The Boy Genius [one-shot]

Greatness from small beginnings

A computer would deserve to be called intelligent if it could deceive a human into believing that it was human. - Alan Turing

As a child, Thomas Carter had always been fascinated with technology. It all started when his uncle gave him an electronic learning product from v-tech for his first birthday. Little Thomas would usually play with it non-stop as he really loves it so much. His tiny eyes would grow wide as he pressed a button and he giggled every time it made a sound. It was such a joyful sight for his parents to see their baby boy showing an interest at a simple toy. But little did they know that from that simple toy, Thomas would suddenly become interested with inventing. When he was three he gathered his toy blocks and assembled them into a tower. He says its his own version of the eiffel tower, even adding a miniature flag of france on top of it. Thomas was just like any other kid, but his passion for inventing made him stand out. By the time he was ten, he had already created a handful of inventions, which is considered pretty impressive for his young age. His parents even considered him to attend college at an early age but Thomas politely declined the offer, as he says that he doesn't want to miss out on his childhood.

Fast forward to his teenage years and he still had the knack for inventing. His parents found it pretty impressive that he still gets A in most of his subjects, despite the fact that he manages to sleep late at night due to working on his inventions. His mother even threatened to lock his tools away so he could focus more on his studies, but luckily he proved her wrong as he graduated high school with honors. He also even received a special award for his inventions. Just a week after his highschool graduation his parents asked him which course he wanted to take in college: he chose engineering as he believes that this course could help him enhance his skill. He also wishes to work at the Dr. Bradford institute which was owned by Dr. James Bradford, a very well-known engineer and one of Thomas' inspirations. Growing up he would usually sit in front of the tv and wait for his favorite show wherein Dr. James was one of the hosts. He would watch the show religiously and even claims that he never missed an episode. Thomas' only wish was to meet him in person, as he wanted to thank him for being an inspiration to him. His wish was granted a few years later when Dr. James finally visited his highschool as he, along with other professionals conducted a seminar. Thomas will never forget that day, as it will forever be remembered as the day that he finally met his his idol in person.

Although it has been almost five years since the encounter yet however Thomas still feels like it was just yesterday. He made a promise to himself that he would work hard in order to achieve his goal of being recognized just like Dr. James. He even wishes to work for the institute if given the oppurtunity. He would constantly practice his skill by inventing different items every week, wether it be simple or complex. He loves inventing so much that he refuses to even take a single break. There was even a time wherein he worked for six hours straight, yet the only breaks he took were bathroom breaks just to relieve himself. This lead to his mother worrying about his health but Thomas reassured her that he was feeling just fine and that he was taking his daily intake of vitamins.

Then one day as he was working on another invention, a new idea crossed his mind. He usually carries a notepad in his pocket, so that he could easily jot down whenever he'd come up with a new idea. His parents' wedding anniversary was also coming up, so instead of buying them a gift he'd just invent one for them. After a few sketches here and there he eventually came up with a final design. The only things that were missing were the materials, and of course the name for the actual product itself. For some unknown reason the name "LISA" suddenly popped into his mind. It was simple, as it could be easily remembered. After he finishes his current project he'll immediately start working on LISA. He hasn't even started, but Thomas already feels that this would be his greatest invention yet.