enigma
a puzzling or inexplicable occurrence or situation: His disappearance is an enigma that has given rise to much speculation.
a person of puzzling or contradictory character: To me he has always been an enigma, one minute completely insensitive, the next moved to tears.
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The light shone over Dr. Bryant’s workplace. It came from a single lamp that hung precariously over the stacks of papers. All other lights had been turned off at some point. He had not noticed, nor cared. As long as he could see, he could work.
His hands scratched at the papers, making lines and numbers that an outsider would almost consider arcane in nature. Dr. Bryant was almost inclined to agree with them, given the nature of what he was studying.
Suddenly, the room filled with light. Dr. Bryant blinked heavily, but did not let the sudden change in environment stop him. If anything, the lights turning on took some of the strain from his eyes.
“Oh hey, George. When’d you get here.”
The voice made Dr. Bryant look up suddenly. One of his colleagues, Dr. Laverne, was heading to her work station. It was likely her that had turned on the lights in their shared workspace. Dr. Bryant considered the question.
“What time is it?” He asked.
She took out her phone and looked at the time. “About 8:30, which you should know unless…Oh no, George. Did you stay here all night?”
Dr. Bryant did not answer. Dr. Laverne made a bee line towards him and lifted his chin to examine him closely. She twisted his face from side to side, acting as if her doctorate was in medicine instead of anthropology.
“You did, didn’t you?” She asked. “Did you at least sleep?”
“Sleep? Why would I do that? I’ve got work to do.”
She sighed heavily. “Work that would still be there if you went home and got some rest. In fact, it would probably go smoother if you did that.”
“I wouldn’t be able to sleep anyway. Not with this damned thing taunting me like it is.”
“Still stuck on that translation, huh?”
He turned to face his desk. “I doesn’t make any sense, Janet. All the words, all they symbols. We’ve seen them all. We know what they mean. And yet, somehow this one tablet…It’s all wrong, damn it! It doesn’t make any sense. The symbols don’t go together like they should.”
“Yes, yes, I know. You’ve told me that.”
“I have?”
“Several times, yes. You practically wouldn’t stop talking about it yesterday, remember?”
He paused, hand mid-way to his pen. He thought. He had told people about his problems, hadn’t he. Now that he was thinking about it, he noticed just how hard it actually was to think.
“Are you okay?” Dr. Laverne asked. “Oh dear, this isn’t the first all nightery you’ve pulled, is it?”
“No.” He admitted.
“How long has it been since you’ve slept?”
“When did we get the tablet information?”
Her eyes opened wide. “A week? You haven’t slept in a week? George, you need to go. Now. Go home, get some sleep. I’ll make sure the bosses know what’s going on. But don’t drive. Call a cab or get someone else to drive you. Hell, I’ll drive you home if nobody else will.”
“But I need to know, Janet. I need to figure this damn tablet out.”
“And you will. Once you get a good night’s rest you can come back and figure out this little mystery, okay?”
“I’m fine, I promise. I can keep going. I’ll take a break after I—”
“Stand up.” She said firmly.
“What?”
“Stand. Up.”
Dr. Bryant huffed, but stood. Immediately, his vision started swimming and he nearly fell over as his knees almost gave out. He managed to catch himself and stand upright. But he was still not as steady as he should have been.
“Ah. Maybe…maybe a day off will be helpful.” He admitted.
“There we go. Get your stuff. I’ll call someone to drive you. And no, you can’t bring any of your work home with you. Not one single paper.”
Dr. Bryant had turned to his desk and was about to grab a few sheets of his work. But he stopped as she said that last part. He sighed and stepped away from the desk.
“There we go.” She said. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure nobody touches your work. It’ll all be here when you get back. You’ll solve it then.”
“Yeah. Yeah, I will. I definitely will.”
Dr.
Laverne took him by the shoulder, helping to support his weight. Weight that
suddenly seemed much greater than it actually was. Dr. Bryant allowed himself
to be led out of the office and then outside. And all the while, his mind was
churning, flowing. He would figure out the tablet. It was only a matter of time
before he solved the ancient mystery it contained. He just needed to get some
rest first.
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Sleep is kind of important. Don't skip it if you don't have to.
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