Rediscover

Part 1

          Dawn was Eve's favorite time of day. The time where everything was fresh and new, the sun streaking hues of pink and gold through fluffy white clouds, no feet traffic, no cars honking; just Eve, her thoughts and the birds, a perfect combination for productivity. Usually Eve was already out of her door before first light, driving to work, and enjoying the peace and tranquility before the hustle and bustle of the hospital. Today, however, was the young nurse's day off and she instead found herself enjoying the sunrise lounging on the fire escape balcony with a chipped mug of tea sending cascades of steam around her face. Her apartment was a petite home perched above one of the many small businesses of her town. It was minimalistic, containing only a living room that doubled into a kitchen, and a bedroom with a bathroom connected; a perfect dorm for a college student who was interning in a neighboring town. While there were locations closer to the hospital to room in, Eve felt at home in Puente Antiguo, along with the fact that one of her childhood friends had also taken residence in the isolated community. A friend, Eve recalled, that had sent her a text the other day that she should come down on her free day for a 'shock of a life time.' The young nurse drained her tea and watched as the last of the morning mist dissipated in the scorching New Mexico sun before climbing back through the window. After searching what seemed to be her whole wardrobe, Eve finally uncovered clothes that weren't scrubs and fixed her dark brown hair into a tight braid to keep the desert heat at bay. Down on the street the quiet of dawn had worn off to be replaced with the murmur of a slowly waking town. Signs on home-owned businesses began flipping from 'closed' to 'open', and a small crowd could already be seen growing in a nearby diner as the waitresses flew from table to table, defying gravity with the amount of plates they stacked in their hands. Eve leisurely made her way down the main - and only - street of town until she arrived at her destination. Before her stood a large rundown gas station, perhaps once a colorful and bright building, but now rusted and showing its age. Inside, however, seemed anything but old. The building, now owned by one of Eve's closest friends, was filled to the brim with high tech science equipment. Through the large windows multiple computer monitors could be seen flashing data and printing out stacks of statistics, and tables seemed so full of machines that they could collapse at any second. Eve stepped through the front door, which was fittingly held open by some random device, and called out:

          "Knock, knock! Anyone home?" In one of the corners a person who had been studying a bulletin board whirled toward the entryway. 

          "Eve, perfect! I need your help, come here and grab those infrared images on your way." Eve tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and rolled her eyes. 

          "I'm here for less than a minute and already you put me to work." She expertly wove her way through the maze of tables and snatched a pile of pictures from a nearby printer. "Why do I even come here on my days off?" The woman grinned at this and began to pin the images on the board before her, joining already many other regular pictures and papers full of equations. 

          "Oh shush, you know you love it." The scientist had finished placing the last of her papers and stepped back. "Well? I need your thoughts on this." Eve joined her friend and leaned onto one of the many office chairs scattered throughout the lab. 

          "Jane, are you still trying to figure out those electric storms?" Jane ran a hand through her hair, making it shimmer like gold in the sunlight from a nearby window

          "Yes! They've been occurring sporadically and no one knows why, but look what I've found." She reached up and tugged a loose paper from its pin and held it out to Eve as if it was the most precious treasure in the world. The nurse curiously studied the equation before her, eyes slowly widening in wonder.