CLOUD NINE

Chapter 11

NINA

Nina felt a burst of cool air just as soon as she passed the security check post at the Cloud One airport. The entire place looked spic and span. Large monitors, automated glass doors, and sleek furniture dotted the lounge on one side. Even the vendors sitting at the stalls seemed better dressed than the people that arrived by the same plane as her. The cloud screamed aristocracy.

Nina gathered her backpack where she had brought some basic minimum articles necessary for her week long stay, and strode to the outside.

Tall buildings obstructed her view of the sky. The CloudWay was milling with people.

She waved at the nearest CloudBus which was over crowded. Somehow squeezing herself in, she managed to hang on to the railing without fainting from the obnoxious smell of sweat mixed with perfume. The streets were lined with posh stores and glass windows. Swift black jet-cars with tinted windows sped by. Pedestrians seemed to mainly consist of people who came to the Cloud for work. Obviously the aristocrats wouldn't walk on the streets.

'MANHATTAN STREET' the motor generated system announced in a singsong voice. She swiped her transport pass and thankfully shoved her way out. The bus spit her on the nearest footpath and honked away. She whipped out her phone and checked her navigations.

The weather was pleasant. Neither too cold nor warm. If she looked closely at the sky she could see tiny grids which were a part of the weather controlling mechanism in place for the whole cloud.

The house of Mr Martin was unmistakable with an ornate portico and a couple of jet-cars parked right in front of the building, consuming a portion of the footpath. It seemed the neighbors didn't mind him taking up so much public space. That meant her employer had quite an influence around the area. The three story structure had the front of the building completely set in frosted glass which formed intricate patterns as they swirled in the shapes of giant lotuses.

"You aren't supposed to ogle at houses you can't afford."

Nina turned around at the sound to find a man who looked like he had just gotten out of the dumpster. His clothes stank of sweat and thin white lines of dried sweat were visible in the most obnoxious way. His face was nothing distinct, just one of the common faces you meet in a crowd. His hair was unkempt and hanging at his shoulders and he hadn't shaved.

"Excuse me but I work here," she huffed.

"Excuse me but I work here too," he copied her tone with disgust and pushed past her to the wrought iron gate, wrenching it open, "Welcome to the hellhole!" he announced and whistled away.

Was that the company Nina was going to have in the servant's quarter? She wasn't so positive about the job now but her brain knew the amount of money at stake. She could endure two weeks in this smelly shithole just to get that money. She had seen worse when they used to live in the artist's district back in West Birmingham. She shuddered, pushing back the old memories. "Time for a fresh start," she mumbled, making her way into the neatly manicured lawns.

In a few hours, Nina had gotten to know her employer and had a rough estimate of what she wanted to do for each room. She jotted down a list of the supplies needed for her work and quickly deposited it at the table of Mr Martin's secretary, Seema. Seema seemed like the only decent person in the entire building. She was soft-spoken and moderately dressed, unlike the other servants who looked like escorts. They hitched their skirts a little too high and wore their shirts with the top three buttons open, their ample cleavage on display. They didn't pass any opportunity to flirt with the men, be it the servants or the clients.

Nina, however, had the liberty to choose her own dresses so she chose comfortable palazzo pants and a starched shirt. Her head was swimming with ideas about the decors and how she'd make her mark on the employer and earn a place in his good books. At the end of six hours and two meals with four cups of coffee, she finally settled on the hard mattress of her room.

The room was tiny. The bathroom was common for the staff. The rooms were divided into male and female wings and Nina had a weird sense of being back in her hostel dorm again. The boys used to creep into their dorms at midnight and have nice hot sex with the girls and leave before the matron even stirred in her sleep. She smiled at the thought, turned over and dialled the first name on her contact list.

The other side picked up at the second ring and a deep male voice chuckled at the other end.

"Finally remembered me?"

"Can't believe I'm saying this but I miss you, asshole," she sighed.

"Miss you too bitch, " he crooned, "How was your first day there?"

"Work is tiring. The men are all zombies and most women behave like hoes" she groaned.

"Ahh. It's okay. Two weeks it is. Focus on your work, tiny lady."

"You too big man. How's everything back at
..." she paused. "Home."

It was still difficult to call that Cloud as home but it would be her home for the rest of her life. She knew it in her heart.

"Not great." Ash sighed from the other end. "The ElectroBot came again. Two dead, five injured. You know medical facilities are a hoax on this cloud. On top of that, the weather is stormy. The winds are at one twenty miles."

"I wouldn't know. The entire fucking cloud is air-conditioned, " she remarked.

"I've stayed there, Nina. I know. I effing stayed in a home bigger than the one you're working in."

"I know Ash. I know..."

A comfortable silence hung between them. She liked the feel of having him on the other side. It felt like cuddling from a distance. Ash had given up a life of luxury on Cloud One for his passions and he was risking his life every day as a patrol and yet he had no regrets.

Nina silently kissed the receiver of her phone.

"Got the kissie," he laughed.