The Millennials (ON HOLD) #Wattys2016

Chapter 6

The lab is quiet as Rees works on the entire project himself. Eventually I would still have to look over it so there was no way he could exclude me without getting in trouble. I was complaining about Kong excluding me during the scavenger hunt, but Rees was beginning to do the same thing. 

Rees who I had worked with for a good portion of my life. We have grown up together. It rattles my heart to see him beginning to change before me. I drum against the table as his computer clicks away. He stares at the DNA sequence intently. A large thread of ATATCGTCAATTCCATTTACTTGGATCCTTAGGTCCAAGGT.

Rees was just as smart as I am, maybe even smarter. One thing I do know for sure, is that I was a faster reader, I often analyzed sequences in 10 minutes. Sequences that would take many others 40 minutes at a time. A few minutes pass and he seems to be getting frustrated and a little confused. What we did required brain power that was hard to get through without a good nights sleep. He was paying specific attention to the analysis now because our lives kind of depended on it but I started getting nervous just sitting there. If there were enough similarities to Sav's DNA, Sammi would be dead in the next few hours. We were great at analysis, even better than the computers. 

A few important sequences of Sav's DNA were missing from the system as if someone went in and selected specific strains that told all the information we needed to catch him, but even that couldn't stop Rees from decoding. 

The longer he stared at the screen, the faster my heart began to race. I noticed I was watching him from across the room, doing absolutely nothing with my mouth pressed into a hard line. I felt my teeth singing into the insides of my lips. Rees sighs and rubs his eyes and I let out a quiet breath. He was too tired to focus. 

"Need some help?" I ask, hoping there is something I can do to help Sammi when he isn't looking. 

"Hm, talking to me now?" He questions me as he magnifies the sequence to properly compare them side by side. 

"No, you're turning into the biggest jerk I know." I answer honestly. "But you look tired and I don't feel like getting thrown in jail, or worse because you misread a sequence." 

I walk over to him while clenching and unclenching my fist to relax the shaking. He wheels his chair away from the screen and eventually gets up and walks to the sink to wash his face with cold water. 

I look over the sequences and I can immediately spot similarities that would get Sammi in trouble. She said not to worry about it, should I still intervene or take her word for it? I glance over at him slightly turning my neck and notice that he isn't paying attention to me. He presses the green button on the speedo coffee maker and runs his wet hands into his hair. 

I turn back and highlight one of the similar DNA patterns and hover over the delete button. I can feel my heart beating into my throat. 

"Ayda." He calls from across the room. I jump a few inches out of my chair and quickly unhighlight the pattern. I need to calm down. Deep breaths. 

Deep breaths. 

"Yes?" I say when I have gathered myself. I think Rees takes it as an emotional pause because he exhales and shrugs his shoulders. 

"I'm sorry. I'm not like this. You know that." His voice is so soft, I recognize the old Rees. Where had he gone? I watch him leaning against the coffee table, waiting for his cup to be finished. 

He looks like a little boy again, even though he's gained a lot of muscles in the last few months. His eyes are calm and his brow furrows as though he is confused about his own actions recently.