The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
“See, this is where a big part of my mistrust comes in.”Holden worried at his lower lip, as if deciding whether andhow to continue. “Did Tom intercede to save Adam’s ass onnumerous occasions? Sure. It’s undeniable. But how did thoseoccasions come about to begin with? Our adviser was a pieceof work, but he was not a micromanager. By the time wejoined his lab, he was too busy being a famous asshole toknow what was going on in day-to-day lab business. Which iswhy he had postdocs like Tom mentor grad students likeAdam and me and de facto run the lab. And yet, he knewabout every single minor screwup of Adam’s. Every fewweeks he’d come in, tell Adam that he was a failure of ahuman being for minor stuff like switching reagents ordropping a beaker, and then Tom, our adviser’s most-trustedpostdoc, would publicly intervene on behalf of Adam and savethe day. The pattern was eerily specific, and only for Adam—who was by far the most promising student in our program.Destined for greatness and all that. Initially, it made me a bitsuspicious that Tom was purposefully sabotaging Adam. Butin recent years I’ve been wondering if what he wanted wassomething else altogether. . . .”“Did you tell Adam?”“Yes. But I had no proof, and Adam . . . well, you knowhim. He is stubbornly, unwaveringly loyal, and he was morethan a little grateful to Tom.” He shrugged. “They ended upbecoming bros, and they’ve been close friends ever since.”“Did it bother you?”“Not per se, no. I realize I might sound jealous of theirfriendship, but the truth is that Adam has always been toofocused and single-minded to have many friends. I’d havebeen happy for him, truly. But Tom . . .”Olive nodded. Yeah. Tom. “Why would he do this? This . . .weird vendetta against Adam?”
Holden sighed. “This is why Adam dismissed my concerns.There really isn’t an obvious reason. The truth is, I don’t thinkTom hates Adam. Or at least, I don’t think it’s that simple. ButI do believe that Tom is smart, and very, very cunning. Thatthere probably is some jealousy involved, some desire to takeadvantage of Adam, to maybe control or have power over him.Adam tends to downplay his accomplishments, but he’s one ofthe best scientists of our generation. Having influence overhim . . . that’s a privilege, and no small feat.”“Yeah.” She nodded again. The question, the one she’dcome here to ask, was starting to take shape in her mind.“Knowing all of this. Knowing how important Tom is toAdam, if you had proof of . . . of how Tom really is, wouldyou show Adam?”To his credit, Holden didn’t ask what the proof was, orproof of what. He scanned Olive’s face with an intent,thoughtful expression, and when he spoke, his words werecareful.“I can’t answer that for you. I don’t think I should.” Hedrummed his fingers on the podium, as if deep in thought.“But I do want to tell you three things. The first you probablyalready know: Adam is first and foremost a scientist. So am I,and so are you. And good science only happens when we drawconclusions based on all available evidence—not just the onesthat are easy, or that confirm our hypotheses. Wouldn’t youagree?”Olive nodded, and he continued.“The second is something you may or may not be aware of,because it has to do with politics and academia, which are noteasy to fully grasp until you find yourself sitting through fivehour-longfaculty meetings every other week. But here’s thedeal: the collaboration between Adam and Tom benefits Tommore than it does Adam. Which is why Adam is the main
- Page 291 and 292: Yes.“Fuck,” someone said. It wa
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- Page 315 and 316: who hugged her and started talking
- Page 317 and 318: “He was shameless, Ol. And glorio
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- Page 326 and 327: “Right,” he said. “Right.”
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- Page 345 and 346: Chapter TwentyHYPOTHESIS: People wh
- Page 347 and 348: In a lie.A lie, after a lot of lies
- Page 349 and 350: Olive closed her eyes and nodded, t
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- Page 356 and 357: “Good,” he replied with a half
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- Page 365 and 366: When given a choice between A (tell
- Page 367 and 368: else to do it?’ I think my cookie
- Page 369 and 370: You can fall in love: someone will
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- Page 373 and 374: “No,” she repeated, pensive.
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- Page 380 and 381: Author’s NoteI write stories set
- Page 382 and 383: AcknowledgmentsFirst, just allow me
- Page 384 and 385: Don’t missLove on the Braincoming
- Page 386: shrooms they just purchased from a
Holden sighed. “This is why Adam dismissed my concerns.
There really isn’t an obvious reason. The truth is, I don’t think
Tom hates Adam. Or at least, I don’t think it’s that simple. But
I do believe that Tom is smart, and very, very cunning. That
there probably is some jealousy involved, some desire to take
advantage of Adam, to maybe control or have power over him.
Adam tends to downplay his accomplishments, but he’s one of
the best scientists of our generation. Having influence over
him . . . that’s a privilege, and no small feat.”
“Yeah.” She nodded again. The question, the one she’d
come here to ask, was starting to take shape in her mind.
“Knowing all of this. Knowing how important Tom is to
Adam, if you had proof of . . . of how Tom really is, would
you show Adam?”
To his credit, Holden didn’t ask what the proof was, or
proof of what. He scanned Olive’s face with an intent,
thoughtful expression, and when he spoke, his words were
careful.
“I can’t answer that for you. I don’t think I should.” He
drummed his fingers on the podium, as if deep in thought.
“But I do want to tell you three things. The first you probably
already know: Adam is first and foremost a scientist. So am I,
and so are you. And good science only happens when we draw
conclusions based on all available evidence—not just the ones
that are easy, or that confirm our hypotheses. Wouldn’t you
agree?”
Olive nodded, and he continued.
“The second is something you may or may not be aware of,
because it has to do with politics and academia, which are not
easy to fully grasp until you find yourself sitting through fivehour-long
faculty meetings every other week. But here’s the
deal: the collaboration between Adam and Tom benefits Tom
more than it does Adam. Which is why Adam is the main
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