CHAPTER 1.

I left the lab, almost bumping a few shoulders on my way. I had to get out of there, I had to get some air. All the air on the planet maybe. Liam Anderson was my biggest nightmare. My biggest headache. The thought of having to spend the next six months of my life looking at his face every single day, or well, almost every single day, made me nauseous in ways I couldn't describe. His arrogance was unbearable. Ok, he was the best in robotics, but that didn't give him the right to stick his nose into other people's projects and…my phone bipped. Message. I came to a halt. It was from an unknown number.

“Be on time, Pinky. This is my number. Save it.” What the...? How? Where did he get my…? Is he already bossing me around?

“Who is this?” Yeah, I could play him. I don’t owe him any kindness and definitely not making his life any easier, he didn’t deserve any of it.

"Is there anyone else calling you Pinky and I didn’t know? My feelings are hurt here.”

“Spare me… next time, e-mail me. No texting please.”

“Keep my number, Pinky. See you later."

I kept my eyes locked his message, still processing all that have just happened during the past fifteen minutes hour, wondering how come did I just ended up “tied” to Liam in a six-month two-people project at light speed. Still holding the phone in my hands, I shook my head and hit the back button to return to the main messages screen, and clicked on Susie’s, my colleague and, most importantly, my best friend, and started typing. I needed to talk to her. Immediately. At her place. Or at mine. Or anywhere else. But not here. Fortunately, she replied in less than a minute, saying that she would meet me at home in fifteen. I sighed in relief and then continued my way to the parking lot, where I had left my bike.

In less than ten minutes I was at the hall of my building. It turns out that cold wind on the face does have terrific healing effects, which are somewhat underrated by most people. On my way home I was able to relax a bit, yes. Except for the moment when a pedestrian cut me off without any sort of warning. Or maybe I just didn't see him when he cautiously placed his foot on the crosswalk showing his intentions to cross the street while probably looking at me doubtfully. In my defense, I had all my senses affected. In his defense, that wasn't his problem.

I opened my apartment’s door and lay down on the bed with my legs and arms stretched out. Then I took Poony, my yellow fellow unicorn bear ( yeah, you read correctly ) using a red vest saying "I believe I can fly". The best feeling in the world. That also helped me calm the tension that was stressing me out since a little less than half hour ago. A few minutes later, the doorbell rang taking me out of my zen moment, and I knew it was Susie.

- Jules! – She pounced on me, as if she hadn't seen me for ten years and not just ten hours ago. With one arm she dedicated a warm hug to me, and with the other she held a paper cup holder with two cups filled with coffee and whipped cream. – I brought these, thought we could use some - she said over my shoulder. She knew what meeting on neutral ground meant to me, and that it usually required some caffeine ingestion.

- Thanks…

After the squishy hug, she took my hand and pulled me to the living room area. In that moment, I really wanted to grant her all the control of the situation. I was lost. Unsettled.

- Ok. What’s going on? – She said, sitting herself in the sofa, patting the spot next to hers with the palm of her hand, inviting me to take a seat. I did, and she faced me expectantly. I inhaled deeply.

- Ok… - I released like a full gallon worth of air. - Do you know who applied to my project? The Peter's one?

She shrugged. - Jeremy? – She hesitated, fully aware that her answer was nearly impossible since I needed someone with a Robotics profile and Jeremy was fully and 100% Computing. However, I couldn't help noticing that her eyes suddenly shone. Susie adored Jeremy. Secretly loved him, more precisely. But she would never admit it. And Jeremy would never notice it either.

- Would have been perfect if he could, but…  - I forced a smile and swallowed, focused on her again and sighed. - Do you know who not only applied BUT was already accepted to work on my project? With me. Like, just the both of us. And NO one else?

Susie's eyes narrowed, and I could sense an air of concentration in them while the wheels in her head were for sure turning speedfully in search of an answer. It was a long shot, for sure. But after a few seconds, her eyes widened and her left hand reached her mouth in bewilderment. She started shaking her head, without blinking at all. Yep. The answer was there, pattering in her head like a thousand drums.

- No…

- Yes… - My voice was barely a whisper.

Confusion washed all over her face. - How… why? - She shifted in her place. Even though I really loved how Susie and I knew each other to the bone, so deeply that she knew who was I talking about without needing to mention his name, I hated that at that precise moment this connection was used to convey unfortunate news.

- I can only take that it’s because he is Peters' favorite minion and that he must have somehow known about my project and… yeah.

- When did you find out?

- Like less than an hour ago… I got an email from Peters.

- Oh. - She nodded and made a small pause in awareness. Knowing that being a project with Peters was already bad news, as there was no way out, and she knew that.

- Yeah… - I said while arching my eyebrows. I brought my hands to my face, as a sense of panic started invading my whole being. The situation was so overwhelming. I couldn't work with Liam. First, because we couldn't spend more than five minutes in a room without starting a fight or wanting to kill each other. Second, because I hated him, heartedly. Third, oh yeah, I almost forgot. Because someone once told him that I kind of liked him. That I drooled every time I saw him. That he was my secret crush. And lastly, because that had been partially true, at least at the beginning of the second semester in college, when someone accidentally caught me once staring at him while he was practicing football on the sports field, shirtless, on my way to my Advanced Math I class. Since that day, I entered the list of girls who apparently lost the sense of dignity by daydreaming about Liam Anderson, the handsome nerd, captain of the football team. And because after that rumor had reached his ears, he became some sort of unbearable smug around me. Even more so because he already was. Liam Anderson's ego wandered around somewhere near the Russian space station.

- It cannot be that bad, is it? - She said after a short silence. – Working with Liam, - she clarified at my puzzled look. - I mean, he IS a jerk, a very cocky one, and all that. But... he's the best, Julie, in his area. Perhaps if both of you could just forget about the rest, maybe, you could just get along for the sake of the project. Like using him for your own benefit?

- But how? You know I just can’t… WE… can't spend five minutes together without starting a fight. It just takes a few seconds before he starts driving me crazy with all his idiotic babbling, his inflated ego and... makes me want to... argh! - My last words sounded more like a lion roaring in dispair and trapped in a cage. - That’s not going to end well at all. - I sighed, exhausted just at the thought of us fighting.

Susie dedicated a sympathetic look. - I know, hun… But… Is there any other choice? - Her eyes light with sparkle, with hope. - Perhaps if you ask him…

- Already did that.

- You did?

- Yes. - I hadn't realized that Susie's mouth was widely open in disbelief

- And…

- He told me that he wouldn't withdraw his application. Not now, not ever. That it was impossible for him to do that. And that, basically, I would have to get used to the idea of us being stuck together in this project. For six months. He said that he likes a challenge. - I pursed my lips at the memory of our conversation. - Asshole. -

- Interesting. – She said with a flat tone of voice, and then took another sip of her coffee. - What did you say?

- I told him I would make his life impossible. That I would drain his brains.

- Will you?

- The hell I will. He even dared telling me that he expected nothing less from me. Can you believe that? Such an ass!

- Huh… - Susie, whose look had already changed a few moments ago, tried to hide a smirky smile and took her hand to her chin. It seemed as if her little head had begun to plot something. Something dark and obscure.

- It's going to be hell. I can tell.

- Yeah. Working with Liam must be a real burden.

- Totally.

- In so many ways, I mean. Especially if he appears every day in those nicely and perfectly tight polo shirts covering those mouthwatering defined greek-god abs.

- Yeah and... What? - I lifted my brow. - Really? They are not even that mouthwa... are you serious?

- Okay! Sorry. What I mean is that... irony is a fucking bitch.

- What?

- You used to have a crush on him and now you're forced to work with h...

- No. No, no... That's... partially true. Not a crush. You know that.

- Jules...

I shook my head. - He IS an idiot. Period.

- A quite handsome one.

- No! A quite cocky and obnoxious one. The worst ever. You know how I have hated him, like, for centuries. And besides, it was not be considered a crush. You know that. You know the story. You were there.

- Yes, I were there. Name it as you wish, but fact is, you thought at some point that he was cute. Pretty cute, actually. Don't give me that look. Those were your words, not mine. - She made sure we were doing eye contact. - Those things just don't change.

- For God’s sake… - I rolled my eyes.

- Do whatever eye rolling you want. He is still hot. I would say even more now. And you know that. You needed to be blind not to see that.

- Would you stop it? Please? This conversation. - I swing my index back and forth between the two of us. - Not helping. -

Susie settled down and met my gaze, which had already strayed to the window. I needed to let go off whatever my eyes were trying to say at that moment.

- Okay, I’m sorry. I’ll stop it. - She shrugged. - You're right. It's pointless.

- It's ok. - I sighed. - Sorry about that. It's just... I don't know what to do. I really don't.

- I know. - she extended a hand to rub my arm, and then take my hand, squeezing it tightly. - Don't worry. That's why I'm here. We will figure it out together. Now... let me.... Uhm… First, I think we need to define a strategy. Of… war… I would say.

- War? – I blurted out with an air of skepticism, almost spitting out the coffee I had just sipped in my mouth.

- Relax… we are not going to burn down the lab or anything. Since your project also depends on him now, well, we need to guarantee he's kept alive. - She winked. - Right? - You have to outsmart him. War tactics also include playing the role of the silent, peaceful, lovely enemy, who is always ready for any attack. Preparation is everything, darling. It's half the war won.

- Okay? - I must confess that there were times when Susie surprised me, or scared me. And that was one of them, and I just could not decide which was it this time. It could easily be both.

- The objective is not to make Liam suffer, no. It is to disarm him. THAT, he wouldn't expect from you. From YOU, he would only expect attacks. Not the opposite.

- Argh! Right… So are you suggesting that I treat him well?

- Yes.

- No way.

- It will work. Trust me.

- No, not. I am not serving myself on silver plates to him.

- No. He won’t. He will be intrigued, confused. Who knows even he puts his guns down.

- I don't want him to put his guns down. I want him to suffer. I want him to get to the point where he wished he had studied Marine Biology. In the Norwegian fjords. Surrounded by elfs.

- And he will… do that… trust me. But for now, don't get mad at me for what I'm going to say, hun, but… you need him. You have no option. Your project now depends on him, too.

I snorted and released the air left in my lungs. Susie was right. I needed idiot Liam. Now he was my only option to develop the project of my dreams and without him, I would have nothing.

- Okay. What’s your plan?