Raj immediately sent an email back to Paige, inviting her to come to the university for an interview as soon as possible. That afternoon, he received a reply from Paige, saying that she would be available to come to the school for an interview the following day.
In the evening, as soon as Raj got home and had barely set down his briefcase, he received a video call from the Koothrappali couple. His parents' faces filled the screen with their characteristic expressions of parental determination.
"Rajesh, we have found a good marriage partner for you," Mrs. Koothrappali announced with a triumphant smile. "Do you still remember Lalita Gupta?"
Raj was slightly taken aback, his mind racing through memories. Soon he remembered this girl from his childhood. In the show, Lalita Gupta had appeared in the eighth episode of the first season as the blind date arranged by the Koothrappali couple for Rajesh. At the time, Raj was still suffering from selective mutism, and only drinking alcohol could relieve his symptoms enough to be able to talk to women. But once he drank too much, he was prone to losing his temper and talking nonsense. On that disastrous evening, he had become intoxicated and behaved inappropriately, which made Lalita Gupta very unhappy. Coupled with Sheldon being a terrible teammate and interfering from the sidelines, Raj's first blind date had ended in complete failure.
Actually, Lalita Gupta's credentials were quite impressive. Not only was she very beautiful, but she was also a top student in dentistry at the University of Southern California. The profession of dentist, whether in the United States or India, commanded a very high income and enjoyed considerable social status. Moreover, her family was also of the aristocratic class, and her father was a golf friend of Dr. Koothrappali. The two men often made appointments to play golf together at their exclusive country club. Therefore, Lalita Gupta, regardless of education, professional standing, or family wealth, belonged to the same social circle as Raj, and they were very compatible on paper. If he could successfully court her and make her his wife, he believed he would be very satisfied with the match.
Thinking of this, Raj nodded slowly. "Of course I remember her. Lalita Gupta—her father often played golf with you, Papa."
"Yes, exactly! I discussed it with her father, and he has agreed to your marriage," Dr. Koothrappali said with a satisfied nod and smile. "So, Rajesh, you must seize this opportunity. If everything goes well, next spring you can officially get married, just in time to avoid the rainy season."
"Papa, didn't I tell you that I agree with you helping me arrange blind dates, but whether I can get married or not, I have to make that decision myself after dating," Raj immediately objected, his voice firm but respectful.
"We all know that, beta. We're not forcing you to get married next spring. You can date and see first how things develop," Dr. Koothrappali quickly explained, his tone softening.
"Okay, all right then," Raj nodded, somewhat mollified, and then wrote down the contact information for Lalita Gupta that his parents provided.
After getting Lalita's contact information, Raj didn't call immediately since it was already late at night in California, and he wasn't sure of her schedule. He saved the phone number in his contacts, then took a shower and went to bed.
The next morning, after arriving at work and settling into his office, Raj called Lalita. The phone was connected after just two rings.
"Hi, Lalita, this is Rajesh Koothrappali," Raj introduced himself with a smile in his voice.
"Hi, Rajesh! I was about to call you, but you called first," Lalita said, sounding genuinely surprised and pleased.
"I think this is probably fate," Raj said smoothly. "Listen, I remember when we were young, you used to throw Kalakand sweets at me and call me 'untouchable.'"
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry! That was all when I was a child," Lalita couldn't help laughing at the memory. When you're young, who doesn't do a few ridiculous things?
"It's okay, really. Water under the bridge," Raj said with a warm laugh. "It's just funny that our parents actually want to match us up now, after all these years."
"Yes, it is quite ironic," Lalita agreed, also somewhat moved by the symmetry of it all. She hadn't expected that her parents would arrange her marriage with Rajesh, of all people. And she had heard from her parents that this boy from back then was doing quite well for himself now. A planet he had discovered just a few days ago had attracted media reports from all over the world, which had definitely piqued her interest in reconnecting with him.
"Lalita, can we make an appointment to meet in person?" Raj asked hopefully.
"Okay, I'm free on Friday night," Lalita agreed without hesitation.
"Perfect! I know an Italian restaurant that has excellent food. Would that work for you?" Raj suggested with growing confidence.
"Sounds great—I love Italian food," Lalita confirmed enthusiastically.
"Wonderful! Then it's settled. Let's meet at Reno's Pizzeria & Restaurant on St. Granville Avenue at six o'clock on Friday night. I'm looking forward to it," Raj said warmly.
"Me too. See you Friday," Lalita replied.
Just after finishing his phone conversation with Lalita, Raj received another call, this time from Paige. She had already arrived at Caltech and was trying to find his office. Raj immediately gave her his office address and carefully explained the route through the maze-like physics building.
A few moments later, Raj heard a knock on his office door. He walked over and opened it, and was greeted by the sight of a beautiful young woman with delicate features, blonde hair, blue eyes, and an elegant figure standing in the doorway. In the corridor behind her, there were dozens of male graduate students and postdocs lingering about. All of them had coincidentally found reasons to be in this particular hallway, staring at her intently, their faces displaying varying degrees of fascination and awkward interest.
Raj was slightly taken aback by the spectacle, then had to suppress a smile. It seemed that his potential new assistant was quite charming indeed.
"Are you Miss Paige Swanson?" Raj asked professionally, stepping aside. "Please, come in."
"Yes, I am," the young woman nodded with a friendly smile. "Thank you, Dr. Koothrappali."
She stepped gracefully into the office. As she moved forward, all the men in the corridor unconsciously followed her movement, like iron filings attracted by a powerful magnet. Raj glanced at the gathering crowd with amusement, then closed the door firmly with a slight smirk on his face.
"Oh, no!" came a collective wail of disappointment from the corridor.
"Miss Swanson, please have a seat. Would you like some coffee?" Raj asked cordially, gesturing to the chair across from his desk.
"Please, call me Paige," the young woman said with easy confidence as she settled into the chair. "And yes, thank you. Coffee would be lovely."
"You're welcome," Raj smiled, then walked to his coffee machine and began preparing a cup for her. This particular coffee machine had been purchased with his scientific research funds under the somewhat creative banner of "auxiliary scientific research equipment," and it had cost a full three thousand dollars. But it made excellent coffee, which he felt was essential for long research sessions.
"Thank you. The coffee smells wonderful," Paige said appreciatively as she accepted the cup and took a sip. "Mm, and it tastes even better."
"I'm glad you have good taste," Raj smiled, then sat down across from her and adopted a more businesslike demeanor. "Now, Paige, I see from your CV that you have a master's degree in mathematical physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology."
"Yes, that's correct," Paige nodded.
"Well, I've reviewed your academic record, and your grades in school were excellent. I was particularly impressed by your master's thesis—'Research on the Limitation of the Gauge Field in String Theory Using the Rotation Curve of Galaxies and the Abnormal Precession of Planets' Perihelion.' Both the methodology and conclusions were very impressive," Raj said thoughtfully.
Paige's thesis involved astrophysics, string theory, advanced mathematics, and many other complex fields. Judging from the quality and depth of this thesis, her scientific research capabilities were quite high. And since Raj's quantum navigation system project, as well as the "Super Asymmetry Theory" research he was involved in, were also intimately related to string theory, mathematics, and astrophysics, he genuinely needed the assistance of someone with talents in these specific areas. Paige seemed to fit his requirements perfectly.
"Thank you, Dr. Koothrappali. I'm glad you found it worthwhile," Paige said modestly.
"However," Raj continued, his tone becoming more serious, "whether it's good grades or an excellent thesis, those are accomplishments of the past. What matters now is your current ability to think and problem-solve. So I still need to test your capabilities in real-time." He reached for a notepad on his desk. "I'd like you to work through this equation for me."
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