Autopsy of a Mind

Chapter 106: Distance is Good

"You're not supposed to say these things in front of me," Sebastian protested. "You're embarrassing her."

I glared at the two of them. "You're embarrassing me, too." I groaned. 

"Yes, you are supposed to pretend that you don't understand," Professor Singh commented. 

"That would be hard. It goes against my personality to not know things." Sebastian turned to me. "I am hungry," he said finally. 

I sat for a long time in silence. "Is this a targeted attempt to make me feel regret for talking to either of you?" The man beside me stiffened. 

"Regret is the worst emotion," he bit out. I shook my head. 

"What do you want to eat?" I asked finally. Professor Singh and Sebastian started speaking at the same time. 

"I shouldn't be feeding you at all," I pouted. But I brought over their food anyway. I placed it in front of them and they both gave me brilliant smiles. 

"Evie, I have a conference coming up and I will need a translator again. If Sebastian doesn't work you to the bone, do you think you can come with me?" he asked. 

"When is it?" I retorted. Sebastian protested quickly. 

"Hey, we have a lot of work left!" I smirked. 

"I know. That's why I am looking to see if it is later on or not."

"It's on a weekend. Say two months from now. I wanted to give you a heads up." He sipped on the coffee I had bought for him. 

"It is during the break, so I should be working with Detective Nash. I'll see if I can apply for a couple of days' leave and accompany you." 

"That would be great. Sebastian is not a social butterfly, so he can't help you get contacts in this industry. He'll teach you everything, so you need to accompany me to get to know more people, okay?" Dr. Singh glanced towards Sebastian, who made no move to protest. 

"If it doesn't clash with my work, I don't mind one bit." He turned to me. "It would be good for you to get to know more peacock. They are a bunch of painted peacocks, but with your ability, you can one-up them." He nodded sagely. 

"Don't make me sound like that. I don't know if it is a compliment or not." I tucked my head and stabbed at the salad.

"Always a compliment," Sebastian interjected. "Also, we need to start work when we get back." He sighed. "It's going to be tiring in the next few months for you," he said with a tint of disappointment. 

"What is that supposed to mean? Is there some extra work?" That I didn't know about?

He nodded. "Apparently it is that time of the year when the criminals come out," he rolled his eyes. "Nash called me. They are short-staffed and need all the hands they can get." 

I grinned. "What? You are going to work on cases that are not gruesome murders?" I had to tease him. "Seriously?" I asked, trying to hold back my laughter. 

"Of course, not. Nash wants me to go and help with unsolved multiple murders. Their station has been getting requests since we solved the Magician case. They have a truckload of paperwork sitting to be sorted out."

"So, I will need to assist you to sort through them?" I asked. That wasn't a bother. More case files and watching Sebastian work meant more clearance on my part. 

"No, your internship will start a little earlier. You'll be catching the shrimp-like criminals before you can advance to the actually difficult ones." That made me stop. I calculated the time in the day and felt my body give away. 

"I already work all day!" I groaned. 

"Not to worry. My coursework is almost over. I have three classes with each class left, so that should be over in a week and a half. I've already taken all the mock quizzes and assignments. For your study, you get field experience. But you will probably work for fourteen to sixteen hours a day." He flinched. 

"Well, that is what one needs to do when they just started a job." Kill me, why don't you.

"You'll still get eight hours of sleep, don't worry." He suddenly seemed a little run over. 

"What?" I asked. 

"I won't see you too often if you run around at crime scenes." I looked at him carefully. He looked about to cry. 

"Distance is good for you." It was good for me too. Apparently, I was unable to control my impulses, especially now that I had a taste of this man. I was thinking about taking advantage of him at the back of my mind. Which was very awkward considering the number of eyes on us.

He remained silent. "We have one class left and then you can enjoy your last day of freedom. You will be perpetually busy henceforth," Sebastian claimed. "Your excellent will now be acknowledged by everyone." I scrutinized his expression. 

It was an amalgamation between happiness and bitterness. I knew the reason for both.

"You two talk too much while eating," Professor Singh commented. 

"We talk as a matter of principle. Do you remain taciturn while eating?" Sebastian asked. The relationship between these two was competitive, but I could see how they were friends. Their specializations did not converge, so they were not rivals but both of them were trying to one-up the other in terms of publication and fame. 

"Rich coming from you, Mr. I-hate-people." I snickered at that. 

"Stop, you two," I scolded softly. I could see the eyes on us. It was uncommon for so many teaching faculty to be in the canteen. Moreover, the conversation was too sensational to miss. "We should eat together more often," I commented. 

"I despise most of the faculty. Excuse me," Sebastian said quickly. "Harshit, I will have to exclude from that."

"Well, your dislike for them has in turn made them dislike me. Not a very good thing." 

He looked at me with trepidation. "They won't add value to your life. Don't bother."

"Get a room, you two." 

"Professor Singh, apologies."

"Stop calling me that. Call me Harshit like this brat," he said with a wave of his hand. "He's almost thirty years my junior but never respected me. In terms of hierarchy, you get to call me by my name, too." And what hierarchy was this? I couldn't guess. Harshit, I said in my head, saw my confusion, and quickly explained. "My parents migrated from India to here, so they still hold the values. We call wives of our friends sister-in-law."