Dr. Sturgis

Outside, Melinda and Grandma Connie were chatting when a short, elderly man in a suit and tie approached.

"Hello?" he said.

"Hello," Connie and Melinda replied.

He glanced at the crochet Connie was working on and asked, "Sorry, but is that the double basket weave pattern?"

Connie looked at the yarn in her hands and replied, "I think so... I always called it 'loop back and forth'... Oops! It worked."

"Haha," both laughed.

"Well, I need to go—I've got something to take care of. I'll be back later," Melinda said, taking the opportunity to leave them alone.

After she said goodbye, Connie and Dr. Sturgis were left alone in the hallway.

"You knit," Connie broke the silence.

"Not anymore. It used to fascinate me," Dr. Sturgis said with a smile.

"But I believe the first computer was a loom," he added.

"Really… is that true?" Connie asked, surprised.

"Of course," said Dr. Sturgis.

"Fantastic," Connie replied.

Realizing he was running late and the conversation had run its course, Dr. Sturgis said, "Well, if you'll excuse me, I have a class to teach."

"Oh, you must be my grandson's professor," Connie said, now realizing who he was.

"How's that?" Dr. Sturgis asked, confused.

"Sheldon Cooper," Connie clarified.

Finally understanding, Dr. Sturgis pointed at Connie with a smile.

"The nine-year-old who writes impeccably. I'm excited to meet him," he said.

"Well, he's right in there—you won't miss him. He's about this tall," Connie joked, gesturing at Sheldon's height.

Dr. Sturgis chuckled, then asked, "You're not joining us?"

"Will you be discussing Quantum Chromodynamics?" Connie asked.

"I hope so," he replied.

"Then maybe not," she responded with a playful tone.

"Are you sure? Every day's a chance to learn something new," said Dr. Sturgis.

Connie thought for a moment and asked, "Will I be able to ask questions?"

Dr. Sturgis joked, "How else would you learn?"

"Then let's go," Connie said, packing up her things and standing to follow him.

"My name is John."

"And mine's Connie."

They walked together toward the classroom after introducing themselves.

...

After the lecture, Melinda arrived to pick up Alex.

Everyone was leaving, and Alex, Sheldon, and Connie stood together.

At that moment, Dr. Sturgis approached with a smile.

"Sheldon and Alex, how was your first theoretical physics class?"

"I think I want to do this for the rest of my life," Sheldon declared.

"Excellent choice," Dr. Sturgis said, then turned to hear Alex's response.

"It was great. I learned a lot today—I want to come again!" Alex replied politely.

Dr. Sturgis smiled and said, "Wonderful. I really enjoyed having you two little geniuses in class."

Then he turned to Connie and said, "Connie, I'd like to see you again. Perhaps we could have dinner sometime?"

"Yes, we'd love that," Sheldon chimed in before Connie could answer.

"We'd love that?" Connie asked.

"Wouldn't we?" Sheldon responded.

"Would you?" Dr. Sturgis asked.

"We would," Connie replied.

"Excellent," said Dr. Sturgis, clearly pleased.

Alex watched quietly, noticing his mom waiting for him outside.

After saying goodbye to Dr. Sturgis, he returned home—one step closer to meeting Paige.

In the following days, Alex learned from Sheldon that his grandma had gone on a date with Dr. Sturgis.

She even started attending the lectures regularly. From the look in her eyes, it seemed she had an interest in him.

Later that week, Alex finally received the remaining parts for his computer—but something went wrong with the processor, which left him irritated.

After contacting the supplier, Alex learned that the processor manufacturing machine had failed, so the order would be delayed.

Since his plans fell through, Alex could only focus on new projects. He wanted to design his own lithography machine.

Some materials were hard to acquire, but he learned that his supplier could obtain some of the necessary components.

He just needed to send the schematics, and the supplier would find someone to fabricate the machine parts.

Alex now understood why people say money opens many doors—thanks to his success in the stock market, he was able to buy many of the things needed for his projects.

----

This is the author. The writing in this chapter didn't turn out very well — you might find it hard to understand the context of some sentences.

I realized I hate writing dialogue. That's why my story seems to move so quickly. I feel like I'm spending too much time on character interactions... I apologize for that.

I also want to recommend my other novel: TWILIGHT – DIMENSIONAL TRAVELER.

If you're interested, go show it some love.

Thank you, and see you next time!