Astray

01 / Interview

Change was about to take place.

Emerson could feel it; every step she took on her walk to the library felt more adventurous than ever. The leaves were fading from light green to yellow, and it was finally acceptable to wear a sweatshirt outside without anyone demanding to know how she wasn't sweating to death.

Though she hated cliches, Emerson knew that today was a turning point in her life; or, at the very least, she was determined to make it one. As she made her away across town, she hoped deep down that some observant resident of Santoville might ask her why she had such a spring in her step.

She couldn't get too far ahead of herself; not yet, not before she met with the interviewer and threw everything she had to offer out on the table. She had to do well today.

After trudging her way through Upper Lake and barely surviving community college, Emerson had been granted permission to move out of her parents' house, find a small apartment, and begin life as an independent woman.

For almost 10 months, this arrangement was not all that Emerson had thought it would be, despite her elation to finally be free of her family's grasp. She was working three jobs plus occasional freelance photography on the side, and still had to ask for money multiple times—which meant enduring hours and hours of lecture about how she wasn't mature enough and she should just move back in.

Two weeks ago, however, she had come upon a job opportunity—no, the job opportunity. "Looking for adventure-loving photographers to join a team of researchers in the Arctic Circle", the poster read. She couldn't think of a more perfect escape. Emerson liked the cold enough but she loved photography, and she would sell her left arm for the chance to get away from this city and the complete nothingness it had to offer.

And so, the past three weeks had been pure chaos—the best kind of adrenaline—as Emerson searched blog after blog and book after book to find "Résumé Tips for Beginners" and "How to Get Your Dream Job 101" until she had put together an application that she couldn't be prouder of. Even her parents admitted that it was a decent idea.

She had submitted the application on the very last day, in true Emerson-style, and for a week or so she didn't hear back. Last Wednesday, however, a letter had arrived, bringing news surely sent from angels above: "Congratulations! You are being considered for this program. Please reply ASAP regarding your availability next week for a final interview."

Emerson still found her luck hard to believe as she made her way up the steps of the library towards the study rooms, where today she was finally meeting with a representative from the program. Although it was essentially a job interview, she tried not to be too nervous; having practiced a lot during her parents' many lectures, Emerson knew she had a talent for "talking her way to the top", and she was sure that this meeting wouldn't be any different. Today, things were going to change. This was going to be the next chapter of her life.

Felix Holloway, however, had other plans.

• • • • •

The day that Felix first saw Emerson was, in his mind, their anniversary. He had even told his family and friends about it, and they were elated to hear that Felix finally had a girlfriend. He didn't mind glossing over a few details (such as the fact that they had yet to kiss, to hold hands, or to really meet), and either way, his friends' opinions weren't too important. His family understood.

Felix relived the day over and over in his mind: the way the coffee shop had smelled, the acoustic cover of "If I Die Young" playing in the background (which surely would be their wedding song), the first time they made eye contact, and the conversation that had ignited the fire within him.