In four short years I have done the impossible. I've succeeded in meeting my fathers high expectations and I've even done things he isn't allowed to know about- things superseding his high security clearance. Today I completed a crucial part of consolidating the city's grip over the colonies: I eliminated an insect that had been slowly gnawing away at our power for decades. Now we are stronger- like a bale of hay tied together: bundled and compressed into something as hard as wood.
After a long day at work I came home and made myself a strong, bitter cup of tea; gulping it down. Then I read my news feed on my paper dyptych for a while, until I found myself reading the same thing over again. I did some more reading until it was time to go to bed. Work was so easy today and also extremely satisfying. I almost fell sleep smiling, but a buzz brought me back, and pulled me out of the sleep I sas drifting into. I stumbled for my phone and sat up, jamming an earpiece into my ear and squinting at the blue screen which illuminated my black room. My dumb smile had long fled my face. It was that girl. I composed myself and answered the call.
"Hello, who is this?"
"It's me, Foster Lee. I called the number you gave me but they said it wasn't right and connected me in through to here"
"That's my work number" I said, which is sort of true. I was becoming a bit impatient. What did she want?
Bewildered, she answered with a simple "oh...".
There was silence, and all I could hear was her breathing crackling lightly through the line. It was like a warm blanket around me. I pictured the nanophone picking up sound in her jaw and sending coded sound waves to her bracelet...which sends it to a router, which relays the beam up to a satellite in space, and is beamed back down to me. All this invisible light. All this data and invisible information makes the world what it is. It felt like it really was connecting us. I stared at my grey-blue wall through the ambient half-light of my phone. It was like I was trying to see her in the craggly grey paint.
"What is it?" I asked "Are you okay?" I regretted saying that the very next moment because I could clearly hear in her voice that she was on the verge of tears. I hate crying.
"Yeah. It's...It's just I feel so alone, and I feel so small and afraid, and I'm out of my depth. Why were you there when they made me do that speech? I saw you. I don't know. I think I made a mistake..."
I have to stay patient and calm and respond to her correctly. I can't sabotage this with a stupId mistake so I waited and said nothing.
"...I think...I don't know... It's just... You're my only friend. Can we meet up at the cafe again sometime..." This made me smile.
"...to have a chat face to face" She was still in my control.
