Living In The End: April

Chapter 1

A girl was laying on her back on a patch of artificial grass. Her face, illuminated by the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves overhead, bore an expression of tranquil contemplation. Her eyes were closed as she dozed off; away from reality. Her arms were spread out from the sides as if she was making a snow angel on the soft grass. The emerald blades seemed to cradle her, their feathery touch a soft contrast to the firmness of the earth below. Her attire, a harmonious palette of Martian hues, standing out in the surrounding landscape, as if she were a patch of red roses in a meadow.

"Pril!" a woman called from the building beside the grass.

"Yes, Mother?" The girl, April, shouted back but her eyes didn't budge.

"Lunch is ready!"

"Coming!" April slowly got up and abandoned the warmth of the front garden of her house. When she stepped inside the cozy structure, a delicious smell flowed into the girl's nostrils.

"What are you making, Mother?" April asked as she closed the door.

"Some old Earth dishes!" Shay called back from the kitchen. Of course! April thought mentally.

"Why are you so obsessed with Earth?" April asked, walking into the kitchen. She could never understand why both of her parents were obsessed with the Fallen Planet; even she wasn't this captivated by the planet!

"I was born there," Shay appeared in the kitchen doorway with a tray of dishes. "It's natural for me to miss my home."

"What are these?" April asked, taking a seat.

"Dim sum," Shay said as she placed the dishes on the table. "Your father loves them."

"But they look different from the ones you used to make," April looked questioningly at her mother. Unless her memories were playing tricks, she was certain that today's meal looked different from the last time.

"There are different types," Shay replied.

Blowing out the steam, April bit into a white bun, and her eyes instantly widened in astonishment. "I can see why Father loves them!" she exclaimed.

"Here," Shay laid another dish in front of April before sitting beside her. "Your father and brother are going to be a little late."

"Why?" April looked up, midway through chewing the white bun.

"They were called to an urgent meeting," Shay explained.

"Urgent?" April echoed. Except when something was really dire, they would never call for an urgent meeting. This news made April's hair bristled uneasily.

"I'm sure it's nothing serious," Shay soothed, as if she read April's thoughts. "It's probably the higher-ups have some questions about their latest project."

"Oh," April poked at her food.'Their job', she thought bitterly, it's always about it.

"Is everything all right?" Shay asked, concerned.

"Yeah, it's just..." April sighed, "I'm worried about them. You never know what mission they are going to go on!"

"I understand," Shay sighed. "But, we should be proud of them. Now," the woman smiled, "how about we talk about you?"

"What about me?"

"The end of the school year is in a few weeks and you will have to choose what you want to be."

"I haven't decided yet," April looked at her cup of suddenly very interesting tea, the bitterness washing over her once more.

"What?" Shay looked at the girl in disbelief. "You should have decided that ages ago! Plus," she lowered the volume of her voice, "I thought you said you wanted to be a pilot."