After the heat of the library, outside was refreshing. The new growth on the trees created dappled shadows that shifted and swayed with the slight breeze. She closed her eyes and through her eyelids she could almost see the light and dark flashes.
A part of her want to keep them closed, the pattern was somehow hypnotic. Despite everything, she still found herself drawn to the beauty around her, hungered for it.
The sound of the twig snapped her eyes open. Just as well. Ilesha had seen her almost fall out of her chair. Be just like her to tumble over a bench or plant. She knew the entire quad would see it too. Probably record it on their wallet and post it. Just the thought brought a sickening dread, making her want to curl up and die.
She shifted, trying to focus. "I had Organic Chemistry last semester. It was....interesting." She smiled, not looking at her. "Smart....hah. I definitely need my study time."
Her hand lightly touched the rough bark of a tree they passed. "Who would have guessed that they'd find that principles of Information Theory- with its data structures and Kolgolmorov complexity and parity codes- stuff computer scientists have been discovering over the last hundred years would be the things nature has used for billions of years. So NOW all microbiology majors are required to take those classes as part of the degree."
She couldn't deny there was an elegant beauty to it all. At times, some of them bordered on breathtaking. It was a...mental perception that sometimes was as pure as could be.
Still, there was something so very cold about it all. Sterile. It was all imagination. The play of the colors of the flowers against the grass. The feel of media against the hand. The scent of oil paints. The elegent art nouveau of Mucha- her favorite- whose use of simple line and subtle shading and color evoked an entire world. Those were tangible things, sensual even.
She felt a sadness. She missed it. And it was lost to her. Burned out of her. "It's a career I guess."
She glanced at the woman. "You like what you're doing?"
A part of her want to keep them closed, the pattern was somehow hypnotic. Despite everything, she still found herself drawn to the beauty around her, hungered for it.
The sound of the twig snapped her eyes open. Just as well. Ilesha had seen her almost fall out of her chair. Be just like her to tumble over a bench or plant. She knew the entire quad would see it too. Probably record it on their wallet and post it. Just the thought brought a sickening dread, making her want to curl up and die.
She shifted, trying to focus. "I had Organic Chemistry last semester. It was....interesting." She smiled, not looking at her. "Smart....hah. I definitely need my study time."
Her hand lightly touched the rough bark of a tree they passed. "Who would have guessed that they'd find that principles of Information Theory- with its data structures and Kolgolmorov complexity and parity codes- stuff computer scientists have been discovering over the last hundred years would be the things nature has used for billions of years. So NOW all microbiology majors are required to take those classes as part of the degree."
She couldn't deny there was an elegant beauty to it all. At times, some of them bordered on breathtaking. It was a...mental perception that sometimes was as pure as could be.
Still, there was something so very cold about it all. Sterile. It was all imagination. The play of the colors of the flowers against the grass. The feel of media against the hand. The scent of oil paints. The elegent art nouveau of Mucha- her favorite- whose use of simple line and subtle shading and color evoked an entire world. Those were tangible things, sensual even.
She felt a sadness. She missed it. And it was lost to her. Burned out of her. "It's a career I guess."
She glanced at the woman. "You like what you're doing?"