The Solar Towers Ch. 10 (Patreon)

Chapter Ten: The Activation Day

“Just hold me for a little while, okay?”

The words swam in my memory.

My fingers tingled a little. My lips more so. We’d kissed. More accurately, she’d kissed me. I’d been too stunned to move for a few seconds. And now I felt empty. Lost. As if half my life had been torn away. In a very real sense, I supposed it had. 

Five years? Five years until I could see her again?

For the first time in my life, I absolutely hated Tellroan. There had been many nights when I was younger and wondered what Mom was doing? Why she had to be gone so often, and those mysteries had never really been assuaged. But I’d never been so resentful as I felt now. 

Mom came back almost every day, at least. April wouldn’t, and I didn’t even get the satisfaction of knowing why. She was just gone. Poof. Out of my life forever. She wouldn’t even be at the activation ceremony late tonight. 

She’d be too busy running tests or something. I didn’t actually have any idea. All I could do was let my imagination fill in the gaps. Was she scared? Worried? Was she missing me as much as I was her? I bit my tongue and clenched my fist in an effort to avoid letting tears fall. She was my best friend! 

‘Is. She is my best friend,’ I thought firmly.

I felt a little guilty, shorting Monroe in my head. I’d known him longer after all, but we weren’t as quite close as April and I had been. Were. I suspected he felt the same way. Sudden anger bubbled in my thoughts as I noticed Monroe’s absence yesterday as well. Where had he been all day yesterday? He hadn’t reminded me of my date, but he’d known April was leaving, where as I had just been kicked in the face with it. 

I wasn’t really sure what I’d expected, but her parents had asked me to leave when they’d both gotten home around two in the morning. I sort of understood. I was a very close friend but not the same as family. April would be leaving them behind, too. 

On the upside, they weren’t destitute anymore. There was usually a generous stipend allotted to families of Tellroan employees able to see Sunsoul. I didn’t know the details. What I did know was that the chance of getting a job at Tellroan if you couldn’t see Sunsoul was practically nil.

My goals hadn’t changed though. Where before I was pretty sure I wanted to work for Tellroan, now I had a burning passion to get into that building. My dreams of being a teacher fell by the wayside, supplanted by my desire to stay with April. Somehow.

I went through the remainder of the night in a sort of numb stupor. Hours dragged by as I sat, staring at the television, hearing and seeing nothing. Almost before I knew it, morning had come. Eight fourty. Eight fourty one. Eight fourty two... 

Mom was gone. With the activation set for one in the morning, she would probably be gone for the next few days. It wouldn’t be the first time, but it would definitely be the most important. I didn’t know what she did there but I knew today was big for her. A chance to meet Scarlatti herself? Mom would be over the moon. 

I still wasn’t exactly sure why she didn’t want me at the Activation ceremony. She’d seemed almost worried about it. But the alternative was going to Haley’s party, where I’d have to explain why I’d bolted on her the other day. 

Then again, Monroe would be there, and I could really use a friend to talk to. Maybe to yell at. How the fuck could he have not told me? How… 

Dammit. 

My phone buzzed in my pocket, jolting me out of my numb stupor. I looked at it and blinked in surprise as it showed me a positively ridiculous amount of missed calls and text messages. Nine messages and thirteen missed calls.

“Speak of the Devil,” I murmured to myself and answered the newest, shocked at how distant I must’ve been to have not noticed my phone before. 

“Monroe,” I said sharply, feeling a sudden burst of anger at my friend.

“Hey. Ah, how’s things?” Monroe stammered awkwardly. 

My eye twitched a little. “Been better Monroe. Been better. The fuck, man?”

I could practically hear my friend wince apologetically. “She asked me not to say anything Bran. She didn’t… I didn’t really want to tell you anyway.”

“So, you figured leaving me in the dark was the better idea, hmm? Fuck you man! Fuck you!” I screamed, before throwing the phone across the room. The damn thing didn’t even dent, and I hissed in dissatisfaction, hearing the minute sound of Monroe’s hollow apologies on the other end.

Even as I raged inwardly, I knew it wasn’t his fault. It was mine. I should’ve spent more time with April, but I didn’t. I’d forgotten her and wasted what little time we’d had. I should’ve spent more time helping her get her scholarship. Maybe if I had, then…

No. There was no use running my thoughts in circles like that. April was going to be one of Tellroan’s permanent workers. The mystery workers. The ones who tended to cut off all ties to the rest of the world and devote themselves to whichever tower they’d been employed at entirely. 

Something was still strange though. Even the people who could see Sunsoul were usually allowed to keep in touch. What could be so important, so dire, to convince her to remain in complete isolation from her family? For years?