Page 41 of Chaos Theory

THIRTY-NINE

Heading for coffee now. See you there?

I press send on the message to Josh and pick my way through the dispersing crowd in the main auditorium after the first conference talk of the day.

I’m feeling the chasm of the three hours since I last saw Josh, when he pulled me to him and kissed me deeply before leaving my room this morning.

I swallow now, remembering the electricity that lit through me, right down to my toes.

As I make my way through the hotel lobby, I spot the armchair I briefly fell asleep in last night and hope no one here today saw me do that. People mill around me, clustering into groups and talking loudly. I wonder if I should try some networking.

Meeting Josh is networking , I tell myself.

After all, he’s working for a company at the forefront of robot development.

And Ron Tron himself is here at the conference – maybe Josh can introduce me.

Josh said before that RoboTron might need ‘people like me’ in the future.

This could be the beginning of a whole new era.

Today could be one of those golden opportunities people go on about.

I allow myself a daydream: me, slightly older and wearing glasses, speaking solemnly from the podium in the auditorium here, telling everyone how my life and career changed dramatically in this very venue, just a few short years ago.

And maybe Josh would be smiling up at me from the audience.

‘Hello, you,’ I say.

Josh looks especially good standing next to a tower of miniature croissants. I grab one and devour it lustily. I notice Josh looking at my chest and look down to see a carnage of crumbs on my lapels.

‘Let me get that for you.’ He slowly brushes the crumbs downward, lingering over each stroke.

I look around to see if anyone is looking at us, but we’re in our own little bubble, this shared secret between us. It’s exciting.

I give myself a little shake. ‘Did you see there was a slight change in the programme? Ron Tron is now going to be on the same panel as Mimi Lee, the ethics professor from MIT. Hey, do you think you could introduce me to Ron?’

I look around in case saying his name might make him appear, but that never works when you really want it to.

‘These croissants are really good.’ Josh stuffs one into his mouth.

‘Just because it’s miniature doesn’t mean you have to eat it all in one go.’ I laugh. ‘But you didn’t answer my question. Ron? It would be great for me to finally meet him.’

Josh makes chewing noises and points at his mouth, like a mime doing a bit.

‘A more paranoid person might think you don’t want me to meet Ron.’

I sip a tepid cup of coffee. Of course they don’t have peppermint tea here. My mouth is dry and my head throbs. The pleasure tax bill has been issued, and last night’s indulgences must be paid for with sleep and hydration, or at least deferred with caffeine and adrenaline.

Josh downs his coffee in one go. ‘Ugh – conference coffee. It’s the same worldwide. Singapore, Sarajevo, Athlone – doesn’t matter! Just weak, bitter, brown fluid. ’

I take the cup from Josh’s hand and place it firmly on the table.

‘Okay, okay – let’s talk about Ron,’ he concedes.

‘Y’see, the thing about Ron is, he’s very busy.

I’m sure he’s flying off somewhere immediately after the panel today.

To be honest, I’m surprised he even agreed to do this event.

I’m not sure he’ll be delighted to be moved onto a panel discussing ethics.

He’s more of your fireside-chat type of guy.

More of a broadcaster than a listen-and-responder. ’

I give him my best silent glare.

‘Look, Maeve, I tell you what we’ll do. We’ll go to the panel, and we’ll sit near the back. When Ron leaves the stage at the end, we’ll try to intercept him on his way out.’

‘But can’t you just – I don’t know – text him or something and arrange it?’

Josh gives a short laugh. ‘Ha! No. Ron doesn’t do texting. He barely does email. You don’t ask him for things. If he wants to talk to you, you’ll know about it. Not you specifically. He does this with everyone.’

I pick up a small plate and sadly balance three pastries on it in a mini-pyramid formation.

‘Look, we can still try,’ he says gently. ‘And if we don’t get a chance today, well, there’s always another time. I can bring you into RoboTron someday and we’ll make it happen. I promise.’