Page 51 of The Scientist
Lex glanced pointedly toward me with that last remark. Merrick followed his gaze until both men were staring at me. I grinned at Lex, and I thought I saw his lip quirk before he resumed eating.
“Man, you’ve changed,” Merrick said with a forced laugh. The underlying implication was clear as day—you’re not as complicit as you once were.
“That’s funny. I was just thinking you haven’t,” Lex said, like he wasn’t bothered in the least.
I could see the glaring difference between the two of them in that moment. Merrick was all smiles and bravado while Lex had a quiet indifference that seemed even more lethal.
“Thanks again for having me over, guys. I haven’t had food this good in a long time.” I said, mostly to Lex, trying to steer the conversation in another direction.
“Now you understand why I keep rooming with him,” Stuart said.
“Can your boyfriend not cook, Hadley?” Merrick asked, shaking off his awkward interaction with Lex.
“No, he has a hard time picking up the spatula with his giant hulk hands,” Stuart said, making me snort as I was taking a sip of my drink.
“What was that?” Merrick looked completely lost.
“It was a joke,” I explained. “I’m single.”
“How’s a girl like you single?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Stuart said. “Her hideous appearance runs them all off. They call her the Quasimodo of Stanford.”
I put my middle finger up against my cheek, pretending to scratch it.
“I know damn well that’s not true,” Merrick said with his self-assured demeanor fully restored. “You weren’t seeing anyone back in New York?”
“Yes, I was dating a guy for a while before I moved here,” I answered.
I glanced over and noticed Lex's eyes were squarely on me, sending an inexplicable wave of nervousness through me.
“What happened with that?” Merrick asked.
“He’s a great guy. We got along really well, but I knew long distance would never work," I answered. "I don't think it ever really works for anyone, but especially not for us.”
“He didn’t want to move here with you?” Merrick asked.
“No, he loves his job. And I’d never ask that of him.”
He shook his head. “It’s a good thing you got rid of him. He’s obviously not right in the head. I’d follow you all over this damn country.”
I gave him a tight smile, trying to accept the compliment gracefully.
“Hey, you know what animal really gets the shit end of the stick?” Stuart asked, looking around the table at everyone. We all just stared back at him, wondering where he was going with this.
“Cows,” he said, answering his own question. “We raise them, slaughter them for the meat, but not before we take the milk meant for their offspring and give it to our own babies to fatten them. The final blow comes when we take their babies and charge fifty bucks a plate for veal.”
The silence in the room was deafening. We all continued to stare at Stuart as the seconds ticked by. The change of subject was so random, and the confused look on Merrick’s face was so comical that I couldn’t help it. I covered my mouth, trying to stifle my laughter, but failed miserably. I started laughing and continued to laugh until tears ran down my face. I knew Stuart had done it to get Merrick’s attention off me and for that I was grateful. Lex was shaking his head, trying to hide his grin.
“Do you think about cows a lot?” Merrick asked, still appearing bewildered.
“Oh, I think about all sorts of things. The spatiotemporal profile of altered neural reactivity… presynaptic spike drive plasticity… women’s volleyball.”
Merrick continued to look at Stuart with his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. He shook his head and muttered, “Whatever you say, Stuey.”
Hearing Merrick call him Stuey sent me into another fit of laughter.
“How’s your mom, Lex?” Merrick asked, probably done with Stuart and I's antics.