was in three weeks. It was the perfect stage. I was in charge of the primary presentation on our new bio-integration

al performance bottleneck under stress. It was a problem that would stump our best programmers, but it was tailored specifically to Elias's unique way of thinking. More importantly, t

st showing off for her by so

g a simulation on Friday afternoon. A red warni

a, who had been a constant presence at his side all week. She was observi

yped furiously at my console. "The simulation is

ntists. Elias pushed past them, his brow furrowed as he

ping my voice level. "No hardware

s. He directed teams, barked orders, and scribbled complex equations on every available surface. He didn't sleep. He b

on, bringing him coffee and offering quiet words o

tration. "It makes no sense! The architecture is perfect. It

es. "Maybe we're too close to it, Elias. We designed the whole

etly in the corner. A spark of an idea lit up hi

Your thesis on asynchronous data processing. There wa

slow smile spread across he

old, obsessive fervor in his voice. "It was brill

lpable. She walked over to him, her expression a mixture of feigned reluc

hed in awe as Elias and Seraphina began to talk, their language a fluid, high-level exchange of theories and equ

gotten, eclipsed by the thrill of the challenge and the proximity of the woman he was d

lter, based on my model, it might just bypass the bottleneck." She pointed to a specific line of code. "The flaw is here. It' s not a mistake in you

her, his eyes full of admiration. "M

e changed, the red warnings on the screen vanished one by one, repl

, a wide, triumphant grin

rrected gently. "I j

is gaze locked on he

my chest. He was happy. The mission was progressing. That was all that mattered. I had giv

tly touched her arm. It was a small gesture, but it was everythin