C3-G12 (Book 1, Terraform)

XXIII

            Astrid leads me into a room full of balloons and streamers. My eyes wander about the decorated room, intrigued by the transformation. The usually drab and boring interior of the main hall had been dolled up with blue and silver.

Voices ring out in greeting, all yelling their own form of 'congratulations'. I struggle to look through the mass of excited people in front of me, a large smile on my face. Once the group thins a little, I'm able to see a banner on the back wall with my new name on it.

Dr. Serina Barringer M.D.

My cheeks heat up in an odd form of embarrassment; this was all too much. I tighten my hold on Astrid's hand and cover my growing smile. "How? When?"

Everyone laughs at me a moment before Will begins to explain. "We started setting up about six hours ago," He reaches behind Leon, who stands to his left, and pulls a single pale girl to the front. "Plus, this one found us plenty of help."

Rose blushes and waves him off. "It was nothing," Now free of Will's grasp, Rose moves forward and sets a hand on my arm. "Everyone that had the day off from the infirmary was more than willing to lend a hand."

Everything is silent, quiet music playing in the background, as we hold still, almost lost in the excitement of it all. That is until my brain turns back on and I do the math. "Wait, six hours?" I look between the faces closest to me and frown. "I only got my results an hour ago. Hell, I was still taking the test six hours ago!"

Another round of laughter paired with a few solid shoves in all directions by numerous hands makes me dizzy. "You're the only one that doubted you'd pass," Lorna speaks loudly before being drowned out by a wave of cheering.

The next thing I know, a new body is pushing its way to the front of the crowd. The shifting gives me a moment to close my eyes and gain my bearings. "All right, everyone, stop crowding and enjoy!" When I open my eyes, I see Raiden wave everyone away and the mass begins to break off and migrate. It reminds me of when emboli break off of a main thrombus and start to move through the circulatory system.

My mind, still stuck in doctor-brain, is pulled from thoughts of blood clots when I notice Raiden hasn't left my side. When I look up at him, his face is lax in a new configuration of flexed and relaxed muscles that I haven't seen before. The zygomaticus major is contracted but it's different, his usual smiles are tight, cocky in nature, as if he knew something that nobody else did. But this, this was more relaxed, like he wasn't aware of the action and it simply happened naturally. Then there was the corrugator muscle, his usually sat in a relaxed position, never contracting and furrowing his brow unless he was deep in thought, but it now sat a little tighter than normal now. ­What was he thinking about?

"Raiden, why are you looking at me like that?"

His expression resets, returning to its normal state after a split-second of surprise. "Like what?"

I open my mouth to speak but he shakes his head and speaks before I can. "You know what? It doesn't matter; there's something you need to see." I close my lips and look at him closely. What are you hiding? "Come on," He says as he grabs my hand.

I walk a step behind him, staring at my hand in his. It was one thing to walk around, hand clasped with Astrid; the girl was as close to a sister as it got. This wasn't expected and it felt...odd. His skin is rough from years of handy work, and warm—good circulation—although, men usually have warmer extremities than women to begin with.

When we stop, we're in a different room but still close enough to hear the music playing in the lobby. I pull my eyes from our hands and look forward only to gasp and feel the unfamiliar sting of tears. "Dr. Barringer," Jada grins widely at me from Shawn's side through an immaculate hologram.