Note from the author: Total Word Count: 2598. Words to go: 27,402.
The week flashes by in a blur. Time seems to flow differently here. All 5 years here have been bland. Some things stand out, like my time with Amy, or looking out of my dorm window sketching Earth, but for the most part, days are uniform and monotonous.
On Saturday I wake up to bright sunlight invading my room. Amy. She’s humming her usual morning tune; the one who‘s lyrics I have completely memorized by this point: “Good Morning to you, good morning to you! We’re all in our places with bright shiny faces, good morning to you”.
“Morning Charlie! Are you ready for a great day? It’s finally the weekend,” she greets me warmly. Ugh. Morning people, it’s not natural to be this happy this early. I stuff my head under my pillow and let out a groan. In response she flings off my blanket. I shudder as if I’ve been thrown into a freezer.
I open one eye and look at my enemy, the clock. 7am. Just perfect. Rationally I know I should get up and help Amy with her chores so we have some free time before she leaves, unfortunately I am tired to the point of utter exhaustion.
The promise of breakfast is the only thing that successfully lures me out of bed. I help Amy finish up in my room, there’s not too much to clean because I try to keep it fairly tidy so I have more time with Amy.
We head off to the cafeteria arms linked. At the serving bar, Gus hands me a tray topped with cinnamon French toast, a bacon and cheddar omelet, and some orange juice, no pulp. We say our thanks and head off to find a table.
The first 5 minutes of breakfast were spent taking in the delicious foods. Then we idly chit-chatted. I wish we could just relax, but we have to get back to work.
We make our way down the girls dormitory, floors one and three. I work on the bathroom while she works on the sleeping area. We finish up by making the bed together. We’re a well-oiled machine.
I’d never admit it out loud, but I kind of enjoy snooping through people’s rooms. It’s my guilty pleasure. I don’t judge anyone or anything, but I find it interesting to see what people hold near and dear.
Finally we finish up and have two spare hours. It varies time to time, but usually we end up with half an hour to two and a half hours. Other maids take the whole day, but with two of us working, we’re really efficient. Sometimes we spend the free time in the game center, playing ping pong. Sometimes we play cards or start a puzzle. Sometimes we just talk. Other times we plan what we’re going to do once I graduate.
Today we decide to have a major planning session. We head back to my room. She lays on the bed and I sit on the window ledge. She wants to take me to a movie theater, and a bowling alley, and a mall. I want to go to a big city and camping. Thinking about the future used to make me sad, because it was so far away, but now I’m excited. I can’t believe it’s almost here…2 weeks, people! That’s barely anything.
Amy catches me off guard when she asks me what I want for my birthday. She started getting me presents after she found out that my parents always failed to remember. She’s gotten me tons of thoughtful gifts, from books, to hula hoops, to stuffed animals.
So I’m not surprised by the presents, but I had totally forgotten that my birthday was coming up! I’ve been so focused on graduation. I ponder her question for a minute, lips pursed in concentration.
A light bulb goes off in my head. I hope it’s not too much to ask for…
“Amy, I would love….if….if I could live with you for a bit after graduation?” my voice trails off.
Amy didn’t bat an eye. “Well of course you’ll live with me,” she said, her tone implying that I had merely stated the obvious. Before I know it, I’ve leaped up off the floor and am doing some weird excitement dance. I start laughing and Amy follows in suit. I need to reign in the enthusiasm! But man, am I excited. I sit down on the bed, trying to calm down, but I seem to be bouncing in place.
“Sorry if I didn’t make that clear, Charlie. I just assumed we’d already established this,” Amy said patting my back. “So what did you want for your birthday? You must want something; you only turn seventeen once!”
“Oh I don’t know. I’m just happy that I’ll be living with you. Thank you so much! Your company is better than any gift,” I babbled. Whoa. That was a solid 10 on the cheesy-ness scale.
Amy responds with a “we’ll see about that” and turns away. But not before I see the look that she’s trying to conceal in her eyes. She’s planning something big for my birthday.
We spend the rest of our time together painting each other’s nails. I go with a pale pink and Amy decides on a tasteful peachy color. Part of my mind is on Earth and the future adventures I’m going to have.
I’m so occupied with my musings that I totally knock over the open bottle of polish. I shriek and turn the bottle upright. I don’t even want to inspect the damage, but I look down anyway. Soiling my beige carpet is a huge pink puddle. Great.
I don’t even know where to start. Luckily Amy’s maid training kicks in. She stays very calm and asks me if I have any sugar. An odd request, but fortunately I always keep some sugar packets in my room just incase I get the hiccups. Eyebrows raised I hand her a packet of Splenda. I don’t know where she’s going with this, but I don’t ask.
She rips open the pack and dumps the sugar on the mess. Immediately the nail polish starts to ball up. It’s actually really cool. After it’s all clumpy and dry, she simply picks up the heap with a napkin and throws it away. My carpet still has a light pink stain but it’s a million times better.
I hope the sugar doesn’t attract bugs, there aren’t too many up on the moon, but sometimes someone will accidentally bring one into the academy. I remember a few years ago, this kid, Roger, decided to bring a little plotted plant with him to remind him of Earth. I guess he didn’t realize that we have gardens here, but anyway, the plant had a few ants on it. Next thing we know, the boys dorm had been completely taken over by ants. Horrible. It was quite a problem to exterminate them because of the ventilation system. Ugh. Ever since then, the principal makes sure to tell new students during registration to avoid transporting bugs up to Moon Academy.
Alas, it’s time for Amy to leave again. I wish she could stay here, but soon enough we’ll be together. I can’t wait!
