Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

Owen quickly gauged their identities from their ages and appearances.

Smiling, he stepped forward to greet them, "Hey there, Mr. And Mrs. Cole, I'm Owen Reynolds, Roseanne's neighbor." Roseanne snapped back to the moment and promptly introduced everyone.

"...Dad, Mom, this is Mr. Reynolds. He lent me his lab."

Norris seemed to have an epiphany, "I had no idea Mr. Reynolds was so young, quite the achiever."

Madge was slightly surprised too, but recovering, she smiled, "Thank you for looking after our Anne these past days." "No worries at all, feel free to call me Owen or just Owen, really."

Just Owen?

Was he placing himself on the same level as Anne?

"Uh? This..." Norris noticed something in Owen' hand, a leather-bound item that seemed both like and unlike a book.

Owen explained, "This is a 'Desk Calendar Notebook' I borrowed from Mr. Martin over at Twilight Peak Academy's Physics Department."

Worried Norris might not catch on, he elaborated, "This 'Desk Calendar Notebook' is a tradition within the Physics Department at Twilight Peak Academy. Each professor hands it down to their most outstanding student of the session, based on the current trending research topics, to jot down notes whenever."

future research directions. The notebook

binding them annually, much like

to minimize the jargon, opting for straightforward wording, yet it seemed a bit hard

somewhat bewildered after the

as if

I make that too

turned to Norris, "That mentor you always

surprised. "You mean Warren

"Yes, yes, Warren!"

more astonished, "Mr. Cole, re you graduated from

the back of his head with a sheepish look, "Embarrassing, really. Mr. Martin's students are mostly on the research path,

accomplished..."

a direct Ph.D. spot reserved

Pinehollow, to stay by his parents' side, refusing the kind offer from his

had never seen each

"How's Mr. Martin doing?"

"Fit