Chlorine Halos

Teacups & Ballgowns

"My first relay—um, my last relay didn't go so well," I explained, clenching my jaw. 

"If you try and don't succeed..." he hinted confidently as he held out his strata.

"...wait for the guy with the magic handshake?" I guessed, only halfway kidding.

"Something like that," he replied while I reached into the pocket of my t-shirt for the pawn. "And it was more of a wristshake."

Flashing a faint smile, I reluctantly exchanged my strata with his. I caught a brief, unobstructed view of the photograph, cradled in his hat. A beautiful, young woman with perfectly coiffed curls and a wide, vibrant smile blocked most of the camera's lens with her hand. Despite her effort, the picture captured the vivid joy of the moment.

"Who is that?" I asked as he slid the ballcap over his wavy hair.

"You're about to meet her," he replied with a grin. "Now, concentrate and ask me what's on your mind. The relay will do the rest."

A long exhale traveled through my puffed cheeks. "What was my plan?"

Sharp, high-pitched feedback shot into my ears. I doubled over, palms against my temples with Jaime's strata pushing an indentation into my skin. The stinging sound faded out, leaving a wake of goosebumps down my arms.

"This relay's off to a good start," I whipped, cracking my sarcasm. 

"You can't ask me for answers I don't have," Jaime explained. 

"What are you talking about?" I asked with a shortened temper, shaking the last of the noise out of my head. "You said I had a plan."

"A plan I know nothing about," he replied. "You said knowing as little as possible would keep me safe. Me and my family."

"And look where that's gotten us!" I fired back as my resolve began to crumble. "Your family paid the price for me to gamble on an idea!" I paced back and forth in front of Jaime while my thoughts collapsed in on themselves. "What the hell was I thinking? This is crazy. Crazy. I'm crazy!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Jaime exclaimed, blocking my movement with a raised, open hand. "Do you think Anthony and Natalie are dead?"

I cleared my throat, attempting to even my breaths. "Are you saying they're not?"

"Avian, you need to think about this. Really think about it. Nine years ago, everyone thought you died. I mean everyone. Fooling the grid is one thing; Fooling the Alcove is a feat farther than impossible. But, you did it. And you did it with style. The Avian Douglas I know is full of surprises. So much, in fact, he's able to surprise himself. Believe me when I say you don't ask others to make sacrifices. You carry that burden yourself."

"Jaime, I saw them die."

"No, Avian. You saw them leave." He allowed the silence to fill with hope. "Now, again, concentrate," he instructed, holding up my strata. "Ask the right question."

I shut my eyes, mulling over a myriad of thoughts. My mind reached back to the light filled room, the giant penrose in Cartesia. Donovan's over-rehearsed narration washed over the recollection. "...in the grand scheme of things, people, by default, unite themselves. They congregate with intention. And no matter what anyone thinks, he or she cannot live his or her entire life without someone else touching it. No one is ever completely alone."

My eyes opened as the question poured out of me. "How are we connected?"

"Yo sabia que podias hacerlo," Jaime whispered with a light laugh.

The chess pawn in his hand radiated a bright glow. He tossed it above us as pitch black darkness swallowed the surroundings. My strata burst mid-air, throwing innumerable flecks of light in every direction. The scattered sparks bathed the blackness, revealing an empty classroom. I stepped around Jaime, trying to take in the contents of the memory. Two blackboards on perpendicular walls were filled with Spanish conjugations. Graffiti covered every desk in the center of the room. A bookcase, which ran underneath the windows on one wall, had several broken shelves and stacks of tattered textbooks. In front of the wall, across from the doorway, sat a single desk with one column of drawers, the teacher's desk.