The Wells Bequest Read Online Free PDF

her.
    â€œI’m a quick study,” she said, grinning back. “So, are you done with these robots?”
    I’d barely even looked at the wooden beetle. “Not yet. Is there any way I could reserve them for later?”
    â€œSure. Or I could sign them out to you. Then you can take them home.”
    â€œReally? You’d let me check them out?”
    â€œSure! We’re a circulating repository—you can borrow pretty much any of our holdings. Just give me your member number.”
    â€œBut I’m not a member,” I said.
    â€œYou should join, then. Here, bring those robots up to the desk and I’ll give you an application.”
    She slipped behind the counter and handed me a form. “Fill this out.”
    â€œThanks.” I ran my eye down it. It asked some pretty strange questions: my kindergarten teacher’s hair color, my favorite kind of mushroom, the year I first saw snow.
    I started writing. “What do I put here, where it says ‘submitted by’?”
    â€œOh, that’s me,” she said.
    â€œI don’t think I know your last name,” I said.
    â€œRao. And it’s Jaya, not Jaia.” She spelled it for me.
    I finished filling out the form and handed it to her.
    â€œGood. I’ll give this to Dr. Rust, the head repositorian. You should get your card in the mail soon.”
    â€œThanks.”
    Jaya scribbled her signature on the line above where I’d written her name. “Your robots will be on the reserve shelf over here, under
N
for
Novikov.
Just ask the page at the window.”
    â€œThanks again, Jaya,” I said. “See you tomorrow.”
    â€œOh, I don’t work tomorrow.”
    â€œReally? When do you work?”
    â€œTuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays,” said Jaya.
    â€œOkay, then I’ll see you Saturday.” It wasn’t how I’d planned to spend my Saturday, but playing Gravity Force III with Jake no longer sounded nearly as fun.

CHAPTER FOUR
    Five Automatons, One Wink
    W hen I told Jake I was planning to spend Saturday at the library working on my science project, he groaned. “Schist, Leo! You’re turning into a real Novikov.”
    â€œWhat are you talking about? I was born a Novikov.”
    â€œYou used to be Novikov lite. You’re turning into a homework-all-the-time, rah-rah-science, Dmitri-and-Sofia Novikov.”
    â€œBut I always liked science. So do you! You loved that Jules Verne book I gave you for your birthday.”
    â€œSure, I like science fiction. That’s different from spending Saturday at the library when you don’t have to. When am I going to get a chance to beat you at Gravity Force III?”
    â€œSunday,” I said.
    â€¢Â â€¢Â â€¢
    I woke up early on Saturday feeling excited and nervous. A time machine—maybe I’d find it today! And Jaya! I would definitely see
her.
    I put on all clean clothes, even my jeans. I examined myself in the mirror. The dopey curl that’s always falling down on my forehead was falling down on my forehead. Couldn’t it take a day off? I finally got it to stay back by wetting it and holding it up until it dried.
    I went to the kitchen to get some breakfast. Sofia was there making coffee. She’s fussy about her coffee. “Isn’t it a little early for you?” she said.
    I shrugged.
    â€œWhere are you going all dressed up like that?” she asked.
    â€œDressed up like what?”
    â€œClean clothes.”
    â€œLibrary. My science project.” I grabbed a bagel and started to leave.
    She stopped me. “Hang on, your hair’s funny.” She pulled at the front of my hair. I felt the curl fall down on my forehead again. “There,” she said.
    â€œSoFEEEa!!”
    â€œWhat? Now you look normal.”
    â€¢Â â€¢Â â€¢
    After all that, Jaya wasn’t even on duty at the Main Exam Room. The girl who’d been downstairs last time was