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Iwould like to say I’ve waited patiently, but when a message comes through while I’m still in the bath, I tell the bot to open it immediately.

“He’s back!” I sink into the water, so my little squee turns into bubbles instead of sound.

This is my third shift since Lochdon went off on his contract and I honestly expected him to be gone longer. But I am not going to complain about the length of their months.

Phantom and I had a chat after his last visit to the booth, and while the locker rooms are definitely off limits for him still. He is on my priority list… which is why that message came straight to me, instead of going through a vetting process.

Wiggling under the water, I push myself up to sitting.

“Tell him that I would like to see him.” I tell the bot. “Can you recommend a place where we could both get something to eat?”

“Inezsal on level four can meet both of your dietary requirements.”

“Is it a nice place? Or…”

An image forms on the far wall… it looks like a live feed. “Creepy,” I whisper.

But Inezsal isn’t creepy. It gives cafe vibes.

“Okay. Suggest we meet up there, but if he has another idea and it’s someplace I can go, accept it.”

The bot is silent as I kick the tub drain and stand, drying myself off.

“He has suggested Lgeur’s on level twelve. They do have human-safe food options, but you will need to be careful. I can provide you with a menu selection that won’t get you into trouble.”

“That would be great.”

It takes up the whole wall and I read through the lines that are highlighted in green and the ones that aren’t safe, too—while I dry my hair.

By the time my hair is done and I’ve reapplied my makeup, I’ve mentally crossed out the things I know I won’t like and am left with three options.

I put on my old jean jacket and do a little spin. “How do I look?”

“Acceptable.”

I snort, because… what else did I expect?

As soon as I step out of my locker room, however…

“You look cuuute!” Cherry says, with a little jiggle. “Where are we going?”

“Lgeur’s.” I let her turn me around for inspection.

“Oooo fun! I haven’t been there in ages. I love this color combo on you.”

I look down and try to ignore the fact that I definitely accidentally just put on purple and blue.

I’m not trying to match Lochdon’s skin… At least, not consciously.

Oops.

And there’s no point in changing… I don’t have anything else that would be better.

“Thanks. It’s one of my favorites.”

She winks at me and heads for the locker rooms. “Have fun. But not enough fun they should be paying you!”

I laugh with her as she goes and then weave through the back halls until I find the bouncer who can let me out to the back entrances.

“What’s the fastest way to get to level twelve?” I ask him.

His eyes—they cover his face in all various sizes—blink out of sync. “Elevator.”

I pause for a moment until I’m certain that’s all the answer I’m going to get. Feigning enthusiasm, I say, “Thanks!” and hope it’s just a language gap thing.

I’ll figure it out.

He opens the door for me and I hurry through the spooky mechanical areas between the back entrance and the rest of the station.

I don’t enjoy the reminder that we’re all in a giant tin can floating in a vacuum. I’ve seen too many space disaster movies to be truly at ease with that.

But when I step out into the hallways, I can forget again.

This part of the station always reminds me of a Vegas casino… Big, packed with boisterous people, and time doesn’t really make sense here, even if there are clocks built into the walls.

I only have to walk past a few shops before I get to the elevator.

The thing flies upward when I hit the button… so maybe the bouncer wasn’t being obtuse. Maybe I need to loosen up.

Maybe I can convince Lochdon to loosen me up.