Chapter 36

We went to Disneyland – Rosie, Phil and I. It was great funand appeared to be a success in improving all relationships.
Rosie and Phil shared information and I learned a lot aboutRosie’s life. It was important background for the difficult butessential task of developing a high level of empathy for oneperson in the world.
Rosie and I were on our way to New York, where being weirdis acceptable. That is a simplification of the rationale: in realitywhat was important for me was to be able to make a newstart with my new skills, new approach and new partner,without being held back by others’ perceptions of me –perceptions that I had not only deserved but encouraged.
Here in New York, I am working in the Department ofGenetics at Columbia University, and Rosie is in the first yearof the Doctor of Medicine programme. I am contributing toSimon Lefebvre’s research project remotely, as he insisted on itas a condition of providing funding. I consider it a form ofmoral payback for using the university’s equipment for theFather Project.
280/290We have an apartment in Williamsburg, not far from theEslers, whom we visit regularly. The Cellar Interrogation is nowa story that Isaac and I both tell on social occasions.
We are considering reproducing (or, as I would say in a socialencounter, ‘having children’). In order to prepare for thispossibility, Rosie has ceased smoking, and we have reduced ouralcohol intake³.
Fortunately we have numerous other activities to distract usfrom these addictive⁴ behaviours. Rosie and I work in a cocktailbar together three evenings a week. It is exhausting at times,but social and fun, and supplements my academic salary.
We listen to music. I have revised my approach to Bach, andam no longer trying to follow individual notes. It is moresuccessful, but my music tastes seem to have been locked in inmy teens. As a result of failing to make my own selections atthat time, my preferences are those of my father. I canadvance a well-reasoned argument that nothing worth listeningto was recorded after 1972. Rosie and I have that argumentfrequently. I cook, but reserve the meals of the StandardisedMeal System for dinner parties.
We are officially married. Although I had performed theromantic ritual with the ring, I did not expect Rosie, as amodern feminist⁵, to want to actually get married. The term‘wife’ in Wife Project had always meant ‘female life partner’.
But she decided⁶ that she should have‘one relationship in my life that was what it was supposed tobe’. That included monogamy and permanence. An excellentoutcome.
I am able to hug Rosie. This was the issue that caused me themost fear after she agreed to live with me. I generally findbody contact unpleasant, but sex is an obvious exception. Sexsolved the body contact problem. We are now also able to hugwithout having sex, which is obviously convenient at times.
Once a week, in order to deal with the demands of living withanother person, and to continue to improve my skills in thissphere, I spend281/290an evening in therapy. This is a small joke: my ‘therapist’ isDave and I provide reciprocal services to him. Dave is alsomarried and, considering that I am supposedly wired differently,our challenges are surprisingly similar. He sometimes bringsmale friends and colleagues from work, where he is arefrigeration engineer. We are all Yankees fans.
For some time, Rosie did not mention the Father Project. Iattributed this to the improved relationship with Phil and thedistraction of other activities. But, in the background, I wasprocessing some new information.
At the wedding, Dr Eamonn Hughes, the first person we hadtested, asked to speak to me privately⁷.
‘There’s something you should know,’ he said. ‘About Rosie’sfather.’
It seemed entirely⁸ plausible⁹ that Rosie’s mother’s closest friendfrom medical school would know the answer. Perhaps we hadonly needed to ask. But Eamonn was referring to somethingelse. He pointed¹⁰ to Phil.
‘Phil’s been a bit of a screw-up with Rosie.’
So it wasn’t only Rosie who thought Phil was a poor parent.
‘You know about the car accident?’
I nodded, although I had no detailed¹¹ information. Rosie hadmade it clear that she did not want to discuss it.
‘Bernadette was driving because Phil had been drinking.’
I had deduced that Phil was in the car.
‘Phil got out, with a broken pelvis, and pulled Rosie out.’
Eamonn paused. He was obviously distressed¹². ‘He pulled Rosieout first.’
This was truly an awful scenario¹³, but as a geneticist myimmediate thought was ‘of course’. Phil’s behaviour, in pain andunder extreme pressure, would surely have been instinctual.
Such life-and-death situations occur regularly in the animalkingdom and Phil’s choice was in line with theory andexperimental results. While he had presumably revisited thatmoment many times in his mind, and his later feelings282/290towards Rosie may have been severely¹⁴ affected¹⁵ by it, hisactions were consistent with the primitive¹⁶ drive to protect thecarrier of his genes¹⁷.
It was only later that I realised my obvious error. As Rosiewas not Phil’s biological daughter, such instincts would not havebeen applicable. I spent some time reflecting on the possibleexplanations for his behaviour. I did not share my thoughts orthe hypothesis I formed.
When I was established at Columbia, I requested permission touse the DNA¹⁸-testing facilities for a private investigation¹⁹. Theywere willing to let me do so. It would not have been aproblem if they had refused. I could have sent my remainingsamples to a commercial laboratory and paid a few hundreddollars for the tests. This option had been available to Rosiefrom the beginning of the Father Project. It is now obvious tome that I did not alert Rosie to that option because I wassubconsciously interested in a relationship with her even then.
Amazing!
I did not tell Rosie about the test. One day I just packed mybag with the samples that I had brought with me to NewYork.
I started with the paranoid plastic surgeon, Freyberg, who wasthe least likely candidate in my assessment²⁰. A green-eyed fatherwas not impossible, but there was no other evidence makinghim more probable than any of the previous candidates. Hisreluctance to send me a blood sample was explained by himbeing a generally suspicious and unhelpful person. Myprediction was correct.
I loaded Esler’s specimen²¹, a swab from a fork that hadtravelled more than halfway²² around the world and back again.
In his darkened basement, I had been certain he was Rosie’sfather. But afterwards I had come to the conclusion that hecould have been protecting a friend or the memory of a friend.
I wondered if Esler’s decision to become a psychiatrist²³ hadbeen influenced by the suicide of the best man at his wedding,Geoffrey Case.
I tested the sample. Isaac Esler was not Rosie’s father.
283/290I picked up Gene¹’s sample. My best friend. He was workinghard on his marriage. The map was no longer on his wallwhen I went in to submit my resignation to the Dean. But Ihad no recollection of seeing a pin in Ireland, Rosie’s mother’sbirthplace. There was no need to test the table napkin. I tossedit in the waste bin²⁴.
I had now eliminated every candidate except Geoffrey Case.
Isaac Esler had told me that he knew who Rosie’s father wasand that he was sworn to secrecy²⁵. Did Rosie’s mother – andEsler – not want Rosie to know that there was a family historyof suicide? Or perhaps a genetic² predisposition to mentalillness? Or that Geoffrey Case had possibly killed himself in thewake of the news that he was Rosie’s father and that hermother had decided to remain with Phil? These were all goodreasons – good enough that I considered it highly likely thatRosie’s mother’s one-night encounter had been with GeoffreyCase.
I reached into my bag and pulled out the DNA sample thatfate had delivered to me without Rosie’s knowledge. I was nowalmost certain that it would confirm my hypothesis as to herpaternity.
I cut a small portion of the cloth, poured over the reagent,and let it sit for a few minutes. As I watched the fabric²⁶ in theclear solution, and mentally reviewed the Father Project, Ibecame more and more confident in my prediction. I decidedthat Rosie should join me for this result, regardless of whetherI was right or wrong. I texted her. She was on campus andarrived a few minutes later. She immediately realised what Iwas doing.
I put the processed sample in the machine, and waited whilethe analysis proceeded. We watched the computer screentogether until the result came up. After all the blood-collecting,cheek-swabbing, cocktail-shaking, wall-climbing, glass-collecting,flying, driving, proposal-writing, urine-mopping, cup-stealing,fork-wiping, tissue-retrieving, toothbrush-stealing,hairbrush-cleaning and tear-wiping, we had a match.
284/290Rosie had wanted to know who her biological father was. Hermother had wanted the identity of the man she had sex with,perhaps only once, on an occasion of emotion-drivenrule-breaking, to remain a secret forever. I could now fulfil bothof their wishes.
I showed her the remains²⁷ of the blood-stained singlet fromJarman’s Gym with the sample square cut out of it. Therewould be no need to test the handkerchief that had wipedMargaret Case’s tears.
Ultimately, the entire father problem was caused by Gene. Healmost certainly taught the medical students an oversimplifiedmodel of the inheritance of common traits. If Rosie’s motherhad known that eye colour was not a reliable indicator²⁸ ofpaternity, and organised a DNA test to confirm her suspicions,there would have been no Father Project, no Great CocktailNight, no New York Adventure, no Reform Don Project – andno Rosie Project. Had it not been for this unscheduled seriesof events, her daughter and I would not have fallen in love.
And I would still be eating lobster²⁹ every Tuesday night.
Incredible.
AcknowledgmentsThe Rosie Project was written quickly. I poked³⁰ my head upfor just long enough to consult with my writer wife Anne,daughter Dominique and my novel-writing class at RMIT, ledby Michelle Aung Thin.
After being adopted by Text Publishing, the manuscriptbenefited enormously from the attentions of my editor, AlisonArnold, who understood exactly what I was aiming for, and thepassionate support of Michael Heyward and his team, inparticular Jane Novak, Kirsty Wilson, Chong Weng Ho andMichelle Calligaro. Anne Beilby’s efforts in bringing Rosie to theattention of international publishers have ensured that Don andRosie’s story will be told in thirty languages.
But the underlying³¹ story has a longer pedigree. It began as ascreenplay, developed during screenwriting studies at RMIT.
Anne, my son Daniel and I workshopped the original plotduring a walk in New Zealand. A work-up for the characterswas published as The Klara Project: Phase 1 in TheEnvelope Please in 2007 and I completed the first draft of thescreenplay, with a different plot and a nerdy Hungarian Klarainstead of Rosie, in 2008, having taken some time to decidethat it was a comedy rather than a drama. The story changedsignificantly over five years, very much for the better, and forthat I have to thank the many people who encouraged,criticised and pushed me not to be satisfied with what I had.
The faculty³² at RMIT taught me the principles of story-telling, aswell as offering specific advice on the script. Special mentionsare due to286/290Clare Renner, Head of School; Tim Ferguson, comedy legend;David Rapsey and Ian Pringle, seasoned film producers whodid not stint³³ on the tough love; and Boris Trbic who gave mean appreciation³⁴ for the screwball comedy. Cary Grant wouldhave made a perfect Don. Jo Moylan was my writing buddythrough a year of the most radical³⁵ changes. Making short filmswith the audiovisual students, under the leadership of RowanHumphrey and Simon Embury, taught me much about whatworked and what didn’t. As I watched my extraneous³⁶ dia-loguehit the digital equivalent of the cutting-room floor, I learned alot about writing economically. Kim Krejus of 16th Street ActorsStu-dio organised talented actors for an enlightening reading.
I am fortunate to belong to a talented and hard-workingwriters’
group: Irina Goundortseva, Steve Mitchell, Susannah Petty andMay Yeung. Rosie was regularly on the agenda, and Irina’senthusiasm for the short story was instrumental in my taking itfurther. Later, Heidi Winnen was the first person outside myfamily to suggest that the novel might have potential.
The script benefited from the astute³⁷ feedback of screenwritinggurus Steve Kaplan and Michael Hauge. Their involvement wasin turn made possible by Marcus West of Inscription³⁸ and theAustralian Writers’
Guild³⁹ who sponsored a prize for romantic comedy writing in2010.
Producers Peter Lee and Ros Walker and director John PaulFischbach also offered valuable criticism.
The path to publication began when The Rosie Project wonthe Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an unpublishedmanuscript in 2012, and I acknowledge the Victorian StateGovernment and the Wheeler Centre for sponsoring andadministering the award. I also thank the judges, Nick Gadd,Peter Mews, Zoe Dattner and Roderick Poole, for their bravechoice.
Many other people have supported Rosie and me on thesix-year journey from concept to published novel, notably⁴⁰ JonBackhouse,287/290Rebecca Carter, Cameron Clarke, Sara Cullen, Fran Cusworth,Barbara Gliddon, Amanda Golding, Vin Hedger, Kate Hicks,Amy Jasper, Noel Maloney, Brian McKenzie, Steve Melnikoff,Ben Michael, Helen O’Connell, Rebecca Peniston-Bird, AprilReeve, John Reeves, Sue and Chris Waddell, Geri and PeteWalsh, and my fellow students at RMIT.
Don’s lobster salad is based on a recipe from Teage Ezard’sContem-porary Australian Food. Perfect for a romanticevening on a balcony with a bottle of Drappier roséChampagne.

The End

1 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

2 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

3 intake   

n.吸入，纳入；进气口，入口

参考例句：

• Reduce your salt intake.减少盐的摄入量。
• There was a horrified intake of breath from every child.所有的孩子都害怕地倒抽了一口凉气。

4 addictive   

adj.(吸毒等)使成瘾的，成为习惯的

参考例句：

• The problem with video game is that they're addictive.电子游戏机的问题在于它们会使人上瘾。
• Cigarettes are highly addictive.香烟很容易使人上瘾。

5 feminist   

adj.主张男女平等的，女权主义的

参考例句：

• She followed the feminist movement.她支持女权运动。
• From then on,feminist studies on literature boomed.从那时起，男女平等受教育的现象开始迅速兴起。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

8 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

9 plausible   

adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的

参考例句：

• His story sounded plausible.他说的那番话似乎是真实的。
• Her story sounded perfectly plausible.她的说辞听起来言之有理。

10 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

11 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

12 distressed   

痛苦的

参考例句：

• He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑，无法回答他们的问题。
• The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。

13 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

14 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

15 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

16 primitive   

adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物

参考例句：

• It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
• His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。

17 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

18 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。

19 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

20 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

21 specimen   

n.样本，标本

参考例句：

• You'll need tweezers to hold up the specimen.你要用镊子来夹这标本。
• This specimen is richly variegated in colour.这件标本上有很多颜色。

22 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

23 psychiatrist   

n.精神病专家；精神病医师

参考例句：

• He went to a psychiatrist about his compulsive gambling.他去看精神科医生治疗不能自拔的赌瘾。
• The psychiatrist corrected him gently.精神病医师彬彬有礼地纠正他。

24 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

25 secrecy   

n.秘密，保密，隐蔽

参考例句：

• All the researchers on the project are sworn to secrecy.该项目的所有研究人员都按要求起誓保守秘密。
• Complete secrecy surrounded the meeting.会议在绝对机密的环境中进行。

26 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。

27 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

28 indicator   

n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• His left-hand indicator is flashing.他左手边的转向灯正在闪亮。

29 lobster   

n.龙虾，龙虾肉

参考例句：

• The lobster is a shellfish.龙虾是水生贝壳动物。
• I like lobster but it does not like me.我喜欢吃龙虾，但它不适宜于我的健康。

30 poked   

v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 )；戳出；拨弄；与（某人）性交

参考例句：

• She poked him in the ribs with her elbow. 她用胳膊肘顶他的肋部。
• His elbow poked out through his torn shirt sleeve. 他的胳膊从衬衫的破袖子中露了出来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

31 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

32 faculty   

n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员

参考例句：

• He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。
• He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。

33 stint   

v.节省，限制，停止；n.舍不得化，节约，限制；连续不断的一段时间从事某件事

参考例句：

• He lavished money on his children without stint.他在孩子们身上花钱毫不吝惜。
• We hope that you will not stint your criticism.我们希望您不吝指教。

34 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

35 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

36 extraneous   

adj.体外的；外来的；外部的

参考例句：

• I can choose to ignore these extraneous thoughts.我可以选择无视这些外来的想法。
• Reductant from an extraneous source is introduced.外来的还原剂被引进来。

37 astute   

adj.机敏的，精明的

参考例句：

• A good leader must be an astute judge of ability.一个优秀的领导人必须善于识别人的能力。
• The criminal was very astute and well matched the detective in intelligence.这个罪犯非常狡猾，足以对付侦探的机智。

38 inscription   

n.（尤指石块上的）刻印文字，铭文，碑文

参考例句：

• The inscription has worn away and can no longer be read.铭文已磨损，无法辨认了。
• He chiselled an inscription on the marble.他在大理石上刻碑文。

39 guild   

n.行会，同业公会，协会

参考例句：

• He used to be a member of the Writers' Guild of America.他曾是美国作家协会的一员。
• You had better incorporate the firm into your guild.你最好把这个公司并入你的行业协会。

40 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。