Beyond the Galaxy

Chapter 4 - Darkness Aflame

Lottie's Point of View

The conference was lengthy and productive. I presented my ideas to the very details that I had planned for. Uncle Lyle asked questions by means of clarification and logistics. We shared a busy discussion of the upcoming project that snatched our time away in the blink of an eye. Actually, the concept of time had completely slipped my mind while the debate progressed. It was only after my uncle first glanced up at the clock at the wall that I remembered that we were bound to a schedule. Six thirty in the evening had arrived, even inching past it. We had long past my shift end at six and just barely passed his. It was time for us to wrap up and head home to wind down for the night.

My office door was the first along the hall, though I made a detour to the second one down to check on Digby. His shift end was the same as mine, six o'clock, so he might have already left by now. If not, I could lighten up the evening a little more by giving him a squeeze goodbye. When I found his office dark through the glass window fixed into the door as a result of him having locked up already, I returned to my office to do the same. I shut down the computer at my desk with a long press of the button at the back, unhinged my puffy pink coat from its place draped over the back of my chair, and shrugged my arms into it. As it was the middle of May with pleasantly warm breezes, a winter coat wasn't needed, although it kept me at ease to understand that I was prepared.

The door to my uncle's office across the hall swung open just as I was locking up my own. He locked his door while I zipped up my jacket to wait politely. As I watched him, his head bowed in his careful work, I sensed the deepening drowsy aura of a day that was winding down. He had nothing to say on his way out today, but neither did I. We accompanied each other in a quiet walk to descend to the first floor, shut off the light system at the door, and ducked back into the outside world for the final time tonight.

The pale blue skies of morning stuck around late, given the time of year. It was somewhere around a quarter to seven when we first set off from the building for the night and yet, our journey was still considerably lit. We shuffled across salmon-pink pathways amidst a show of low hedge walls leading out from the HHDA and proceeded on our way home. We followed sidewalks, crossed under arching tree branches, and took a few familiar turns on our way back home. Well, maybe familiar wasn't quite the right word—I had memorized every single square inch of it over the years.

We arrived at my doorstep. As the dark of night hadn't yet come around to close the day, the lamp overhanging my black front door didn't glow to show us the way. Not a sound stirred around us as Uncle Lyle unlocked the door—Somehow not tugging it tight enough the first time and trying again—And allowed us into the room. I closely followed him inside, succumbing to a sort of surge of relief when my eyes laid upon the direct sights as my uncle shut the door after us.

We had a very cozy little house, very welcoming. The satisfaction from arriving at home didn't stem from any kind of reluctance to attend work. The HHDA was almost a second home to be, given the wide number of hours that I spent there on a daily basis. But this was also the same reason that finding myself home kindled the relaxation. It was a treat to be here, considering I only spent three or four hours here while I was awake. I tried to count once for no reason other than boredom.

As Uncle Lyle restricted himself to the kitchen to prepare our dinner, I decided that I wanted to lie down and take a breather. Steam rising from a tall, bubbling pot already heavily fogged up the windows in the kitchen as I brought myself out of the entry and into the hall. To the left, a wide opening gave access to a smaller area where the couch and television were set up, and past the opening a door to the bathroom. The bedrooms lay across the right side, first mine and then my uncle's. The boiling water in the kitchen was still popping and searing from around the corner as I twisted the doorknob to my room and emerged inside.