Galennic [#Wattys2017]

6

I don't own anything.
========================================
Galen knew he was taking a risk. Inviting Orson over to his work space might be a huge mistake that he would come to regret later. As soon as Orson knew where he lived, Galen was positive the young teen would visit everyday. However, he didn't want Orson stalking him anymore and he figured he would be able to convince Orson to give him some privacy. The mini architect would literally do anything to make his crush happy.

Still, Galen hesitated. He knew he had to give Orson the address because he promised him. But was he really ready to give up his personal work space? He had only had one other person enter his work space and that was his good yet annoying roommate Cordren. Galen usually found most people annoying because they didn't see eye-to-eye with him and he became very antisocial over the years.

Galen picked up his com and texted Orson the details. As soon as Orson replied, he started a timer. The kid wouldn't take a year to get here and he needed some entertainment. Might as well see how fast Orson got here.

Orson arrived in a little more than 5 minutes, 43 seconds, and 78 hundreths of a second. Galen quickly stopped the timer before he opened the door. The teen was standing just centimeters away from him. "Hello, Orson," said Galen, craning his neck to look at the boy. "Come on in." Galen could have sworn Orson bounced in.

Orson eagerly look at Galen's lab. "You have a lot of stuff in here!" He exclaimed. "This is awesome!"

"Thanks," said Galen. "Alright, so what-"

"Do you get to work in here all the time?" Galen had no idea if the teen was listening to him or not.

"Just after school. Homework is pretty easy for m-"

"How many new science theories have you come up with?"

"Just one, but-"

"Why is there a large bin of chocolate bars in the corner?"

"The caffeine keeps me up if I'm working late. But aside from tha-"

"What's this do?" Orson picked up a vile filled with red liquid and tapped the side.

Galen winced and ran over. He slipped the vile from Orson's hands and said "Please don't touch any of these viles unless I tell you too." He doubted Orson heard him because the teen's face lit up and he looked like he was having a mental fanboy moment. Why could Orson be normal for three minutes while he explained some ground rules?

"So do you make things in here? Are there a lot of explosions?" Orson asked hopefully. 

With a deep sign, Galen walked to one corner and pulled out a tub of Legos he had bought for Orson. "If I give this to you, will you listen for two seconds?" Galen asked as calmly as he could. Orson nodded rapidly. Galen handed him the tub and then said "Those two corners behind you hold stuff I don't want you to touch. All viles are off-limit unless I tell you to pick one up. Make sure that you do not do something reckless because I don't want an explosion in here and it's your fault if you screw up something and blow down this whole building. Listen carefully when I'm talking if you'd like to see me more often." There! That last line would keep Orson's brain on par.

Orson nodded. "Got it! So what did you want help with?"

Galen began to explain some complex hypothesis to Orson. It was probably boring the teen out but, hey, Orson wanted to help. "In short, my idea is, if a Kyber Crystal could be a substitute for the Philosopher's Stone, how much of an area would it take to transmute this square piece of metal into something else using alchemy? Is that clear?"

Orson stared for a moment, his eyebrows knitted in concentration. "I think I got it..." He said slowly. "But just in case I missed something, tell me the whole thing again."

With a tired sigh, Galen pinched the bridge of his nose. "There is a giant explosion and you need to build something that will ensure the safety of the public and us."

"Great! Where do I start?" 

'And this is why I work alone,' thought Galen. Of all people he could have asked to help, it had to be the horny teenager. He tossed Orson a small model of the machine he planned to use to transmute the metal. Then he shoved a box of miniature-sized gears, pulleys, and other simple machines in front of Orson. "Make something that would fit that model of the machine with your Legos and the simple machines I gave you. Oh, and here's some tape." He chucked a roll of Scotch tape at Orson. It bounched off Orson's head. Galen went to apologize but decided against it when Orson started chasing the tape across the floor.

Despite the scientist's efforts to keep him busy, the architect found plenty of things to talk about to Galen, often displaying his innocence through how much information he revealed. Galen only half-listened. He was busy concentrating on his machine, wishing that Orson would shut up sometimes.

Yet, at the same time, he enjoyed Orson's talking. It kept the room from going stale from the quiet. Orson had a lot of stories to tell for a 15 year old. Maybe it was just the pessimistic side of his brain that wanted Orson to shut up. Because after half an hour, Galen enjoyed listening to Orson, even if the constant stream of questions went something like this:

"What planet were you born on?" Orson asked.

"Grange," Galen answered.

"What was it like living there?"

"Well, I guess it was nice... and lonely at times."

"Did you used to do a lot of science as a kid?"

"I mainly explored the world around me. My parents didn't have enough money to support all the supplies I needed to create a large experiment."

"Do you have any other skills?"

"I like to think a lot. I can also read music."

"You learned how to play an instrument??"

"Yes. My mother bought me an instrument to keep my mind busy until she could get enough to buy me some science kit." Galen still remembered that science kit. It hadn't been much, just some basic tools like tweezers, a magnifying glass, a kind of pencil to test the hardness of rocks, and a scalpel (let's ignore the fact the kit was supposed to be for ages 5-8, shall we?) as well as plaster mixture to create fossils. Still, it have been one of the best gifts he ever received up to this day. 

Orson looked thoughtful at this. Galen wished he could see into the boy's head and find out what he was thinking. The young architect then went back to making geometrical shapes out of Legos.

Hours went by and the afternoon turned into night. Galen realized how tired he was when he couldn't think straight. He glanced at the time. 21:30!? "Ah, gosh, Orson. I've kept you up way too late," He said with a moan. "You should probably head back to your apartment."

"But I haven't come up with something that might work yet," Orson protested.

"You know what? Why don't you take the model and simple machines home with you and work on it there? I'll text you over the weekend to check on your progress." Orson's face lit up and he agreed. 

Suddenly, Orson's stomach growled. He winced a little and Galen realized that Orson was probably dying from starvation. With a small shake of his head and a smile, he took Orson out to eat and then sent him back to his apartment with a chocolate bar.
===============================
This story is not dead! Yay! 

So sorry for the long wait! I've been really busy between school and most of my concentration has gone to a story I'm hoping to release around May 1st. I'll try to update a little more frequently, though I doubt there will be a consistent schedule.

Mini rant done. Please review!