Out for the Night (Browerton University #4)(3)

"What do you mean cool it?"

"You don't have to try so hard. If all of our grades are around the same range, Chertok will grade on a curve, and we'll all benefit. It's awesome that you were able to ace this test, but without that curve, we're all screwed."

"So you want me to get a C?"

"Why don't we start with a B-minus and work from there," Kelvin flashed him a smile reserved for used car salesmen. Each quarter, Matty hoped they wouldn't be in the same class together, but Kelvin seemed just as interested in robotics as him. He was a zit that couldn't be popped.

"Did you study for this test?"



       
         
       
        

"Of course I did. We all did. We worked for hours in a study group."

"Study group?" Why wasn't I invited? Matty figured it would've been a waste of his time. They probably just goofed off, hence their grades. He pushed down the sting of rejection. It was their loss, not his.

"The test was massively hard. Chertok even said it himself."

"It's hard, but it's not impossible." Matty continued walking to the main entrance. Sunlight beamed through the windows.

Kelvin jogged after him. "Matty, we haven't gotten to know each other that well. The robotic engineering program is small, and we're all going to be working together these next few years. We all have to scratch each other's backs."

"But scratching your back means I need to risk failing this class." And that would mean Matty wouldn't get the research position in Chertok's lab next year. He understood team dynamics, but he wasn't going to risk his academic career to be one of the guys. Kelvin wouldn't do that for him.

"You won't fail!"

Kelvin didn't seem like the type who wanted to spend countless hours in a lab researching and testing. He seemed like an engineer in name only, the one who gave the slideshow presentations to investors.

"You're allowed to drop this test. I don't know what else to tell you."

Kelvin blocked the main doors. "Matty, do you really want to do this? You can be a hero to your classmates. We studied our asses off for this test, and none of us got better than a C. If you chill a little, then we can all win."

"Your GPA is not my problem. If you want a better grade on the next test, then I suggest you try harder. And don't be so glum. C is average. There's nothing wrong with average." Matty stared at Kelvin's hand until he released it from the door. "Also, studying together in groups may not be as productive as you think."

Matty didn't mind being unpopular in class. He enjoyed the competition. It only made him work harder.



After a few hours studying at the library, Matty returned to his dorm room. Gibbons Hall was where most engineers lived on campus. It was across the quad from the engineering building and comprised of all single rooms, even for freshmen. Engineers needed their alone time to focus, and Matty thanked his lucky stars that he didn't have to deal with a roommate.

He opened the door to his floor and had to instantly duck. A puck slammed against the door. One of his floor mates in a Montreal Expos jersey jogged over.

"Sorry about that, dude!" He picked up the puck. "I was going for a Hail Mary shot, and it bounced off the wall." 

Gibbons was also where some athletes were housed, making for an odd dorm dynamic.

Matty scowled at him and his other hockey playing bros. He'd been putting up with this all year. They seemed to only enjoy playing when Matty was returning from class, and at midnight.

"Be careful," Matty said.

The Expos guy raised his eyebrows and shot similar looks to his teammates, as if Matty were the crazy one.

"Why are you playing with a real puck? Those things are heavy and can cause real damage."

"Sorry, dude." The guy tossed his wavy hair out of his eyes. That might have made some girls and guys swoon, but not Matty. There was nothing sexy about not getting a haircut.

Matty weaved through other hockey players, who were holding their sticks nervously like an old lady was storming through.

As soon as he went into his room, the game started up again and he was bombarded by the noise of running and yelling and the occasional puck slamming against the wall. He dropped his bag on his bed, took out his laptop, and turned on Skype. A few seconds later, his heart warmed from the site of Aditi waving at him from their kitchen table.

"You've emerged from the cave!" It was a variation on his sister's usual greeting. You've come out of hiding. He exists. The groundhog sees his shadow. Six more weeks of classes! It was one of those corny things that he found himself looking forward to, a little bit of home in a sound bite.

He showed her his A-minus test.

"Are you freaking out?" she asked.

"I was at first. But apparently, I blew away everyone else's score." He shrugged with fake modesty.

"Nice job!" People liked to tell them that she looked like their mom, and he looked like their dad, but Matty thought they looked like each other mostly. They each had the best of their parents. "You should celebrate your A-minus in style."

"I'll celebrate by hopefully repeating the same victory for the next test." And because after talking with Kelvin, he wanted to keep sticking it to his classmates' precious curve, and their cliquey study groups.

"You should go out and celebrate, Matty. With some friends."

Here we go again. Some form of this conversation happened every few months.

"What about those guys you play board games with?"

"I go out to their dorm lounge once a week."

"Do you guys ever talk about anything not related to the games?"

Matty leaned back on his bed and rolled his eyes at the ceiling.

"I saw that," Aditi said, with a cocked eyebrow. "Skype sees all."

It was one of the few times when technology was not on Matty's side.

"Matty, you need to get out there." Aditi may have been two years younger than him and still in high school, but she had an air of wisdom to her that Matty could never surpass. "College is more than classes."

"I know. I'm hoping to get into this research lab-"

"And it's more than research labs."

"The reference desk librarian is a really nice lady." Even Matty hated how that sounded.

Aditi rubbed her forehead. "Matty, your first year of college is almost over. You haven't mentioned any friends."

Matty really wanted to roll his eyes again. Stupid Skype seeing everything. He bounced a ball covered in periodic table elements against his wall.

"We've already had this conversation."

"No, we haven't. I ask about friends, you give a lame answer, and I keep my mouth shut. But no longer. Matty, I can't be your only friend at college. Not when I don't even go to your college."

"You're not!" He gave the accusation actual thought and realized it might not be totally false. "Engineering is a tough major. You're studying or researching at any time."



       
         
       
        

"What about the other kids in your program? Are you friends with any of them?"

"It's a competitive program."

"And high school was competitive. Even Boy Scouts was competitive. Not everything has to be a competition, Matanga." She was pulling out his full Indian name. She was serious. "You're allowed to let people in without risking career failure."

Matty let his elements ball bounce onto his bed. Au, the symbol for gold, stared at him. Au! Give me back my gold! He laughed at his joke and wondered if there was anyone out there who would also find it funny.

"So I'm not a social person," he said. "A lot of successful people are loners by nature. That's how they become so successful."

"And they have nobody to celebrate their success with."

"Just the Nobel Prize committee." Matty scoffed. "I don't see why it's so important that I have a ton of friends and party like every other undergrad."

"Because … " Aditi thought that would be enough. Matty crossed his arms, excited to have the upper hand. "Because it just is!"

"You're using faulty logic. If you were a computer program, this would be the part where your algorithm malfunctions and you go haywire."

"Ugghhhh!" She slammed back in her chair and sighed. "I'm trying to help you!"

Matty cracked her a smile. He was lucky to have her, and he knew it. "How's Mom doing?"

"Better. She's making good progress on her speech with her new therapist, but she still wishes she could make herself a cup of coffee." Their mom suffered a stroke last year, and recovery has been a process. Matty offered to defer going to Browerton for a year, but his dad wouldn't let him make that sacrifice. There wasn't much any of them could do besides assist her around the house, and they hired a homecare worker for that. Matty thought about her every day and wanted to make her proud  –  which he would do by making Dean's List, not tons of friends.

"I'll tell her you got an A. I won't mention the minus part. And Matty," she said. "Anyone would be lucky to be friends with you."