After two and a half weeks of hard work, Harper and I were ready. On the second month of the year, we steeled ourselves for the long walk to the tower. Despite our objections, Skye insisted she joined us. She said she wanted to witness the moment she’d finally be rid of the disease that had plagued her all these years. We couldn’t refuse when she put it like that, so we bought her a hazmat suit. With the cure in a briefcase and Harper carrying the vaccine and a prayer, our little group set off.

We took a taxi to the edge of town. Driving past rows of houses and buildings until we finally made it to the big city wall (that would see a lot of damage during the Kaiju attacks but that was a story for another day). The atmospheric dispenser was atop the walls. Rows of them interspersed across the circumference of the wall that circled the city.

“We’ll stop here thanks,” I said.

Harper pulled out some money to pay but the taxi driver refused. “It’s on me, for the pretty girl sitting in between you.”

The pretty girl in a hazmat suit. How the heck did the disease affect him when she didn’t even show her face?

“No, I insist…”

“Harper, we don’t have time,” Skye said. “I really want to be cured.”

Harper was silent, smiled at Skye and we made our way up the wall. My ears popped as we reached the top. What a majestic view it was atop the walls, green fields, and yellow wheat farms as far as the eye could see. The wall was 50 meters in length and width and a popular tourist attraction. Apparently, it was built a thousand years ago to prevent attacks from dragons, but I didn’t know how true that claim was.

A giant gust of wind blew my hair, my clothes fluttered in the wind.

“Hey, April,” Harper said. “Hurry it up with the briefcase.”

“I’m sorry,” I said. “It’s just I’ve been here a million times, but I didn’t realise how beautiful the view was.”

I followed them until we made it to one of the towers. The tower jutted out of the wall. On the surface it looked like a normal broadcasting tower but at the tip of the tower was an object that opened up to be an air dispenser once an object was inserted at the base. You used a computer attached to the side of the tower, (a computer from the sixties mind you) to open up the little object receiver and once it was in you closed it up and set it to disperse. Back when my college friends and I wanted to spread lager we had Samuel who had a weird interest in sixties computers. Now, we just had Harper who only knew how to work her laptop and cell phone.

Harper was pressing random buttons trying to make it work while I carefully removed the cure from the briefcase and stood carefully by the tower.

The only sound was the wind whistling through the air, causing the rusted tower to moan in surrender. I was afraid it’d fall on me. Skye was standing right next to me, I turned to face her, she smiled under the yellow mirror of the hazmat suit. Harper cursed, saying swear words that were thankfully carried away by the wind.

I was glad we were by a side of the wall were none of the maintenance guys or even tourists could find us. I glanced around nervously, hoping the small dot of people in the far distance couldn’t see us. If I were being honest with myself, I wouldn’t say I was nervous about being found out but rather nervous that after the cure was dispersed, we wouldn’t accidently spread a whole new disease. The cure sloshing around in its metal container didn’t do much to ease my anxiety.

“I got it!” Harper shouted out. The tower whined as the disperser up top spread open like a flower. The machinery at the bottom of the wall whirred as suddenly, surrounded by the brown bars of the tower, what looked like a microwave ascended. It stopped right in front of me, reflecting my masked face on the sleek black surface.

“How am I supposed to get it open?” I asked.

“I’m working on it,” Harper said. “Shouldn’t take me long, AHA!”

The microwave opened revealing three faded red claws at the bottom that I assumed would keep the cure in place as it ascended in place, on the right and left side were suction cups tubes that could literally puncture any surface, including iron. The cups were attached to a network of tubes that snaked upwards to a device that would vaporize the liquid and spread it to the atmosphere. I grabbed the cure and placed it in the microwave. I attached the clasps.

“Harper, the cure is…” 

“Make sure Harper doesn’t press the input,” Skye whispered in my ear.

I didn’t want to, but that voice sent a shiver down my spine. Made me feel alive, happy. I ran at Harper who…

Spun me around, grabbed both of my hands with her left and used the right to keep me in a sleeper hold.

“Black belt, remember,” I said. I tried biting at her, but my teeth could barely reach her. “April what the fuck is this?”

“I’ll do anything for Skye,” I yelled. “My one true love.”

“April!” Skye said. Her saying my name made my heart flutter. It sounded like poetry when it came from her mouth. April like the spring breeze that…

“How do I…”

She turned the corner and saw Harper had me in a sleeper hold.

“It’s you,” Harper said. The way Harper said my beloved name in such an accusatory tone. This whore. I tried kicking her with my shin, but Harper pressed down on my foot with hers and turned her attention back to Skye. “What the heck are you doing? I thought you wanted to be cured!”

“I don’t,” Skye said, unable to meet Harper’s eyes.

“But you helped me out,” Harper yelled. “You…”

I didn’t care about this drama. I wanted, no, needed to get out. I tried to. Harper just pinned me to the ground.

“Let me go,” I cried. “Let me be in her arms.”

“April, relax,” Skye said. You had to truly be in love with her to notice that her voice had become firm, she wasn’t the timid girl I met all those days ago. I was so proud of her. I relaxed my body.

“I let you cure me because I… I liked it,” Skye said. “I enjoyed the attention. I enjoyed being cared about.”

This time Skye really couldn’t meet Harper’s face even though I wanted to see those beautiful eyes of hers. My body squirmed in desperation under Harper’s firm grip but I really underestimated her strength cause she kept me pinned down.

“You, you…” Harper’s voice cracked. “We’ll talk about this later, let’s deal with this B.S and then…”

“Harper, let go of April.”

Harper did just that. I was finally free. I ran into Skye’s arms. Skye gave me a hug. In that moment, my heart could have just about exploded.

“How…?” Harper asked, her voice strained.

“Harper release the clasps,” Skye said. “Destroy the cure.”

Harper turned to the computer, obeying everything Skye said. I could see her body try and resist, each step she looked as if it were a chore but, in the end, she stood in front of the computer and started typing.

“What the hell? I thought I was immune,” Harper said. “I saw the X-Ray. I had to…”

“I swapped them,” Skye said. “I made a copy of your X-Ray before the scan and replaced them. You were never immune. Why do you think you studied the rest of the medicine course you were taking? Because you’re my friend? We barely knew each other before.”

Harper was silent. She mouthed something.

“What’s that?”

“Why?”

“You never understood,” Skye said. “Being average. You were always Harper the black belt, Harper the girl studying college level material in middle school. You were always remarkable, yet you chose to be my friend. Me, unremarkable me. Who couldn’t get a boy to like her. Who only got C’s in class. Whose parents left her alone in a fucking jungle.”

I had never heard Skye swear. I was liking this new her. And I was so happy she was being vulnerable to me, I hugged her even tighter.

“I never got attention,” Skye growled. “You were always popular. So, when I got this disease and my parents finally started giving me attention, when Sam started looking at my direction. That was all I ever wanted and when you finally, finally paid attention to me instead of all those other people. That was the greatest feeling in the world.”

Tears started forming in Harper’s eyes. Good, she deserved it for speaking up to my beloved.

“You… you could’ve just asked me,” Harper said. “Skye, I enjoyed your time more than anyone. I loved how sweet you were, how humble and how funny you could be. You were never unremarkable.”

“Just stop the cure and shut up,” Skye said.

I grinned, hand on her chest. “I like it when you get like that.”

“Is this what you want?” Harper asked. “People liking you for something you’re not. Leaving everything about themselves behind just to please you? April isn’t even into girls, yet…”

“I said shut up!” Skye yelled. “Why aren’t you doing what you’re told?”

“Yeah,” I yelled. “Don’t question my love. It’s true and pure!”

Though, for some reason when I said that I couldn’t meet my beloved’s eyes.

“It’s fake is what it is,” Harper said. “Nobody’s liking you for you, they’re doing it because of a butterfly. Because they’re sick!”

“Everyone else obeys me,” Skye shouted. “Why aren’t…”

“Because I’m the one who truly loves you,” Harper said. The microwave shot upwards.

“WHY IS IT DOING THAT?!” Skye yelled. She tossed me aside, but I immediately got up and followed after her.

“It’ll be alright darling!” I called after her. Skye shoved Harper aside, I stuck out my tongue at her.

“NO!” Skye yelled.

On the computer it was written: SUBSTANCE IS READY FOR DISPERSAL in big green letters.

“No, no, no,” Skye said. She desperately typed away at the computer, slamming the screen but no matter what she did, the text stood still. “NO!” she cried till her voice went hoarse. She turned to Harper, slamming her fists against her chest. “Fuck you Harper, fuck you, fuck you, fuck…”

I tapped her shoulder. “I’d rather you fuck me…”

But was interrupted when in a burst of blue vapor spread out in the sky and my mind suddenly felt clear.

Skye fell to her knees, crying out. Tears started pouring down her eyes, meanwhile Harper remained impassive, her face still.

“What happened?” I asked. “What did I…”

Harper knelt, facing Skye. “Why’d you lie to me? Was all my worth to you how I made you feel instead…?” Harper choked. “Instead of me?”

I decided to leave them alone. Whatever had happened, this was something I didn’t want to say anything on.

“You’re a bitch,” Skye cried. “All I wanted, all I wanted was to be loved and you took that away from me!”

Harper ignored the scathing words. “You’re sick, Skye, in more ways than one.” Harper smiled, though I could see the sadness in her eyes.  “You know what? I’d have helped you with the disease, I’d have done whatever I could to cure it, butterflies in my stomach or no.”

She got up and turned to face me. “I… need some space. Could you help me get home?”

I nodded. “What about…?” I pointed at Skye.

“Leave her alone,” Harper said. “She never wanted people around her anyway.”

We started walking away from her, Skye’s sobs being carried away by the wind.

“Friends,” Harper said with a forced smile. “You think you know a person, am I right?” 

She laughed but the crack in her voice gave her away. I noticed the single tear running down her cheek, carried away by the wind.