~Dorothy Hayes POV~
The pay phone at the Park Street station was not in use, there was no lines of people clamoring to use it like they would during midday. Dorothy, who woke up bright and early, pounced on the perfect opportunity with the joy of any college girl that had grown home sick. She paid the 50 cents to utilize the phone to make a call to her parents all the way back in Kansas. It had been over an entire month since she talked to her family, the last time she had spoken to them was regarding her team's victory in the Robotics Combat Association. Coming in first place not only secured a grand prize of $10,000, but also a sit down with a General Atomics rep, one who was eager to talk of future employment.
Dorothy's mother was usually just happy to hear from her daughter, though the news of Dorothy's victory put Mrs. Hayes in a sullen mood as her little girl would not be following in the older woman's footsteps and becoming a hydrologist like her. Dorothy's father on the other hand, Colonel Robert Hayes, sounded as if he was beaming with joy, Dorothy could hear it, but had a harder time visualizing it. She tried imagining what her father being happy looked like, several times Dorothy thought about joining one of the branches of the armed forces to getting a in depth look of a man that never showed emotion. Her father was a good man, and a patriot, but was not the sort that socialized or even wore the sentiments that he was feeling. Dorothy wondered how her father would react if he found out that Dorothy had not only discovered an exact clone of him in the form of a first year, but Dorothy was actively befriending her father's mini-me.
Getting a job offer from General Atomics was the closest Dorothy got to joining the military, an achievement her father celebrated better than her mother for once. For that reason Dorothy had missed her father greatly, had she her way she would have called him every day. However, Colonel Hayes was a man of order and scheduling, expecting the same from Dorothy. That did not mean he didn't want to hear from his daughter, only that it was better for Dorothy to reach out to him once a month, to report in, and let her old man know what was going on in the college. The call to Kansas was eventually picked up after the third cycle of the dial tone, her father was the one to answer first. Dorothy was glad it was her father picking up first, as she did not have to hear the sulking noises of her mother asking her to pursue a more liquid based form of science.
"Dot, is that you girl?" The tone would have felt monotone for anyone else, but Dorothy could pick up the slight nuances, hearing the hints of her father's exhaustion turning into something warm. Her older brothers called it the ice that slowly melts, but Dorothy always called it love, and she showed enough of it to make up for her father's shortfall of public displays of affection.
"Sir Papa Bear, how did you know it was me?!" She was always shocked whenever her father picked up the phone and immediately knew it was her on the other line. However, the surprises these days were more feigned than real, a little form of play from a not entirely rebellious girl calling the family she missed.
"Dot, I told you before, I have Caller Id, your pay phone number is registered with a Boston Commonwealth area code. You are the only person to call the family from there at 6am in the morning." Her banter and bad acting somehow flew above her father's head, Dorothy felt a little guilty about that.
"Well it is 7am on my end Sir Papa Bear. How is Mom? How are the boys? And how are you doing?" Like all the times before, when Dorothy asked those questions, Colonel Robert Hayes never talked about himself, though he was more than willing to talk about his wife. Sharing the same technical readouts on PH Levels that Mrs. Hayes religiously did when it came to the local water supplies. Hearing her mother's words out of her father's mouth made Dorothy think her father was as good of a parrot as he was a Colonel, especially the way he perfectly replicated every detail down to her Mother's desire for a larger budget for further testing that the state would not approve of. News then shifted over to her eldest brother Zeke, who just got accepted into West point, to begin his officer's track. That brought Dorothy joy, she might find a way to get to New York to visit her older brother. Travel was getting more and more expensive, yet Dorothy had the tournament winnings to make up for the travel expense. Her other older brothers, Hunk and Hickory were being reallocated out of Kansas and stationed down in Texas Fort Bliss ever since the president passed an executive order that enabled more drilling efforts in the State of Texas in order to offset the growing gas prices. From what her Father explained more troops were being moved south to protect the Poseidon pipelines from a sudden increase wave of illegal oil bunkering. Because of that, her two brothers would spend their time walking up and down long stretches of land protecting against pipeline tapping and stopping oil thieves.
"Tell the boys to pack extra sunscreen, they are going to need it when patrolling out in Texas." Dorothy thought she sounded cute, but her father let out an exhausted sigh. Dorothy acted fast, changing the subject onto something more important. "How is Uncle, have you been talking to him since his transfer? He might be happy to know that at least three of my teammates have agreed to join General Atomics after the meeting with their corporate agent. I told the General Atomics rep about my idea of a giant robot that can scream out profanity at commies, just like Liberty XLR. Oh Sir Papa Bear, you and Uncle Greg should come next year for the tournament, see the patriot bot in action, you will fall in love with it."
"Ah, I can't make any promises, Dot. Between my schedule, gas prices and… with my brother's transfer… I'll try, but I can't make any promises. Your mother and I, and even Greg, are proud of you Dot. That's all that matters. Do you have anything else you want to talk about, anything I should let my brother know." Colonel Hayes was struggling, Dorothy felt a mix of emotions, hope battling against reality. She loved her family, and misses the time they all spent together in Kansas, and hopes that one day they could all come to Massachusetts and see how far little Dorothy has come along.
"I do have something to report on, but you're not going to like it dad. I'm having some boy troubles. Maybe Uncle Greg can help give me dating advice." The awkward silence that followed made Dorothy imagine her father, all flustered by the overwhelming information, standing in the home kitchen, his jaw tightening as if he was a moment away from exploding, waking up the entire base. Her father was not the sort that approved of Dorothy seeing anyone, even forbidding her from dating in Highschool. Before her father could explode, Dorothy laughed a bit as if joking, slightly more of a lie that hurt Dorothy more. "His name is Robert House, you would love him sir, he reminds me of you, very stern and grumpy to others, but he is a genius. He came up with the solar cell addition to the Liberty XLR, and he has a great sense of humor, he had the China man voice the anti-communist lines. Both you and uncle would love him… but he has no intention of joining General Atomics, thank god he has no intention of joining ADI either, but he seems like he does not want to be told what to do by anyone. I thin-"
"Dot, enough." Colonel Robert Hayes was known to be a patient man, but Dorothy had taken too large of a risk. At least the next words her father said was worth the risk. "We can talk more next year, I'll see about stopping by with your mom next year for your robot war game. We can talk more then, and I will need to have a talk with this Robert House, make sure he has no bad intentions."
"Oh Sir Daddy you will love him, he is amazing, mom could spend the entire day talking to him about the danger of chem-trails and the importance of solubility for hours." Hearing her father sigh again, a longer deeper one, filled with the exhaustion of a man who had heard Mrs. Hayes favorite topics one too many times. Eventually the morning commuters arrived and Dorothy had to cut the conversation short. "I love you sir, can't wait to see you and mom stop by next year for the robot fight club."
Dorothy's call ended with the phone being placed back carefully on the pay stand as if no one had tampered with it. Looking around making sure no one was watching, before Dorothy thrusted a fist into the air, securing victory by indirectly manipulating her father to come visit her at CIT. Returning to the quiet alcove near the admin building, avoiding the dark clouds that loomed above Boston, Dorothy waited, her shift was soon to start, and the last echoes of her father's voice still rattling around in the back of her mind. She'd smiled thinking of how amazing it would be to see the entire family again, from her brothers, her mother, her father and her father's best friend, someone Colonel Hayes saw as a brother after their joint time in the military. Her overactive mind focused upon her job, the tours she gave around the campus that helped hundreds of new students, might one day have her parents in them. They would get the chance to see the wonders of the Commonwealth Institute of Technology the way she saw it all. The idea made her feel happy, to wash away the suspicion her family had of the university, and be overjoyed at the great robotistic that this place was quickly turning Dorothy into. Her shift at the Admin building was standard routine, making sure forms were filled out properly, maintaining expert documentation, and more importantly staying out of the way of Professor Gorllewin and his troupe of flying monkeys.
Soon Lunch came and she spent it with most of the team. It was the first time in days the group had felt almost normal, even acted as such. Simon was in full extrovert mode, laughing too loud, recounting every detail of the General Atomics dinner as though he'd personally invented the solar cell, and acted as if the corporate rep was still in communication with him personally and not the group. Felix, usually reserved, sometimes outright sullen, was grinning wider than Dorothy had ever seen, she noted how he was always smiling more around her. Right now Felix was talking animatedly with Mao about how they could go about upgrading Liberty XLR for next year's tournament, more importantly seeing about winning the prize money again. Mao himself had changed the most, but Dorothy believed for the better. Since the tournament, students all over CIT had been approaching him, asking, almost begging, the China man to recite Liberty XLR lines. He'd done it every time, voice steady despite the nerves, delivering Stars and stripes forever, or Democracy endures with quiet dignity. Though Dorothy did notice the foreigner still looking over his shoulder as if afraid communist agents were there watching him. None the less the result was startling for Mao, a total turn around of opinions by many of the students and staff members at CIT. Somehow this foreigner outzealed them all with his patriotism through a concept that even Dorothy had kept as a joke that she wished to do if she was ever hired by General Atomics. Even Felix, who once snarled at Mao like a feral dog looking at a stray cat, now listened when Mao spoke, never interrupting, never rolling his eyes. The two of them had spent half the meal debating actuator tolerances like old friends.
But the warmth of companionship felt brittle as Dorothy saw the empty chair where normally Lila sat at the group table. It was a reminder as much as it was an accusation. Her hearing was in two weeks, and the fracture ran deep. Felix and Mao had both refused to be character witnesses on her behalf. Felix put it bluntly. "She is a no-good two timing bitch who just tried to sell out the team's hard work for a corporate sponsor."
"Betrayal is betrayal, unforgivable and unacceptable. She never even reached out to any of us. She went about it like a spy, a pawn of treachery. It is… disgusting." Mao's stance was as firm as Felix's.
The only one of the group that had stayed in touch with Lila was Simon. Originally he had volunteered to go and drop off Lila's share of the winnings, something that Felix thought she did not deserve after her treachery, which most of the group overruled Felix on. Simon was now the only one in constant contact with Lila, using much of his winnings to travel to visit her in Roxbury. The situation with Lila had grown far worse when Dean Oswald had learned of her betrayal. The enigmatic man not only banned Lila from the lab facilities, but had personally placed Lila on a total suspension from the entire CIT facility and campus grounds. Lila was already feeling the effects of her banishment, which could turn permanent, depending on how her administration hearing went. Till then Lila Duvall was to remain off of university grounds until the day of the upcoming hearing.
Simon had decided to become a character witness for Lila, he was truly the most forgiving member of the group. Though Dorothy believed it was more due to pity, as Simon told the group that the ADI rep had completely ghosted Lila entirely. It seems like her usefulness ended when the Senior Vice President of Advanced Systems of ADI had the workshop lab door closed behind him and failed to retrieve the solar cell component. Lila would have none of ADI's lawyers to help her, none of their support, none of their promises. Dorothy felt a pang of pity every time she thought about it, she understood why Lila had done it, desperation, ambition, the glittering mirage of a big paycheck, but understanding didn't erase the hurt.
Part of Dorothy wanted to spit on the smug ADI fan girl, the programmer whose code would not have worked without Robert picking up her slack and sloppy coding. However, another part of Dorothy, a more innocent and honorable Kansas girl, wanted to step forward, to testify on Lila's behalf, to excuse the naive girl's actions, to keep the team from breaking apart. The rep from General Atomics had also wanted a late night tour of the labs as well, most likely to see the Solar cell that Robert had made in secret. Dorothy had shut it down, immediately, nearly ruined the dinner celebration with the corporate sponsor, but she knew CIT rules and guidelines. It was even more strict than the US military base her father was stationed at, without the authorization of high ranking administrators, the robotics workshop was off limits, especially so late at night without a professor's presence. Lila had put herself in a horrible corner, whether she knew it or not, it was an uphill battle, and she did not know if Dorothy's own testimony would do anything to help Lila. Lunch ended with Dorothy pondering this matter, yet a kindness was offered by Felix. Since winning his share of the prize money Felix had a new sense of generosity, insisting on paying for Dorothy's sandwich.
"God Bless your heart Fix-it, but I already paid for the sandwich. Thank you for offering." Dorothy politely refused the offer, lying about already paying for the sandwich, but was grateful over the gesture that was definitely not born of a crush on Felix's part, or at least that was what Dorothy was telling herself. The group dispersed with easy goodbyes, Simon already planning their next hangout, Felix and Mao had changed topics to their engineering club project. Something about their purifier device being sent to the horrifying hell hole that was Detroit, offering the residents of that wasteland of pollution a solution that the CIT administrators could write down as an act of charity and tax right off for the college.
Dorothy lingered a moment longer at the lunch table, watching the group walk away, then turned toward the engineering quad. Lila was not the only one that was gone from the group, Robert House had inflicted upon himself a strange form of self exile. He was said to be rushing around, somehow being everywhere on the campus, but never near his teammates. Last she heard from the rumor vein, he was helping professors and other students with everything from moving heavy equipment to last-minute lecture prep. How he was able to do this on top of his impossible ten-course load and three club activities made Dorothy ponder what sort of divine time-management system that House had perfected. Though she suspected the Nevada genius was cutting hours away from his sleep, and would burnout any day now.
People were whispering that House was angling for an academic patron, a stepping stone that would land him a post-grad job at CIT. The thought of the distant House becoming a professor was something difficult for Dorothy to imagine. Ignoring his anti-social behavior at times, the man abandoned any notion of getting a chance to work for General Atomics. A job with far better pay and perks than getting a job working for the Commonwealth Institute of Technology. Whether it was because of a passion for teaching, or some sort of crazed obsession over the cutting-edge university labs, Dorothy did not know, and the entire idea of a teaching job felt unlikely.
However, if that was something that House was interested in, Dorothy thought she could offer to help. Though her first overwhelming instinct was to convince the young genius away from CIT and towards General Atomics, yet if he was dead set on a teaching position Dorothy could help. Professor Pugalo had a decent relationship with much of the school staff, he had even gotten Dorothy her admin desk job. If House wanted a stable future within CIT, she could open that door. She found Robert House outside the applied systems lab, coat slung over one arm, looking as composed and distant as ever. Dorothy approached with her usual brightness, though nerves fluttered beneath it.
"Robert," she said, falling into step beside him. "You've been running yourself ragged helping everyone. I was thinking, Professor Pugalo might be able to help you land something steady here at CIT. Admin work, maybe even a research assistant spot, I could talk to him if you want. The way you have been helping everyone, you would be a shoe in for a spot here at CIT."
House didn't slow his pace. He glanced at her, putting on a forced polite smile, completely unreadable, then looked forward as he spoke. "No, I'm not interested."
Dorothy blinked, smile faltering for half a second before she recovered. "I just thought… with everything you've been doing, it might be good to have options. Something stable."
"I have options that I have already decided upon." House replied, but quickly mania filled his eyes as he corrected himself and spoke quickly. "Thank you for the offer, Dorothy. I truly appreciate it. Also wonderful weather we have been having."
"Robert… it's been horribly cloudy, we haven't seen the sun in over a week and the way most of the weathermen have been talking, we might have one of the worst rainstorms coming so far this year. Are you… are you okay? Do you need some rest? Have you even eaten anything today? Have you been alright since the incident with Li-" Dorothy was interrupted by Robert, who nonchalantly answered her in a positive reassuring manner that did everything but reassure Dorothy. If anything it perturbed her how forcefully friendly he was acting, before Dorothy could question him on the matter of Lila further, the man excused himself. Perceiving something that took Dorothy far longer to notice, House rushed off to help a professor carrying a large amount of paper work like some deranged good Samaritan. Had it not been for the sudden flare of House's charms and smooth words, the very same otherworldly glamour that Dorothy had fallen in love with, she was sure the professor would have accused House of trying to run off with his paper work given how aggressively House was helping the man.
For a moment Dorothy considered chasing down House and asking him regarding the incident with Lila, as far as the rumors were concerned he was the one to catch and delay Lila and the ADI scumbags long enough to prevent them from running off with the Solar cell part of Liberty XLR. With the news of Lila's expulsion hearing around the corner, Dorothy imagined that House was feeling guilty, that the entire situation involving Lila was his fault. The burden of guilt was so great on poor Robert, he must be blaming himself over Lila's suspension. He is trying to make up for it, by helping others. That poor poor broken man.
Dorothy could not stand to see this madness in Robert House, she knew that the man was hurting in his own strange way. Professor Gorllewin, that witch of a man, was most likely pressuring House to testify at the hearing. It might even cause the team to fracture, just as badly as it has already done to the poor first year's psyche, just looking at how Robert was acting was too much. Dorothy was conflicted, her heart ached, and she knew what she had to do, at least try to do, it was the final push that got her off the fence. She would become a character witness for Lila, help her and maybe through her, help Robert House. After finishing her mid day classes Dorothy informed Simon of her plan, joining him on his venture to see the disgraced former teammate.
The cab ride to Roxbury felt longer than it should have. Dorothy sat in the back with Simon, the city lights sliding past in streaks of gold and red, while the meter ticked upward with merciless patience. When the driver finally pulled up to a narrow street lined with weathered triple-deckers, the fare read $240. Simon winced nearly as loudly as Dorothy, she had budgeted her winnings thoroughly, and had hoped to spend the money on a new dress. Something with a low-cut that might catch House's attention like that old lady did at Catalyst. Dorothy paid without comment, splitting the difference down the middle with Simon.
"Fare keeps going up like this, I might try to steal Liberty XLR's Solar Cell part myself." Simon joked as he shelled out his half of the money. Looking up he saw the angry look that Dorothy gave him over the comment. "What? Was it too soon? Cause I think it is a perfect time t-"
"Let's go, before the cab driver decides to charge us more!" Dorothy was not in a good mood, she was starting to regret coming all the way out here in Roxbury. She did not fully internalize her emotions over Lila's betrayal, Dorothy was more doing this out of a need to be liked by Lila as well as a reaction to the guilt that Robert House was clearly going through at this moment. Her impulsive behavior had brought her to see the bad state of Roxbury.
To call Roxbury a bad neighborhood, did not sum it up enough for Dorothy. Seeing Roxbury and the horrible state this low income area was in, reminded Dorothy of pictures of bombed out ruins from world war 2 Germany or the Middle East. The few parts of Roxbury that did not undertake a low funded demolition project, looked like it needed an orbital strike to eliminate this blight on Boston's beautiful reputation. Roxbury was the opposite of the nice image the girl from Kansas had of Boston when near the CIT campus, and being here made her realize it might be better if Robert just worked out his guilt with good deeds around CIT. Better than her being in this dangerous looking neighborhood for a friend that Dorothy doubted would go to a dangerous neighborhood for her. Roxbury could be summed up by what was found on its old style pattern streets, the narrow roads lined with squat homes and sagging porches. The neighborhood had the exhausted look of a place abandoned by prosperity long ago, and her only protection from danger here was her wits and Simon. Given the look Simon was giving her, it seemed like he expected Dorothy to protect him from the dangers of Roxbury. You've been visiting Lila more than I have, this is my first time. Why are you suddenly feeling uncomfortable? Professor Havelock should have sent the water purifiers to Roxbury instead of Detroit.
The second the two of them got out of the taxi, the driver drove off as if he just committed a bank robbery and found a getaway vehicle. Left with no other choice than going forward the two of them headed out towards Lila's house which was the third building from the corner the two were dropped at. The walk felt longer than either of the two felt comfortable with, Simon leading with far more experience than Dorothy had with this portion of Boston. Paint work were already peeling at the edges, porch light flickering like it was on its last breath, the two CIT students made it to the front door of Lila's house, frantically glancing behind them as if danger was drawing near them. The door opened before they could knock, Lila had opened it and stood in the doorway wearing an old hoodie and jeans. Her eyes were red-rimmed but dry, hair pulled back in a messy knot. She looked smaller than she ever had at CIT, something Dorothy could never imagine from the woman who ordered double portions at the restaurant Catalyst.
The two CIT students were let inside by Lila, into a home that smelled of lemon cleaner and something faintly medicinal. The living room was cramped but tidy: a worn couch, a coffee table covered in schoolbooks, a framed photo of a smiling man in a sweater standing next to a younger Lila. All the more recent photos lacked that same male figure in them, in place of Lila's father there was an older woman that shared many similarities with Lila. Lila noticed Dorothy looking, more observant over Dorothy's actions than Simon who looked relieved now inside the safety of Lila's home.
"He died five years ago of cancer," she said quietly, her eyes getting moist at the thought, more sorrow added to the pile. "He was a programmer, I like to think he was a good one. Always talked about ADI like it was the promised land, that he wished for a nice cubicle to work at. He never got the job offer. Probably for the best, ADI are no better than devils."
"Fuck ADI, it should stand for All Dickheads Included." Simon's attempt at lightening the mood had worked, Lila, nearly erupting into a fit of giggles, but held it back behind a veneer of composed seriousness. Dorothy found the ingenious profanity less humorous, as she heard Simon's joke multiple times throughout CIT. The group moved away from the old sad memories to sit at the small kitchen table in the far corner of the town house. Lila's mother was still at Milton General, pulling a double shift, just barely able to afford the bills and necessities of living. Lila's three younger siblings were upstairs doing homework, though one or two of them erupted at laughter when Simon spoke his profanity. Which Dorothy took note of, making sure her words would be spoken softly in a home with such thin walls. Soon the house fell silent, waiting for someone to carefully navigate through the awkward mine field.
"So why did you do it?" Dorothy decided to rush into said awkward mine field, and blasted herself straight into the zone that made everyone else uncomfortable. Lila looked shocked at the bold straight forward approach, expecting that from someone like Robert House, not Dorothy. Lila took a moment to center herself before she began what passed as an explanation, everything in a low, steady voice, as though she'd rehearsed it. CIT and ADI had been her father's dream as well as Lila's after her father passed away. Her one goal was to get the university degree, get a great job, get a large amount of money, enough that would not only keep the lights on at home, but also reduce the burden the Duvall family was under. Hearing of it was one thing but seeing it was another for Dorothy, for it turned out all of Lila's tournament winnings went to pay for school supplies for her younger siblings or to the bills for the house. From what Dorothy understood, it was the due to the circumstances of one's origins, that forced Lila to make a rash decision that she genuinely regretted, or at least regretted getting caught, Dorothy could not really tell.
Only thing that was clear to Dorothy was that ADI had offered a nearly blank check to Lila in return to giving access to the Solar Cell technology. She hadn't lied about wanting the ADI offer, they were even willing to offer a large sign on bonus, that alone would have paid off the last of the family bills and given her siblings a nice start to a cushy future. But after the attempted theft of the Solar cell component, after Lila was stopped by a furious House, then being escorted out by the CIT guards, everything fell apart and the doors slammed shut. ADI had gone silent. No calls. No lawyers. Nothing. They seemed to have cut their losses and left Lila out to dry. Dorothy listened to Lila's story, heart twisting at parts of it, but a bit of anger rose, specifically when Lila started talking badly about House. The Kansas girl was not a fan of the tone the former ADI fan girl used when discussing Dorothy's future husband. Dorothy was still on the fence about the matter, and decided the best way to seal the deal was to make demands out of Lila. Oh, she is going to have to pay for my testimony. Tit for tat bribes.
"I'll be a character witness for you Lila," Dorothy said at last. "But only on three conditions."
Lila looked up, wary, but soon eager, willing to grab at any lifeline thrown her way.
"Never betray the group again," Dorothy continued. "Not for ADI, not for anyone, you do not so much as sneeze a thought of betrayal."
"Sure, I will never try to steal parts of the group's project, or any of our secrets." Lila's words rang true at least to Dorothy and Simon who nodded happily.
"And when the time comes and you graduate… you will join General Atomics, the far more superior corporation, like the rest of the team. They're better. They're stable. And they actually care about the worker, not just the code or tech they might be able to steal."
Lila stared at her for a long moment. Then she nodded once, sharp and certain.
"Finally and just as important as joining General Atomics, you must, and I mean absolutely must, forgive Robert House. Yes, he played a part in you getting caught, suspended, and now under review by the CIT administration to decide your academic future, but he was doing his part same as any good CIT student and as the father of sweet little Liberty. You must forgive him, for he is having trouble forgiving himself over the matter and you would be doing House a kindness that you owe him." Dorothy spoke like a good devout Christian and future wife of a man who did not yet know that he had a wife already lined up.
"Are you serious?" Lila's face twisted into something disgusted, almost as if someone in the room had farted, even her left eye twitched at the thought. It almost made Dorothy smack the traitorous little thief.
"He is not to blame, if you should be angry at anyone it should be ADI, not House." It took a moment, whether due to desperation, or the homicidal look that Dorothy was giving the woman, Lila finally agreed.
"After the way ADI left me hanging like that?" she said, voice cracking just a little. "My dad would've hated them as much as I now do. I think… I think he'd be glad he never got in, and I think he would have been happy that House stopped me that night. I… promise not to hold a grudge against Robert."
Dorothy suddenly stood and hugged Lila, it was a fierce, but a kind hug that carried forgiveness and triumph in equal parts. Lila hugged her back, as tremors suddenly went down the exiled students shoulders, the quiet sobs muffled against Dorothy's sweater. Simon also joined in the group hug, far more awkwardly that the two girls had hoped… actually it felt so strange, that it completely ruined the moment. Dorothy finally pulled away, as Lila wiped her eyes, and Simon stood in the corner like a chastened dog that pissed on the rug.
"Thank you," Lila whispered, the poor girl had managed a watery smile. "Both of you. Thank you."
"We got you L, don't worry those administrators are going to get the best character testimony in all of CIT history, if not US history. We'll get your expulsion punishment dropped and you can come back to school with us." Simon spoke with a determination that made even Dorothy feel a fire of eagerness.
"Yes, we can see about preparing for your case, I could ask Professor Pugalo to speak on your behalf. The old Russian thinks we are the group that would surpass even the team that worked on the Manhattan project. He has a way with words, and might even be able to get you at least a possible plea bargain of some kind, maybe something minor, like a cut to all club activities for a year or something. Better than outright expulsion." As the trio pondered on a possible way to solve Lila's problem, Lila's mother came home an hour later, still in her nurse scrubs, tired but warm and welcoming to Lila's friends. Simon and Dorothy stayed for dinner, the meal was simple and generous. Mashed potatoes with a large helping of brown gravy, slices of buttered bread, with bowls of pork and beans. Turned out Lila, being the oldest child of the Duvall family, had picked up some culinary skills. The younger siblings crowded around the table, asking shy questions about CIT and robots. For a little while, the house felt full in the best way, alive with laughter, clinking forks, the smell of home-cooked food. Dorothy ate more than she expected to, the knot in her chest loosening just enough to breathe. When it came to washing plates, Dorothy joined Lila in that process with the two CIT students able to speak as if the petty competition and rivalry between the two girls were buried.
"I am truly surprised that Robert House is feeling guilty, I kind of thought he was a bit of a sociopath. Hell, the group's robot showed more emotion than he did." Dorothy held back her anger at Lila's words, and responded in a defensive way that did not sound like a wife defending her future husband's honor.
"House is… special, he does not properly process affection in a jumping for joy sort of way. He reminds me of a mix of my Father and my Uncle. Just complicated, but you should see how he has been acting on the campus. He is like a hamster on a wheel, rushing around trying to do good. I honestly think it might be a side effect of how he processes emotions."
"Oh yeah, Robert is a mess. I honestly thought the class load he was doing was insane, but the man is acting like a villain on a redemption arc. I think he even tried to give Edgar CPR when the fat man fainted at the sight of improperly requested lab time." The girls giggle at the imagined sight, Dorothy grew a little flushed by it. Simon doing a better job of defending House than Dorothy had, spoke his next words with the certainty of a man who believed he had the winning numbers to the lottery. "Trust me Lila, as House's best friend and future best man at his wedding, I know for a fact that dear old Robert is ridden with guilt, and would do just about anything to get you back at CIT. I swear it on my future children."
~Robert House POV~
"Sorry, boss, but it looks like ol' Professor Gorllewin ain't got the slightest notion of callin' you up to the stand at that administrator shindig over Miss Duvall's little sticky-fingered stunt. If he's cookin' up anythin', he's keepin' it locked tight in the Dean's back pocket. Far as I can see from all the jawin' he's done with them other four administrator bigwigs, he don't intend to put you on the witness list one lick." Victor's surveillance had again turned out no opportunity that House could use to improve his reputation with the Commonwealth Institute of Technology.
Why not, damn that blasted witch of a man. I'd be the perfect key witness to have Lila expelled from the halls of CIT. Hell, if they needed my help with putting her on a blacklist, have her burnt at the stake, or even smothered to death by Edgar's bulk. I'd do that in a heart beat if it meant increasing my reputation gain with CIT. House brooded, as he looked at his status screen, his status with CIT still at the accepted level even after he had exhausted himself in the last month helping anyone, anywhere on the CIT rotunda and beyond. Yet his status still remained the same as House's calm outward expression. "Okay so there is no way to improve my relationship with the CIT via upholding their legal department. What other methods do we have left to see me earn their trust Victor, the work we did around the campus did not alter…. Did not get them to reach out to me to talk regarding the misunderstanding."
"Well now, partner, short of marchin' right up to ol' Professor Gorllewin and settlin' this dust-up face-to-face, the only other trail I can see is handin' over them blueprints and all the fixin's on how Liberty XLR came to be. A little show of good faith, y'know, symbolic-like trust. I reckon the big shots up top'd start droolin' like a hound at a barbecue if you dangled that carrot. Might even get you a fancy sit-down supper with the Dean himself." The digital representation of the cowboy AI that was displayed upon the high-tech laptop screen gave an animated shrug as if that was all that he could think of. House shook his head, not liking his options.
"We can't directly talk to Gorllewin to explain away the misunderstanding, first of all, we should not even know that they think I'm a spy for the deep state. Further, even if I tried to explain it and succeeded in convincing them that I am not a spy, they would want to know how I came to my conclusion, and that would require exposing you, which would in turn make me look like a spy. Even if I keep your existence hidden, there is a chance that they might discover you in their network and that is a risk I can't take. No, unless they approach me first and ask if I am a spy, which I doubt they will do, that is the only time I think I might be able to get rid of their suspicions." House's mask of composure cracked a bit, the exhaustion nearly showing on his face as he pondered a means of escaping the maddening situation he found himself in. Robert had nearly exhausted all of his options to the point he wished there was a wiki aid or a possible youtube let's play that could reveal a way out of his current predicament. It got so bad House pondered about giving up the designs and blueprints of Liberty XLR to the CIT administrators, something he had planned to eliminate with the Omega protocol to deny everyone access to Liberty XLR's secrets. "As for the blueprints, I… cannot hand that over, the Solar cell design is a golden technological wonder, and just the beginning to a treasure trove of technological discoveries. I had hoped XLR would be the bait that allowed us access into the Dean's terminal. But CIT has not made any attempts to take XLR or his blueprints."
"Partner, that also got me pondering on why the Dean and his posse of no good sycophants haven't just come up and taken XLR by force. They could easily explain the seizure away as property built on their holy grounds. They should have bitten on your bait by now, or at the very least looked under XLR's skirt like those no good crooks at ADI attempted." Victor showed an expression of stumped confusion, somehow the digital avatar of the AI had generated a stump of a tree to sit upon and ponder in a process similar to a famous artistic work of the thinker. House answered, explaining what he understood, explaining away the confusion that his one and only trusted companion was suffering.
"It's most likely because of the university guidelines regarding unfinished and finished works. Given that most of the team built Liberty XLR are still first years, and the group plans to utilize XLR for next year's tournament and all the other tournaments that come after it. That in turn qualifies our favorite patriot bot as an active project being continuously worked on. CIT is most likely going to cover their asses legally, as we could realistically prove to a court how much money we lost because of their interference. Most likely Gorllewin and his staff will wait until my team and I either graduate, or win the robot fight club tournament in our final year before scooping the automaton up and claiming it as a finished project built on school grounds. That would be the safest option that wouldn't open the university to a lawsuit that could result in fines, or even a share of the profits if the school thought about mass producing the Solar cell technology." That was House's theory as to why the Dean and his right hand man did not grab his club project right away. Patience, they are far more patient than I currently am, they just need to out wait me.That or they suspect something is wrong with Liberty XLR and are not willing to take the bait, since the dean believes me to be an enclave spy. The entire situation made House's vast intelligence come up with one possibility after another. With too little information to depend upon to make a clear guess, all he could do now is wait and hope a proper opportunity would reveal itself. "Victor, there is nothing else for us to do than to maintain our current means of improving my standing….lets start with our morning mental exercises."
"Well now, boss, that's music to these digital ears. Glad you're feelin' a mite better about things. C'mon now, chin up like a good ol' hound dog spyin' a rabbit—keep that smile wider'n a prairie sky. Now parrot to the best you can after me. We're here to lend a hand. Always with a, howdy there, sir or ma'am, followed up with a beggin' your pardon. Now remember to make small talk like, fine weather we're havin', ain't it? If you have another Dorothy-like situation putin' you in a corner, then just respond with a, nothin' like a splash of sunshine to brighten a fella's (or gal's) day. Make them think you're as positive as your dear friend Chipper. That is when you start asking the big question like, anything I can rustle up for ya?" House faced a mirror he had installed into his room, looking at his hollow eyes that stared back at him as victor kept on pushing for more positivity out of the 17 year old.
They say, and in this case they being Mao, that in the People's Republic of China, the government holds a rather vile practice known as a Struggle Session. Where a person guilty of some form of real or imagined social taboo is brought before a jeering crowd of people and is forced to apologize for just about anything the party had accused them of. A means of destroying one's self-identity, their self-esteem, and just about anything and everything that makes them an individual in order to mold them into an example that others will think twice about before going against the collective will of the communist party and becoming just like them. This shaming process was beyond extreme and horrific, reducing a person into a shell of a person through weaponized shame and public ridicule, using negative force to tear down one's being. Sometimes even having the accused hold up signs of their crimes and be forced to apologize over and over again at the perceived failing of being an improper cog in the unified communist machine. Victor had devised his own version of the tactic, but for more positive and good results than turning someone into an example. The Cuddle Session, as Victor called it, would use positive language, and proper kind social cues in order to more socialize Robert Edwin House. Wash away the rust of an introvert and turn the genius into the proper sociable character who had the charm but none of the will.
"I am… here to lend a hand. Howdy…Fine weather we are having. Sunshine, may it make you feel better. And can I rustle up something for yaaaaa." The southern drawl that House attempted made it clear that Victor was on some sort of path, whether it was the right one, not even the Ai was sure.
With his morning exercises finished, House was free to begin his beautiful Boston morning with as much positive energy as the cynical disgruntled teenager could muster. There was no morning light stabbing through the dorm window, just a heavy endless rain long ago predicted by many meteorologists. House's jaw was clenched tightly, his shoulders were tight, the kind of low-grade fury that had been simmering since the tournament and now boiled over into something hot and ugly while pretending to be kind and considerate. With the Cuddle Session over, thank the great and mighty Chriss Avellone, House would be free to go about with his day of helpfully helping the good people of CIT. Before leaving he made sure to spend a couple of minutes, giving his system a death glare, to reveal his true luck status as well as the reputation gain. The status screen didn't flinch. But after a long, furious heartbeat, text flickered across it in mocking green:
Lol future corporate overlord is mad. Desperation is not a good look for you John, ladies won't let you scan their brain if you're so obsessed.
House's vision tunneled, crimson rage forcing him to blink, only for the system prompt to disappear. Now the only thing the system displayed was his standard Fallout status sheet, Special and skill stats displayed innocently. For one irrational second he actually considered trying to strangle the floating interface. Instead he forced himself on the work ahead, closing his eyes, and breathing in deliberately slow breaths. There must be a way to raise my reputation, to discover this early quest, and achieve dominance against my enemies. There must be a way.
Heading out to face another day of being everyone's unpaid miracle worker, Victor helped guided House like an early version of Preston Garvey, marking targets that the noble hero could go off to save. There were many poor souls in desperate need of help on the CIT campus, and hopefully helping one of them would improve Houses reputation with the university. Professor Havelock needed help guiding the importance of the filter system for the water purifiers, a task that House was familiar with from the first semester and more than able to help the over-worked engineering professor with. It did not win House any CIT reputation gain, but Professor Havelock offered not only his patronage, but also an official leadership position within the Applied Systems Engineering Society. Thanks to House's advice many of the first year students succeeded in creating a fully operational water purifier ready to be sent, like House's own, to Detroit. May the Lord and Savior Timothy Cain have mercy upon the poor souls of Detroit.
From there Robert met with Edgar Bartholomew Crowley, the third year student who was closest to professor Gorllewin outside of his secretary, Gors. The young Nevada genius had come to a sinister plan that by helping Edgar he could in turn get someone who could speak well about him to the scholarship administrator. Edgar was not an easy man to impress, this student who had earned professor Gorllewin's attention was famous for being religiously strict regarding lab access and made it his life mission to traumatize anyone who did not schedule a lab reservation weeks in advance. Edgar had come to like Robert greatly in the past month, not only for the bribes that Robert provided during the summer break for lab use, but also coming to help out his best friend Edgar whenever the third year needed help. Which was required at that very moment.
Edgar required assistance cleaning out a particular lab used by some fourth year students who thought the secret to solving the energy crisis was finding a new highly volatile form of fuel extracted from a newly discovered strain of mutated Detroit corn. Lab room 4 would forever smell like a potent version of movie theater popcorn in House's mind. Even after Robert and Edgar thoroughly cleaned every last trace of the bio-hazard, the mental aroma of burnt butter was forever ingrained within House's psyche. On top of the cleaning trauma that did not earn House any reputation gain, he now had a new best friend who constantly pestered House regarding everything that did not in any way relate to CIT. The entire time the two cleaned lab room 4, Edgar would not stop talking about the newest issue of the Silver Shroud, talking about the villain that fought the shroud, the glee in Edgar's tone made it clear the man was a fan of the villain over the hero. However, Edgar at least promised House immediate express lab access whenever Robert House came to visit his senior classmate, no further bribes required.
House would then go about hauling crates containing fragile lab materials for the physics department until his arms burned. Which took a while to finish by himself, but given his high Strength and Endurance stats the job was done. All others that helped felt dead after moving a single crate, yet House only felt a slight burn in his muscles. The head of the physics department was overjoyed for the help, offering House much, even an academic patronage, but it seemed it did not translate into reputation gain with the Commonwealth Institute of Technology.
House even sat through an entire lecture from Professor Kline without once mentioning that a CEO should rule as an unchallenged autocrat. House even listened to every single one of the moral obligations that Professor Khline believed a rising businessman should undertake without interruption. Two minutes into the lecture, it became clear to Robert that Professor Khline was completely naive to the cut-throat corporate world of pre-war Fallout. Such monstrous corporate entities of this version of America would tear apart any capitalist that had Khline's moral standard. If such a moral moron had become a business man and entered into a meeting with a corporation like West Tek, five minutes into the meeting they would be walking out penniless and volunteering to become an experimental patient for the cure for the new plague. No matter how much the objections clawed at the back of Robert's throat, he just smiled and nodded his head no better than a puppet.
After class Professor Kline smoothly went about requesting some stock tips from House, seeming to regret not jumping on the Hubris comics and Red Racer Co. when he had the golden opportunity last semester. The man had chickened out when promising to match however much House was willing to place on the now extremely profitable stock options, a regret that would haunt Professor Khline for the rest of his life. Now in the search of more golden opportunities such as the previous recommendation, the man came, almost nonchalantly asking Robert what he thought of Blackrock Carbon solutions and other big brands that were just a break through away from exploding in profitability. House just smiled, forgave the slimy cowardly professor for his previous treachery, and gave him more stock tips that the man would not invest, until seeing Robert do so first. Professor Khline did not match the $5,000 that Robert requested his friend Teddy to invest on his behalf, but he was willing to invest $1,000 towards Slocum's Joe's coffee and pastry franchise. House felt dirty when instead of acquiring any reputation gains Professor Khline promised him a patronage position as his assistant teacher if the stock investment developed nicely. If this was post-great war fallout, I'd plan to shove your winnings down your throat and have you choke to death on it.
By mid-afternoon, House felt defeated, and took a moment to rest in the common halls. His eyes were closed, nearly drifting to sleep. Thanks to the SLEEP IS A SUGGESTION perk Robert only required 20-30 minutes of sleep to operate properly, but it was not a fun experience even with the perk effects helping. For House enjoyed the slumbering halls of oblivion more than the waking nightmare he was dealing with, trying to make sense of a world that would be doomed to nuclear fire in less than five decades. Just as House was pondering his options, trying to find a way to better approach the matter of winning CIT's trust, Victor's voice crackled in his earpiece, casual but edged with urgency. "Heads-up, partner. Word just came down the wire, big shots straight outta Washington D.C. are ridin' hard for the campus. They rang up the administrators just a lick ago, and now they're comin' to meet the crew that built Liberty XLR. From the chatter I'm pickin' up… they ain't here for no picture-takin' and handshakes. Gorllewin's madder'n a wet hen, spittin' nails—he's sendin' his secretary Gors to round you and the rest of the team up so y'all can be ready for the so-called 'honors.' Best saddle up quick, boss."
"Irksome." House had preferred to be at the idolized stage of his reputation with CIT before the government came in, most likely here to snatch Liberty XLR. At least we know for a fact that Dean Oswald is not paranoid. No, the dean of CIT is suffering from something more than being paranoid, for he has turned out to be right, there is an actual deep state spy somewhere on the campus. Now the group and I might have a target on our back by whatever the hell the enclave currently calls themselves at this time period.
Rising from the comfortable couch that beckoned for his return, Robert Edwin House, travelled nonchalantly through the university campus. The Boston rain was fierce, the prophesized great storm was here, but House did not care for it as he walked nearby where the administration building was placed. It did not take long for Robert House to run into one of Gorllewin's cronies, for the flying monkey sent out to find House was the short and stocky Gors. The secretary of the scholarship administrator was on the prowl and he had found one of his targets.
"Robert House. Good, you're nearby. Get to Professor Gorllewin's office, he would like to have a word. Also where are your teammates at? They need to be there with you." Gors, the short, hairy man that served as Professor Gorllewin's assistant had determined eyes, his body language looked as if he was ready to pounce upon House, as if Robert was about to flee. House offered to guide the fourth year student to his teammates, but the man wanted Robert to speak to Gorllewin immediately. "No, I can find them without your help. Get to the professor's office, he wishes to see you now!"
That tone is far more hostile than it needs to be. Mayhaps, Professor Gorllewin has told his minions more than they needed to know. The half drenched Robert nodded once, and walked towards the administrator's office, while Gorllewin's flying monkey went off to look for the other members of the group that helped create Liberty XLR. Entering the administrator's office, Robert navigated his way to see the man that might become House's killer one day. Seeing the dead fish like stare that Professor Gorllewin was giving House, he would not be surprised if that day was today.
"Robert Edwin House, you have arrived rather quickly. Either my secretary moves faster than expected on his stubby legs, or you have a knack for being at the right place at the right time." There was no humor in Gorllewin's words, his false academic smile did not reach his judging eyes. A thousand words of damnation passed from his unholy glare, and Robert took it all in with as much care as he had for an annoying bug on the wall of his bedroom.
"Well, you might want to give Gors a raise. Your secretary told me that you wanted to see me." Robert was the model of polite and patient, the words cracked through the darkened expression of Professor Gorllewin, before the administrator took on an accusing tone.
"You know damn well why you're here, Robert. Your friends are coming to see you."
"Yes, Gors did mention he was looking to get the entire robotics team here to meet with you. I just wonder w-"
"Those are not the friends I'm talking about Robert, and you know it as well. Tell me, House, have you foreseen all of this happening from the beginning. Thinking the crooks in DC would reward you for your efforts. They do not care about you any more than they care about the work that our professors do here, shaping the young innocent minds that attend this school. You have done more to harm them, than any accolades you think you might have earned." Gorllewin's monologue sounded like the words of a final boss, pushed into a corner, ready to go down swinging. Where others would be fearful, where others would be aggressive, House saw this as the perfect opportunity he had long been waiting for. Now he could kill the misunderstanding in its crib and utilized both his maxed out Charisma and Persuasion stats to see it done.
"Professor Gorllewin, I am nothing more than an orphan from Nevada, who has excelled in his studies and lab projects. The only true friends I have are here on the campus. I do not know of anyone in Washington DC, I think you're mistaking me for someone else." The words came out clean, clear, impossible to be misconstrued, and hit the scholarship professor like the blunt side of a super sledge. The man had a visceral reaction to Robert's words, his face showing it all. A series of different emotions that changed with every moment the silence remained. From disbelief that eventually devolved into self-doubt as the words spoken by Robert House rattled away the rust of distrust and unwarranted suspicions. Professor Gorllewin grew rigid, his posture more like that of a statue, his eyes first focused on House, then through him, and beyond him, almost glazing over as he pondered all of the events leading up to this moment. Finally the scholarship professor spoke, in a hush that could barely be heard.
"You're… you're not lying, this…this does not make any sense. If it is not you then…" Before he could come to a conclusion regarding the matter, Gors had returned. The short stocky secretary had brought Felix, Mao, Simon, and Dorothy all behind him. The group did not have to wait long from there, as the honored guest would soon arrive.