“If I solve this, I want to become a member of the SAA and be promoted to VP of Pharmaceutical Plant Discoveries?” I reconfirmed the promise. My eyes scanned his desk to find a piece of paper to get a written agreement.
Dr. Frazier grasped his fingers together. “If you solve this.” He pointed to the green binder in my hand. “You will get more than a promotion. You’ll receive worldwide recognition.”
I took a step back, shocked. My head spun at the thought of me accepting the Nobel Peace Prize in front of my family. Me, being recognized for creating medicine from a plant that I have discovered just like I imagined as a child.
“But Wellington, you can’t leave anything out of the equation.” Dr. Frazier leaned forward to me as Gary slowly crossed his arms.
“Of course not!” I smiled. Thoughts of awards and fortune still danced in my mind.
“Good! Go take some time off. See your mother and brother. Revisit your old childhood memories of you collecting plants,” he said deviously. Suddenly, my dream of accepting the Nobel Peace Prize broke because of one thought.
“I can’t solve this before I go home. It’s going to take months or maybe years.”
“Well, you and Detective Gary better get started. You guys work from Virginia,” he suggested and waited. “Or will you be too busy with family life? Because to be a scientist, you have to dedicate your life to the formula.” He quoted the company’s slogan.
“Of course, no. I—I’ve wanted this my whole life, so I choose this, and I choose to do it alone.”
“Wellington, Detective Gary is—”
“It’s fine, Dr. Frazier,” Gary said, “Wellington, I am here if you need me.”
“Okay then. You better get started.” Dr. Frazier stood and stuck his hand towards me. “Wellington Kole, welcome to the first phase of becoming a scientist.”
I shook his hand with a stone face and headed towards the exit. “Oh, Wellington.” He displayed a cellphone in his hand. “Every scientist needs one of these.”
“Ah? I have a beeper. So I’ll be fine.”
“Now you can have both.” He laughed as I slowly took it from out of his hand and nodded, thank you, and I didn't know whether to feel grateful or agitated.
* * *
Once again, the splitting of the elevator doors resembled how I felt. Half satisfied with my meeting and unsatisfied with the result. Bright lights bounced off the dingy-white floors and bared-solid walls. I stormed angrily down the hallway thinking about what conspired. The nerve of Gary interrupting my meeting with Dr. Frazier, and the nerve of Dr. Frazier giving Gary a scientific job with no experience.
My failures and the impossible task of developing medicine from the soil distracted me because it would take years to conduct a new experiment. I wandered around fighting Dr. Frazier’s voice in my head, which delayed the trip to my desk. I sought the men’s bathroom to let out my frustration. I tried my best to hide the green binder behind my back as I traveled down the aisle between the cubicles where the junior researchers sat. Being assigned a green binder determined your value at the company. The fear of getting one kept people from asking for a promotion, and for the people who did get a green binder, they disappeared. Green binder cases were unsolvable for a reason, and this thought made me angrier. I took a shortcut through the staff scientist’s research department and saw them enjoying their job. I loudly grunted as they conversed and laughed among like-minded scientists because I was jealous that I spent my days laughing with assistants and interns— all five years younger than me.
A few young scientists around my age headed my way, and I quickly changed course, too embarrassed to face anyone but the water fountain in the corner. I desperately gulped as they passed by. My fist wanted to hit someone, but the cold calmed my rage.
The water fountain kept me stable as tears flowed down my cheeks. I caught them with my sleeves while away from the sight of onlookers and took my time to regain my composure and to calm my heartbeat. I wondered if I should give Pharmaceuticals Plant Discoveries another try or if I should start over somewhere fresh. I hurried to the men’s bathroom, splashed water on my face, wiped my tears with a paper towel, and looked in the bathroom mirror at my light brown eyes.
I worked so hard for this promotion.
I smoothed my hair and tossed the paper towel into the trashcan. Then I hurried to my desk and slammed the green binder on top of it. I flopped down on to my chair, took a deep breath, and opened my backpack to jam all of my personal research notes, books on plant intelligence and life, and random office supplies inside of it. My hands moved with speed, determined to not return to Pharmaceuticals Plant Discoveries because of Dr. Frazier’s unsolvable assignment.
“You followed the red brick road to the Wizard of Pharmaceuticals?” A voice chuckled from behind me. Charlie Newman sat in his chair holding a coffee mug. I shook my head. He continued, “Did it glisten as you skipped down it?” He joked, and then he noticed the green binder on my desk. “That jerk!” He placed his coffee mug on his desk and then grabbed the folder.
“Anyone given a green binder discovery might as well quit or die. It’s impossible to get funding for these experiments and to have scientists lend their expertise to something that had already been researched and tried multiple times.” He laughed off his statement as he flipped through the sheet-protected pages in the folder.
“That is why I need to focus more on proving to my family that I didn’t abandon them for all these years—so he can forget about me wasting time doing that assignment.” I lifted my stuffed backpack.
“You’re quitting? No . . . no . . . I was kidding. You can’t leave me here with these stuck up scientists. Dude, I will blow my brains out if you leave,” Charlie said and slapped his forehead. Instantly, he turned red, and his freckles disappeared.
“I don’t know if I am quitting, yet. I’m just going to take a long break and go home with nothing to show for.” Finally facing my failure, I grabbed the letter out of my pocket and revealed it to Charlie. He snatched it and my book bag from my hands, and I frowned at him.
He read the letter silently for a moment.
“Your mom will be happy to see you. I bet she wouldn’t ask about your job or title.” He grinned.
“She will if I told her that is why I’ve stayed away for so long. It will devastate her to know that I wasted years as an office clerk this whole time.” Charlie observed the documents inside of the green binder pressed against his lap, ignoring my self-pity. My nose became congested, and my eyes rested in the palm of my hands.
“There is hardly anything in here: A camping site, a cave, and soil?” He squinted at me, confused. I pouted and took a deep breath to explain everything while my face rested comfortably in the palm of my hands.
“The soil was found in a cave in a mountain near the Dead Sea.” I pointed to the black-and-white picture of the pile of soil formed in an angular position in the middle of the cave’s floor. “It tested for numerous of substance. A curable natural substance found in fruit, herbs, plants, and roots used to fight off big virus and diseases such as Cancer, Aids, and sickle cell. If this soil produces all substances, then we found the cure to all things,” I explained.
Charlie leaned back in his chair and combed his fingers through his hair.
“Dude. This assignment could put you on the map. This company will owe its whole existence to you if you crack this.”
“Yeah, to me . . . and this weird guy named Gary.”
Charlie scratched his head, and I explained, “He was with me the day I found the soil. It’s kind of funny though.” I giggled and then said, “From the last time we spoke, he accused me of stealing a magical tree and was forced to see a therapist by his parents for stating that it glowed.”
“Wow, that’s insane.”
“Yeah . . . but the whole soil-healing-thingy is a myth. The soil can’t cure all things if it tried.”
“Hey! That’s how you got your scar?” He quickly pointed at the small mark on the inner part of my hand.
Confused, I gently massaged it. “Ah?”
“Is this the camping trip?” He tapped the binder.
I suddenly remembered the exaggerated tale that I had told everyone. “Oh, yes. That’s when I almost lost my hand,” I took a deep breath and finished gathering my things.
“Did you test everything?” Charlie held the pages from the green binder up to the light to examine it. “Roots are covering the soil.” He pointed and asked, “Roots come from trees, right? Where are you hiding the mystical tree?” He mocked me as he leaned closer to the photo trying to find the missing tree. My eyes rose forward. Thump . . . thump, my heart filled my ears. I quickly turned to the next page in the folder, mistakenly brushing Charlie’s face with it and he moved away.
“It’s from the vines.” My voice squawked. I cleared my throat and pointed to the vines spread over the cave’s walls in the photo. “However, it all did not test well, and our many experiments did not pass. So, it became a green binder, an unsolvable and worthless case.” I paced with thoughts of feeling like a failure to Mama and Wheatly. “Therefore, I’ll return home with nothing to celebrate.”
“So what? Things change. Take your girlfriend, Janice, home. That will make everyone forget all about the scientist promise.” Charlie winked at me and then a light bulb went off in my head. Janice, my beloved girlfriend for over three years, could replace the old promise and create a new one that produces little Kole grandbabies for Mama. A gift that every mother would enjoy.
I jumped and clapped my hands and said, “You’re right. I can take Janice home to meet my mother. She’ll be happy to see a girl on my arm, anyway.” I walked and talked it out, remembering a few letters from Mama asking if a woman kept me warm at night. I ignored the question because I felt weird for answering it. However, if I took Janice home with me, then that would be saying yes, I do have a woman in my life. I did have a woman in my life.
My excitement disappeared because I then recalled that Janice and I got into a huge argument a week ago, and we broke up.
Nevertheless, still pumped, excited, and filled with fuel, I swayed to one knee and said to Charlie, “I will ask Janice to marry me, and that will replace the coming home as a scientist promise to coming home as a soon-to-be-married man for now.” I lifted my fist in the air as if I cracked a case and then snatched my book bag out of Charlie’s hand. However, Charlie yanked my bag.
“Wait, that’s not what I meant when I suggested for you to take Janice home.” He stuck out his leg to stop me from leaving our desk area. I tried stepping over them, but he blocked me again with the other.
“I was planning on asking her to marry me sooner or later. I got the ring already.” I raised my eyebrow with an annoyed smile, and he grunted and sized me up hoping I told the truth.
“As long as you are ready for that type of commitment.” He lowered his legs.
“Of course, I am. I love Janice.” I grinned, convincing myself that I’m doing the right thing.
“Okay. Let’s hear the proposal.” Charlie jumped up, pushed the chairs back.
“Oh, no way.” I blushed as everyone on the other side turned to us.
“Yeah, way!” he shouted and clapped his hands.
A few people walking by cheered and whistled.
“Okay . . . okay, but the proposal is going to be a little awkward. We broke up last week and—” My face completely turned bronze-red.
Charlie grabbed his head and sat down. “Back to work everyone . . . this guy is a failure at life,” he joked and flipped open his planner.
I waved off Charlie’s statement.
“Wait and see!” I grabbed my backpack and the green binder off Charlie’s desk, and I side skipped towards the door. “I’ll return as an engaged man!” I shouted as the assistants and interns cheered me on.
“You suck at promises. Stop while you’re ahead!” Charlie shouted back.
I waved goodbye and headed out of the building, feeling as if I solved my problem.
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