Free The Samantha Project by Stephanie Karpinske Page B

able to clarify how Dave’s theory could actually work.  
    Put simply, the body is made up of cells, which have chromosomes. And those chromosomes have genes that carry genetic codes. The codes are various combinations of four nucleobases, or bases for short. The bases are guanine, cytosine, thymine, and adenine, which are usually just abbreviated G, C, T, and A. The way in which those bases are paired up and sequenced determines things like how we look or whether we get a certain illness.  
    Computers work in a similar way but use the numbers 0 and 1. How those 0s and 1s are put together determines what the computer will do. By using both the genetic code and a software code, Dave theorized that you could basically tell genes how to act by inserting software into cells via computers the size of nanoparticles. For instance, you could tell a healthy cell to stay healthy and not turn into cancer.
    The concept was fairly simple, but Dave had never been able to explain it in a way that made sense to investors. He wasn’t even sure if his idea was possible beyond theory. But with my father’s help, he was able to show that it actually could work. He formulated a business plan describing his research and took it to banks, hoping to get the money he needed to keep the business afloat.  
    Just as this was all happening, GlobalLife Inc., a huge multinational corporation, offered to buy the company from Dave. A GlobalLife executive was on the board of one of the banks and read the business proposal. He made Dave a deal he couldn’t refuse. Dave would get millions for the business and would stay on as Director of Research and Development.  
    Soon after the sale went through, things turned south. According to my dad, Dave became consumed with work. GlobalLife Genetics, the division of GlobalLife that took over Dave’s company, had research facilities around the world, diluting Dave’s job and making him one of many Directors of Research and Development.  
    The years that followed only got worse for Dave. Working for GlobalLife made Dave a distant memory of his former self, the energetic entrepreneur out to save the world. I never understood why Dave didn’t just leave GlobalLife and retire early. After all, he had made a small fortune when he sold his company, although you would never know it from looking at him or his house.
    Around noon, Allie came over. She only had a half day of school. Now that she was back from Greece, she had to finish the semester by doing an independent study project. She still had to put in time at school, but she didn’t have to be there all day, every day.
    Allie hugged me the minute I opened the door. “Sam, I am so, so sorry about your parents. I know I told you that in my phone messages like a zillion times, but now that I’m here in person, I have to say it again. You poor thing, I feel terrible. How are you?”
    She talked even faster than before, which is what Allie did when she wasn’t comfortable with a topic. We went over and sat in the living room.
    “I’m, I don’t know. It’s hard to describe. Part of me still doesn’t believe it. But then I go in their room—and they’re not there. And I wait for them to come home, but they don’t.” I took a breath, trying not to cry, but the tears came anyway.
    “Oh, Sam. I don’t know what to say to you. I feel so bad.”
    “There’s nothing to say. It just sucks. And I don’t think I’ll ever get past it.”
    “Don’t say that. It just happened. You’re not gonna feel better in a couple days. Or weeks. Or even months.”
    “I feel so lost without them. I don’t know what to do now.”
    “Just take it one day at a time, Sam. Don’t start worrying about all your future plans.”  
    “I’m a mess, Allie. I can’t even go an hour without crying. And you know me. I never cry. Ever.”
    “You’re not a mess. You’re normal. And what are you doing here alone? Why didn’t Dave stay home with you?”
    “He had to work.