up. “It’s an art installation.”

  “Hmm.”

  “People are too limited in their thinking. That’s why I’m so proud of you, my dear.” My mom leaned forward and cupped my cheek. “You’ve never been afraid to think outside the box.”

  I gave her a small smile. “True, but what if I’m so occupied by everything that’s outside the box that I miss the good stuff inside the box?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’ve never been normal.”

  My mom pulled back and scoffed a little. “Normal. What is that anyway? Certainly not something to strive for.”

  I sighed. “You always say that, but with being normal comes invisibility and for someone like me it sounds like a superpower.”

  “You lost me.”

  “I’m Shelly Summers, the genius.”

  “So, I’m Sheana Rene Summers, the councilwoman. We all have an identity.”

  “But don’t you ever wish you could walk around and have no one expect anything of you?”

  My mom dusted crumbs from the table into her hand and put them on an empty plate. “No. I’m proud of who I am and the role I serve.”

  “Yeah, but that’s because you’re awesome. I’ve only got this explosion of thoughts in my head and half of it sounds idiotic even to me.”

  “Who cares? No genius ever came up with only brilliant ideas.” Sheana gave me a soft smile and squeezed my hand. “I’m beginning to worry about you, honey – where is this new self-doubt coming from and since when do you care what other people think?”

  “I don’t.” Turning my head, I searched for a way to tell her that the only approval I cared about was Marco’s.

  “Are you sure? Something is different about you. It’s not those letters that Charlie told me about, is it? I was so shocked to hear you’ve been getting hate mail. You know, I told him not to worry about you because you never cared about such things, but seeing you like this, I wonder.”

  “It’s fine, Mom, those letters are irrelevant.”

  She was watching me with her interest, as if I was a riddle to solve. “Maybe you’re developing a social interest? Heaven knows you’ve always been liked by people. I would welcome it if you let some of them in.”

  “I have friends,” I said a bit defensive.

  “Sure, but do you ever see them?”

  “I saw Tristan not so long ago.”

  “That’s one person, Shelly. What about Rochelle? She’s your sister and she said that she never hears from you.”

  “I get caught up in my work and then I forget time. It is what it is.”

  “All your life I’ve seen people circle you and try to become your friend. I wish you’d prioritize that part of your life, honey. Social connections are important.”

  “I know, but I’m fine.”

  “You promise?”

  “Yes.” I looked down for a second. “Mom, I’m thinking about extending my stay in the Northlands.”

  Her head jerked back, “Why?”

  “Because I’m on to something with this project and I’m getting a ton done.”

  “You could get a ton done here.”

  “It’s more isolated up there.”

  My mom folded her arms across her chest. “If you want ‘isolated’ then go to Granny’s village. You love it there.”

  She was right. My grandmother lived down south in a small village overlooking a beautiful bay where all the houses were tucked into the hillside. It was a brilliant way to let the earth keep the dwellings cool in the summer. Not only did the houses have a magnificent view through the panorama windows facing the sea, but the overhead windows nestled in between the wildflowers on the hillside provided natural daylight to the rooms positioned in the back of the house.

  “It’s not a bad idea,” I said in a polite manner, “but I have everything I need in the Northlands and I already spoke to Charlie about it.”

  “What did he say?”

  “That he wants me to be happy.”

  My mom chewed on her lips. “Yes, of course he would say that.”

  “He should. My inventions can benefit a lot of people.”

  “Creating advanced sex-toys for Nmen isn’t on the top ten list of what this world needs.” Her tone was hard for a Motlander.

  “Maybe not, but my robot would be the best-made robot in history and the technology could be applied to all other robots after that.”

  “Robots are already amazing. The sex-bots I use look very authentic.”

  “Only until you look closer.” I paused and waited for her to meet my eyes. “Mom, mine would be a companion and not just a sex-toy. She’ll be able to converse, share humor, and if the man doesn’t treat her nicely, she’ll be grumpy like a normal woman.”

  “That’s all very fine, Shelly, but just because you
can replicate a human doesn’t mean you should.”

  I opened my mouth to reply, but nothing came out.

  My mom got up, taking her cup of tea to the sink. “We lost billions of people once because humankind was blinded by optimizing the human experience. All those brain implants making people speak different languages and having access to endless data. What good did it do them?”

  “Mom, that was a long time ago. We’re wiser now.”

  “Are we?” She swung around, leaning against the sink and pinning me with her eyes. “Brain implants are back. I heard you even helped improve them. Now you want to create the perfect woman for Nmen. Why this obsession about perfecting what is already perfect?”

  “You misunderstand. I’m doing the opposite. Sex-bots are a mockery of real women, with their fake curves. I’m bringing back the focus to the beauty of the natural woman. That’s my motivation.”

  My mom looked thoughtful and drew a sigh before she spoke. “There’s something you’re not telling me. Why do you care what sex-bots the Nmen play with? The rest of us couldn’t care less and it’s none of our business anyway. If the men of the North want sex-bots with four breasts and two vaginas then we should give it to them. As long as it makes them happy who are we to judge?”

  “I care.”

  “But why, Shelly?” Sheana was throwing her hands in the air, frustration showing on her face. “Why?”

  Her question served as a trigger and the reason spilled out of me. “Because when I was an assistant teacher at the experimental school, we went on a fieldtrip to the Motherlands and we visited Advanced Technologies. There were sex-bots, and the boys and male teachers talked about them with such excitement.”

  “So?”

  Popping my eyes, I squeezed my hands. “I was right there, Mom.”

  “Yes?”

  “And none of them had ever shown any interest in me. They would rather have sex with a dead thing than…” I couldn’t say it.

  “Than you.” My mom finished the sentence for me.

  I looked away, my shoulders drooping and my mind racing to the obvious conclusion that I’d never been brave enough to admit to myself. This project had always been about Marco. He had hurt my pride that day when he had praised the sex-bots and at the same time seen right past me. I wanted to create a natural sex-bot to prove that men would prefer a real woman over a fake one.