Don't Be Stupid

Izzy had no idea what she was supposed to say or do in this situation. She had been helping these guys first because she identified with them as kindred spirits and then because she found out she was actually their mother but she had been functioning largely on autopilot. If she stopped to think too much, she was certain she would have an existential crisis.

She also had no idea how Roz managed to convince a bigshot like Julian Shea to help her—a total stranger—in less than a day. Or how the kids snuck in and out of a skyscraper without getting caught.

She might have been able to pull something off at that age but that was because she was used to living on the streets. The three of them might have looked roughed up when she met them but there was no way they were in the same situation  with such a rich father.

They may have inherited her street smarts but they also may have gotten some of their father's brains. He was a genius, after all.

Izzy still couldn't fathom why a genius would want anything to do with her, let alone miss her enough to build a freaking time machine. That was pretty crazy! Not to mention, there were holes in her kids' story about how exactly they ended up being the ones to travel back in time. Ed had made more than one comment that made her think he resented his father as well.

She hadn't even met the man yet and she wasn't sure she was okay with the things he did that resulted in three children—two under the age of ten—ending up twenty years in the past with nowhere to go. Roz had been covered in injuries too and she claimed it happened from wrestling on a floor full of broken glass.

At the time, she had taken that with a grain of salt but what if it was the truth? What had the "lab accident" entailed?

Roz also said that her father couldn't handle losing her mother but there were different ways of not being able to handle things. If Izzy put the pieces together a certain way, it seemed like Julian Shea had completely lost his mind.

Would she really be capable of falling in love with a crazy person? Because she was going to have to in order for these kids to exist. No pressure or anything!

She wasn't the only side of the equation either. What if whatever originally made him be interested in her didn't happen because the timeline had been tampered with? Then what would happen to the kids?

Izzy didn't love them or anything but she was certain she had in the future they knew because of the way they acted around her. Like they trusted her completely. She didn't want to break that trust.

Besides, it wouldn't be fair for them to cease existing because of the mistake of a selfish adult. The real question was whether or not she would remember all of this when they went back to her own time or if everything would go back to the way it was "supposed" to be and she would meet Julian the way she had in their timeline.

Overthinking this was giving her a headache. It was better to let it go.

"I guess I'll see him in a few hours then," Izzy said simply. "In the meantime, you guys should find something to read. Did you get lunch?"

Edison nodded. "Yeah, we did."

"And I got a teddy bear for being a good spy!" Nora contributed happily as she held it up. It was a floppy and pink with a matching bow around its neck. She recognized it as coming from the nearby Dollar Tree since she went there frequently to get cheap things like toothpaste.

Bribing her to do what they wanted was rather smart. She had underestimated these three. "That's a great teddy bear! What are you going to name it?"

"Mr. Pinkleberry. Cuz he's pink."

Izzy barely held back a snort. Nora was obviously proud of the name she came up with so laughing would not do. She patted the girl's head and she soaked up the small scrap of affection eagerly. "Good name. Anyway, I need to get back to work so…"

"We'll find a way to keep ourselves entertained," Roz promised. "See you later, Mom."

They wandered off in search of books and she once again felt a wave of dislike/distrust for Julian Shea. Had he gone off the deep end to the point he didn't pay attention to their kids after she died? Because Nora acted like she didn't get parental affection much.

It could be that she was simply happy to get some from her mother since she hadn't had that for a long time before arriving here but something about this whole thing felt off. It continued bothering her as she went about her regular work duties.

She spotted the kids a few times as she made her way around the library. Ed was reading picture book after picture book to his little sister while Roz was engrossed in a fat book about particle physics.

Izzy shook her head in wonder. A twelve-year-old reading about something like that! When she was twelve, she loved to read as well but she preferred novels. She would read anything and everything as long as it had characters she could get behind.

As she got a bit older and wanted to write realistic stories of her own, she read more nonfiction in order to research things she didn't know much about to include in there. She knew all sorts of random bits of information such as how old-time actress Hedy Lamarr was essentially the mother of Wi-Fi.

Knowing random pieces of information was a lot different than being engaged in and understanding a book with such heavy science. It made sense that at least one of Julian Shea's children would be able to comprehend that sort of thing at a young age.

Izzy was still unable to wrap her head around the fact she was going to meet someone so much smarter than her that supposedly fell for her right up until the moment he appeared. She was coming back from the room where books that had been checked back in were processed when she was looking the wrong way and collided directly into him.

She didn't realize who he was at first and apologized profusely until she got a sight of his face and all the air froze in her lungs. He was incredibly handsome but also had the most stifling presence of anyone she had ever met.

She felt as tiny and insignificant as an ant. This man clearly knew how much smarter he was than everyone else and wasn't afraid to let them know it.

"Watch where you're going," Julian said blandly.

He didn't seem bothered about being run into. Rather, he wasn't paying attention to her at all. He appeared to be searching for something and she was willing to bet she knew what. More specifically, who.

"Roz is in a chair in the children's section," Izzy told him.

That caught his attention. He finally looked at her and his blank face registered the tiniest hint of surprise. "You're their guardian? You're way too young."

"They came into my care recently; I'm a relative. She said you wanted to talk to me?"

"Right…she claimed you knew where she was and what she was doing when she barged into my lab this morning and, based on your reaction just now, I'm going to assume that's true. You already know who I am." Julian squinted at her name tag. "Your name is Isabel?"

"Izzy," she said firmly.

"Izzy then. I don't know any details about what the situation is and, quite frankly, I don't care but Roz has to be present while I work on the watch according to the terms of our deal. I should have the tools at my apartment but wanted to clear it with you first."

He didn't care? What on earth did Roz tell him to get him to cooperate then?! This guy was totally weird.

She didn't trust his future self based on what little she knew so she didn't trust this version either. "You're going to have to wait until I get off work. Wherever they go, I go."

Julian nodded. "I expected as much. Though it doesn't make sense that you would let them go off on their own earlier only to be protective now, it's none of my business. You won't go giving my address to anyone, will you?"

Izzy was insulted two-fold. She hadn't been able to stop them earlier! All she could do was hope for the best. What sort of person thought so lowly of someone they just met though? Who went out giving random people other people's addresses? That was super sketchy!

"Don't be stupid."

The words came out of her mouth before she could stop herself and she immediately froze. She had just called one of the smartest people in the world stupid in a roundabout way.

Julian blinked at her in disbelief. "I beg your pardon?"

"Sorry! I didn't mean it like that—I only mean I won't tell anyone and that it should have been obvious….oh, I'm making this worse. Just give me your address," Izzy said miserably. Was there a hole she could crawl into somewhere?

He did so without saying another word to her and turned on his heel to leave before she could apologize again. Yep. She definitely didn't like that guy.