Alchemy and Algebra

Chapter 21

"I'm sorry, Kennedy, I just don't think you have enough here to make a thesis out of."

"I could collect more data. I can interview tarot card readers in other towns, maybe even through video calls."

"More data isn't the answer. The problem is that the scope of your project is too small. It's more like a week-long assignment than a final thesis. I believe we discussed this last year when we examined potential topics for you."

Kennedy dropped her eyes to the wooden desk that sat between her and her thesis supervisor: a middle-aged woman with clever green eyes who today wore a purple suit jacket. She'd done so much work on this project so far. How could it not be good enough?

"I'm very interested in this particular topic. I'd really like to find a way to make it work. What can I change?"

Professor Worth regarded her critically. "Are you too close to this topic, Kennedy? Any personal bias creeping into your research?"

"No, of course not. It's something that I've found interesting for a long time, that's all."

"Really? You, a statistics major, believe in tarot?"

Kennedy's cheeks warmed. "No, just the opposite."

"That sounds like bias to me. I suggest that at the very least you refine your focus, though starting over again isn't out of the question."

Kennedy pressed her lips together, considering defending her topic further. She'd arrived expecting praise, not a thorough knock-down, and found she couldn't articulate the merits of her idea from the top of her head.

"Thank you, Professor Worth. I'll think carefully about what you've said."

Kennedy stood and collected her things.

"I'd like to speak again in two weeks, Kennedy. Email me and we'll set up another appointment."

"Sure thing," Kennedy said with a watery smile.

She hustled out the door and bolted down the hall to the single-stall ladies' room, locking the door behind her. Breathing slowly and deeply, Kennedy leaned against the back of the bathroom door. Nothing about this week was going according to plan. First she left Charlie's place with bad feelings about their parting, then she'd practically failed a test, barely squeaking by with a B-plus, and now her thesis supervisor wasn't happy with the direction she was taking her project.

Kennedy wasn't used to having her plans frustrated like this. She always planned carefully, anticipated possible set-backs and did her best to have ready solutions for getting herself back on track. She wasn't at all comfortable with this unsettled, out of control feeling.

She pulled out her phone and opened the calendar. Action. What she needed was action to move her back towards center. She had a bit of free time right now, which she had earmarked for studying in the grad student lounge, and then a meeting to tutor one of her undergrad students. She hardly felt like a role model just now, though she supposed she could bluff her way through third-year coursework.

Kennedy splashed a bit of cold water on her still heated face, dried it with a paper towel, and squared her shoulders. When she opened the door and stepped into the hallway, Stacy stood in the hallway, waiting for the ladies' room.

"Kennedy, hey! I don't think I've had a chance to talk to you since the Mandelbrot lecture. Wasn't it amazing? I read his book cover-to-cover after that. I'm seeing it all in a completely different light now that I know more about the origins of it all. And speaking of amazing, how's that guy of yours?"

Kenned took a moment to respond. Stacy's mind moved a thousand miles an hour and never let her tongue get in the way of her rapid-fire mental leaps. She was fascinating to talk to, and it was refreshing to be saved from mindless small talk, but it was sometimes hard to keep up.