Los Alamos, NM

“Happy New Year!”

The cheer went up like a rocket, completely dominating the interior of the large living room. Dozens of people of all species were raising glasses of cheap champagne and yelling the celebratory trio of words in one voice. The shout went up amidst a mishmash of both Christmas decorations and 2015 banners. Of course it was New Mexico, so all the decorations had a desert flair to them. Primarily, the Christmas tree was just a large cactus, strewn with multicolored lights and ornaments. And as everyone at the party was either a nuclear physicist, engineer, astrophysicist, or chemist, decorations involving chemical formulas and molecular models were everywhere. Most prominent was the symbol C2H6O displayed over the bar in Christmas lights. All around the large desert house were the sounds and energy of celebration of the New Year.

Only one person seemed to be out of place among the revelry. Dr Friederich von Richter sat at a small table in the kitchen, still staring at the now blank screen of his tablet. His friend, Baltasár Torrealba y Toboso, had just disconnected after a long and quite drunken conversation. Richter had tried his best to keep the giant tortoise on the line, hoping to lighten the mood. But he had shut down the video chat very abruptly. Richter had tried to get the call back online, but there was no answer. Knowing what had most likely happened, the young frog leaned back in the chair and sighed.

“Gott im Himmel, Baltasar. What can I do?” Richter massaged his temples. “What can I possibly do?” He looked at the blank screen for the second time, reinforcing the the answer he already knew. There wasn't a thing he could do. His friend was miles away and most likely passed out on the floor. And he was here, surrounded by celebration and merriment. In a fit of frustration, he swept the tablet off the table.

“Verdammt!”

The outburst wasn't very severe. Richter was never one for fits of anger or despair, so the tablet merely clattered to the tile floor with only a bit of force and drama. It did not draw the attention of any of the party goers, who were at the moment all hugged up to each other singing Auld Lang Syne incredibly off key. As it was, only one person responded to Richter's outburst. A lovely, bright green frog in a red evening dress, still wearing the giant novelty glasses that had 2015 slapped onto them. She strode into the kitchen, holding a large plastic cup of champagne.

“Freddy, everyone's been looking for you. You should really get back out...” She suddenly stopped when she saw the tablet on the floor, as well as the dark look that had come over his green face. Instantly, she was concerned. “What's wrong?”

Richter looked up, suddenly aware that he wasn't alone. He found himself looking into the face of Jeanette Branston, his date to the party and girl he had been seeing for a few weeks. He quickly tried to cover up his mood by smiling and bending down to scoop up the tablet.

“Oh! Tut mir Leid! I didn't see you there!” He tried to theatrically brush dirt off the tablet. “Dropped the darn thing! So sehr leid!”

Jeanette set her drink on the table and gently patted Richter's shoulder. “Freddy, I know when something is bothering you.”

“Oh, you do?”

Jeanette smiled warmly. “You use a lot more German words when you are upset or nervous. Does it have something to do with that person you were chatting with?”

Richter opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Finally, he exhaled, chuckling quietly. Meine Fraulein. I can't get anything by you, can I?”

“You might be a scientist, Freddy. But I am a bartender. I know when someone is upset.”

Richter couldn't argue with that. For nearly nine months, Richter had sat in the small cafe where Jeanette tended bar, trying to work up the nerve to say something to her. Anything. But all he could manage were drink orders and a half mumbled “thank you”. It had been his friend who had finally said the right thing to give Richter the confidence he needed to ask her out. It had really just been Baltasar threatening to call the young bartender directly and tell her that the shy frog with the terrified expression on his face had been trying to ask her out for months. Richter totally believed that Baltasar would do it. That, it turned out, was the very nudge he needed.

Richter gave her a weak smile. “I'm sorry. This is supposed to be a party. But yes. My friend has me worried.”

“That big tortoise? He seems nice.”

Richter nodded. “Baltasar. My best friend in the world. Known him since we were both in our teens.”

Jeanette seemed impressed. “Wow. That's quite the friendship. What does he do? Is he another scientist?”

That actually caused Richter to laugh. “Gott no! He is a great person, don't get me wrong. But science? Nein! He would probably open an ampule of thioacetone right in his own house!”

As usual, as soon as Richter started speaking in science-ese, Jeanette lost track of the conversation. And, as usual, Richter tried to rally.

“Thioacetone. Smelliest substance on Earth. One drop can make you vomit from half a kilometer away. Caused the city of Freiburg to be evacuated in 1889.”

“Right. Of course.”

Richter waved his webbed hand. “Anyway. Sorry. Baltasar is an athlete. He just got signed to play for the FBA.”

At that, Jeanette's big eyes opened wide. “Wait! Baltasar Torrealba? THAT Baltasar?”

Richter's own eyes widened. “Ja. You know him?”

“I love basketball!” She seemed to suddenly light up. “I watch it all the time with my dad!”

Richter was awestruck. “I had no idea. Well, something happened to him at the draft...”

Jeanette instantly knew. “Oh, I heard about that. He was traded on draft night, wasn't he?”

Richter nodded. “That he was. Mein Gott. He was so happy that night. He has been through so much in the last few years. His parents. The fight. So much sheisse. And then he gets his big break. And then he is traded like a piece of meat. I hadn't heard from him in a while. I thought he was making it okay. Then he calls me, absolutely hammered, ranting about it. He is miserable, and I couldn't help. Then he just hangs up.”

“Didn't you call him back?”

“I tried. There was no answer. Drunk as he was, he probably passed out. No point in trying to call him now. When he is drunk and unconscious, he turns into a lump of neutron star matter. Immovable.”

Jeanette laughed. “Well, Huntsville is one of the best damned teams in the league. And he has been playing very well. ”

“I have no idea.” Richter shrugged. “Meine Fraulein. You might find this difficult to believe. I don't follow sports. I...” Richter looked down, feigning shame. “I am a nerd.”

Jeanette put her hands to her mouth and gasped. “No! Say it isn't so!”

Richter nodded, still feigning shame. “It is true! I was a nerd from day one! AV club. Chess team. Physics club. I did it all!”

Jeanette put her hand to her forehead, acting like she was about to swoon in a movie from the 40's. “My God! The man I chose to go out with is nothing but a brilliant nerd! What will father say?”

They both laughed, instantly raising Richter's mood. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to have met her. And how lucky he was to have a friend like T-Balt, to give him the courage to actually speak to her.

“How long have you two known each other?”

“Baltasar? Almost ten years. Ever since I moved to Barcelona from Berlin when I was thirteen.”

“Germany to Spain? That sounds like a strange move.”

Richter sighed again, memories from long ago coming to his mind. “Sie haben keine Ahnung. I didn't want to do it. But dear Vater got a job offer from the University in Barcelona. He accepted it without consulting with me or my mutter. Still, some good came of it. I got to meet T-Balt.”

“T-Balt?”

“Oh. That's a nickname his little stepsister gave him. Little pup could barely pronounce Baltasar. She calls me Fredwick.”

Jeanette tried to stifle a laugh. “Oh my god. That is adorable!”

“She is cute as a button. Best little girl you could ever meet.”

“Speaking of meeting people, how did you and Baltasar meet?”

“Gott, that was long ago. You really want to hear this? There is a party going on.”

Jeanette crossed her arms. “You started this. You can't tell me you are friends with an FBA player and not tell me how you met.”

Richter sighed yet again. “Fine. But if I do this, you have to promise to get me out of this kitchen, away from this tablet, and do something fun.”

“Deal.”

Richter closed his eyes, sending his mind back. “Well. Let me tell you a tale. The year is 2005. A new student is about to be introduced to a high school in Barcelona. A little foreign kid, with a lot of unfortunate nerd features. And I mean, a lot. Big glasses. Dress pants. A button up shirt. And a backpack with Newton's Laws of Gravity and Motion on the front.”

“Wow.”

“Ja...wow. Anyway. Imagine this kid comes into class. And to make matters worse, he barely speaks a word of Spanish. And the teacher makes him introduce himself to the class.”

Jeanette gasped. “Damn.”

“Indeed. My attempt at a greeting was as ridiculous as you think. The whole class erupted in laughter. And the teacher didn't try very hard to get them to stop. The moment I took my seat, I was the hot target on everyone's radar. Which led to the worst three months of my life. Everything you can imagine that could be done to humiliate someone took place.”

Jeanette put her hand on his. “That must have been terrible.”

Richter managed a small smile. “It was. But the worst was yet to come. There was this one kid, older than anyone else. Let's just call him Kackfass. This kid had been held back twice in the first grade, just to give you some idea of the brain power we are working with. Kackfass was a bear, and big for one of those. He looked like a genetics experiment gone horribly wrong. Everyone was afraid of this kid. And the moment he set his eyes on me, he had flagged me as a target. For three months, he tormented me. Stolen lunch money, stuffing me into my locker, you name it. Everyone laughed, and no one seemed to try to stop him.”

“People like that make me sick.”

“Well, I found out later that Kackfass' dad used to get drunk and beat him. I heard he owns a fur salon with his boyfriend in Madrid now. But that's another story.”

Before Jeanette could laugh, Richter went on. “On this particular day, Kackfass corners me after class. He shoves me against the fence to the school. First thing he did was empty the contents of my backpack onto the ground. I knew the drill by then. I gave him what money I had, and begged him to let go of me. But this time, the money didn't satisfy him. He commented on how ugly my face was, and how the size of my eyes irritated him. All of a sudden, I am looking at a fist the size of a ham. He almost casually comments how he wants to rearrange this face that is annoying him so much. A small crowd had gathered at this point. Mostly his own degenerate friends, as well as some kids who wanted to see a good beating.”

“Oh shit...”

“Ja. Shit. I didn't see any way out of it. All I could do was brace for the impact.” A strange wistful look came over Richter's big eyes. “But the impact never came. That was the day T-Balt stepped in.”

Richter grinned, letting the memory flow over him. “This fist is coming in like an ICBM, ready to smash me into oblivion. And then, this big green hand suddenly appears and grabs Kackfass' wrist. The only person more surprised than me was the bear. T-Balt had just grabbed hold of Kackfass' arm, stopping the whole thing. He forgot all about me, dropped me like a sack of hammers, and whirled around to face T-Balt. Kackfass must have been locked on some kind of alpha male programming, because he almost immediately followed up with a punch from his other fist right into T-Balt's chest. His shell took the punch, and he looked like he had just been hit with a slightly damp spitwad. I thought for sure that T-Balt was going to retaliate, and I was going to be stuck in the middle of some kaiju fight. But T-Balt never made a move. He stood there, cool as ice.”

Jeanette whistled. “That's some control.”

“T-Balt had always been like that,” Richter replied. “They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Probably sizing each other up. Who knows. I don't know what goes on inside the heads of kaiju. Then T-Balt starts talking to him. My Spanish was horrible, so I didn't make out much of it. But whatever he had said worked. Kackfass walked away in a huff, not saying a word. And when their master turned to leave, the rest of Kackfass' goon squad left with him. And I suddenly find myself looking up at another giant who could easily turn me into a random pile of organic matter. I actually tried to crawl away, only to realize I was already up against a wall. And then he bends down and helps me up. Lifted me up effortlessly, and asked if I was okay. It was kind of like looking up at a tyrannosaurus who you expected to eat you, and then suddenly asked if you were okay. He then helped me pick up my things and told me to be safe.”

Jeanette nodded. “Big moment for you, eh?”

“The best. It was the end of the worst three months of my life.”

“You do realize you are making him out like he is some kind of superhero, right?”

Richter coughed. “Well, to my thirteen year old eyes, that's exactly what he was. When I first laid eyes on him in class, I was terrified. Gott, he was enormous. I imagined him eating me alive. But nein. I suppose he wasn't any kind of superhero. Just a kid who didn't like seeing other kids get bullied.”

“And then, you decided to become friends?”

“I suppose I kind of followed him around after that. Sat next to him at lunch. I was worried I might be making a pest of myself, but he never seemed to even notice me. Finally, after a couple of weeks, I sit next to him at lunch as he is obviously struggling with an algebra assignment. It was hard to see on his face, but I could tell that he was having a very hard time.”

“And you decided to lend a hand?”

“To be honest, I was already doing vector calculus at that point. But helping him didn't come easily. It took me minutes just to work up the nerve to actually say something to him. But finally, after almost fifteen minutes of fidgeting, and sucking down an apple juice box, I finally was able to say my first words to him. 'That math giving you sheisse?'”

Jeanette laughed. Even she knew what that German word meant.

“That's how it started,” Richter said. “At first, I gave him some algebra help. Then we started talking about movies and books. Eventually, I discovered one of my best superpowers. I could make him laugh. I think that is what really started our friendship.”

Jeanette patted his shoulder. “Friends are so precious. They are the ones who pick us up when we fall.”

“Ja. T-Balt picked me up when I fell. And now he has fallen, and I am not sure I can pick him up.”

An idea suddenly crept into Jeanette's mind. “Say. You know that your friend plays for Huntsville, right?”

“Ja.”

“Well, you know that they are coming to play in Sante Fe soon, right?”

“Oh?”

“So...let's go watch him play!”

Richter seemed aghast. “What? You mean, go to an actual professional sporting event? Like, with fans and beer and everything?”

“You said so yourself. You can't do anything for him here. So, let's go to him. Surprise him at the game! Let him know you are there for him by cheering him on!”

Richter opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out. Finally, he let out a sigh of laughter. “Do you bartenders have some magical power to know just what to say to people?”

Jeanette held up her finger. “I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you. Now, let's get back to the party.”

“Fine. Let's get back. Maybe we can catch a round or two of the KT drinking game.”

“What now?”

Richter grinned. “You are given an asteroid trajectory for a collision into the Earth. You have to work out exactly how far the asteroid needs to be nudged out of the way to miss impact. Every time you fail and Earth is destroyed, you have to take a shot.”

Jeanette didn't struggled to respond. “Wow. That's...wow.”

“It's a blast! Come on!” Richter took her hand and led her out of the kitchen and back to the party. As he did, he leaned in to whisper into her ear. “And on the way to Santa Fe, I will tell you how I got T-Balt into basketball to begin with.”

Jeanette had no response to that as they rejoined the party.“Happy New Year!”

The cheer went up like a rocket, completely dominating the interior of the large living room. Dozens of people of all species were raising glasses of cheap champagne and yelling the celebratory trio of words in one voice. The shout went up amidst a mishmash of both Christmas decorations and 2015 banners. Of course it was New Mexico, so all the decorations had a desert flair to them. Primarily, the Christmas tree was just a large cactus, strewn with multicolored lights and ornaments. And as everyone at the party was either a nuclear physicist, engineer, astrophysicist, or chemist, decorations involving chemical formulas and molecular models were everywhere. Most prominent was the symbol C2H6O displayed over the bar in Christmas lights. All around the large desert house were the sounds and energy of celebration of the New Year.

Only one person seemed to be out of place among the revelry. Dr Friederich von Richter sat at a small table in the kitchen, still staring at the now blank screen of his tablet. His friend, Baltasár Torrealba y Toboso, had just disconnected after a long and quite drunken conversation. Richter had tried his best to keep the giant tortoise on the line, hoping to lighten the mood. But he had shut down the video chat very abruptly. Richter had tried to get the call back online, but there was no answer. Knowing what had most likely happened, the young frog leaned back in the chair and sighed.

“Gott im Himmel, Baltasar. What can I do?” Richter massaged his temples. “What can I possibly do?” He looked at the blank screen for the second time, reinforcing the the answer he already knew. There wasn't a thing he could do. His friend was miles away and most likely passed out on the floor. And he was here, surrounded by celebration and merriment. In a fit of frustration, he swept the tablet off the table.

“Verdammt!”

The outburst wasn't very severe. Richter was never one for fits of anger or despair, so the tablet merely clattered to the tile floor with only a bit of force and drama. It did not draw the attention of any of the party goers, who were at the moment all hugged up to each other singing Auld Lang Syne incredibly off key. As it was, only one person responded to Richter's outburst. A lovely, bright green frog in a red evening dress, still wearing the giant novelty glasses that had 2015 slapped onto them. She strode into the kitchen, holding a large plastic cup of champagne.

“Freddy, everyone's been looking for you. You should really get back out...” She suddenly stopped when she saw the tablet on the floor, as well as the dark look that had come over his green face. Instantly, she was concerned. “What's wrong?”

Richter looked up, suddenly aware that he wasn't alone. He found himself looking into the face of Jeanette Branston, his date to the party and girl he had been seeing for a few weeks. He quickly tried to cover up his mood by smiling and bending down to scoop up the tablet.

“Oh! Tut mir Leid! I didn't see you there!” He tried to theatrically brush dirt off the tablet. “Dropped the darn thing! So sehr leid!”

Jeanette set her drink on the table and gently patted Richter's shoulder. “Freddy, I know when something is bothering you.”

“Oh, you do?”

Jeanette smiled warmly. “You use a lot more German words when you are upset or nervous. Does it have something to do with that person you were chatting with?”

Richter opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Finally, he exhaled, chuckling quietly. Meine Fraulein. I can't get anything by you, can I?”

“You might be a scientist, Freddy. But I am a bartender. I know when someone is upset.”

Richter couldn't argue with that. For nearly nine months, Richter had sat in the small cafe where Jeanette tended bar, trying to work up the nerve to say something to her. Anything. But all he could manage were drink orders and a half mumbled “thank you”. It had been his friend who had finally said the right thing to give Richter the confidence he needed to ask her out. It had really just been Baltasar threatening to call the young bartender directly and tell her that the shy frog with the terrified expression on his face had been trying to ask her out for months. Richter totally believed that Baltasar would do it. That, it turned out, was the very nudge he needed.

Richter gave her a weak smile. “I'm sorry. This is supposed to be a party. But yes. My friend has me worried.”

“That big tortoise? He seems nice.”

Richter nodded. “Baltasar. My best friend in the world. Known him since we were both in our teens.”

Jeanette seemed impressed. “Wow. That's quite the friendship. What does he do? Is he another scientist?”

That actually caused Richter to laugh. “Gott no! He is a great person, don't get me wrong. But science? Nein! He would probably open an ampule of thioacetone right in his own house!”

As usual, as soon as Richter started speaking in science-ese, Jeanette lost track of the conversation. And, as usual, Richter tried to rally.

“Thioacetone. Smelliest substance on Earth. One drop can make you vomit from half a kilometer away. Caused the city of Freiburg to be evacuated in 1889.”

“Right. Of course.”

Richter waved his webbed hand. “Anyway. Sorry. Baltasar is an athlete. He just got signed to play for the FBA.”

At that, Jeanette's big eyes opened wide. “Wait! Baltasar Torrealba? THAT Baltasar?”

Richter's own eyes widened. “Ja. You know him?”

“I love basketball!” She seemed to suddenly light up. “I watch it all the time with my dad!”

Richter was awestruck. “I had no idea. Well, something happened to him at the draft...”

Jeanette instantly knew. “Oh, I heard about that. He was traded on draft night, wasn't he?”

Richter nodded. “That he was. Mein Gott. He was so happy that night. He has been through so much in the last few years. His parents. The fight. So much sheisse. And then he gets his big break. And then he is traded like a piece of meat. I hadn't heard from him in a while. I thought he was making it okay. Then he calls me, absolutely hammered, ranting about it. He is miserable, and I couldn't help. Then he just hangs up.”

“Didn't you call him back?”

“I tried. There was no answer. Drunk as he was, he probably passed out. No point in trying to call him now. When he is drunk and unconscious, he turns into a lump of neutron star matter. Immovable.”

Jeanette laughed. “Well, Huntsville is one of the best damned teams in the league. And he has been playing very well. ”

“I have no idea.” Richter shrugged. “Meine Fraulein. You might find this difficult to believe. I don't follow sports. I...” Richter looked down, feigning shame. “I am a nerd.”

Jeanette put her hands to her mouth and gasped. “No! Say it isn't so!”

Richter nodded, still feigning shame. “It is true! I was a nerd from day one! AV club. Chess team. Physics club. I did it all!”

Jeanette put her hand to her forehead, acting like she was about to swoon in a movie from the 40's. “My God! The man I chose to go out with is nothing but a brilliant nerd! What will father say?”

They both laughed, instantly raising Richter's mood. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to have met her. And how lucky he was to have a friend like T-Balt, to give him the courage to actually speak to her.

“How long have you two known each other?”

“Baltasar? Almost ten years. Ever since I moved to Barcelona from Berlin when I was thirteen.”

“Germany to Spain? That sounds like a strange move.”

Richter sighed again, memories from long ago coming to his mind. “Sie haben keine Ahnung. I didn't want to do it. But dear Vater got a job offer from the University in Barcelona. He accepted it without consulting with me or my mutter. Still, some good came of it. I got to meet T-Balt.”

“T-Balt?”

“Oh. That's a nickname his little stepsister gave him. Little pup could barely pronounce Baltasar. She calls me Fredwick.”

Jeanette tried to stifle a laugh. “Oh my god. That is adorable!”

“She is cute as a button. Best little girl you could ever meet.”

“Speaking of meeting people, how did you and Baltasar meet?”

“Gott, that was long ago. You really want to hear this? There is a party going on.”

Jeanette crossed her arms. “You started this. You can't tell me you are friends with an FBA player and not tell me how you met.”

Richter sighed yet again. “Fine. But if I do this, you have to promise to get me out of this kitchen, away from this tablet, and do something fun.”

“Deal.”

Richter closed his eyes, sending his mind back. “Well. Let me tell you a tale. The year is 2005. A new student is about to be introduced to a high school in Barcelona. A little foreign kid, with a lot of unfortunate nerd features. And I mean, a lot. Big glasses. Dress pants. A button up shirt. And a backpack with Newton's Laws of Gravity and Motion on the front.”

“Wow.”

“Ja...wow. Anyway. Imagine this kid comes into class. And to make matters worse, he barely speaks a word of Spanish. And the teacher makes him introduce himself to the class.”

Jeanette gasped. “Damn.”

“Indeed. My attempt at a greeting was as ridiculous as you think. The whole class erupted in laughter. And the teacher didn't try very hard to get them to stop. The moment I took my seat, I was the hot target on everyone's radar. Which led to the worst three months of my life. Everything you can imagine that could be done to humiliate someone took place.”

Jeanette put her hand on his. “That must have been terrible.”

Richter managed a small smile. “It was. But the worst was yet to come. There was this one kid, older than anyone else. Let's just call him Kackfass. This kid had been held back twice in the first grade, just to give you some idea of the brain power we are working with. Kackfass was a bear, and big for one of those. He looked like a genetics experiment gone horribly wrong. Everyone was afraid of this kid. And the moment he set his eyes on me, he had flagged me as a target. For three months, he tormented me. Stolen lunch money, stuffing me into my locker, you name it. Everyone laughed, and no one seemed to try to stop him.”

“People like that make me sick.”

“Well, I found out later that Kackfass' dad used to get drunk and beat him. I heard he owns a fur salon with his boyfriend in Madrid now. But that's another story.”

Before Jeanette could laugh, Richter went on. “On this particular day, Kackfass corners me after class. He shoves me against the fence to the school. First thing he did was empty the contents of my backpack onto the ground. I knew the drill by then. I gave him what money I had, and begged him to let go of me. But this time, the money didn't satisfy him. He commented on how ugly my face was, and how the size of my eyes irritated him. All of a sudden, I am looking at a fist the size of a ham. He almost casually comments how he wants to rearrange this face that is annoying him so much. A small crowd had gathered at this point. Mostly his own degenerate friends, as well as some kids who wanted to see a good beating.”

“Oh shit...”

“Ja. Shit. I didn't see any way out of it. All I could do was brace for the impact.” A strange wistful look came over Richter's big eyes. “But the impact never came. That was the day T-Balt stepped in.”

Richter grinned, letting the memory flow over him. “This fist is coming in like an ICBM, ready to smash me into oblivion. And then, this big green hand suddenly appears and grabs Kackfass' wrist. The only person more surprised than me was the bear. T-Balt had just grabbed hold of Kackfass' arm, stopping the whole thing. He forgot all about me, dropped me like a sack of hammers, and whirled around to face T-Balt. Kackfass must have been locked on some kind of alpha male programming, because he almost immediately followed up with a punch from his other fist right into T-Balt's chest. His shell took the punch, and he looked like he had just been hit with a slightly damp spitwad. I thought for sure that T-Balt was going to retaliate, and I was going to be stuck in the middle of some kaiju fight. But T-Balt never made a move. He stood there, cool as ice.”

Jeanette whistled. “That's some control.”

“T-Balt had always been like that,” Richter replied. “They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Probably sizing each other up. Who knows. I don't know what goes on inside the heads of kaiju. Then T-Balt starts talking to him. My Spanish was horrible, so I didn't make out much of it. But whatever he had said worked. Kackfass walked away in a huff, not saying a word. And when their master turned to leave, the rest of Kackfass' goon squad left with him. And I suddenly find myself looking up at another giant who could easily turn me into a random pile of organic matter. I actually tried to crawl away, only to realize I was already up against a wall. And then he bends down and helps me up. Lifted me up effortlessly, and asked if I was okay. It was kind of like looking up at a tyrannosaurus who you expected to eat you, and then suddenly asked if you were okay. He then helped me pick up my things and told me to be safe.”

Jeanette nodded. “Big moment for you, eh?”

“The best. It was the end of the worst three months of my life.”

“You do realize you are making him out like he is some kind of superhero, right?”

Richter coughed. “Well, to my thirteen year old eyes, that's exactly what he was. When I first laid eyes on him in class, I was terrified. Gott, he was enormous. I imagined him eating me alive. But nein. I suppose he wasn't any kind of superhero. Just a kid who didn't like seeing other kids get bullied.”

“And then, you decided to become friends?”

“I suppose I kind of followed him around after that. Sat next to him at lunch. I was worried I might be making a pest of myself, but he never seemed to even notice me. Finally, after a couple of weeks, I sit next to him at lunch as he is obviously struggling with an algebra assignment. It was hard to see on his face, but I could tell that he was having a very hard time.”

“And you decided to lend a hand?”

“To be honest, I was already doing vector calculus at that point. But helping him didn't come easily. It took me minutes just to work up the nerve to actually say something to him. But finally, after almost fifteen minutes of fidgeting, and sucking down an apple juice box, I finally was able to say my first words to him. 'That math giving you sheisse?'”

Jeanette laughed. Even she knew what that German word meant.

“That's how it started,” Richter said. “At first, I gave him some algebra help. Then we started talking about movies and books. Eventually, I discovered one of my best superpowers. I could make him laugh. I think that is what really started our friendship.”

Jeanette patted his shoulder. “Friends are so precious. They are the ones who pick us up when we fall.”

“Ja. T-Balt picked me up when I fell. And now he has fallen, and I am not sure I can pick him up.”

An idea suddenly crept into Jeanette's mind. “Say. You know that your friend plays for Huntsville, right?”

“Ja.”

“Well, you know that they are coming to play in Sante Fe soon, right?”

“Oh?”

“So...let's go watch him play!”

Richter seemed aghast. “What? You mean, go to an actual professional sporting event? Like, with fans and beer and everything?”

“You said so yourself. You can't do anything for him here. So, let's go to him. Surprise him at the game! Let him know you are there for him by cheering him on!”

Richter opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out. Finally, he let out a sigh of laughter. “Do you bartenders have some magical power to know just what to say to people?”

Jeanette held up her finger. “I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you. Now, let's get back to the party.”

“Fine. Let's get back. Maybe we can catch a round or two of the KT drinking game.”

“What now?”

Richter grinned. “You are given an asteroid trajectory for a collision into the Earth. You have to work out exactly how far the asteroid needs to be nudged out of the way to miss impact. Every time you fail and Earth is destroyed, you have to take a shot.”

Jeanette didn't struggled to respond. “Wow. That's...wow.”

“It's a blast! Come on!” Richter took her hand and led her out of the kitchen and back to the party. As he did, he leaned in to whisper into her ear. “And on the way to Santa Fe, I will tell you how I got T-Balt into basketball to begin with.”

Jeanette had no response to that as they rejoined the party.