Cube of Infinity

Hot vapor rose from Adrian's stained coffee mug as he stood over the microscope, eyes burning from the glare of fluorescence bulbs.

Yet another late night analyzing polymer samples, his life distilled down to long hours in this cramped lab.

"Still buried down that scope?" said on of his concern colleges, "C'mon Adrian, it's already midnight give your eyes a rest"

Adrian only smiled wanly, realizing that it was already 12:13 PM and he already felt the full weight of exhaustion.

He couldn't remember the last time he'd left work before midnight since the lab had become his second home ever since getting his PhD in chemistry at 22.

Where could he even begin on why and how he got here, all he could say is this is his life now, waking up, work, sleep and repeat.

But It hadn't always been this way, Adrian could still picture his twelve-year-old self in the musty utility room at the orphanage, always the curious bunch he loved "borrowing" household cleaners to fuel his makeshift experiments.

Anything to distract young Adrian from the uncertainty of rotating between foster homes.

Over time His curiosity gained notice when one of the teachers, Ms Emmet in the orphanage caught Adrian tinkering after class.

Surprisingly Instead of a punishment, she actually supported him in his experiments and even gave him some books about alchemistry and along side some equipments which he appreciates very dearly to this day.

Eventually with her help he managed to get in one of the most prestigious colleges.

Through a combination of perseverance and manic drive, Adrian secured scholarships to extract himself from the uncertainty of foster care.

"Those where the days haha..."

Looking back, it was probably the best moments of his life, being young was truly being free in his mind.

His undergraduate research eventually won him accolades and offers arrived from top PhD programs.

Even when not considered as a true genius with only 129 IQ, he was a very dedicated man with his own dreams and aspirations worthy of admiration.

But there's more than just dedication or aspirations to become someone successful.

Without the help of a backer he quickly fell off with the elites and was disregarded after a "True genius" appeared.

Coupled with the unfortunate passing of Ms Emmet, Adrian reached his all time low and was left to fend for himself.

His Graduate school flew by in caffeine-fueled blurs, his life sunken to where his is now.

Now Dr. Adrian Havenfield found himself firmly entrenched within the sterile halls of Centar Chemical's R&D lab, barely making it

A relatively stable job with great pay but harsh when it comes to work.

A constant Publish or perish driving 80-hour workweeks to establish his name via high-impact patents.

But that Stability came at a price, with 12-hour days in windowless rooms lit solely by the cool glow of equipment readouts.

"Well there's not much I can do, why even bother"

Adrian neatly filed his samples and research notes before heading out to his apartment to reheat some leftover Chinese food before hitting the shower and sleeping soon after.

Over the next few weeks, Adrian started feeling more tired each morning.

But thought it was just because he wasn't getting enough sleep, so he kept going to work as usual, unaware of the potential consequences.

His Headaches came and went, Annoying but trivial, deadlines waited for no one after all.

Eventual ly while midway through analyzing the new corrosion resistant coatings, he suddenly started violently coughing causing crimson specks of blood sprayed across his lab reports.

He passed out soon after and was brought to the hospital.

~~~

"Stage four lung cancer with metastases everywhere," the Dr, read his biopsy report, her voice flat.

"With current treatments...a year, at most"

Adrian sat motionless, the office suddenly spinning around him.

"How...I don't understand. I've barely even smoked, And I'm only 30!"

The Dr. removed her glasses slowly.

"Extensive exposure to industrial chemicals is likely the cause of this, I'm so sorry Adrian, If we had caught this even 6 months ago..." Her voice trailed off.

Adrian sat there, speechless, unable to believe what he was hearing. "Where did I go wrong?" he muttered, tears falling from his face.

Walking aimlessly along the lakeshore, gulls and joggers passing by in a blur, at the age of 30 he was already terminally ill with no hopes of a cure.

The sizable house he would someday buy, It now reminded him of chemicals boiling silently at the perfect temperature before rapidly evaporating into nothing.

Sitting at the beach he rarely visits Adrian wailed in frustration.

"Is this really what I get after working hard all my life?, Death!?" He screamed out tears streaming down his eye's.

Adrian found himself slowly coming to terms with his fate, crying about it won't help after all so He decided to quit his job and returned to his hometown, choosing to spend the rest of his days there.

With 10 million to his name, 2 million from his savings and rest from Centar Chemical's compensations.

A staggering amount but to Adrian, money held little significance in the face of his terminal illness.

Now He was free to live out his life even when it seems fleeting, And still Adrian felt wronged.

The value of life's moments far surpassed any material wealth, all that money can never buy his health back, even Dr. Klein's extensive treatment could only last him a year.

It's better to live the rest of your life doing what you love instead of being stuck in the hospital waiting for the inevitable.

There's no point thinking over it now he already thought it through after all.

Boarding the Bus Adrian was ready to go back in his hometown, McLevinson county situated in the countryside.

It's been 15 years now when he left his hometown and now he was finally coming back, standing Infront of his foster home from childhood, now abandoned.

The foster home was situated on a quiet residential street, with a generous front and backyard.

The building itself was two stories tall with an attic space, It had historically been painted beige with a red shingled roof.

After 15 years of being empty, the exterior paint had faded into a patchy dull gray with occasional exposed wood showing.

The front porch roof was missing shingles and the ceiling water damaged, Half the windows were broken or completely missing. The yard was severely overgrown with weeds and tall grass.

A weather-beaten FOR SALE sign hung crookedly by one nail on the front gate.

Dust flew everywhere as he opened the decrepit door of the building.

The first floor consisted of a central hallway, with a living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, and small office branching off.

The kitchen appliances were stripped down to shells after scavenging.

Rotting stairs protested his steps ascending to the drafty second floor.

Upstairs were five equally sized bedrooms and a larger master bedroom where the house once matron resided.

There was an unfinished attic with exposed insulation between beams.

All rooms showed extensive wear with floors scraped and worn, walls water stained with cracked paint and plaster.

All bathrooms had non-functioning rusty plumbing with mildew stains, Bedrooms were mostly intact but coated in layers of dust and dirt, Floorboards creaked loudly in the hallway.

He was having some trouble breathing so after a quick check he started to leave.

Adrian hoped to fully renovate the property as his permanent residence.

He Planned to hire contractors to repair exterior walls, replace all windows, install new roofing, paint all rooms, refinish floors, and expand the master bedroom into the attic space, completely remodel kitchens and bathrooms, and furnish the basement into a laboratory and library for his work.

Even though his job as a chemist is the reason for his disease, at heart he still loved doing chemistry so he plans to start again, this time doing what he loves instead.

Overall this project would roughly require him $400,000 which is no biggie at all, he has the money so he'll spend it.

Adrian saw this as his peaceful sanctuary to live out his final months battling cancer.