Nikki looked out across the room and saw her partner rise from his chair as if he had been sent to his death.

She sighed inwardly.

The enthusiasm in Joachim’s eyes was unmistakable.

He hated that they were paired together, and she could feel the same.

She didn’t really care who she was going to work with.

She just hoped he was willing to be the driving force in the project because her own motivation was at rock bottom right now and the fact that Joachim looked like he wanted to sink through the floor didn’t make things any better.

Joachim came up on stage and stood next to Nikki while the last ones were paired up and then the principal spoke again.

“You have now been assigned a partner, and you have 3 days to decide on your project and get it approved.

Good luck!”

Several of the couples now left the stage and Nikki did the same without looking to see if the bad boy followed.

Joachim Andersson.

She didn’t think she had even heard of him in her entire time here.

As she walked off the stage, she thought she had to make the best of the situation.

She had no reason to be rude to him, but he could only dream of mustering a large portion of enthusiasm.

She hoped he was creative because in this project she would be the tool and he the engine.

She cursed her reluctance, but nothing seemed to give her any strength.

Not even the risk of not getting a grade.

Damn!

She had to toughen up.

They were down on the floor, and she turned around but didn’t see him right away.

He came stumbling a few steps behind her.

A total failure, she thought.

Like her date yesterday.

She tried a smile.

“So that’s how we ended up,” she said, and there was no clever filter behind that line at all, but it wasn’t late at night, and it wasn’t a man she dreamed of either.

“Mhm,” he replied, and Nikki could only sink through the earth.

The project would take ten weeks and for ten weeks they would have to spend time together.

Grades to hell Nikki.

Grades.

They continued out towards the open, leafy areas that surrounded the school.

“So do you have any idea what we can do?”

“I had,” Joachim thought, looking up at the walking catastrophe before him.

Aloud he said, “No, not at the moment.

Have you?”

Nikki raised her eyebrows.

“I wouldn’t have asked then.” Joachim’s eyes flashed a little.

This was exactly what he was prepared for in the next ten weeks.

A project that would go to hell because a narcissistic bride with no ambitions had ruined all his chances of realizing his dreams.

“Politeness.

You could have asked out of politeness even if you had an idea.

But politeness is not one of your best qualities.” He mumbled the last thing, which elicited an “Excuse me?” from Nikki, who either heard what he said and was offended or actually didn’t understand what he said.

He took a chance in the latter.

“Nothing.

We’ll have to try to figure something out together.”

Or separately, Nikki thought, but understood that this morning and afternoon were perfect for the two of them to enjoy each other’s intellects to plot out ten weeks of interconnected torture.

“What kind of art do you focus on?” Joachim asked, completely uninterested in the answer.

“Sketching.

I’ve only recently found my passion.”

“Recently?

You’ve been going here for three years?”

“Some bloom later.”

Or not at all, he thought darkly.

“What about you?

What are your majors?” He sighed.

“AI with a focus on quantum physics.” The latter wasn’t quite right, but he knew it would stop her from asking any more questions because she wouldn’t even be able to spell quantum physics.

“What does that mean,” she said, and Joachim fell into a black hole but was saved by someone calling out to his partner.

A bright, annoying female voice, full of “look at me or I’ll die” attitude.

He really hated the world right now and especially his new partner.

Damn.

The chances of Q were lost.

“I have to go,” Nikki said.

“I think I have your number on the intranet.

I’ll call you this afternoon.” Then she disappeared into the crowd because she just had to.

One more word from him about his quantum mystique and her day would have drawn the curtain down for good.

Joachim was left thinking about the placement of the  letter Q in the alphabet and how strikingly similar it was to his own life right now.

That was where all other similarities ended.

Not every connection should begin with a swipe.