Work Text:
“P-professor Zelenka?” A student asked, his voice barely audible over Radek’s lecture.
Radek paused and blinked. He didn’t think he had ever heard this particular student speak. Not once had he ever participated in class.
“Yes-“ He looked at his seating chart, trying to remember the person’s name. Huh, his chart must be wrong, because that certainly didn’t look like a Meredith. “I’m sorry, I’m afraid I’ve forgotten your name.”
The student flushed and fiddled with his notes. “It’s R-Rodney.”
Ahh, yes that was it. Meredith Rodney McKay, the one with the scary sister. She had come to his office the day before class had started and threatened him with severe bodily harm if he ever did anything to her brother. That was such an open term, ‘anything’. He wondered what would constitute ‘anything’.
“You had a question, Rodney?” Radek asked, shaking off the thought.
Rodney looked around the room. Everyone had their attention on him and it seemed to fluster the man something fierce. “N-no. Never mind.”
Now that the man had peaked his curiosity, Radek couldn’t let it go. “No, no. You must say it now. One thing you must learn as a scientist is to speak your mind. What if newton never taught of gravity? Or Galileo the stars? Where would we be then?”
Rodney fiddled with his papers some more and then took a deep breath, “Your equation… It’s wrong.”
Radek turned to look at the white board, and sure enough the third line down he had put the wrong numbers in to the equation. He hastily grabbed the eraser and deleted it. He paused before he could write down the correct one, having a great idea to get this student more involved.
He turned back to his class, “Why don’t you come up here and fix it?”
He saw Rodney swallow heavily, but he did get up from his seat. He shuffled his way slowly to the front of the class and took the marker from Radek’s hand. Rodney turned to the board, scribbled his answer down, and practically ran back to his seat.
Radek inspected the work and his eyes bugged out of his head as he read it. It was beautiful work. Correct answer given with the least amount of unnecessary input. Honestly, he thought, it was better than he could have done himself.
“It is perfect.” He told Rodney.
Rodney smiled shyly at the praise. Radek told himself to watch out for that one. If Radek’s hunch was right, Mckay would soon be the biggest name in physics.