Old clothes and stale coffee.

That was my first impression of him.

That was what he smelled of.

There I was, stark hopping mad with anticipation, ready to meet this brilliant mind that is well known throughout the international scientific community for his advanced and unparalleled research concerning the omega gene.

Then I see this... uncouth man in front of me, sipping tepid coffee from a chipped cup in his pajamas.

“Sino `to?” [who’s this?] he asked the lab assistant who ushered me inside the maze-like laboratory.

“Sir, this is Dr. Aahmes Abdel!” the assistant said excitedly. “In the flesh!”

He looked back at me from head to toe and smiled. Then he turned to his assistant with the same fake smile still stuck on his face.

“Sino `yun?” [who’s that?]

“Sir, s’ya `yung sikat na scientist na nag re-research din tungkol sa omega gene! Kilalang-kilala s’ya sa buong mundo dahil sa mga research n’ya tungkol sa mga omegas, [Sir, he’s a world renowned scientist who also does research on omegas] particularly about their mental state and behavioral patterns! Bali-balita rin po na s’ya ang bagong [he’s also known as the new head] head of the Omega Research team ng Universal Labs sa United Arab Countries of the Middle East!”

How rude.

I don’t think they know that I understand a bit of Tagalog, but then again, the fact that they are talking in their native tongue while a foreigner is in their midst is proof enough that these people know nothing of basic etiquette.

“Eh, ba’t `di ko s’ya kilala?” [then how come I don’t know him?] the professor asked again. “At kung head s’ya ng UACME branch, anong ginagawa n’yan dito?” [and if he’s the new head, what’s he doing here?_

“Sir...”

The assistant looked back at me and smiled.

It looked strained.

“Dr. Abdel has never been under the spotlight before,” he explained, “he’s part of Egyptian royalty, and no one has ever seen him in person, not even in pictures, only his journals are released publicly in the internet...”

“Kung ganon, pano n’yo nasigurado na s’ya nga `yan?” [then how can you make sure that this is actually him?]

He took another sip of his coffee.

“Ugh...” the assistant now looks desperate. “Dr. Abdel, perhaps you could introduce yourself to the ‘kind’ and ‘hospitable’ professor?”

He said the two adjectives with emphasis.

I stepped forward, looked the professor straight in the eye, and gave him my best professional smile.

“Good afternoon, Dr. Eric Antonio. I am Dr. Aahmes Abdel. I am 22 years of age and have a PhD in Molecular biology, Neurophysiology, Neurology, and Psychiatry. I have come here specifically to meet you and would like to study under your tutelage.”

He stared at me and blinked, unimpressed, then he looked at his assistant sideways.

“Bakit s’ya nakangiwi?” [why is he sneering at me?] he mumbled. “Anyway, Dr. Abdel,” he said, looking back at me, “I think you got a lot of things mixed up. First of all, I am not a morning person, so I apologize for not being as ‘kind’ and ‘hospitable’ as my soon to be ex-assistant assumes me to be.”

Said assistant turned pale.

“Second, I am not a ‘doctor’, I am merely a researcher, or a professor, if you prefer to call me that. Third, final, and most important of all,” he continued, “I do not accept students.”

He gave me a quick smile, his bristled chin moving close to mine, since he was about five centimeters taller than I. “Now, Dr. Abdel, if indeed, that is your name, please kindly leave my laboratory before I finish my coffee.”

“Please excuse Sir Eric, he just woke up, and it usually takes a while for him to be civil after a nap,” said the assistant. “If he even sleeps at all,” he added in an undertone as we made our way towards the elevator shaft. “You simply came at a bad time, he’s actually been working on something for a couple of weeks now...”

I check the time. It was already 1 in the afternoon.

“He stinks,” I told him directly. “He smells of old clothes and stale coffee. I believe he is what people would call a ‘slob’?”

The assistant looked at me, surprised, then gave a soft chuckle.

“You’ll get used to it in time, you see, the professor lives alone and barely goes home. He has always been so busy that he hardly has time to look after himself...”

“You seem to think that I would stay here for a while?” I asked the man who smiled fondly as he criticized his superior.

“Ah, yes, you see, he didn’t kick you out of the room himself. That means that you might just have a chance to get on his good side. Maybe.”

“Maybe?”

“Well... you know how it is with people and their coffee,” again he chuckles. “Word of advice, since I’m your fan,” he added in a whisper, “he’s not really into PhD’s and titles, heck, more than half of his staff here have more diplomas than him. You see, he graduated from a science high school at age 8 and got a master’s degree from MIT at age 13 for Molecular Biology and Secondary Gender study. He decided then that he didn’t want to return to school anymore.”

“Also, he doesn’t really like to talk in English,” he added. “I mean, he can speak the language, but he’s too lazy to bother, so I guess that’s why he wasn’t so thrilled to talk to you. After all, he’s only 26, but he’s already one of the top researchers around the world, studying the secondary genders.”

“Is that so?” I said when he finished, though I already knew most of it.

“And also, he’s not very fond of alphas,” he finally concluded.

“He thought I was an alpha?”

The assistant looked at me with surprise once more.

“I-I beg your pardon, I just assumed that you were...”

“Do you think perhaps, that he did?”

“W-well... I guess... you do look quite intimidating,” he looked up at me. “With your stoic looks and all those credentials, one would think that you are an outstanding alpha... so... are you a beta?”

“I am not,” I replied before going back into the maze of halls.

“Where are you going?” the assistant called after me, but I was already turning a corner, making my way back to the professor.

The place was a glass labyrinth.

A whole floor dedicated to research, full of enclosed, air-tight work stations for individual experimentation, each equipped with state of the art equipment.

I took 2 left turns and three rights to get back to the pantry in the middle where we left Professor Antonio, and saw him slumped on a long sofa with a book covering his face, his hand still holding the half full cup of tepid coffee on the table.

“Ahem.”

I tried to call his attention.

“A-he-hem,” I repeated. “Professor Antonio. Mukhang hindi po tayo maayos nakaintindi.” [it seems we didn’t understand each other well]

That seemed to do the trick as he took the book off his face and frowned at me.

“Ako po si Aahmes Abdel, isang omega, mahal ko po ang mga gawa mo. Mahal ko po ang kagalingan mo sa larangan ng science and medicine. Nagpunta po ako dito dahil mahal na mahal ko kayo.” [I am Aahmes Abdel, an omega, I admire your works. I admire your skill in the field of science and medicine. I came here because I admire you very much.]

He stared at me with his jaw hanging.

I believe I said it right – how I put his work in high regard?

I had my Filipino acquaintance translate that properly for me.

“Gusto ko po mag-aral sa ilalim mo, kung maaari, gusto’ng gusto ko pong mapailalim sa iyo.” [I would like to study under you, if possible, I would appreciate it very much if I could study under you.]

He is still not moving.

“Professor?”

“Pfft!”

Now, he starts laughing, a low chuckle that quickly turned into roaring laughter, which was joined in by a couple more. I turned around and saw Mr. Assistant and a young woman laughing side by side.

“Aba, marunong ka palang magtagalog, Dr. Abdel?” [I see you know tagalog, Dr. Abdel?] asked the assistant. “Dapat sinabi n’yo agad kanina!” [you should have told us earlier!]

“Nako, hayaan n’yo na lang s'ya mag-inggles!” [oh please, just let him speak in English!] Prof. Antonio piped in, “at baka mamatay ako kakatawa tuwing nagsasalita s’ya!” [for I might just die of laughter everytime he tries to speak!]

He laughed again.

“To-to-o-ba-na-ma-hal-mo-a-ko-dok-a-mes?” [is-it-true-that-you-ad-mire-me?] he mocked me. “A-lam-mo-ba-ang-pi-nag-sa-sa-sa-bi-mo?” [do-you-actually-know-what-you-are-sa-ying?]

“Opo, alam ko ang sinasabi ko,” [yes, I know what I’m saying] I replied, “mahal na mahal kita.” [I really, really admire you]

That seemed to silent him.

“Define ‘mahal’?” he asked as he sat straight on the couch with a smirk on his face.

“Mahal – to hold someone in high regard.”

“Tama nga naman,” [well, he’s right, you know] said the assistant from behind.

“`Wag kang makisingit dito, Pedro,” [don’t butt in, Pedro] the professor called out, then looked back at me. “At sinasabi mo’ng mahal mo ako?” [and you’re saying you admire me?]

“Of course,” I replied. “You are like an idol to me po, I put you on a high pedestal and treat you as a hero po. That is how high I regard you po and your contribution to the scientific community. Ganiyan kita kamahal.”

[note: po is a sign of respect used when talking to someone older or of a higher authority, likened to ‘ma’am’ or ‘sir’, but is gender neutral]

And again, he laughs at me.

He is starting to irritate me.

“Do you have autism? Hindi ka lang parang robot magsalita, pati itsura mo walang kaemo-emosyon.” [you don’t only speak monotonously like a robot, but also show no emotion in your face]

“And if I do, dahilan po ba iyon para hindi mo po ako bigyan ng pagkakataon na mapailalim sa iyo?” [is that reason for you to refuse me to work under you?]

“H-hindi naman...” he held back another peel of laughter. [n-no, not at all...]

“Kung ganoon tinatanggap mo na po ako?” [does this mean you accept me?]

(sorry, had to cut the chapter due to the word count)