Peter and his father's small food stand was located near one of the exits of the square in front of the library of the University of Alessia, although it was not one of the most popular among the students, the income they had was enough to be able to live quietly, the vegetable omelets and rye flour buns filled with grains and mushrooms that were their specialty, had a loyal clientele that delighted in them, they were a change from the meat and chicken sandwiches that were usually sold in the other kiosks of the site.
It would soon be four years since his accident at the Orbis factory in Axia, his father and he had moved to Alessia a few months after that, as soon as they could they started a new food stand like the one his father had in Axia. But that wasn't the biggest change in his life in the last few years, shortly after arriving in Alessia, he met a young medical student and after several months of dating they decided to live together and she moved in with him and his father.
Now, after almost two years of being together, they are expecting their first child, Lucia is already seven months pregnant, the doctors who evaluated her had told them that they were expecting a boy, whom they decided to name Samuel, after Lucia's grandfather. The arrival of Samuel was a surprise for both of them, her other sisters had turned out to be infertile and the doctors suspected that she might also be infertile.
It was almost lunchtime and Peter and his father had everything planned for the arrival of the bulk of the customers, normally the students had an hour to eat between morning and afternoon classes, it used to be a mad rush of young people walking from one place to another looking for where to spend the credits they were allotted for lunch, It was usually not the first choice of most, but they could always count on their loyal clientele, consisting mainly of professors and students in their final years of studies, to their pride even the director of the university had become a regular diner and a loyal fan of the mushroom and vegetable sandwiches.
Lunchtime was also the only time of the day he could see Lucia, between the early morning when he and his father went out to prepare everything in the kiosk and the evening when Lucia left her classes and joined them to accompany them until closing time, he had no contact with her, unless for some strange reason one of her classes was suspended.
Peter always had the idea that, for him, a poor and not very smart mutilated worker, coming from a dirty and wild industrial city, to find a beautiful and intelligent young medical student, who took notice of him and wanted to be his companion for life, had been the single greatest achievement of his whole life and now to be about to become the father of a child would be the greatest joy he would perhaps ever receive.
Just at two o'clock in the afternoon, the flow of students and teachers began to stream through the gardens and the central plaza of the university, in a hurried search for food. The stalls selling sandwiches of different types of meats, pastas and desserts were the most sought after, located almost in front of the library, it was the part where the largest number of students were crowded. Peter could see Lucia pushing her way through the bustling crowd in the square, dressed in the usual blue gown she always wore when she had lab classes, she walked with difficulty and her appearance was funny, since the buttons of the once loose gown, on her now bulging belly, seemed a risk to the safety of the eyes of anyone standing in front of her.
He hadn't seen her since the wee hours of the morning, when he had left her asleep in the bedroom, he and her father were out long before dawn and for almost three months now, when her belly began to grow and she began to have difficulty sleeping, he preferred not to disturb her in the wee hours of the morning. Her smile was radiant, her small, plump figure, stood out in the crowd, for Peter it was like seeing a single person in color in a world of sepia tones.
-Hello Peter, hello Mr. Peter, haven't you started selling yet, do you want me to help you with anything, I have an hour free after lunch- said Lucia cheerfully, although suffocated, in front of the counter.
-Don't worry Lucy, sit quietly and rest, father and I already have everything ready, if you want after lunch, tell us how the practices are going, -answered Peter, from the other side of the counter.
Lucia sat down at a small table with only one seat, provided for her next to the kiosk, and she began to rest and eat the lunch she had brought with her. She excused herself by saying that the doctor had told her that she should eat more meat, but the truth was that she did not really enjoy the vegetable-based food they prepared at the kiosk, she liked the buns stuffed with mushrooms, but she could not eat that every day, so she preferred to bring her food from home and thus not buy from the competition.
That afternoon would be crucial in Lucia's career, after helping Peter and Pedro to clean the tables after lunch and chatting with them during her free hour, while they prepared everything ready for dinner, she went to the dean of the medical school to receive from him the news that her doctoral research thesis had been accepted and as soon as she finished her internship she could defend it in order to receive her degree.
Sixteen months after this day, Lucia would receive her medical degree, and little Samuel, already one year old, would accompany them to his mother's promotion. Both of them and his grandfather Pedro were amazed at how fast the little one was learning, at eight months he had begun to say his first words and at one year old, he was already making himself clearly understood, although with a limited vocabulary.
Samuel, unlike other babies his age, could stay focused for a long time on the same activity, without losing interest in it, besides having a fine motor skills much more developed than any other infant of his age they knew, to the point of being able to hold a pencil and make firm and coherent strokes on paper, he still could not read, but he could identify and repeat letters and numbers, besides counting to ten.
That afternoon at Lucia's graduation ceremony, Samuel, clearly intrigued by this, asked Peter what was going on, to which Peter replied that his mother was becoming a doctor. Incredibly, Samuel understood what a doctor was and told his father, "I also want to be a doctor like my mother", so clearly, that Peter was impressed and did not tell Lucia the anecdote until two days after the event. Full of joy Peter told Lucia.
-Samuel told me that he wanted to be a doctor like his mother, -Peter with a wide smile continued- you see Lucy, Sami will be as smart as you, not a fool like his father.
Hearing this, Lucia approached Peter and hugged him as tight as she could, -You are not a fool Peter, you are the most honest and lovable person that exists, besides if you were a fool, I would have never fallen in love with you- she told him- and Samuel will be smarter than both of them and as good as you-.
The Hilbert surname once played a sadly important role in history, a role now known only to a few academics. In a few decades it would be the precocious Samuel who would be in charge of changing this, for the benefit of a dying humanity.