It was a lovely dream, the kind that she wished would go on forever, yet Iris eventually awoke to her familiar bed, alone in her dingy little bedroom. A bright and cheerful Saturday morning greeted Iris with vivid sunbeams peering through her window blinds and birds chirping happily outside.
Iris stretched her sore body and readied herself for weekend chores by stripping the bed of its linens to wash with the rest of the week's laundry. It was a funny thing, though. Despite her watch-mate's absence, the other side of the mattress was still warm, and her hand lingered gingerly to soak up the fleeting sensation.
A small part of her hoped that the dream was real, that she’d spent the night beside Alden Cavendish, but it was pure fantasy on her part. She ambled drowsily to the other side of the bed and retrieved the turned-over framed photograph of her and Ethan that was sitting on top of her hand-painted dresser. She stared at the snapshot of them eating ice cream together on campus during her university days for a minute before lobbing the whole frame into her bedside waste basket.
“Dreaming about your boss, Iris? Really?” She admonished herself for the foolishness of it all. “Anyone else, I could have lived with, but…”
She winced at the shamefulness of it and ran a hand through her tangled locks to free them from each other. Iris licked her dry lips and gathered her laundry with tensed muscles and a droopy expression. Her thoughts ran rampant in the lonely quiet of the bedroom, which allowed cruel beliefs to take root in her troubled mind.
You seem to think awfully highly of yourself, Iris. He could take his pick from millionaires, socialites, models, and athletes. What makes you think he’d want someone like you?
Iris stopped to examine her reflection in the chipped portrait mirror above her dresser. What stood before her was a pale, sickly, crying woman, with no money, no social standing, and no upward mobility. Iris could offer him nothing but herself, and she knew that what she had wasn’t worth the opportunity cost of settling for her.
Tears streamed down both cheeks as Iris stifled her sorrow. Her shoulders and neck strained to contain the spasms of silent sobbing and she choked back any cries that might worry her roommates. The last thing Iris wanted was for one or more of them to ask what was wrong. No, it was better to stay quiet.
You’ll never be more to them than the meek little nobody that takes meeting notes and makes appointments. You’re the lowest of the low. A machine could do your job.
In her dream, she had asked to go to the beach with him and the pair lingered until nightfall to watch the stars come out. Iris was always too busy or too poor to go and hadn’t realized how badly she longed for a vacation from her problems. She’d lived near lakes and rivers her entire life, yet never once had occasion to stick her feet in the warm sands and dissolve entirely into friendly waters.
You’re lucky to work there at all, Iris. Don’t get greedy or start having ideas…
“It might have been nice to at least go to the beach together…” Iris observed as she wiped errant tears with a sweater sleeve. She remained unaware that a silent sentinel loomed outside her cracked open door. “But I can’t even afford to feed us, let alone spend money on—”
“Mistress? Are you awake?” Khazmine asked after hearing Iris’s distressing comments. “I’m coming in.”
“Morning, Khaz.” Iris managed to force a tepid smile at the Augment after concealing her despair with a big yawn and an averted gaze. “I’ll be doing some laundry soon, if you want to throw your dirty clothes in the hamper. I know you don’t sweat, but I’ll bet you’d feel better with a clean jacket.”
Khazmine scanned Iris’s expression for insight and puzzled at the results. Despite having spent the night with an aesthetically pleasing human, her face had a gloomy cast to it, reddened by tears, and her whole being had a dispirited air.
I’m sorry, little one. Khazmine silently gathered bedding with Iris as the pair trudged to the laundry area. Sometimes these things don’t pan out. You’ll find someone for you.
The Augment couldn’t help but hear a subtle sigh from Iris as they readied the wash. Khazmine had heard that sound a thousand times in her many years and attributed it to both heartbreak and disappointment. She couldn’t know the torment that insidiously haunted Iris’s innermost thoughts, but she could see the results plainly.
Something within her left Khazmine’s plates shifting uncomfortably, but she had difficulty placing the emotion. The silence was oppressive, and only broken by the rhythmic churning of the tiny washing machine. Iris stared absentmindedly, her eyes glassy and unfocused.
She looks so lost… Surely, we can do something to cheer her up. Khazmine retraced her memories and landed on an idea. Ah yes, that’s it…
Khazmine skulked out to where Byxx was resting on his linen heap and stooped low to whisper into his pointed ear. “Huh? How’s that again?” The archfiend asked with a yawn and a stretch of both arms.
Her patience tested but not depleted, Khazmine waited with a raised brow and crossed arms for Byxx to rouse properly before explaining again.
“So, do you think we could arrange something for her?” Khazmine pressed. “We’ll need Curtis’s help.”
“Yeah, gimme a minute. I’ll message him.” Byxx cradled the tiny cellphone in his massive hands and typed furiously. Khazmine noted his improved speed and skill with working the device, especially after having such trouble using it with his thick fingers before now. “Done. He's on board, just let me know what time is good.”
A conspiracy was underway at the apartment, as Iris tidied up their shared space and her roommates scurried about to hatch their plan. Byxx was busy in the kitchen, preparing a small cooler with ice, drinks, and snacks. Khazmine had spirited the laptop away to the spare room to search for suitable locations for their plan. Zayne returned from the balcony with his tattered blanket and throw pillow from the couch, to see the depressed Iris cleaning the living room.
“Hey, sorry about last night.” Zayne shifted back into his Paxoram form and rubbed his tired eyes. “I was still having that itching problem and didn’t want to ruin your sleep when you got home. Don’t worry though; I spent the night on the balcony.”
“Did you see the stars?” Iris asked with as much enthusiasm as she could muster. “It’s hard sometimes in the city, especially if it’s cloudy. But your sight is much better than mine. I’ll bet the whole universe looks lovely in your eyes.”
A creeping uneasiness settled into the Paxoram. Was this longing, despair, or something more worrisome? Iris’s voice sounded hollow and weary, and it left Zayzann tensing involuntarily until she stopped speaking.
“It was too cloudy last night. But with clear skies, yes, your stars are breathtaking.” Zayzann approached from behind as Iris folded a blanket and wrapped his arms gingerly around her for a fuzzy, feathery hug. “Forgive me, but you looked like you needed this.”
Iris didn’t fight the unexpected hug, nor did she flinch or react much at all. She stood stock-still with her arms full of folded blanket underneath Zayzann’s and stared with narrowed eyes at the relentless beams of vibrant sunlight. Zayzann rested his head briefly on her shoulder until he caught a glimpse of her face and backed away. Something was very wrong.
His instinct was to seek out a fellow roommate for information, rather than call attention to Iris without proof. Zayzann popped his head into the spare room and spotted Khazmine busily reading and typing into the computer before turning away. The archfiend, he reasoned, would be a softer touch for insight.
“Hey, Byxx?” Zayzann padded into the kitchen to see the archfiend finalizing cooler preparations. “What’s going on with Iris?”
“I don’t really know, but Khazmine tells me she’s sad for some reason.” Byxx handed him the cooler and removed his apron to change into his bright orange T-shirt. “I was asleep by the time she got home last night. Must have been something at work. Anyway, Khaz had an idea…”
An insistent knocking at the front door interrupted Byxx’s explanation. Iris made her way to the entrance, brushed off her dust from cleaning, and opened the door to the chipper smile and friendly voice of Curtis.
“Good morning, Iris.” Curtis removed his sunglasses and offered her a big hug. Her tiny body plunged into his warm embrace and woke Iris from her lingering stupor. “Surprised to see me?”
“I’m afraid I am.” Iris confessed. A flicker of concern flashed across her face as she scrambled to reply. “Did we… make plans for today? I don’t remember if I—”
“Not at all. It was a surprise.” Curtis cut in and released Iris from his grasp. “I had the day off today from the café and wanted to spend it with friends. Would you like to join me? It’s no fun going on adventures by myself.”
Byxx leaned out of the kitchen and flashed an enthusiastic “thumbs up” at Curtis for his efforts at persuasion. If anyone could draw Iris out of her shell, it would be this plucky human with his infectious grin. Byxx had lately started to appreciate the irresistible magnetism that Curtis’s smile commanded and was drawn towards him with increasing intensity.
“You’ll come too, right?” Byxx sidled beside Iris with a sack of clothes, and several rolled up bath towels, plus a bottle of sunscreen. “I haven’t left this city since I got here. Won’t you teach me about the world outside?”
You can’t go. There are chores to do, food to prepare, and bills to sort. Iris lowered her head and flinched. Besides, who do you think will pay for you to go?
“The trip is on me, by the way.” Cassie swaggered in from the hallway, brandishing a roll of bills and one of Iris’s old swimsuits. She joined them at the front door and used her body to block off another avenue of escape. “I made a packet on my last job and wasn’t sure how best to spend it.”
“I’m coming, too.” Zayne emerged from the bathroom wearing a black V-neck shirt and Ethan’s abandoned swimming trunks. They were snug but would suit a single day’s use without alteration. “Won’t you come with us?”
It was deeply unfair of them, ganging up on poor Iris as they had, but her head was overruled by their friendly insistence. “Okay, let me grab a change of clothes and we’ll head out.”
The five adventure bound companions piled into Curtis’s old car, with the humans sitting up front and Cassie sandwiched between Byxx and Zayne in the back seat. Byxx had a terrible time stooping low enough on the seat so his horns wouldn’t press into the ceiling upholstery. Cassie was practically sitting on Zayne’s lap, as there was so little room back there with the two sizable men to share space with.
“Are we there yet?” Zayne asked as his leg fell asleep under the impressive weight of the Augment. It was all he could do to keep his composure as her heavy plates dug into his thigh through several layers of cloth. “I gotta stretch my legs.”
“Relax, Zay. We're almost there.” Curtis smiled as they pulled off the main road and onto a dirt-packed side street that extended to reach a state park and its amenities. He retrieved a ticket from the automated roadblock and pulled into a parking space with an astounding view of the lake. “All right, folks. This is it.”
Zayne ducked out of the car first, having had his fill of being crushed under the Augment. He brushed himself off and watched Byxx scamper down towards the sands with the cooler in one hand and the bag of towels in the other. Curtis trailed after him with an enormous beach umbrella that had been stowed in the trunk. Cassie was busily removing her outer clothing to reveal that she was wearing a slim, black bikini with a generous dip in the front and back for her to show off some skin.
Iris was the last to exit Curtis’s beat up old car, as she was processing where they had ended up. The drive had taken ages, but there was still plenty of daylight left. Were they even in the same state anymore? As far as she knew, Curtis had driven them to paradise.
Zayne whipped off his shoes and sauntered over to where Iris was standing, still staring out at the expanse of sand and clear waters before her. It was faint and fragile, but he thought he saw Iris smile.
Comments (6)
See all