Discharged

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            "Yep, you're all set, here's your tickets!" The receptionist handed us two tickets and stamped them with smiley faces.

            "Thanks so much," Lizzie said, and we left for the entrance to the museum. To my surprise, we hadn't needed to pay a thing, apparently covered already by Uncle Frank, who I was starting to like more and more.

            "Was that the surprise he was hinting at?" I asked Lizzie. "Free admission?"

            "I doubt it, he told me about that beforehand. Speaking of which, let's meet him before he gets too busy."

            We got stamped on the back of our hands with a cute little lightning bolt design. I was impressed, normally these stamps are very faded, but the design was very neat and clear this time around, almost like a temporary tattoo. Upon making it past the front gates, we located a map to find the Theater of Electricity. I was impressed with how big the place was, having three full levels of exhibits, and an impressive number of exhibits per floor. Taking a right from the entrance hall, we entered a massive atrium leading to and from the various exhibits on display. I grinned like an idiot, the whole place was so colorful and... loud. "We probably shouldn't have come during the weekend," I noted, seeing just how busy it already was mid-morning.

            "Huh?" Lizzie said, trying to hear me over the crowd and machines. "Oh, yeah, probably. It was Frank who offered Sunday anyways."

            "Still though, this place is gonna be tons of fun!" I said, squeezing her hand. She squeezed back in return.

            The Theater of Electricity was taller than I expected it to be. There were two floors to it, with the upper floor having balconies you could sit around to watch the show, or hallways leading to nearby exhibits. The main show had these two towers with spherical connected tops. According to the website, it was called the Van de Graaff Generator, generating air-insulated electricity. It was certainly intimidating, and I was very curious what it would look like during the show.

            Looking over a control panel toward the front of the display in front of the audience seating was a man in his fifties with curly brown hair. I quickly recognized him as the same man from the website's front page, the one who stood epically in the cage surrounded by lightning strikes. He wore a bright red lab coat over a black shirt and pants. Lizzie walked down the stairs that the audience used as seating for the show, eyeing the man. "Uncle Frank!" She called out.

            Uncle Frank!? I thought, eyebrows raised. So he was the one from the website then!

            Frank looked up from the panel and gave a welcoming smile. "Lizzie! You made it!" Leaving the stage, he met his niece at the base of the stage, and they embraced for a hug. "Goodness, you're tall!" He remarked.

            I raised an eyebrow. Lizzie was not particularly tall, though I suppose not particularly short either. Lizzie just laughed "shut up!" in response.

            "So how are you?" Frank asked, releasing the hug. "It's been a while!"

            "Long overdue for sure," Lizzie nodded. "I'm great, thanks for asking. How's Aunt Marianne?"

            "Hard at work as always. I sure do miss her, but I'm glad you're here to keep me company for the day," he said.

            "Of course! Boston's so packed full of things, it was a great spot for our first vacation. Speaking of which, this is my boyfriend, Beck!" She gestured me over.