Chapter Two
The doorbell rang, making Alexandre jump. The sharp buzz was jarring, compared to the melodic chimes of his old doorbell back in Oregon.
Alexandre padded to the entryway to greet his visitor. “Fancy seeing you again,” he said jokingly to Luc.
“You’d better get used to it. We’ve got years to catch up on.” Luc shook his head and grinned. “Sorry. I’m still getting used to the new you.”
Alexandre ran a hand self-consciously through his hair.
During his drive east, he’d detoured into Chicago.
He was set on devouring a deep-dish pizza but had surprised himself by walking into the first barbershop he spotted.
Cut it all off, he’d said. The symbolism of shedding his Oregon look was painfully obvious.
Alexandre still couldn’t believe he’d done something so melodramatic.
Luc surveyed the compact living room. “Looks like you’re nearly unpacked.”
“It helps that I didn’t have much to begin with.”
Alexandre had always lived frugally on his meager academic salary, and the cost of a cross-country move ticked up with every piece of furniture.
In the end, he’d brought the bare minimum to the small apartment he was renting in a townhouse complex near the university.
His bed and dresser just fit in the snug bedroom.
His tidy collection of pots, pans, and dishes filled the wooden cabinets in the narrow galley kitchen.
His desk and bookcase sat by the living room window.
His bike, skis, and camping equipment lined another wall—a reminder to get out and use them.
Alexandre still needed a sofa, coffee table, dining set, and some kind of artwork for the walls.
But, as he kept reminding himself, starting a new life took time.
Luc picked up a two-foot-long crocheted zebrafish from the bookcase. “I wasn’t sure old Danio would make it. I figured he’d end up in some Pacific Northwest thrift shop.”
Alexandre motioned for Luc to toss him the fish. “I have nothing against zebrafish. Plus, he’s from you.”
“Damn straight. And he’s custom-made. You should’ve seen all the craftspeople I messaged on Etsy, asking if they’d crochet a giant zebrafish.”
Alexandre turned the striped fish in his hands.
Luc had given it to him when he landed his tenure-track position researching genetics in zebrafish, an aptly named “model organism” with a gene structure similar to that of humans.
Alexandre had named it Danio after the zebrafish genus.
For years, Danio sat proudly in his lab, witnessing as he achieved one breakthrough after another and tenure seemed inevitable.
Until it hadn’t.
Alexandre set the fish back on the bookcase. “I’ll always have a place in my heart for zebrafish.”
“As long as you’re not planning to go back and study them.”
“No way.” In the three weeks since Alexandre had cleaned out his office at the University of Oregon, he’d had fewer nightmares that jolted him awake in a cold sweat, fewer moments of despair.
He couldn’t say he was done with research forever, though.
Funny how his brother seemed to sense his lingering interest.
Luc eyed him sympathetically. “How are you doing with everything?”
“That’s a loaded question.”
Alexandre never imagined he’d be back in New York.
Twenty years ago, when he was finishing undergrad at Columbia and looking at PhD programs, the University of Oregon had flown him out to Eugene.
They’d spent days wooing him with their extensive research facilities and storied history: UO was the birthplace of zebrafish research.
Alexandre would be conducting his own studies on the same campus where George Streisinger cloned the first vertebrate: a zebrafish.
As Alexandre strolled the picturesque campus, admiring the giant trees, he saw his life unfolding there.
Beyond UO’s research program, Eugene was an outdoor lover’s paradise, teeming with hiking, biking, and nature trails, and just an hour’s drive from Oregon’s scenic coast. The city was known as “TrackTown USA” for producing scores of elite runners and hosting Olympic track-and-field trials—a big draw for a lifelong runner like Alexandre.
When he moved to Eugene, Alexandre thought it would be forever. He’d made that dream a reality, earning his PhD, then a coveted professorship at UO while he continued his research.
And then it all ended.
Alexandre drew a breath. “Part of me will always miss Oregon. But I’m also kind of glad to leave it behind.”
“Yeah, and once you start classes and get into a routine, you’ll feel even better.”
“As long as I avoid Mom and Dad. ‘Those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.’ ”
Luc rolled his eyes. “Do me a favor and never say that again.”
Alexandre couldn’t count how many times he’d heard his parents quote that George Bernard Shaw line.
Despite their history professor titles, Clarisse and Jean-Germain believed their life’s work was to advance their fields through research, not teaching.
They had little respect for academics who didn’t make tenure or left research for other opportunities.
“If only they’d known their firstborn would be among those who can’t.”
“Please. Mom and Dad might think they’re ‘carrying the torch of humanity’ ”—Luc shuddered at another of their parents’ favorite sayings—“by studying obscure topics no one’s ever heard of.
But you’ll be passing the torch to future scientists.
You won’t even miss spending all day in a closet full of fish tanks, crunching numbers on an ancient laptop. ”
Alexandre couldn’t help but laugh at his brother’s exaggerated but accurate description of academic life.
“I know it’s shocking, but outside of academia, people make career changes and end up better off. I did.”
Alexandre had never expected Luc to quit his lucrative tech job to turn his lifelong woodworking hobby into a business. But his brother did seem happier now. More at ease.
Alexandre stifled a sigh. Now that he thought about it, Luc had never followed the blueprint their parents had laid out for them.
Sure, he’d gone to Fordham, where their parents worked, and taken advantage of the nearly free tuition.
But then Luc had eschewed the hallowed halls of academia for the fast-paced tech world, earning an eye-popping salary.
Once he’d amassed a comfortable nest egg, he’d quit software engineering to pursue his real dream: carpentry.
Look where Luc was now: happily married and financially sound, with time to spend with his family.
Maybe his brother was onto something. Alexandre’s eyes strayed to the outdoor gear lining his wall.
“With teaching, I won’t be tied to experiments and conferences. We should plan some camping and skiing trips. Or just drive up to Vermont when conditions are good.”
“For sure. It’ll be easier to get away if Ali and Kaia come. If it’s just the two of us, I’ll have to figure that out with Ali, but it’s doable.”
Alexandre deflated. Of course Luc couldn’t just take off on a whim. The few friends Alexandre had in New York were married with kids, too.
Then he remembered something. “What about Mei and Joey?”
“Mei doesn’t ski, but she’d be into hiking and weekend trips. Joey too.”
Alexandre nodded. The few times he’d spoken to Mei on his past visits to New York, she seemed much younger. She was working in advertising, trying to figure out her life and career, while he was deeply entrenched in his research.
Talking to Mei at the barbecue was like meeting a new woman.
She radiated confidence, filling him with a warm glow and making him slightly flustered when she complimented his new look.
She’d talked up his teaching job with genuine respect.
Until that moment, Alexandre had never even considered that his new gig might be impressive.
Alexandre replayed how Mei’s brown eyes lit up when she spoke. A faint lemon-coconut scent had tickled his nose every time she threw her head back in laughter.
“Mei seems different,” he said.
“A few years ago, she got a job she loves.” Luc shot him a pointed look.
“Okay, got it. Career changes are good.”
“And she met Joey.”
The tall, broad-shouldered dude who’d draped his arm around Mei popped into Alexandre’s mind. “What do you think of him?”
Luc shrugged. “He’s a good guy. He makes Mei happy.”
Alexandre sensed there was more than Luc was saying, but he didn’t want to pry.
He personally found Joey a bit odd. The guy was wearing a T-shirt that said “OverKOALAfied,” with an illustration of the marsupial.
Overqualified for what? Alexandre had wondered.
Then Joey made Alexandre watch videos of dogs trying to skateboard, then rambled about some old music files he kept on hard drives.
Hadn’t he ever heard of streaming? Or cloud storage?
Still, Joey had invited him to the beach house. He couldn’t be that bad.
Alexandre checked the time. “Do you have to run? Or can we grab a bite?”
“Let’s get lunch. We just have to stop at my van.”
Alexandre fixed Luc with a look. “Don’t tell me—”
“It was nothing.”
In the parking lot, Luc opened the back doors to his van. A small sofa and coffee table sat side by side.
“Ali and I figured this could help you while you’re getting settled. The sofa is ours, from when we lived in the city. The coffee table is new.”
Alexandre climbed in for a better look. The table was made of smooth reclaimed wood. The clean lines bore Luc’s aesthetic touch.
A lump rose in Alexandre’s throat. “It’s beautiful.”
They carried both pieces inside. The canary-yellow midcentury modern sofa was clearly meant to be a pop of color in a stylishly decorated apartment.
Alexandre never would have picked it out, but he was glad it was now his.
The yellow lit up his living room and the handsome coffee table paired perfectly.
Brighter. Just like my new life, Alexandre thought drolly.
As if reading his mind, Luc clapped him on the shoulder. “So glad you’re back.”