THE MOMENT
"Did I? Who are you?" Orion asked the man wearing a lab coat. The scientist tilted his head. He was there on time to be a bit early and he was ready to learn why Orion asked to see him as soon as he got in the door. He asked why the corporate executive invited him; but, it seemed to be news to him.
"The simulation hypothesis..., you replied to my submission asking to see me...," the scientist clarified. He was ostensibly part of the science team; but, he found himself working alone more often than not. The rest of the staff came across as surprisingly immature. The 'popular' scientists in the group all banded together and generally kept their research to themselves.
"Oh, right, right," Orion nodded. "Then we're waiting on one more, Dr. Gleeson."
"Francis...? Why?" the scientist asked. His research had nothing to do with Francis Gleeson, and he often felt like the younger man went out of his way to antagonize him. "What do we need him for?" He had a sudden, sinking feeling in his stomach. And, he felt like a complete idiot for not considering it sooner.
He tested and retested all his experiments. He was as thorough as he could possibly be; and yet, he only ever got the same results and stuck on the same step. He was so focused on finding an answer that he made one up from thin air. In his mind, he'd settled on one ultimate hypothesis lately. The world is not real. It was what he submitted to Orion, and he expected to be able to discuss his ideas in the meeting. But, he wanted the harder answer so much that he missed the simpler explanation; it had all been a joke. As soon as he had that realization, the door opened and Dr. Gleeson joined them. But, not without a notably surprised expression when he saw the scientist there with them.
"You wanted to see me boss?" He asked Orion and completely ignored the scientist sitting next to him.
"You're familiar with this gentleman?" Orion asked as he gestured at the scientist.
"Yeah, I know him," Francis nodded without looking.
The scientist was too stunned and too offended to speak. They'd worked in the same department for years. He was certain of why the two of them were asked to be there together. He was a 53-year-old man and intelligent enough to hold two doctorates. And, he was the target of childish bullying.
"Chroma Corp. is undergoing a sensitive transition at the moment, and I don't need my time wasted with trivial flights of fancy...," Orion used a stern voice as he slid a folder across his desk toward Francis. The scientist recognized his own handwriting on the cover and he knew it was his Simulation Hypothesis. "I think this little experimental farce has gone on long enough," he added.
"Ohhhh... wow.., I had no idea...," Francis shook his head as he glanced down the contents of the folder. The scientist wanted to laugh at the absurdity. Of course Francis knew, he was the one messing with his tests. The man even had the gall to look over at the scientist with a sort of disappointed surprise. As if he were simultaneously awed and offended. "I didn't know what he was working on, and I'm sorry it got out of hand. I'll take care of him and you won't be bothered with this nonsense again," Francis said.
"I'm sitting right here...," the scientist felt compelled to remind them. They seemed intent on ignoring his presence.
"Let's get back to the lab and we'll talk about this," Francis replied as he stood up; though, he dropped the folder on Orion's desk.
"Thank you," Orion nodded at Francis, and only him.
"Okay, I don't need to be treated like this. I'm an educated, adult man!" the scientist shook his head. "I will not be going back to the lab with YOU," he glared at Francis. "In fact, I quit! The whole lab is run like a grade school and I'd much rather be somewhere my knowledge is valued and my experiments aren't toyed with for the sake of some childish prank!"
"What prank?" Francis asked.
"The one that made me look like a fool!" the scientist pointed at the folder on Orion's desk. "You were changing my results to make me think the world isn't real!"
He was angry and insulted. And, the sudden outburst of laughter from both Orion and Francis didn't help either of those moods.
"I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at you!" Orion made a fast apology with a shake of his head as he managed to calm down. "It's just..., the situation is kind of funny if you think about it."
"There is nothing funny about making me think the world isn't real and I'm living in a simulation," the scientist replied. "You yourself were annoyed at wasted time...," he added.
"You're right," Orion nodded with a sly smirk. "But, the situation is different enough. And trust me, it's pretty chuckle-worthy," he said.
"I didn't touch any of your experiments, I had no idea what you were working on," Francis shook his head. "You were just kind of supposed to help in the background; but, we didn't have a use for you," he shrugged. "So, we let you do whatever."
"You didn't know what I was research.... then why did you hire me!?" he asked.
"That's kind of the funny part," he shrugged. "We didn't."
"I'm here...," the scientist said.
"Uhuh. What's your name?" Francis asked.
"What do you mean? You know my name!" the scientist answered. Francis shrugged.
"It doesn't matter. The question is; do you know your name? Because we didn't give you one."
"Of course! I'm... I am... My name is....," he gave it several attempts and nothing came out.
"So, it makes sense, and it's a little bit funny, that you think the world is a simulation. You're using a simulation frame of reference," Orion nodded. "But, don't worry about a thing," he said as he reached forward and tapped the folder to make a point. "The world is totally real. It's just you that isn't."