Side Story: A peek into the past 1

Author's note: this is the story of Sarah and Elias's meeting and relationship.

"this is the last time i'm letting you drive us" Sarah told Adam not bothering to look his way.

"come on it's not like i'm standing you up, you can always take a taxi back"

"yeah, and walk the three kilometres to the main street from campus on foot" she retorted wondering if she can strangle her colleague. "just so you know, you're in charge of taking the material back to the lab, i'm not helping you carry it."

"Did i tell you that you were a bitter person?" Adam asked with a smirk "Just because i have a social life doesn't mean that you can give me a hard time about it."

"Social life? and you're talking about yourself?" Sarah let out a mocking laugh making Adam frown "i'm not the one who's over the moon because his campus friends invited him for dinner when they heard that he was working on research and they were still struggling with their thesis"

"yeah, yeah, at least i have acquaintances. your social life was nonexistent, so you didn't even feel the different when we were isolated in that dark, cold and humid lab all these years"

Sarah laughed at that, because it was true. she didn't have much of social life, her social network consisted of her parents, her brother, her nephew and her longtime friend who decided to go and get married in the other end of the world. she'd never minded her life being the way it is, she had enough acquaintances to be able to go out occasionally and have a good time.

"By the way, are you okay doing the presentation on your own? i can do my part if it's too much"

"Nah, if i can stand up on my heels for half an hour facing the prejudice crowd, then i can make it through another, there's no need for both of us to suffer."

"you know, I've never met a girl who hates dressing up as much as you do" Adam said wryly a grateful smile on his face.

"If you meet my high school friends, you'll find that i'm quite sophisticated."

"i can't imagine that." Adam trailed off " You know that they could give you a hard time just for the sake o it. the ones who remember me consider me a traitor for going to the institute, and P.Wattani isn't exactly their favorite person."

"that's why i'm the one doing it, they don't know me because i did't study in this university and my involvement with this community is limited to the institute and my previous university. they don't know what to think about me, and i can neutralize a situation by denying my involvement in conflict if we have to."

"i still feel like i'm throwing you to the butcher, they can be ruthless if they want to"

"they can be as ruthless as they want to if it's related to science. i'm confident in our work, and so you should be."

Adam reached the parking lot in the university, he found space by the place where the professor had given them instructions to meet him and parked the car. then he turned toward her and put his hand on her shoulder,

"thanks, you don't know how much i appreciate this"

"Ah stop with the mushy words. i'm gong to make you pay with hard labor anyway."

"says the girl who comes early and leaves late every day to work." he retorted unbuckling his seat and leaving the car, she followed him heading toward the trunk as they stood chatting for a while until professor Wattani appeared, he was talking to tow people whom she couldn't see clearly, but from the way he left them heading toward her and Adam, she could tell that it wasn't a friendly chat they were having.

"Mr. Congeniality seems to have charmed yet another person." Adam muttered from behind her

"he's not even trying to make our task easy" Sarah retorted back amused by her boss's antics. When she first met him she had the impression that he was the type who could be the bigger person in a conflict and let it go, but as she worked with him he turned out to be surprisingly childish and narrow minded and took things quite personally.

"let me remind you that this presentation has a lot at stake," P. wattani said extending his palm toward them. Sarah handed over the documents ready to hear the long pre-lecture lecture.

"I went along with your plan because it seemed like a wise choice to let a women do the presentation, those old geezers are more likely to pay attention that way, but Sarah please make sure not to embarrass yourself and us along the way." he said eyeing the documents she handed.

"as for you Adam, I don't are if you have previous history with them, don't go along with them and start sprouting confidential information, they don't need to know more than we are telling them is in the presentation."

both Sarah and Adam murmured their agreement stealing glances at each other, even though a few minutes ago the mood was light and easygoing, Sarah could now feel the heavy expectation and the awkwardness of her position more and more. For the hundred time that day, Sarah wondered if she could manage this safely.