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From a young age, Elon was transfixed by space. His mind wondered about what's beyond the thin layer of atmosphere, what secrets lied beyond the cosmos. He had a dream you see, he was going to join the space race. But he was also 10 and didn't know how to go about that just yet. Sure he had a few ideas.
It was a silly, silly little dream that got him submerged in an advanced mathematics textbook with often a quantum physics book on the side.
How could he, the measly greasy haired boy, ever build a rocket? That was always the question. His peers would mock him every time they saw him with some NASA publication, his nose buried deep into it.
"Elon the Alien!".
He half believed them. He wish he could stand up to them and tell them of the great escapades they could go on, searching the infinite universe deep and wide. The closest he ever got to that was with science projects and excelling in all areas of his academic interests.
But he still felt alone. His mother barely ever batted an eye to him, only giving what she could in the absence of his workaholic father. Elon dreamed of the time when he grew up and lived his dream. It always made him get into his head into the comfortable parts where he imagined himself living the life he so desired. He closed his eyes and breathed easy.
Soon.
Elon would tell himself. He hugged the book closer to his chest and slumped against the seat. He'll move to Canada to study then find his way into America. There he will be embark upon the greatest-
"Excuse me, is this seat taken?".
Elon jolted and opened his eyes to see a curious looking black girl staring back at him. Sure enough, the seat in front of Elon was empty. The girl countered with a playful smile which made Elon fumble over his word.
"Uh, n-no.", Elon stammered out.
The girl sat down, placing her books on the table. Elon was frozen. This was the first time since he's been at this school that any body ever sat beside him.
"Elon, right?".
"Y-yeah."
She smiled again as she leafed through one of her books. "I'm Jhene."
Jhene. That's a pretty name. Elon's cheeks flushed and he had to turn his head away. Jhene didn't seem to notice as she began scribbling away on a page.
"You won the science fair last year, yes?".
Elon nodded weakly. His palms were sweaty, something that happened when he got nervous. He was only 10. There was no need to be nervous around the pretty dark skinned girl. The pretty dark skinned girl who kept smiling at him.
"Cool! I knew your project was gonna win by the way. Plus I knew you knew that you're gonna win by the long shot."
It was refreshing to hear that coming from a ten year old like himself. She sounded like a true admirer of his work. Elon felt an unexplainable pull towards her. It confused him, something that rarely ever happen. He sat up in the seat and offered a timid smile as he engaged.
"Do you like space, Jhene?".
"Yes of course - we live a finite life in an infinite universe. Err, it's something I think about every night before I go to sleep."
"That's so cool!", Elon exclaimed.
The librarian shush at them and the two got real quiet before she looked away. They both giggled.
Elon liked Jhene already. So that's why he shared his favorite comics with her, showed her his favorite chapters in his textbooks hell he even offered to let her borrow his NASA magazines if he she wanted.
Jhene found it relaxing to finally talk to Elon. She noticed how they would treat him and it wasn't nice. She took the first step to befriend him since she too shared a similar interest in space.
"Hey, Elon.", Jhene said leafing though her book. It was the perfect time to show him. They had read about three chapters into the science book they were sharing on the table when it crossed Jhene's mind to show him.
"Yeah?".
Elon peeled his eyes away from his book to look in hers. She held it to her chest from Elon's prying eyes.
"Don't look yet!", she scolded him. "Promise you won't laugh?".
"Promise." Elon said flashing his changed teeth.
"Okay."
Jhene placed the book in front of Elon on the table, now that he could get a better look at it. It was some drawing of something he couldn't figure out.
"Nice. U-uh what it is?", he asked genuinely curious.
"It's a piece of technology, silly!"
"Oh.". Elon couldn't see it. It looked like drunken drawing of a box with stars and small Jupiters around it. Jhene was just ten. She was no Picasso.
"Yes."
And Jhene turned the page. And it stunned Elon that with each page she turned, the drawing got better until she stopped on a page that had Elon's mouth hung open. He couldn't believe his eyes.
"I call it - The Battery."
