Page 86 - The Love Hypothesis

Olive froze. And so did Adam, for about a second, before pointing out,

“I don’t think I should be present, if you’re about to interview her—”
“Oh, it’s not an interview. Just an informal chat to see if Olive’s and my
research match. You’ll want to know if your girlfriend is moving to Boston

for a year, right? Come on.” He motioned for them to follow him and then
stepped inside the Starbucks.

Olive and Adam exchanged a silent look that somehow managed to
speak volumes. It said, What the hell do we do? and How the hell would I

know? and This is going to be weird, and No, it’s going to be plain bad.
Then Adam sighed, put on a resigned face, and headed inside. Olive

followed him, regretting her life choices.
“Aslan’s retiring, huh?” Tom asked after they’d found a secluded table
in the back. Olive had no choice but to sit across from him—and on Adam’s

left. Like a good “girlfriend,” she supposed. Her “boyfriend,” in the
meantime, was sullenly sipping his chamomile tea next to her. I should snap

a picture, she reflected. He’d make for an excellent viral meme.
“In the next few years,” Olive confirmed. She loved her adviser, who

had always been supportive and encouraging. Since the very beginning she
had given Olive the freedom to develop her own research program, which

was almost unheard of for Ph.D. students. Having a hands-off mentor was
great when it came to pursuing her interests, but . . .
“If Aslan’s retiring soon, she’s not applying for grants anymore—

understandable, since she won’t be around long enough to see the projects
through—which means that your lab is not exactly flush with cash right

now,” Tom summarized perfectly. “Okay, tell me about your project. What’s
cool about it?”

“I . . . ,” Olive began—she scrambled to collect her thoughts. “So, it’s
—” Another pause. Longer this time, and more painfully awkward.

“Um . . .”
This, precisely, was her problem. Olive knew that she was an excellent
scientist, that she had the discipline and the critical-thinking skills to

produce good work in the lab. Unfortunately succeeding in academia also
required the ability to pitch one’s work, sell it to strangers, present it in