God's Gaze

Part Two Chapter One: Career Dilemma

        April showers pattered against the gymnasium's windows that framed the walls near the ceiling. The hardwood and synthetic vinyl floors painted with colourful stripes were lined with rows upon rows of tables that displayed different careers. One booth announced openings for a metal working company near Lostry (fire elementals recommended), another booth explained the preservation of old Aenonian texts.

       All grade twelve students got holed up in the gym to figure out what they wanted to do once they graduated. The student's stress heightened at the realization that they'll be done with school in just a couple months, but Vivienne didn't hold the same sentiment. As she roamed the career fair, she only got filled with a sense of dread.

       It has been a month since the incident at Old Westgate, and ever since then, the worry in the pit of her stomach has grown exponentially. She was going to die and there wasn't anything she could do about it. Sometimes in the dead of night when all there was to hear was her own thoughts, Vivienne nearly threw up at the image of eternal darkness. That once she was gone; that was it- all she would see for eternity was the never-ending dark.

       As she roamed the career fair, Vivienne noticed all the jobs she could apply for when she graduated. The presenters behind each booth waved at her with wide smiles with some motioning for her to take a pamphlet. However, she didn't take any. She couldn't see herself doing any of that. She wouldn't live long enough to pursue her dreams let alone stay committed to a career.

       Vivienne wondered if Moira felt the same way, however, when she turned around to face the elf, she saw her at a booth. Moira scribbled on a piece of paper before she handed it to the presenter. The Vessel gave the presenter a warm smile before Moira danced between booths and took business cards and pamphlets as she went.

       Vivienne should have known. Patrix made it perfectly clear he wanted Moira to live a long and fulfilling life. She frowned; Vivienne's mother would have thought the contrary.

       Queeny and Ollie followed Moira down the aisle and left Vivienne alone amongst the crowd. She sighed and began to wander in the opposite direction of her friends and explored the gym by herself.

       By the bleachers, she spotted her brother's booth. She completely forgot he was here too. A sizable crowd surrounded his booth full of girls batting their eyelashes at Jeremiah. He seemed uncomfortable with the attention as he attempted to explain the process of locating and securing godly artifacts, however, none of the students appeared to be listening.

       He noticed Vivienne's gaze and waved at her with a small smile as if pleading for her to come rescue him. She only stuck her nose in the air and stomped down the aisle with a huff.

       Despite being the next in line to inherit the company, Vivienne couldn't see herself working for her father's business, either. It was an awful thought, she had to admit, but it'd be best if the firm was out of her hands. She knew nothing about how it worked, and she'd hate to ruin the reputation Jeremiah spent a better part of a decade building up.

       In her flurry of self-loathing, she ended up ramming into a pair of translucent fairy wings. The owner of the wings jumped and fluttered above the ground momentarily before they spun around to see who surprised them. Jean's widened eyes relaxed when he saw it was only Vivienne. "Whew, you scared me there!" he said with an embarrassed grin. He had no applications or pamphlets in his hands as well, which made her frown. "What's with the long face?" he asked, noticing her sudden expression.

       "I just don't like these kind of events... It's overwhelming," she lied, hugging her arms to her chest. "There's no point in being here, but Mr. Gaumont won't let us leave until we took something from a booth."