Filled with anticipation, Oliver placed his hand under the lamp. Then he held his breath and very carefully, very slowly, laid the small square of fabric upon it.

Sure enough, before his very eyes, a small square in the middle of his palm disappeared from sight.

Oliver yelped and drew back. It was an instinctive reaction to a bizarre experience. His mind couldnt comprehend how part of his hand had disappeared, even though he knew exactly how the science added up. It just seemed far too much like magic for his poor mind to accept.

His yelp must have alerted Lucas, because suddenly he appeared at the door. He was holding a tray with a plate of toast upon it.

I hope you got a good nights sleep, he said roughly. Ive got some work for you to do today.

Oliver was on such a high from his invention he couldnt conceal the enormous grin on his face.

What are you smiling about? Lucas challenged. Were going to be very busy today. Its hard work. Tough. You think thats funny?

Still grinning, Oliver shook his head. Is Armando back? he asked politely.

Lucas looked suspicious. His eyes darted to the messy desk, the open textbook, and all the additional electronic components Oliver had been working with.

Yes. Why? he said with narrowed eyes.

Though Lucas wasnt the person he wanted to get validation from, Oliver couldnt help but blurt out his achievement.

Because I did it! I invented invisibility!

Far from looking impressed, Lucas glowered.

Show me, he snapped.

Oliver was still so thrilled by having solved it, he readily showed Lucas the square of fabric under the light, and the way it made a matching see-through square in the palm of his hand.

It buzzes, Oliver explained, because of the current, which is a bit of a giveaway. So theres still work to be done. But in terms of solving the first hurdle, well, Ive done it.

He still couldnt quite believe hed solved something that had eluded inventors for so long.

Huh, Lucas said. Well, hand it here then. Ill give it to Armando. He doesnt want to be disturbed this morning. His day was very stressful yesterday and hes tired.

Instinctively, Oliver tightened his fist around the square of fabric. Id like to show him myself, he refuted.

Lucas sighed loudly. Look, boy, I need you on the factory floor. Theres some sweeping to be done. I promise you Ill show this to Armando as soon as hes free.

Sweeping? Oliver asked, disgusted.

Yes, Lucas replied sternly. Factory work is forty percent inventions and sixty percent cleaning up the mess.

Oliver was caught in a bind. On the one hand he didnt want to disappoint Armando by not doing the work that he was actually assigned to do, but on the other hand he really would much rather spend the entire day sewing another tiny square on the invisibility coat than sweeping the floors!