Chapter 6

SIX

Samantha

"I love this campus," I gush.

Aydan grins beside me. "Nature and science, what's not to love?"

We've made our way around the entire campus, trying to keep busy until we can justify going into the orientation room. Luckily for us, it really is an amazing campus. And a great place to people-watch.

"The other students seem as nervous as we are," I say, nodding toward yet another geeky kid who looks on the verge of a breakdown.

Granger shrugs. "At least there are some girls. I was afraid this would turn into a sausage party."

I roll my eyes. "At least we know the Phoenix Institute isn't misogynistic."

"There's Dr. Frye," Aydan says, nodding with his head toward the man.

He, like all the professors, is a world-renowned scientist. His specific study is in petrology, the study of rocks. He was one of the scientists who helped to discover that the core of the earth was a billion years old. It took his team years to recreate the conditions at the core on a small scale and calculate how long it would take for the molten iron to build up to its current size.

"That man is a rockstar," Granger says.

"A legend," Aydan murmurs.

"But would you put out for him?" I tease, lifting a brow.

Aydan looks horrified. "No. What the hell?"

But Granger seems to give it some thought, with a goofy grin on his face. "I mean, you can't say no to Dr. Frye ."

We all laugh.

Then, I follow the man with my gaze until he disappears around a building. "Have you noticed how content all the scientists are? They're not like the ones I've seen at other places. They truly seem to enjoy their work and enjoy this place."

Granger scoffs. "I mean, who wouldn't love working here though, right?"

Right.

God I hope I get a job here after I graduate.

Granger checks his watch. "Shit. Time to go."

For one minute, we start running like a pack of dogs, an old habit of ours, before we realize what we're doing and exchange grins before slowing down. Granger smooths his shirt, putting his shoulders back, and I pat my unruly hair, hoping to make a good impression while Aydan casts me a funny look. What? Yeah, my hair is insane, what am I supposed to do about it?

We make it to the largest building on campus. Like the others, it's built solidly out of white brick, and it's covered in ivy. I wonder briefly if this campus is set up with sturdy bricks and buildings low to the ground because of the earthquakes, but then I push the thought aside as we enter the building, students ahead of us and behind us. Signs point us to a large room with oak floors, about a hundred wooden chairs, and a stage at the front of the room. The stage's chairs are filled with some of the top scientists in the world.

After all of us are settled, the room begins to quiet. A familiar man enters the room, climbs the steps to the stage, and stands in front of the professors who are seated. There's no microphone, but then, there doesn't have to be one. His presence commands the room without him even saying a word.

This is Dr. Benjamin Williams. Dr. Benjamin Williams established the Phoenix Institute, bringing with him some of the leading scientists in the world. People he supposedly handpicked. Just like he supposedly handpicked each and every one of us.

His gaze moves around the room. "Fifty-six," he says.

No one speaks. I'm pretty sure no one knows what he's talking about.

And then, he repeats himself, "Fifty-six. There are fifty-six of you in this room. Of the fifty-six of you, I will be looking for six people to come join the institute after graduation. Every single move you make on this campus, every decision you make, will lead to my decision on whether to offer you a job, or for the summer to be the only time that you spend here at the Institute." He pauses for a moment, studying all of us.

After an oddly tense minute, he continues, "Your professors, the scientists here, will also help in deciding who will stay. So don't see this so much as a summer study program, see this as the longest interview of your lives."

That's not intimidating at all.

He raises a gray brow. "What you will also discover here very quickly is that the Phoenix Institute is incredibly well-funded. Anything our scientists need, they get. But more than that, this is an interesting place. You will see things in your environment here that you may never see again. So use your time at our institute wisely." Without another word, he turns and walks off the stage and… leaves.

If we're going to talk about poor impressions, maybe we should talk about his? Arrogant weirdo. But, I guess, brilliant people have always been described as a bit eccentric.

A woman stands next. Like all the doctors here, I recognize her immediately. Her name is Dr. Hannah Abigail, and she's one of the top reasons I wanted to be part of this program so badly. Dr. Abigail is a leading scientist in ecology and conservation biology. She'd even invented multiple tools to help track wildlife, and intensely studies the effect of humans and climate change on wildlife.

Wow. I can't believe I'm actually in the same room as her. She's kind of my idol.

Okay, not kind of , I worship her.

She has a stack of papers in her hand, but her dark eyes are on all of us. I know just about everything about this woman, including the fact that she's in her early sixties, and yet appears much younger. She's one of those people who you can tell lives an active lifestyle, from her toned body to her deep tan.

Her gaze zeroes in on me, and I startle, sitting up taller. "I am Dr. Hannah Abigail. You may call me Dr. Abigail. I will be teaching a group of ten students. Five of you will work primarily with my assistants, focusing on lab work, which seemed to be your area of interest. And five of you will be accompanying me into the nature preserve as I tag wildlife and document significant observations." She pulls the pencil out from behind her ear and looks down at the papers in her hands, then begins a list of names. She specifies if each person will be working in the lab or alongside her.

I hold my breath, praying as she slowly moves through one name after another.

"Samantha Callaway will be with me."

Everything that comes next is a blur until she sits back down.

I got it! I not only got the class I was hoping for, taught by the professor I wanted to work with the most, but she'd hand-selected me to do field work instead of research. It's everything I wanted and more. Regardless of whatever happens next, I'm going to remember this moment forever.

Next to me, Aydan bumps my leg and I glance at him. He smiles that incredible smile that makes my heart both melt and race faster all at the same time. It's not just that he's happy for me right now, he knows just how desperately I wanted this from all our many late-night talks. He just… knows me, inside and out, and he's celebrating this moment right along with me.

"I guess it's my turn for introductions." My head jerks toward the stage where a man slowly comes to a stand. He's tall and in ridiculously good shape, like one of those forty-something year old actors you could believe were in their twenties. His hair is steel-gray and neatly cut, and he's wearing jeans and a tight t-shirt. "I'm Dr. Dean Griffin, and I'll be teaching Fire Science this summer. Now, I know that all of you are familiar with the research I've done to make firefighting safer and more efficient," he flashes a smile, "but I don't want you to just think of me as your professor, I want you to think of me as your friend."

Okay, that's probably a good thing. All of these scientists are so intimidating it's a nice break to have someone approach all of us like this. I think. Unless it's a trick. No, I'm overthinking it because I'm nervous.

I groan, wanting to shut my thoughts up and just focus.

He pulls out a folder from under his arm. "Now, let's see who will be taking my class this summer," he says, and then he begins to read a list of names. When Aydan's name is called, I turn to him and smile, but he's already smiling at me. Of course, he knew he'd get the class he wanted. "And that's about it. I'm excited to meet all of you and teach you the ins and outs of fighting wildfires, whether you eventually intend on being a firefighter or not. Those of you who are simply science majors will still find this class helpful, regardless of your chosen career path."

When he sits down, the man next to him instantly jumps up, dropping the papers in his lap. He scoops them up with absolute confidence though, and comes to stand at the edge of the little stage. This man reminds me of one of the dwarves from Lord of the Rings. He has blond hair and a thick blond beard. He's also squatly built, short, wide, and muscular.

"I'm Dr. Henry Duncan. My specialty is geoscience, specifically the study of earthquakes. As many of you know, our little mountain is home to many incredible creatures, as well as different types of plant life not seen anywhere else. What's more, it also has a large number of small earthquakes, earthquakes that are unexpected and don't follow any discernible patterns–"

"Get to the point," Dr. Griffin says, coughing into his hand before winking.

Geez. He seems like a real funny guy.

The man's comment only throws off Dr. Duncan for a moment before he continues. "Those of you who will be joining me in my class will be studying these earthquake patterns, the site of these earthquakes, and the effects they've had on the nature here." Then he begins to read his list of students, which include Granger, Aydan, and me.

Granger does a hand pump at Aydan's side, his eyes glistening with excitement. As excited as Aydan and I are, I'm pretty sure we're feeling nothing compared to Granger. I think he might have a poster of Dr. Duncan hanging on his bedroom wall. Hell, I'm pretty sure his journal is riddled with Dr. Duncan's name, maybe surrounded by hearts. I wouldn't put it past him.

When Dr. Duncan finishes his list, he puts it back into the file he's carrying. "Like most of the courses here, there's a research track and a field study track. On our first day, you'll learn what path you're on. The research students should be dressed for the lab each day, and the field study group should be dressed and prepared for an intensive exploration of the unique environment we've found ourselves in." Then he sits back down.

Next, Dr. Frye, who specializes in petrology, the study of rocks, stands. The older man has a no-nonsense aura, which I guess is to be expected. He lists off his students, one of whom is Dahlia. My gaze connects with hers across the room, and she wrinkles her nose. I have to hold back a laugh. Rocks were definitely not what she wanted to study.

The last professor, Dr. Succan, stands. She's short, with dark gray hair and a kind face. She introduces herself and explains that she teaches environmental sciences, essentially sustainability, renewable energy, conservation, and agriculture. Dahlia and Granger perk up. It seems to be the last class, so they're definitely in it, but both look relieved when their names are called. This was the class Dahlia desperately wanted to be in, so I'm grateful that she got what she wanted… and it was probably Granger's second choice.

Yay! All my friends got their top choices!

Dahlia turns and looks at me, and I give her a thumbs up before we both focus back on the stage, wondering what will happen next.

Ms. Gerald from the front desk appears and says, "When I call your name, come up and collect the rest of your paperwork."

We do so and barely sit back down before Ms. Gerald dismisses all of us. The three of us linger back as the others file out of the room, going over our papers. It seems that Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays will be the days we take our classes focused on our field of study for Aydan and I. Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday we'll be taking Geology of Earthquakes together. We report for our classes at seven o'clock and will be working with our professors until one o'clock. We'll have a break for lunch, and then work on compiling our notes and thoughts until five o'clock. The rest of each day will be for our own time, for exploring the sanctuary together and having fun.

I'm grinning as I look up, meeting Aydan and Granger's eyes. "This is going to be amazing."

"Epic," Granger says.

"The best summer ever," Aydan says, and we all bump fists.

Regardless of the weird tension between Aydan and I, I'm going to do everything I can to enjoy this summer before real life begins. These are my best friends. My family. And we're going to push off adulthood for as long as we can. Along with trying to get our feet in the door for our careers.

This is going to be epic!