The lab was cold, the only sound was the hum of machinery. Joy Davidson sat at the cluttered desk, fingers drumming on the papers scattered in front of him. The faint smell of chemicals hung in the air. Will Banner, leaning against a lab bench, watched him closely.
"Hey, Joy," Will began, his voice casual but edged with concern. "Didn't they ask you to complete that project? The one about the genetic sequencing?"
Joy didn't look up from the files. He flicked through a few, frustration building in his posture.
"Fuck them all," he muttered under his breath, his voice low but laced with defiance. "They think I'm gonna do all this shit for them. Like I'm their personal lab rat."
Will raised an eyebrow, a bit taken aback by the raw bitterness in Joy's tone. "What do you mean? You were one of the best on that project."
Joy's hand clenched into a fist, his eyes darkening as he stood and walked toward the window, staring out into the darkening horizon. "They can all go to hell," he spat, as if the words had been bubbling inside him for days. "This isn't about genetics. It's something else. Something they're not telling me."
Will stood silent for a moment, watching Joy's tension grow. He hesitated, realizing he might have pushed too far with his question.
"Hey, Joy," Will said softly, his voice shifting from casual to more apologetic. "Okay, sorry for asking that. I didn't mean to stir anything up." He paused, rubbing the back of his neck. "Look, how about we get out of here? Grab some coffee, clear our heads for a bit. We can talk about… anything but this for a change."
Joy didn't respond immediately. He kept his eyes fixed on the window, the weight of his thoughts pressing down on him. Will had always been the more laid-back of the two, the one who could put a positive spin on just about anything. But there were moments, like this one, when the past couldn't be so easily ignored.
Will's voice softened as he added, "I know it's tough, man. I've been trying to piece things together about my dad—Henry. He… he was always so wrapped up in something big before he disappeared. Maybe that's why you're feeling the way you do about all this."
With a reluctant sigh, Joy finally nodded. "Fine. Coffee it is. But if we're talking, we're talking about something else."